Clean Water for Families in Somalia

Nearly 2,000 families in south central Somalia now have access to clean, safe water, thanks to a collaboration between Americares and local nonprofit Kaalmo Relief & Development (KRD). Drought, displacement due to conflict and poor infrastructure made access to water difficult and sometimes impossible. For too many people in the border town Beled-Hawa, the search for safe water had become a daily struggle that threatened health, dignity and life itself.

The project helped people in Beled-Hawa access safe water immediately and included education on hygiene and, for members of a newly formed water committee, upkeep of new wells and pumps.

Clean Water for People in Crisis

Local nonprofit KRD designed the project to address multiple, interconnected challenges. People had come to Beled-Hawa from other regions of Somalia to escape conflict and violence. Now the community needed more resources. Americares and KRD provided:

Repairs to water wells: Three non-functional, shallow wells were rehabilitated to restore access to safe water sources for displaced people and host communities. These wells now provide clean water to an estimated 1,600 people, reduce the distance and time needed to collect water and alleviate the daily burden on women and girls, who are most often responsible for water collection.

Longer pipes to bring water close: In Tula-Amin, a camp for displaced people, the team extended the water system with 2,000 meters of new pipelines and communal water points, significantly improving water availability and accessibility.

Emergency water delivery: For 30 days, KRD trucked water to newly displaced families who had little or no access to water due to overcrowding, damaged infrastructure and dry conditions. KRD made sure the water was delivered safely and equitably to meet international standards, with schedules, registry and feedback mechanisms.

Hygiene kits: Two hundred households, about 1,200 people, in the Tula Amin camp received hygiene kits with laundry and bathing soap, sanitary pads, buckets, jerry cans for carrying water and purification tablets for household water treatment.

Breaking the Cycle of Disease Through Education

Water infrastructure alone cannot prevent disease. Recognizing this, KRD integrated intensive hygiene promotion activities throughout the project, reaching households with life-saving health education at a time when outbreaks of cholera, a water-borne disease, were a threat.

Hygiene education in the home and community: Trained hygiene promoters conducted house-to-house visits and hygiene awareness sessions in the community, delivering practical demonstrations on proper handwashing with soap, safe water handling and storage, waste disposal and household water treatment using water purification tablets.

Cholera awareness: With the threat of cholera, educators shared information on recognizing early warning signs, preparing oral rehydration solutions at home and seeking medical care.

Training to maintain water infrastructure: To support sustainability, 30 members of the water management committee were trained to operate and maintain the water supply systems, to help ensure water, sanitation and hygiene services remained accessible, safe and responsive to the needs of the entire community.