Water and Education
By simply looking around the school grounds on my most recent trip to Zambia, Africa, it was easy to see the important role water plays in the daily lives of students. Aside from the color of the children’s burgundy uniforms against the brown landscape, flashes of yellow were visible all over the courtyard as the students moved about. The yellow was not from books or backpacks, but from plastic jugs that the pupils clutched tightly in their hands. The yellow jugs were an intimate part of the school landscape. Since the school had no water on its property, students took long breaks to fetch water from a well located a half-mile away. As I watched, I realized that even more than books or paper, the jugs represented life as the students filled and refilled them with water.

Most people in the U.S. cannot imagine a school with no drinking fountains, flush toilets, or sinks in which to wash hands. Unfortunately, the scene above is common in most classrooms throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. Children’s education suffers greatly from a lack of safe water and sanitation for several reasons.

Water Collection

Too often students use valuable class time to fetch water long distances from the school. They have to carry jugs that are far too heavy for their small frames, which affects the development of their spines as they grow. Frequently, they are collecting it from contaminated sources.

Disease & Death

Unsafe water leads to severe outbreaks of diarrheal diseases, some of the most deadly diseases for children in the developing world. Improper waste disposal and lack of water for proper hand washing perpetuates diseases such as cholera, typhoid, and hepatitis. These outbreaks force school closures, making education impossible in some rural areas.

Effect on Female Students

Many girls are not able to attend school because their main responsibility for the family, collecting water, requires hours of walking each day. In many cases, young women drop out of school when they reach puberty because of a lack of privacy or female-only facilities. Improved latrines, hand in hand with adequate access to safe water, can significantly improve attendance at schools, especially for girls. After making provisions for safe water and latrines at two schools, Lifewater’s partner in Kenya reported a reduction in girls being pulled from class to fetch water. They also noted a “remarkable increase in female enrollment.”

People all over the world cite lack of education as one of the main obstacles to reducing poverty. Lifewater understands that in order to improve education, issues like water and sanitation need to be addressed. That is why Lifewater is working to provide schools with safe water, latrines, and hygiene education in places like Zambia, Kenya, Ecuador, and Central Asia. By reducing disease and providing for students’ basic needs for water and sanitation, schools once again become assets to the community and catalysts for a better future.