Increased Water Access Improves the Living Conditions of Girls in Mozambique.
Around one-third of Mozambique's population, approximately 20 million, have access to clean drinking water. Until recently, Fátima, a 16-year-old girl from Gaza province's Guijá district and a student in the 11th grade was not among them.
For as long as Fátima can remember, her daily routine as a child involved walking long distances to fetch water, leaving little time to enjoy her rights, including the right to play. Today, her routine has seen significant improvements following the installation of a borehole near her home, which has brought immediate relief and positive changes to her daily life.
Like Fátima, more than 1,800 people, primarily children in the Guijá district now have access to clean drinking water, thanks to six boreholes drilled as part of the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) programme, implemented by World Vision Mozambique.
In addition to bringing water closer to families like Fátima's, this initiative will reduce the risk of waterborne diseases caused by drinking contaminated water.
Regarding education, the hope is that more girls will attend school and have more time to study, as the boreholes have reduced the long journeys they previously had to make. The time saved will allow them to focus more on their studies. Fátima Sitoe shares that she already sees a brighter future thanks to the borehole near her home.
"With the borehole close to home, I no longer need to spend my time fetching water, and this allows me to go to school on time without being late or missing lessons," she said.
Recognising the benefits of clean water to families like Fátima's and the wider community, 17 more boreholes will go operational later this year. These will benefit over 5,000 people in the Guijá and Mabalane districts of Gaza province.
Several of these boreholes will be installed in schools, helping to improve girls' attendance and academic performance by providing facilities for them to manage their menstrual hygiene outside their homes a challenge that persists in many of Mozambique's remote communities.