Evangelino’s family’s health improves after accessing clean water and sanitation

Devia, nine years old, lives in Baucau and studies at primary school. She is one of five children of Evangelino, 45 years old, and Jacinta, 31 years old. Her family used to walk two kilometres to collect clean water from a spring.

 

Jacinta said that previously, the distance between the water spring and her house was too far away, so they didn’t have enough clean water, which resulted in the poor health and hygiene of her children. 

 

“In the past, my parents took water from a spring for drinking and bathing. Sometimes I just washed my face to go to school,” Devia said. 

 

Devia and her family now enjoy a healthier lifestyle since World Vision built a public tap near their house, through the Water for Future project. 

 

“Now, my family's lives have improved because we fetch water from five metres away instead of two kilometres. The clean water is very useful, including for cooking, bathing, washing kitchen utensils, going to the toilet and watering vegetables in the yard. My children bathe every day so their bodies are shiny, smooth and very healthy. I also no longer buy vegetables because I plant, harvest and feed them to my children to improve their nutrition. I feel that it has really helped my work as a housewife,” Jacinta said.

 

“Now I can bathe every day, drink boiled water, and wash my hands before eating or after going to the toilet,” Devia said.

 

Nine-year-old Devia washes her hands with a tippy-tap at her home before meals and after going to the toilet. Photo: Jaime dos Reis/World Vision