More than 750 people in the Kwaethunu village have fresh water thanks to the Salesian Missions ‘Clean Water Initiative’.

NEW ROCHELLE, NY (Jan. 24, 2022) More than 750 people in the Kwaethunu village in Ghana have fresh water thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. The project, part of the Salesian Missions “Clean Water Initiative,” provided a borewell, water tanks and a pump. Nearly 70 percent of the village is women and children. The project also helps support the only health facility on the outskirts of the village.

Paul Dankwah, a caretaker in the community, said, “Above all, the entire community deeply expressed their appreciation and gratitude to all the partners and benefactors for this great support and assistance given at this challenging moment. Thank you all, may God bless you and replenish all your efforts.”

U.N.-Water estimates that worldwide 2.2 billion people are living without access to safe water. One in four primary schools has no drinking water service, with students using unprotected water sources or going thirsty. In addition, U.N.-Water notes that more than 700 children under age 5 die every day from diarrheal disease linked to unsafe water and poor sanitation.

“Clean water projects help ensure that remote communities have access to the drinking water they need,” said Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions. “Improving water access brings a sense of dignity to children and their families and reduces the number of waterborne illnesses affecting these villages.”

In 2021, more than 3.57 million people in Ghana lived in extreme poverty, with the majority in rural areas. Those living on less than $1.90 a day in rural regions reached nearly 3.3 million, while 278,000 extremely poor people were located in urban areas. Rural poverty remains widespread in the dry savannah region that covers roughly two thirds of Ghana’s northern territory. Small-scale farms suffer from a lack of infrastructure and equipment, both of which are needed to shift from subsistence farming to more modern commercial farming which would yield greater incomes and a chance to escape poverty.

To learn more about the Salesian Missions Clean Water Initiative, go to SalesianMissions.org/water.

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