In
Ethiopia, where water is dangerously scarce, water found in the local pond may
be contaminated. Parents often have
little choice but to bring it home for their thirsty children to drink who need
it to survive.
This
potentially deadly situation is all-too-common for families in Borena, an
impoverished region in southern Ethiopia, where hundreds of thousands of people
suffer as a result of water shortages caused by catastrophic drought. Drinking
untreated water increases the risk for diarrheal disease that can be deadly -- especially
for children and adults with immune systems weakened by malnutrition.
“Now, after using
the treated water my whole family is healthy.” —Dima Dabaso
To
help thousands of families affected by the Horn of Africa drought and famine, AmeriCares donated more than three
million sachets of PUR water purification tablets for camps and communities in
Kenya and Ethiopia. At the height of the
emergency, one million of the sachets were delivered to our partner in the
region, Oxfam and their local partners
to be used in a program aimed at providing thousands of Ethiopian families with
clean, treated water for three months.
Oxfam
and its local partners carefully selected the most vulnerable families from severely
impoverished communities to receive the purification sachets and other hygiene
items, along with crucial health education. During the distribution, men, women
and children received hands-on training on how to properly use the sachets, and
learned about the importance of treating water and effective methods to reduce
the risk of infection and diarrheal disease.
“It is good to drink clean water. Treating it has improved our lives.
Previously, we had diarrhea, vomiting and disease, but now after using the
treated water, my whole family is healthy,” said Dima Dabaso. “The only
challenge now is drought, with the limited water in the pond.”
Photo courtesy of Oxfam
Dima Dabaso
Oxfam
reported that once the importance of drinking treated water was instilled in
the community, the interest in using the treatment sachets increased, and the
incidence of diarrheal disease has been noticeably reduced.
“We are happy that
we have the knowledge and our problems are being solved,” said Darmi Galgalo.
“Particularly I am happy with the way the selection was done by the community
leaders who sought to help the poorest of the poor.”
Ongoing Famine
Relief
Since famine was declared in parts of Somalia, Kenya and
Ethiopia in summer, 2011, AmeriCares has delivered more than $2
million in aid to these East African nations, including nutritional
supplements, water purification tablets, and urgently needed medicines and
medical supplies. Our efforts to reduce human suffering in this stricken region
of the world will continue as long as needed.
