AFRICA/RWANDA – Water supply: Access to clean water for 50,000 people

Wednesday, 20 July 2022

MLFM

Kigali (Agenzia Fides) – “How can you wash your hands in a context of health emergency without water?” asks Omar Fiordalisio, head of the office in Rwanda of the Italian charity Movimento Lotta Fame nel Mondo (MLFM), based in Kigali with reference to a project in which he worked together with the local population to implement a water supply system in Gatsibo. “We have finally officially completed the MLFM’s largest water supply project to date,” reads his report, “It’s been three intense years of work, hard work and big and small difficulties”. “The main obstacle was the COVID pandemic: the unforeseen increase in costs and a forced break of several months threatened to delay the construction of the aqueducts. Fortunately, after discussions with the local authorities, we were included in the Rwandan government’s list of priority projects and the works were rescheduled. In the three years on site, we involved up to 700 Rwandan workers, to whom we taught the trade and guaranteed a salary. We provided 10,000 families with clean drinking water. In total, we helped more than 50,000 people”. The MLFM volunteer talks about the emotion seen in the eyes of the people who now have clean water near their home. “In those moments – he explains – there is almost a touch of magic floating in the air. They are looks that speak without making sounds, but only emotions. The children are amused: they take water from the hose and carve out a place to fill their tank. They laugh out loud with joy, dance to celebrate and make some jokes with friends and splash the water. The mothers, on the other hand, are calmer, almost serious: but I see so much gratitude in those shining eyes. For them, water means hygiene, health, cleanliness, water close to home means less effort and a few minutes to get it, which means they have more energy and time to take care of their children and and family needs”. (OF/AP) (Agenzia Fides, 20/7/2022)

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Originally Appeared Here