As the COVID-19 pandemic escalates, millions of people globally don't have access to the most basic handwashing facilities: clean water and soap. Without these essentials, people have less chance of protecting themselves from the spread of diseases.

WaterAid are already working to bring clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene to everyone, everywhere. Right now, our teams around the world are also urgently scaling up work to install handwashing facilities in areas where people need them most, and to launch public awareness campaigns so that everyone knows how important it is to wash their hands with soap, when to do it and how to do it right.

Handwashing with soap is the first line of defence against COVID-19.

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WaterAid has teams in 28 countries across the world, working with our partners to transform millions of lives every year by improving access to clean water, toilets and hygiene.

Since 1981, we’ve reached over 27 million people with clean water. But we can’t stop there.

In the last 39 years, we’ve gone from strength to strength to become one of the most respected organisations dealing solely with water, sanitation and hygiene issues.

While installing taps and toilets is essential to our work, we do so much more. We convince governments to change laws, link policy makers with people on the ground, pool knowledge and resources and rally support from people and organisations around the world, making lasting change happen on a massive scale.

Regular gifts by direct debit give us a predictable income so we can commit to helping more people. Plus direct debits mean we pay less in processing fees than for credit card gifts.