Clean water

Clean water is what keep us all healthy. It should be a normal part of daily life for everyone, everywhere – but it isn't.

Without a reliable source of clean water close to home, people have no choice but to collect dirty water for drinking, cooking and cleaning. This can spread deadly diseases like cholera.

It often means a long walk to the nearest stream or river, usually for women and girls, so there’s little time or energy left for paid work or school.

Whole communities are held back, simply because they don’t have clean water

Decent toilets

Dignity. Health. Equality. It all starts with a decent toilet.

Not having a decent toilet – at home, at school, in healthcare facilities – is dangerous for so many reasons.

It means there's no way of managing human waste properly, so deadly diseases like diarrhea and cholera spread quickly. It means people have no choice but to go outside, which is especially unsafe for women and children.

And it means people often stop going to school or work if they're ill or on their period – meaning fewer opportunities to get an education, earn a living and take control of their lives.

Good hygiene

Healthy hygiene habits can change – and even save – lives.

From personal hygiene like handwashing, food hygiene and menstrual hygiene, to the availability of clean water and decent toilets, practicing good hygiene is one of the most effective ways for people – at home, at work, in school or in healthcare facilities – to keep themselves and their loved ones safe from infection.

Poor hygiene means children get sick and miss school, adults can't work to support their families, and patients are at risk in health centers. Whole communities miss out on opportunities to improve their lives.

1in10
people don't have clean water close to home

1.5 billion
people don't have a decent toilet of their own

2 billion
lack soap and/or water to wash their hands at home, if they have a place at all

Where we go from here

With the help of amazing people like you, we're working in some of the toughest places in the world. Together, we've already reached millions of people with these three essentials, enabling entire communities to stay healthy, to unlock their potential, break free from poverty and change their lives for good.

And while installing taps and toilets is essential to our work, we do so much more. From advocacy to engineering, water is just the beginning!

Learn about the important planning and maintenance work that goes into our water projects

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A map showing where WaterAId works

Together, we're changing lives for the better in 22 countries around the world.

We’ve made amazing progress, but we have a long way to go.

We still need your help to bring clean water to everyone, everywhere.

Image: WaterAid/ Alexia Webster
Having a water point would mean having enough time to farm. It would mean a change for our children’s future. They would live a free life because they would be able to attend school.
Mary, 22, Malawi

We all know that  people living without clean water shouldn’t be normal. That  people not having a reliable toilet shouldn’t be normal. That poverty shouldn’t be normal.

Thanks to remarkable people like you, we’ve already made huge progress. But there’s still so much more we need to do. And creating lasting change isn’t just a dream.

Together, we can reach everyone, everywhere with clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene within a generation. One village, one region, one country at a time.

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