February 2019

Water pump well

Thousands of people die each year in South Madagascar from waterborne diseases. Direct access to clean water could significantly reduce mortality due to water-related illness. In South Madagascar, access to clean water is so remote that it becomes possible only through long-distance walks, which exceed 3 hours in some cases. One of the reasons for this remote distribution of wells is that the soil is widely contaminated with arsenic and other naturally occurring poisonous pollutants. Hence, access to clean water requires deeper wells, exceeding 300 feet in depth.

In February 2019, we managed to build a water pump well at the front yard, where the metropolitan church of Toliara would subsequently be built. The action was supported by fundraising and labour from individual volunteers who rushed to help.

The well relieved the locals from the daily laboured access to clean water, a basic necessity for life support. This commodity not only facilitated the development of local agriculture, but it also functions as a central point for social interaction and communal resource management.