The burden of water for over 2 billion people falls squarely on the backs of women. They collect, carry and risk their lives to keep the flow of water going for their family. With that said, we need women telling us what the solution is. Rather than a place at the table, they must lead the discussions and bring the solutions. Women are where the answers will be found.
Steve Roese
The 58th Commission on the Status of Women Conference 2014
What we are doing in South Sudan proves the above statement.
We launched The Women's Well Repair Initiative (WESI in South Sudan) amid worldwide COVID lockdowns. Having completed our first training, it was a honor to be a part of the second and final training and graduation in late July.
The over the top success of this initiative is why we are all smiling? Before they had even graduated these teams repaired 99 wells!! Read The Full Field Report Here
These women, like Rebecca on the left, could not wait until graduation to get to work.
Rebecca Achol Madut is married with two children and a twenty-three-year-old living example of why women are the key to long-term well maintenance. When you have two little kids at home, you wake every morning knowing water is key to their future and to the future of the entire community.
A beneficiary of that zeal, Nyadhal Deng, the older lady in the above picture, told us what it was like before to wait months for her well to be repaired. By the way, she had not seen herself in years, so my photo caught her off guard. "I'm old,” she laughed, as we celebrated her community's well, now flowing again.
Joseph, with me, loves working with his partner Rebecca. We renamed them The Smiles Team. In this traditional, male-dominated culture, each team needs a willing male partner.Joseph and Rebecca are genuine colleagues bringing hope, through well repair, together.
Twenty-five years I have worked in Africa, fifteen of those in South Sudan. NEVER have I been so impressed with a team of folks. You will meet some of them through our communications over the next few months.
Now we celebrate and dig in deeper.
Your support has never been more crucial. These teams need logistical support, spare parts, guidance, and encouragement. And that all takes money.
Will you please give now so we can support them and add more teams to their endeavour?
BTW this really is ground breaking work as my meetings with the German ambassador and the World Food Program made very clear. Please take a moment to tell one person about what we are doing.
