Water at the Last Mile
How did household water access go from less than 1% to over 31% in Telembí Parish in Esmeraldas Province, Ecuador? Community-run potable water systems!
"The way we built the water system was really beautiful…we all worked as a group here in the community. Everyone knows the work they put in, the trouble we had to go to in order to build the system."
Belsi Caicedo, Water System Technician, Rio Cayapas, Ecuador
“My whole life, when you needed water for the bathroom, for the kitchen, when you needed to bathe, for anything, you went down to the river. Everybody had to go down to the river...but women, and girls, really had the brunt of the task, because we use most of the water – cooking, cleaning, other tasks around the house. Now that we’ve got the water system, things have really changed – it’s a dream come true, and we made it happen with our hard work.”
Maria Roxi de la Cruz, Community Member, Jeyambi, Ecuador
“The approach we’ve taken to implement these projects has revived the communities’ trust in the communal work system… they have learned to value their own efforts and defend what they call ‘their water project’.”
Gustavo Huera Cuases, ALTROPICO Water & Sanitation Lead
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