Water for Tanzania

Women carrying water on their heads -- photo snapped as we drove by them. We saw countless women and children involved in this daily task.

One of the greatest needs in Tanzania is access to clean water for those living in poverty, including urban and rural dwellers.  Rural village women & children walk from 2 to 5 miles each day fetching water.  No time is left for these women to seek gainful employment or pursue entrepeneurial income-producing endeavors.  And, many children are kept out of school because they're needed to help with this daily water task.

This is not a mere problem of inconvenience. The impact of  access to fresh, clean water is enormous, beyond survival and disease prevention. When water is readily available, children can attend school, and women can contribute to improving the economic status of their families.

Individual travelers to Tanzania have found it costs surprisingly little to bring water to remote villages, as in the case of Jackson's client (see post: Village Water Story)  

There are also organizations such as Water Aid that do what they can to raise funds for this cause.  
There's more to this story, and Water Aid's website puts it all into persepective very well!

Our Etsy store, Jambo Creations, is our attempt to raise funds for this cause.

On a personal note, I was annoyed the other day when my microwave blew a fuse. How inconvenient! I now had to heat my soup in a pot on the stove, and then wash the pot.  As I rinsed the pot and put it in the dishwasher,  I pictured ladies in Tanzania with buckets on their heads.  It made me laugh and feel embarrassed at the same time. We take so much for granted.