TIGRAY - ETHIOPIA

Tigray is one of the most drought prone regions in Ethiopia. In Tigray, only 48 percent of people can access clean water – ten percent less than the national average. Women and children often walk two or more hours each day across steep, rugged terrain to collect water from polluted rivers for their households. The majority of families are forced to survive on a strict ration of about five liters of water per day. In addition, more than 60 percent of the population practices open defecation, due primarily to lack of adequate toilets. As a result, more than 250,000 children in Ethiopia die each year from water- and sanitation-related diseases.

• In February 2012, Water.org completed its most recent, and very successful, program in Tigray with its certified local partner, Relief and Education Society of Tigray (REST). Aqwalife will provide funding support to Water.org to construct twelve borehole wells and provide water and sanitation committees; these committees serve as the primary managers of the community resource, and promote health and sanitation education. Seventy-two people will participate in well management and operations training before assuming the roles of committee member.

• Train 480 model peer educators and 20 health extension workers in hygiene and sanitation education. The model peer educators will be trained on how to construct an easily replicable, household-toilet model. Model peer educators will build 480 toilets, and motivate the remaining 248 households to construct and use a toilet.

• Water.org will work with local water and health government offices to support the communities once the project ends and to monitor village health.