Water impacts poverty.
Water impacts gender equity.
Water impacts education.
Water impacts health.
Water changes everything.
Water changes everything.
Save the Rain has built 6500 rainwater harvesting systems since 2005. We have interviewed 1160 women who participated in the Women’s Water Initiative to measure the impact of access to clean water. Each woman received a system and a family garden at their home. The women are from 24 different villages across four regions of Tanzania. Their tanks were constructed between 2012 and 2020, making the median age of the systems 4.1 years old.
The women’s relationship to education varied. 51% of the women had only completed primary school, 32% never attended school, and 12% were dismissed entirely before the fourth grade. All the women found challenges in accessing clean water.
PROBLEM: SACRIFICING EDUCATION
BEFORE: 89% of students fetch water for their families daily. 63% spent 7 to 16 hours searching each day, forcing them to sacrifice their education.
SOLUTION: SOLIDIFYING THE FUTURE
AFTER: 95% of their children have a perfect attendance record at school. 96% haven’t been sick since their systems became operational.
PROBLEM: GENDER BASED VIOLENCE
BEFORE: 69% of the women reported experiencing sexual violence while searching for water and 52% of those women had been violated six or more times.
SOLUTION: STOPPING THE CYCLE
AFTER: 96% reported that they never had to leave home to search for water. Neither did their daughters, nor had they been victims of sexual assault.
PROBLEM: HUNGER
BEFORE: 61% of the families reported food insecurity and hunger for a minimum of 2 weeks out of every month. 88% of mothers reduced their own food portion by more than half to feed their children.
SOLUTION: FOOD SECURITY
AFTER: Today, with their garden and the constant food supply at home, 82% report that their children eat a minimum of 3 times per day. 97% report they are consuming green vegetables, legumes, and milk daily.
PROBLEM: GENDER INEQUALITY
BEFORE: 90% permanently removed their daughters from school to help their families search for water.
SOLUTION: FEMALE EQUITY
AFTER: 98% committed to continuing their daughter’s education and reinstated them in school.
PROBLEM: WATER BORNE ILLNESS
BEFORE: 74% of families were sick from water related illnesses, more than 1 week per month.
SOLUTION: HEALTHY OPPORTUNITIES
AFTER: With clean water at home, 96.5% reported that no concerning illnesses lasted for more than a day.
PROBLEM: POVERTY
BEFORE: Time lost searching for water left little for income-generating activities. As a result, 97% of families suffered significant challenges like paying for school fees. Scarcity creates a generational cycle of poverty.
SOLUTION: ABUNDANCE
AFTER: 91% now easily cover their cost of living and their children’s school fees. They reported doubling their livestock count and being capable of joining lending cooperatives in their village.
