CLEAN WATER FOR ALL
“Since 2009, Feedback Madagascar has drilled and installed over 400 boreholes, providing clean water for over 100,000 people”
Access to clean water is essential, yet for many people in rural Madagascar, it remains a luxury. In the south-eastern region where we work, 80% of the population lives without clean water and a staggering 20% of the under-five mortality rate is due to waterborne diseases.
Without clean water, everything else unravels — health declines, education is disrupted, work days are lost, gender inequality deepens, the forest suffers, and, in far too many cases, lives are lost.
Time and again, the communities we work with share with us that reliable clean water infrastructure is their most urgent need.
Fresh water for all
This is why our clean water projects are a fundamental pillar of our approach to getting people out of poverty and looking after Madagascar’s biodiversity. We build water and sanitation infrastructure, establish long-term maintenance systems, deliver hygiene and sanitation training and secure water source management. A comprehensive strategy not only changes lives immediately, but lays the foundation for further development and conservation activities.
Our water solutions
Hand-pumped boreholes
Home filtration systems
Chlorine water solutions
Solar pumps and water towers
Gravity fed water systems
Latrines
We also implement protective measures around water access points, such as fencing around boreholes, to ensure safety and prevent contamination.
The direct impact of water
Improved health means lives saved
A mother doesn't have to worry every time she gives her child a drink of water
Less sick days mean more school days and more work days
Shorter, safer journeys for women and children fetching water
Fewer trees cut down for boiling dirty water
Improved menstrual hygiene and facilities, girls can continue to attend school during their period
Raised morale and optimism
Catalytic Projects
But the change doesn’t stop with the direct impact.
We consider our water projects to be catalytic projects. Catalytic projects are perceived by the community as bringing collective and immediate benefits, sparking motivation for continued partnership. The working relationship, skills gained, and impact of a water project lay a solid foundation for further collaborative projects — whether that’s building a school, setting up a tree nursery, establishing a health centre, providing menstrual hygiene education, supporting agriculture and business development to name but a few.
Tree planting is now an integral part of every Feedback Madagascar water project, with 1,000 trees planted for each borehole to protect and regenerate the watershed.
