Orbis Provides Clean Water to Save Sight, Ethiopia

The provision of a clean water supply is critical in Orbis' mission to eliminate avoidable blindness in Ethiopia. Trachoma, a painful bacterial infection, is one of the most common causes of blindness in the country. Trachoma can be prevented by encouraging face and hand washing.

Orbis representatives train teachers about facial cleanliness, personal hygiene, environmental sanitation and how to wash hands effectively to prevent the spread of bacteria. In order to train the local community, it is important that water is readily available. While the initial cost of water development and provision is very high, the biggest challenge is its maintenance.

Most (60%) of the water-pumps in the Konso area of southern Ethiopia were non-functional, so Orbis implemented a strategy to repair the non-functional water schemes. Community members are trained on how to perform minor repairs on these pumps to ensure they are in working order.  A WASH committee was also set up to generate revenue for the repair. This strategy gives the communities the responsibility of repairing the water-pumps, which is a very cost-effective approach. 

Providing one clean water supply can improve the lives of many people. A single water scheme can serve a population of up to 100 households. If the scheme is located in a school, it can serve more than 1000 students.The average cost of maintenance is about €407. If there is sufficient budget the repair of the water pump should not take longer than 2 days. If a spare part is required, this could take 2-3 days to secure.

Thanks to your generous support, Orbis can continue to provide clean water to communities and prevent the spread of trachoma.