Worldwide, a child dies from a preventable, water-related disease every 15 seconds. Most of these children are younger than five.  A majority of them—80 percent—are younger than two. Diarrhea alone kills 1.6 million children each year, equal to about 4,500 children per day, according to the World Health Organization.

That's why we are excited to be partnering with World Vision to provide safe drinking water to villages in the Musele development area located in the northwestern province of Zambia. Less than 40 percent of Musele’s population has access to potable water (safe for drinking) and/or proper sanitation.

Here's what this project will do for the children and their families living there:

• Provide access to clean water by constructing 10 borehole wells per year in six zones of the Musele community development area, over a period of three years.
• Encourage community ownership and involvement of women in the selection of sites where the water is safe to drink, maintaining the boreholes, and keeping the surroundings clean. Elected men and women of the community will be responsible for collecting user fees for maintaining the wells. Plus, World Vision will train them in basic accounting and banking skills.
• Provide better sanitation facilities by building 17 latrines and 10 hand-washing stands in 10 schools, and constructing 3 latrines in 3 different trading sites.
• Increase awareness of water and sanitation safety among schools and communities by training 10 hygiene educators and five village water management committees, and by partnering with Zambia’s Ministry of Health.

Check out these videos showing the need for clean, safe water in Africa and the great work World Vision is doing there. We're glad to be partnering with them!