Day 8: Clean Water and Sanitation

UMCOR’s integrated approach to development provides access to safe drinking water through the distribution and training of household water-filtration units, the rehabilitation or construction of community wells, and appropriate sanitation facilities.

UMCOR develops programs that encourage local ownership through Community Development Committees (CDCs) where local residents create the ideas, strategies, and solutions. Empowered to make important decisions, the CDC appoints a water council to oversee the finance and operation of the well. Communities are trained the use and maintenance of the wells, learning to replace parts as needed for the future.

Currently, UMCOR supports 11 water and sanitation projects in: Kenya, Sierra Leone, Zambia, Ghana, Rwanda, Uganda, Liberia, DRC, Sudan, Bolivia, and Nicaragua. UMCOR collaborates and supports additional water programs administered through its nongovernmental organization (UMCOR-NGO), and grantees through UMCOR Health, international disaster response, and hunger and poverty.

Providing awareness and education on proper health and hygiene is a key component to all of UMCOR’s water and sanitation programs.

Through UMCOR Indonesia’s Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Project in partnership with UNICEF, the overall health of more than 72,200 people is improving. This includes students from 31 schools in Banda Aceh, Aceh Besar, and Bireuen, and citizens seeking care at Bireuen District Hospital.

UMCOR provides greater access to improved water and sanitation facilities by improving the water supply, providing hygiene education and training for both students and teachers. Waste disposal education and training are also provided to nurses, doctors, cleaners, and administrators at the hospital.

Water and Sanitation, UMCOR Advance #3020600
Learn more at www.umcorwater.org

To make an addtional donation to this project, click here

Quick Facts

• Less than 1% of the world’s fresh water (or about .007% of all water on earth) is readily accessible for direct human use. (World Health Organization [WHO])

• At any one time, more than half of the poor in the developing world are ill from causes related to hygiene, sanitation, and water supply. (Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council [WSSCC], 2008)

• 3.575 million people die each year from water-related disease. (WHO, 2008)

• 43% of water-related deaths are due to diarrhea. (WHO, 2008)

• 88% of cases of diarrhea worldwide are attributable to unsafe water, inadequate sanitation, or insufficient hygiene. (WSSCC, 2008)

• 98% of water-related deaths occur in the developing world. (WHO, 2008)

Volunteer Information: For more information on how to volunteer, please contact your regional jurisdictional coordinator.

North Central: Lorna Jost
928 4th Street, Office #2, Brookings, SD 57006
Tel: 605-692-3390;

Northeastern: Gregory Forrester
32 North Church Street, Cortland, NY 13045
Tel: 607-756-7799;

South Central: Debbie Vest
15120 Sunningdale Street, Austin TX, 78717
Tel: 913-568-8826;

Southeastern: Paulette West
315 W. Ponce de Leon Ave, Suite 750, Decatur, GA 30030
Tel: 404-377-7424;

Western: Heather Wilson
11707 Terra Bella, Lakeview Terrace, CA 91342
Tel: 818-333-6730;