Project Background
Many communities in Ghana have either limited or no access to improved fresh water sources, basic sanitation, and hygiene facilities. This leads to increases in waterborne diseases. Women are often the most affected, as they have to walk long distances to fetch water, which is both unproductive and unsafe.
Having increased access to clean water is crucial to decreasing disease and to empowering women. By reducing the distance women must go to fetch water, they are allowed more time for their own financial or personal pursuits—improving the quality of life for entire families and communities. Moreover, with 70% of the world’s freshwater supply going to agriculture, effective water conservation techniques are essential. Over 78% of the world’s poorest people live in rural areas and are dependent primarily on agriculture and related activities for their livelihood. The wellbeing of these smallholder farmers is closely tied to the natural environment. They are highly vulnerable to environmental destruction, water shortages and climate change. The Hunger Project’s program supports solving water scarcity issues and hygiene by empowering rural communities to promote the implementation of water conservation techniques and develop new water resources.
Project Overview
The overall goal of Water for Ghana is to improve access to safe drinking water and sanitation in rural communities in Ghana. The Hunger Project trains community members in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH). The main topics covered in these trainings are access to clean water and sanitation facilities, basic hygiene practices, and sanitary food preparation. The Hunger Project also offers trainings for local volunteer leaders on monitoring, maintaining, and repairing water systems; the use and repair of water pumps and generators; and on water safety and purification so they can lead workshops throughout the community to expand grassroots knowledge. The Hunger Project empowers local communities to drill new wells and boreholes, repair existing water sources, build and repair water towers, and construct water troughs for livestock. The Hunger Project provides equipment and training for testing and pumping water, and lobbies local governments to devote public resources to water infrastructure projects. They also mobilise communities to initiate drip irrigation projects, which minimise the use of water and fertiliser by allowing water to drip slowly to the roots of plants, and to develop water catchment systems, which collect rainwater from a roof or other surface before it reaches the ground and store it for future use.
Project Objectives:
1. Reduce incidence of waterborne illnesses
2. Increase access to, and use of, improved water sources
3. Increase access to, and use of, improved sanitation facilities
4. Increase awareness of the importance of hygiene and improved sanitation facilities
Partners & Community Involvement
The Water for Ghana Program is run by The Hunger Project Ghana team working closely alongside their team of Animators (locally trained volunteer leaders). The Hunger Project uses timely and accurate data for interventions in sanitation, and works to make that data accessible and transparent to community members. This makes the data actionable and usable for communities and state authorities.