Clean water is a fundamental human need, never more so than during a days schooling. Water helps concentration, it prevents dehydration, it improves hygiene. Dehydration is a particular concern after pupils have walked long distances to reach school in the baking Ethiopian sun. Many schools in Ethiopia have no form of safe drinking water for pupils. Of the schools that do, few have facilities suitable for the number of pupils on site.

Link Ethiopia is working with school communities to develop water systems to cater more effectively for all the student population. Depending on the current conditions within a school we either develop and expand upon existing facilities or we support the exploration of entirely new water supplies.

Here you can find out about two of the water projects we recently funded.

Jenda Elementary

This rural school, catering for 900 pupils, is 30 minutes walk from the nearest road, which itself is a further hour’s bus ride from Gondar town centre in northern Ethiopia. The school was until recently without clean water for pupils to drink.

Link Ethiopia funded the installation of a new water pump facility on the school site to replace an old disused well. The water supply is now able to be used by students, staff and the local community.

Tsadiku Yohannes

The largest elementary school in the Gondar region of Ethiopia, Tsadiku Yohannes, is set on a large site in a relatively poor area of Gondar town. It caters for 3,200 children, half in the morning shift and half in the afternoon, and teaches pupils from Grades 1 to 8.

Tsadiku Yohannes is particularly special because it also caters for blind and deaf pupils and those with learning disabilities.

Link Ethiopia recently worked with the local community to address the shortage of water facilities on site. We were able to support the school with a new drinking water facility for pupils to use during break-times.