Posted on Mar 01, 2018

Dear Fellow Rotarians,

 

Presently 748 million people do not have clean drinking water, more than 2.5 billion people lack access to improved sanitation and more than 1,400 children die each day caused by lack of sanitation and unsafe water.

 

Rotary whose main priority is the eradication of Polio also encourages all Rotary Clubs and Districts to work on those Areas of Focus which encompass some of the world’s most critical and widespread humanitarian needs. One of those areas of focus is Water and Sanitation. Many Clubs are already working on this field and I congratulate them for doing so. But let’s  concentrate our efforts during this month of March in looking for projects in our communities to:

 

1) Promote good hygiene habits through education not only for children but also for adults. Proper hand washing with soap and water can reduce diarrhea by up to 35%.

 

2) Improve sanitation facilities providing toilets and latrines that flush into a sewer or safe enclosure or build new ones and, where necessary, making sure hand wash is provided.

 

3) Distribute simple water filter systems like the Sawyer Filters which will decrease the morbidity for intestinal diseases.

 

4) Undertake projects to implement rainwater harvesting systems for collection and storage of rainwater for domestic use and also for drinking but providing home water treatment capability through the use of filters or solar disinfection.

 

5) Where possible, organise projects to build wells to extract groundwater from underground aquifers.

 

All of these are ideas of projects your Club can plan for this important area of focus. Water & Sanitation is intrinsic to all the other areas since you will promote:

 

- Peace Prevention/Resolution of Conflict (easy access to water for all in the community)

- Disease Prevention & Treatment

- Maternal & Child Health

- Basic Education and Literacy (this will prevent health related absences in school)

- Economic & Community Development  (with good health there will be an increase in production and sales in the local market stimulating the economy).

 

DG Robert Leger

District Governor D7020

2017 - 2018