This article is a powerful story highlighting how a modest intervention, a personal plastic cup, greatly improved hygiene, hydration, and learning conditions in four schools in the Lualaba province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It recounts the longstanding lack of potable water at Amani Primary School in Mutshatsha and the transformative impact of a borehole installed in 2022, which gave over 1,600 students access to clean water. However, without drinking containers, students were still unable to hydrate safely and effectively. In early 2025, a donation of 3,625 plastic cups across four schools allowed students to drink water hygienically and comfortably. This simple addition significantly reduced water waste, improved hygiene, and helped students stay focused in class. The initiative, part of World Vision’s Gifts-In-Kind (GIK) program, illustrates the profound impact of addressing overlooked details in development work.

11-year-old Aurora's life changed after World Vision built a borehole near her home in the north of Mozambique, eliminating her daily hour-long walk for unsafe water. This improved her school attendance and the community's access to clean water for better health and farming. Serving 400 people, this project is part of a larger WASH program that has positively impacted over 14,700 individuals in the region.

An estimated 21 million people will water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) assistance in 2025. World Vision Afghanistan's WASH sector addresses these needs in remote villages of targeted four provinces.

This article highlights the impact of projects implemented thanks to the Chosen initiative. The Karawa AP, a beneficiary of this initiative, now has access to a clean water supply program, which has significantly reduced cases of disease and decreased the distance that women and children had to travel to fetch water, a much longer journey just a few years ago. Thanks to the support of sponsors, waterborne diseases have decreased, and children can now thrive.

Watch Djawahir’s Story: Learn how World Vision’s WASH efforts are rewriting stories of struggle into tales of triumph in CAR.

Discover how Deya’s life changed with clean water as World Vision brings hope to communities in CAR.

World Vision Afghanistan works in 34 districts and over 3,200 villages across Herat, Badghis, Ghor, Faryab, and Nangahar provinces, reaching more than 1.2 million people in FY24, including over 547,000 children.

During World Water Day 2025, World Vision Zambia National Director Marc Nosbach has emphasised the urgent need for collective action to ensure children and their communities have access to clean and safe water. He highlights that while water is life, countless children across Zambia are still deprived of this basic necessity, affecting their health, education, and overall well-being.

We spoke with Fahim, a teenager from Badghis, who, like many in his village, had no access to clean water. Forced to rely on contaminated sources, he developed kidney stones, a painful condition linked to unsafe drinking water and dehydration. Two months later, we returned to his village to see the impact of World Vision's newly installed water network - and whether his health had improved. On this World Water Day, witness how access to clean water transforms lives - and why urgent action is needed.