Water Impact

Quenching Thirst With Christ’s Living Water

Clean water saves lives and opens pathways to a brighter future by reducing illness, easing burdens on women and children, and helping farmers increase crop yields. These improvements also help families experience Christ as our source of Living Water —an invitation he offers to all who thirst.

If everyone had access to clean water, sanitation and basic hygiene services, the global impact of health problems would be cut by 10%. But right now, 2 billion people lack access to safe drinking water at home.

Cross Catholic Outreach donors responded generously to this global crisis in fiscal year 2022, nearly quadrupling the number of people the ministry blessed with lifesaving water in the previous fiscal year. Projects included drilling deep-water wells in Kenya, building a solar-powered community water system in Guatemala and providing hand-pump wells in Ghana and Malawi.

21
Grants
9
Countries
Grants Provided
121
Community Water Systems Constructed
668
Individual Water Systems Constructed
361,512
People Reached With Clean Water

Water In Zambia

Caritas Chipata

A group of children celebrate.

Zambia is a land of hardships — blistering heat, dangerous animals, disease-carrying mosquitoes, rough terrain and unpredictable weather patterns — but few of these challenges compare with the trials poor families face as a result of insufficient or contaminated water.

In rural areas, a staggering 43.4% of people rely on inadequate sources of drinking water — typically contaminated streams, ponds or poorly constructed wells. This dirty water is often tainted with animal waste, parasites, bacteria and chemicals and is one of the reasons the life expectancy in Zambia is just 66 years.

This is why the communities within the Diocese of Chipata have made finding a solution to water scarcity their highest priority.

Fortunately, the Catholic Church in Zambia has been working hard to provide solutions, and in the past year alone, Caritas Chipata has been able to install 57 wells in rural villages throughout the diocese, as well as wash basins for laundry and animal troughs. Families also participated in training in well maintenance, health hygiene and sanitation.

Thanks to the compassion of friends like you, women and children no longer spend hours every morning fetching contaminated water. Instead, they have an abundant supply of clean water to use for drinking, washing and bathing. This has also given children the time, energy and health to go to school and pursue opportunities that will improve their lives — and to enjoy life!

Fast Facts

History

Since 2017, Cross Catholic Outreach has partnered with the Diocese of Chipata’s Caritas, led by Father Bernard Kaluba Zulu, to solve the water crisis facing poor families living in remote communities.

Water

One of the wells Cross Catholic Outreach donors supported in fiscal year 2022 is bringing clean, safe water to Saint Francis Hospital, where about 1,600 patients and family members benefit every week.

Sanitation

In addition to the wells, the diocese offered technical support to community members for the construction of more than 2,200 sanitary latrines to reduce the spread of illness.

Other Outreaches

In addition to water projects, Cross Catholic Outreach supported projects in Zambia for food, health and capacity building.

Donations from this campaign will be used to cover any expenditures for this project incurred through June 30, 2024, the close of our ministry’s fiscal year. In the event that more funds are raised than needed to fully fund the project, the excess funds, if any, will be used to meet the most urgent needs of the ministry.