Wow! Over 20,000 Avaazers have already pitched in to cover 13M litres of water for Somalis -- thank you for the generosity. Can you help us meet our goal of raising enough to deliver 20M litres? Donate now!

Dear friends,

Without water, we die.

In Somalia, millions face this reality every single day.

For most families, life has been an unbroken experience of civil war, extremist attacks, and increasingly severe climate shocks.

Today, half the population doesn't have safe drinking water, and children are dying from cholera and dehydration.

Somalia does have fresh water, only it’s deep underground, and hard to reach. Private companies are selling it at outrageous prices and in some villages, a litre is more expensive than in Miami.

But a small, community-run organisation called Durdur is changing that.

Funded directly by Avaaz members (thank you!), their first project is already piping clean, affordable water to hundreds of homes. The day the taps were opened, the whole town celebrated. It was so successful that private companies were forced to drastically cut their prices overnight.

Now, Durdur is ready to scale up.

With our help, they could buy drilling supplies and water trucks to reach millions more in the next few years. It means families can wash and cook, grow food, and raise livestock.

We'd also help pay for environmental assessments, the hiring of Somali staff -- and power Avaaz campaigns for safe drinking water for all.

This model is truly transformative: if enough of us chip in, we could provide hundreds of litres of water to families of eight -- enough to meet their daily needs. Donate what you can now, and let’s strengthen resilience in one of the world’s most fragile countries:

In Somalia, 40% of existing water sources are no longer functional. Government inaction combined with the catastrophic effects of climate change is allowing greedy water companies to force families into making impossible choices. Pay for water, or pay for school.

Durdur is different because its projects are entirely run by, and for, local people. They drill extra-deep boreholes, install advanced treatment plants, and lay pipelines directly to homes, schools, and clinics -- ensuring that even the most vulnerable can have water.

The increased 'competition' also pushes private water companies to drastically lower their prices, a ripple effect that helps thousands more people.


Scientists say that climate changes made Somalia's recent drought 100 times more likely. There were five failed rainy seasons in a row, followed by dystopian floods that washed homes away, ruined crops, and left seas of polluted water.

But local initiatives like Durdur are sparking hope amidst unimaginable circumstances. If we raise enough, we could:

• Provide safe and affordable water to people in some of Somalia's driest and hardest-to-reach areas;
• Help spread this people's model of water access, building community resilience in the face of droughts, disease, and climate disasters;
• Pay for water studies and geographical surveys, help hire local Somali staff and provide hygiene trainings for community health volunteers; 
• Supercharge the voices of those caught on the climate frontlines to decision-makers everywhere to restore freshwater ecosystems and demand urgent action on the climate crisis; and 
• Power urgent, high-priority Avaaz campaigns to fight for our human right to water and a safe environment.

Somalis have done the least to cause the climate crisis, but are now paying the heaviest price imaginable. We cannot look away. Donate what you can now:

Wracked by war, drought, and floods, Somalia is experiencing one of the most enduring humanitarian crises in the world. Two years ago, over 45,000 Avaaz members donated to help provide lifesaving food, water and medicine for thousands of people on the frontlines of the climate crisis. Let’s do it again, and partner with local communities who are building their clean water future. 

With hope and determination,
Adela, Kaitlin, Patri, Ana Sofia, Mike, and the whole team at Avaaz

The donation amounts provided in this email are based on the average costs that it takes to provide a family of eight in Somalia with water for 3 days. The more we raise, the more people we’ll be able to reach with safe drinking water! In addition to the direct cost of water, a portion of the raised funds that Avaaz intends to grant to Durdur will cover the cost of drilling supplies, water transportation, and other programmatic fees to scale this operation.

PS. This might be your first donation to our movement ever. But what a first donation! Did you know that Avaaz relies entirely on small donations from members like you? That's why we're fully independent, nimble and effective. Join the over 1 million people who've donated to make Avaaz a real force for good in the world.

More information:

1. Horn of Africa droughts: how a network of groundwater bores could help – study (The Conversation)
2. War and climate change are overwhelming Somalia (The Economist)
3. Durdur Water Enterprise Bringing Water to Somali community (Adeso Africa)
4. Africa’s cholera crisis worsens amid extreme weather events (Al Jazeera)
5. ‘I poison my children in order to survive’: The terrible toll of Somalia’s drought (The New Humanitarian)