Worldwide, 3 out of 10 people lack access to clean water. According to the WHO, at least 25 diseases are related to the use of unsafe water, with children being the most affected. Although 92% of the population in Colombia has access to drinking water, poor rural communities use unsafe water sources, which has a direct impact on their health evidenced in higher mortality rates and disease prevalence of gastrointestinal and respiratory infections compared to the urban areas of the country.

Cada Gota Cuenta is a partnership between the International NGO Waves for Water (W4W) and Global Shapers Hubs in Colombia that has provided clean water access to more than 800 vulnerable families in Colombia by distributing portable water filters.

In 2019, Global Shaper Manizales led the distribution of water filters for more than 100 families from indigenous communities in the department of Guaviare, where 40% of the population does not have access to drinking water (National Planning Department, 2019), thus benefitting more than 350 people. Global Shapers Manizales arranged logistical resources for the execution of the project, and partnered with local social organizations such as the Fundación Social del Oriente (Funsori) and the ICBF (Colombian Institute for Family Welfare), aiming to monitor the use of filters by the communities. Likewise, members of Global Shapers Manizales joined the W4W and Funsori teams in the distribution of the filters, for which they navigated the Guaviare River for two days to sensitize and educate communities on the use of water filters.

The success of Cada Gota Cuenta was the platform for the expansion of the alliance between W4W and Global Shapers Latin America, which was launched at the Shape Latam 2019, León – Mexico.

Goals

Provide clean water access in vulnerable communities by distributing portable water filters.

Impact

• 100 families from indigenous communities provided with access to drinking water, thus improving the health and quality of life of more than 350 people. The communities who participated in the project have shown improvement in their health after they started to use the filters


• Development of a partnership between international and local organizations to create a platform for expanding the project to other communities in the department of Guaviare

Timeline: April 2019

Impact Area: SDG 6 - Clean Water and Sanitation

Project Need: Technological transfer of the project´s methodology to other hubs, so they can replicate it

Stakeholders: Wave for Waters, Funsori, ICBF

Additional Information

• Video


• Photos

Contact: Andrea Grisales - andreagrisales.g@gmail.com