Water Is Life: A Glimpse of Life for Martha in Tanzania

Story provided by PCI/Tanzania staff

A woman named “Martha” in Bubu village of Babati District described how she spent five hours per day, from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m., drawing water from the river bed, competing with cattle owners and other women, in order to get four buckets of water per day (20 liters each). The women in Bubu village have formed a group to promote the development of their community, but Martha and the others find it very difficult to achieve results with this group because of the amount of time spent on collecting water. Martha shared that if she had a water point nearby, she and other women would have time to dedicate to working in this group. With more time, Martha said she would begin growing and selling vegetables. And if she were able to generate money this way, she said it would help her improve her house and her children’s education. When asked how she chooses between collecting water and selling vegetables, Martha simply responded “Water is life.”

Martha went on to describe how children help in water collection, primarily in the evenings and on weekends. But collecting water in the evenings is dangerous due to hyenas, and it negatively affects their school work. Even the teacher’s work is negatively impacted by the lack of water, as she too needs to spend hours collecting water for herself.

Standing in queues and carrying water back and forth to the house for five hours per day can create a lot of tension. Martha said that improving access to water would improve harmony in the community, as the tension over water during the dry season results in fighting and hatred.

Martha finished saying that if this [PCI’s] project becomes a reality, the improved access to safe water will have a positive impact on all these aspects of her life.

Maji Na Usafi Kwa Maisha Bora!
("Safe water for a healthy life!")

By Janine Schooley, PCI Staff

Water has been on my mind lately. This is not only because I am here in Tanzania for PCI’s new Starbucks/Ethos-funded water and sanitation project, but for many other reasons as well. PCI, with its implementing partner, ADRA/Tanzania, and its collaborating partners, WaterAid Tanzania and the Babati District Council, have come together to officially launch and plan for our BAHEWASA Project. (By the way, BAHEWASA stands for Babati Water for Health in Swahili.)
So, what else is making me think a lot about water these days? Water is running through our planning for the project of course. We are learning a lot about the need and demand for water; clean water for drinking, but also water for livestock, for cooking, cleaning, growing food, and overall survival. But it’s not just that. It’s the fact that water here is a microcosm of the contradictions that are Africa. I’m sure you are wondering what I mean by that. I mean that water is both scarce and abundant, important for the poor as well as for the privileged, a symbol of tradition as well as a symbol of our modern times.
Here in Tanzania it is the "wet season". It has been raining almost every day, almost all day sometimes, since I arrived in Tanzania. Sometimes it comes in sprinkles and passes quickly. Other times it pours like I’ve never seen water pour, from the sky, and runs in raging rivers through a town or village.

On the other hand, when you ask anyone in the village of Vilima Vitatu (3 Hills), one of the 11 villages selected for BAHEWASA implementation in Year 1 (total population approximately 31,000), what they most want or need, the answer will come back a unanimous: "water!" Some villages have less than 1 water point per 1,000 population. Imagine what that would be like: have 5 bathrooms and a kitchen in my house in San Diego. That adds up to about 12 water points, not counting the taps outside for the garden hoses. It is mind boggling to think of the difference between that and what the families of Babati are living with.

So, water is critical for the people of Babati who live in villages, as well as for the people who depend upon the tourists who come to the game preserves. Water means livelihood for the cattle herder as well as for the safari guide. It is a common thread running through the traditional societies and the first world visitors who flock to see the elephants of Tarangire in their khaki vests and hiking boots. Water is definitely on my mind.

PCI Fights for Clean Water in Tanzania: The Babati Health Through Water & Sanitation Project

By Janna Smith, PCI Intern

“We shall not finally defeat AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, or any of the other infectious diseases that plague the developing world until we have also won the battle for safe drinking-water, sanitation and basic health care.”

Kofi Annan, former United Nations Secretary-General

Lack of immediate access to water can have adverse effects on the health and development of a community, and especially affects the women and children of the community. In many parts of Tanzania, women and children spend an average of 6-8 hours per day accessing clean water. This can prevent some children, especially girls, from attending school, since water is usually collected by girls. Traversing long distances also leads to more danger for women and girls- including sexual assault, and rape. Children also frequently miss school due to illness, stemming not only from water-borne diseases, but also from walking long distances without shoes.

PCI has been working for many years in the area of water, sanitation, and environmental health. We have found that freeing up time for women and girls who spend hours each day collecting water positively impacts their health, education, and overall well-being, which in turn leads to positive community development and capacity building.

We firmly believe that community involvement is crucial to the success of our programs. Collaborating with community leaders is an essential part of the process to assess local needs and make decisions that would best benefit the local people. To this end, PCI has teamed up with the district council in Babati, a region in north-eastern Tanzania, and another community-based organization called ADRA/Tanzania to implement our newest water and sanitation project, called the Babati Health Through Water and Sanitation Project, funded by the Starbucks Foundation-Ethos Water Fund. This project will provide safe water for at least 30,000 people in the Babati region of Tanzania, as well as education programs for better sanitation and hygiene practices to mitigate the incidence of water-borne diseases. The project will also build rainwater harvest systems in schools within the area, so that children will have access to clean water while they are in school.

PCI has carried out successful water and sanitation projects in Central America, India, and Indonesia, and hopes to add Tanzania to the list of sustainable water projects in which women and children especially reap the benefits.