A Water Crisis

Water Remains a precious resource that millions struggle to have

Volunteer Voice of Hiba C.

My mornings

Everyday we wake up and drink a cup of water with the people I live with, in a home where no water drips through the roof. We also have water to use for brushing our teeth. We use water for cooking and cleaning. We use water for showering. Water has many uses, and no one should ever have to go without it if they don’t want to. According to the United Nations 2 out of 5 people worldwide do not have a basic hand-washing facility with soap and water at home.

Living in 2021 is a time where the wealthy have all the recourses they need, and the poor are left with little life necessities. Water is a necessity all human beings deserve. Lots of kids and parents walk miles to fill up their buckets with water, and many times it’s harmful unfiltered water.

 “I used to wake up at around 5am to walk about a half-a-mile before reaching a drinking water point. Sometimes, I spent more than an hour and half before returning home,” says Kadia, a young wife and mother of two, from a village in Mali.

According to the United Nations, 1 in 4 people still live without a decent toilet. It is very unsanitary to live in a place where the sewage and water places are mixed. I cannot believe that people, during 2021, are still struggling to get a bucket of water. That is why, thanks to Islamic Relief, with your donations, they are digging and building wells in rural and crucial areas, where people are in need for clean water. Also, Islamic Relief is a good organization to build a well in the name of  a deceased family member. It can be used as enduring charity and will help the deceased gain good deeds in their grave.  

According to Wsmah, a Regional Volunteer Coordinator at Islamic Relief, “There is a chemical called nitrate that is found in drinking water. In small amounts, it is perfectly okay to ingest, however, it is extremely unsafe to drink when the levels of nitrate are high. In parts of Palestine, the levels of nitrate in drinking water are 10 times the maximum allowable level than here in the United States. It is so bad that babies are being born with blue spots all over their bodies. Therefore, providing clean water to areas that have this problem can prevent babies from being born with blue spots.”

Water matters, and it our duty to work to provide it to people who have gone too long without it. Islamic Relief USA stands at the forefront of this mission. We need more water for life.