In the United States, we take for granted clean water access.  But in most of the developing world, easy access to fresh, drinkable water is rare and retrieving it is a challenge difficult for people in the West to understand.  In most of the rural “bush” villages of Malawi and Mozambique this is the case.
Lacking access and proximity to clean water has ramifications other than standard dehydration and the inconvenience of trekking up to 6 miles or more a day and back to retrieve water for cooking. Additional challenges that these rural African villages must face are:

• High Infant Mortality Rates
• Chronic Bloody Diarrhea
• Cholera Outbreaks
• Short Life Expectancy
• Children foregoing education because of the time needed to draw water
• Valuable time lost drawing water, which is could be used for much-needed agricultural production\

These problems areunfortunately typical in the areas of the Lower Shire in Malawi and Mozambique. 

To meet this problem, Epicenter Solutions visits and consults with the local leadership in Malawi and Mozambique regarding highly vulnerable villages where clean water is not accessible.  The solution is to install wells, or boreholes (or wells as would be call them in America), in these vulnerable areas. 
When aborehole is installed this will completely transform a village area:  preventable diseases will disappear, children will be free to go to school, time to dedicate to farming is gained, and overall daily living conditions are significantly improved.

It is important to note that clean water is accessible in this Lower Shire region.  The dilemma is that the people cannot afford the placement of these fresh water boreholes.

Local leadership in Malawi and Mozambique has emphasized that each borehole must be thoughtfully installed and not just drilled randomly.  These boreholes are not to be owned by any individual party; they are free for the whole community to use.  Therefore, their location is critical.  Moreover, it is crucial to know and trust that the well area will be managed faithfully.  If any of these conditions are compromised, a borehole will not be placed. 

The solutions are simple.
The problems are preventable.

But borehole placement is only the beginning.

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