Improving access to clean water in Syria — and around the world

[ [link removed] ]Mercy
Corps

The
recent attacks in Ukraine targeted and destroyed critical infrastructure
across major cities. This caused not only civilian casualties but also
interrupted communities’ water, electricity, and gas supplies. Damage to
essential utilities like water is too often an unjust outcome of war.


[ [link removed] ][IMG]
Buildings north of Kyiv in Ukraine that were damaged in the war.


Mercy Corps has a long history of helping communities all over the world
to recover and rebuild in the aftermath of conflict. In Northeast Syria,
for example, conflict destroyed the water sanitation station in Al-Hasakah
— the only source of potable water in the region where about 1.3 million
people reside — in 2018. That meant families often had to spend what
little savings they had to purchase water in neighboring villages just to
have enough to drink.

"My kids got sick because of the contaminated water we used to buy from
the tankers. I had to take them to the doctor, and some people from the
village helped me to pay for the medicines," says a mother of eight
children (name withheld for safety).

Partnering with members of the community to rebuild the water purification
system, Mercy Corps provided all required supplies — pumps, pipes,
electrical panels, and check valves — and together, we drilled 24
electrical-powered boreholes to complete the project.


[ [link removed] ][IMG]
In Syria, two brothers wash their hands with water from a solar-powered
sanitation system that was recently rehabilitated with Mercy Corps’
support.


This means there is now clean water for drinking, bathing, and growing
food for over a million people.

Water security is a human right

In 2010, the United Nations declared access to water and sanitation to be
a human right. Yet, globally, one in three people do not have access to
safe drinking water, two in five people are unable to access basic
hand-washing facilities with soap and water, and 2 billion people are
without toilets and latrines.

Water security is one of Mercy Corps’ four outcome-focus areas, which also
include: food security, livelihoods, and peace through good governance.
The rehabilitated water sanitation system in Syria is just one of the many
water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) programs that Mercy Corps supports
to bring clean water to people around the world.

When disaster and conflict arise, we provide access to lifesaving WASH
services to ensure people have their basic needs met. For people who are
in the most vulnerable time of their lives, WASH is a foundation for
recovery by providing access to what is most fundamental for human
survival. As communities rebuild and recover, we mobilize resources and
support partners to develop inclusive, sustainable, and climate-smart
water systems.


[ Safa ]Safa in her bakery [ Safa's ]Safa's cinnamon buns

Improved water access has enabled this Syrian mother to grow tomatoes,
cucumbers, eggplants, okra, and peppers. Clean water means she is now able
to cook for her family without worrying about contaminated water.


Supporting those most affected

Building inclusive water systems means including the voices of women and
girls — who are disportionately impacted by water insecurity.

Women and girls are often responsible for collecting water and may have to
devote much of their day to the task. That’s why, from the first planning
stages of any response, our WASH team members consult with women and girls
in the community.

Partnering with communities — and the most marginalized among them —
enables the development of water systems that allow families to cope,
adapt, and thrive in the face of crisis.

Sincerely,

The Mercy Corps team


P.S. From the war in Ukraine to drought in Somalia to flooding in
Pakistan, many families are living in the midst of crisis right now.
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