Watercan: Africa's Solution To Lacking Sustainable Water
By: Seo5 Consulting
Submitted: 2011-01-22 05:31:23 | Word Count: 543
While people go about their days complaining about how the price of bottled water is too high or how tap water does not taste pure enough, there are those who live their lives searching day after day for any source of drinkable water. The reality is nearly one billion people, a sixth of the world's population is lacking access to clean drinking water and approximately 2.5 billion are living without basic sanitation and hygiene education. Charities such as WaterCan offer the opportunity to make a difference to those less fortunate.
WaterCan is the leading Canadian charity dedicated to breaking the cycle of global poverty and disease as well as increasing opportunities for health education, gender equality, and economic growth. Their goals to make Canadians aware of the water and sanitation issues within Africa is on-going but since its creation in 1987, WaterCan has helped over one million children, men and women struggling within the world's poorest regions across 32 developing countries.
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Sustainable water is needed, but far from reach. With the population growth, amount of pollution increasing, and warning signs of global warming, sustainable water does not seem attainable. Unfortunately the water supply around the world is severely scarce and when water makes up 55% - 78% of the human body, we have established that clean drinking water is essential to healthy living. This is why WaterCan has placed such importance on fighting global poverty and helping poor countries gain access to clean water, basic sanitation, and hygiene education.
Children of all ages, beginning at birth, face diseases due to dirty water and lack of proper sanitation. Skin and eye infections, diarrhoeal diseases, intestinal parasites [contribute to malnutrition and slow down physical and mental development] may seem like minimal risk factors. However even though many see these as preventable and treatable, two million school-aged children surrender to diarrhoeal diseases every year making it the second leading cause of death in children under the age of five.
With WaterCan's Clean Water for Schools and Clean Water for All programs, they have addressed the unspeakable water and sanitation conditions in east African primary schools and have helped fight global poverty by working with poor urban and rural communities in search of water and sanitation solutions.
In Sub-Saharan Africa a mere 58% of the population has access to an improved water supply and 36% have access to sanitation. Women and young girls are required to walk an average of six kilometers to fetch water from rivers, streams or unprotected springs that are often unsafe for consumption. The result of these living conditions lead to the worst possible scenarios but fortunately local governments have recognized and welcomed the involvement of WaterCan to extend water supply and sanitation services to underserved communities in rural areas and urban slums.
When lacking sustainable water, it is up to charities such as WaterCan to help those in need. The fight against global poverty ends here. For more information about WaterCan or how you can help, visit the website at WaterCan.
Author Resource:-
WaterCan is a Canadian charity that recognizes the impact access to clean water in Africa has on the community, and is working to make this very important basic necessity available to all. For more information visit www.WaterCan.com.
