Programs ensure youth have access to clean water and soap.

NEW ROCHELLE, NY (Oct 15, 2024) Top of Form Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco, joins the international community in celebrating Global Handwashing Day 2024. The day, organized by the Global Handwashing Partnership, is celebrated each year on Oct. 15 and is dedicated to increasing awareness of the importance of hand-washing with soap.

According to the World Health Organization, millions of young lives could be saved with access to bar soap and hygiene education. Pneumonia and diarrheal disease are two of the leading causes of death among children under 5 years old. Hand-washing with soap is among the most effective and inexpensive ways to prevent these diseases.

Operating schools and programs for youth in more than 130 countries around the globe, Salesian missionaries are on the front lines providing what youth and their families need most. Salesians are able to ensure that clean water projects happen in communities that lack water access and that soap donations make it into the hands of those living in conditions of poverty.

“Salesians are working to improve water access to reduce the number of waterborne illnesses that affect youth in our schools and centers,” said Father Micheal Conway, director of Salesian Missions. “Salesians understand how important clean water is for drinking, hand-washing, proper sanitation and more. This is why our ‘Clean Water Initiative’ has made building wells a priority in the communities we serve.”

To mark Global Handwashing Day, Salesian Missions is proud to highlight programs that ensure youth have access to clean water and soap.

BURUNDI

Don Bosco Ngozi High School in Burundi* is working to complete a sanitation project thanks to funding from the Salesian Missions “Clean Water Initiative.” The school has 1,248 students but has not been able to keep up with modernizing and making updates to the bathrooms, including increasing the number of toilets, even though the study body has increased each year. The funding is ensuring that students will have proper sanitation.

The project known as “Clean Hygienic Facilities for a Big Smile” will install water facilities, waste water channels and other necessary amenities to ensure that the facilities are clean, safe and hygienic. Work was half-way completed at the end of July 2024.

A Salesian explained, “Before this project started, the toilet facilities were in a state of disrepair. The new upgrades made possible through this funding will play a crucial role in ensuring the health and safety of the youth who utilize them. Clean and hygienic facilities are essential for preventing the spread of diseases and promoting good hygiene practices. By providing these facilities, we are not only improving the physical well-being of the youth but also their overall quality of life.”

ETHIOPIA

A water-well project in the Gambella region of Ethiopia* is supported by Salesians and the nonprofit organization Cuore Amico. Father Filippo Perin, a Salesian missionary, facilitates the project to open as many wells as possible to ensure the population’s survival, according to a recent article in Vatican News.

According to the article, 100 wells have been built in Gambella with the support of the Catholic Church, the Cuore Amico Fraternità Foundation and many private individuals. There are plans for more.

Gambella is home to many different ethnic groups as well as South Sudanese refugees living in eight refugee camps. The life expectancy in the region is below age 50, and the area is faced with drought and famine.

Fr. Perin told Vatican News, “Only 14% of the population has access to drinking water, so it is not uncommon for bloody clashes to break out between villages over water. That is why one of the first things we felt was most urgent was to raise funds to dig wells. The costs, however, are high. Just to bring the excavating machine to this impervious and isolated area requires 3,000 euros, and the cost for the digging work is also expensive, but it saves people’s lives.”

VIETNAM

Villages in Vietnam have clean water access thanks to donor funding from Salesian Missions. The projects provided water purification systems and water tanks for the Hoa An Parish in Bac Giang, the Khop village and Thanh Binh Parish in Kon Tum, and the Tac Van Oratory in Tac Van.

The Hoa An Parish has a supply of fresh water for more than 1,000 people. The new water system will also ensure clean water for the 100 children at the Salesian oratory and 20 students from the boarding school. Around the parish, there are many poor households with workers staying in rental houses. Ngo Thi Man, a factory worker, is benefiting from this project. With the money she saves on water, she can spend her salary on other basic needs and help support her family back home.

In Kon Tum, more than 1,147 people are benefiting from the water supply in the Khop village where there are poor families working as farmers. Mr. Rhađê, a farmer employed part-time to protect the forest, draws potable water for his family instead of having to get it from streams which are unsafe. He is supplying fresh water to his family and the crops while saving money that he once spent on water containers. There are also 2,700 people benefiting in the Thanh Binh Parish.

At the Tac Van Oratory, there are 500 people in the local parish and 80 boys at the oratory who are benefiting from this new water supply. Around the community there are many poor families who make their living by fishing. Tran Van Ngoc, a fisherman, has an unstable income and is able to draw water for free instead of purchasing water canisters to provide clean water for his family.

ZAMBIA

Youth with the City of Hope in Lusaka, Zambia, have soap and furniture thanks to donations received by Salesian Missions. The soap donation was provided by Eco-Soap Bank.

Sister Mary John, who is in charge of City of Hope, said, “We received the donation of soap and then distributed it to the sisters, pupils, workers, teachers, women, youth, different congregations and those around the Salesian community. The furniture we shared with our Salesian schools in our community.”

She added, “The donations of soap and furniture have been very useful, and the quality of donations is excellent. Hygiene will always be a priority matter, and the furniture helps us further enhance our learning environment and facilities used by our staff and students.”

*Any goods, services, or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.

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