Water and sanitation in Zambia and Zimbabwe
| Across Southern Africa, millions of people do not have access to clean water or adequate sanitation facilities. The problem is particularly severe for those living with HIV and AIDS and other vulnerable groups such as single parents and children. | | | 
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| In Zambia and Zimbabwe, the British Red Cross is supporting a large-scale water and sanitation project in close collaboration with the EU, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the national Red Cross societies of those countries.
The ambitious project aims to provide more than 200,000 people with access to safe drinking water by drilling boreholes and installing hand pumps. Latrines are being built in homes, schools and health centres. In addition, thousands of volunteers are receiving training in the provision of hygiene and sanitation education.
Research and practice shows that community involvement in the planning, implementation, and management of projects leads to far more successful programmes. Bearing this in mind, committees have been set up so that local people, businesses and authorities are engaged in the undertaking and able to set out their own priorities and expectations. This ensures local ownership of the programmes and contributes to more sustainable results.
The desired impact of the project is that communities will have appropriate and long-lasting water systems and that their sanitation and hygiene will be improved. They will be healthier and there will be less illness and death as a result of water-borne disease and infections.
Easier access to water reduces time wasted on water collection, providing more opportunities for productive activities such as farming and school attendance.
More about our water and sanitation work
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| Location: Zambia and Zimbabwe
Objectives: To provide access to clean water, build latrines and train a network of volunteers to provide hygiene and sanitation education.
Number of beneficiaries: Roughly 200,000 people will have better physical access to clean water
Partners: Zambia Red Cross and Zimbabwe Red Cross, International Federation, Swedish Red Cross, Finnish Red Cross, European Union (EU)
Time-frame: 2006-2009 |
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