*EPF204 08/20/2002
U.S. Water Project in Africa Will Save Countless Lives
(USAID・s Natsios highlights public-private "alliance") (1020)

By Jim Fisher-Thompson
Washington File Staff Writer

Washington -- Africans who might normally go blind as a result of water-borne diseases will see their children laugh, play, and survive into adulthood, thanks to an innovative public-private partnership in America that will soon bring clean water and sanitation to parts of the continent.

The West Africa Water Initiative (WAWI), a $41 million project to bring safe drinking water and toilets, or latrines, to rural villages in Ghana, Mali, and Niger, is "a life-saving intervention" that will bring health and happiness to countless people in Africa, said Bruce Wilkinson, a senior vice president of World Vision, the non-governmental organization (NGO) that provided more than $16 million for the program.

"We・ll see children alive and playing in the streets because of this initiative," Wilkinson told journalists as he joined in announcing the program at an August 20 news conference at the National Press Club in Washington. Representatives from the embassies of Ghana and Mali, as well as Niger・s Ambassador Joseph Diatta and former U.S. Ambassador to Niger Barbara Fitzpatrick, also attended the event.

Wilkinson, who worked on health projects in West Africa for 15 years, pointed out that unsafe water affects millions of people in Ghana, Mali, and Niger, who "suffer from easily prevented water-related diseases, including guinea worm, schistosomiasis, onchorcerciasis [river blindness], and trachoma [the world・s leading cause of preventable blindness]."

As public-sector partner, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will contribute $4.4 million toward WAWI・s goal of drilling 825 new boreholes (wells) while building 9,000 new latrines, aimed at reaching 500,000 people in the three target nations by the year 2008.

According to USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios, "a reliable supply of safe water, along with adequate sanitation and hygiene, is on the front line in the combat against water-related disease and death." Natsios termed WAWI "an important program" and "a very important alliance" in the U.S. government・s efforts to further sustainable development in Africa.

Steven Hilton, grandson of hotel founder Conrad Hilton, said the Conrad Hilton Foundation committed $18 million to WAWI because "we felt it was where we could have maximum impact on the most lives for the monies invested. Where there is no clean water and sanitation, millions of children die each year and millions of people become blind unnecessarily." He added, "In 2000 alone, 1.3 million children under five in developing countries died from diarrheal diseases caused by unsafe water, inadequate sanitation, and poor hygiene."

Hilton said other organizations that contributed to the project include UNICEF, WaterAid, the Lions Clubs International Foundation, Desert Research Institute, Winrock International, Cornell University・s International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development, and the World Chlorine Council.

"We believe this type of collaborative partnership is an effective way to address many of the challenges confronting the developing world," Hilton said.

Natsios read a statement by Secretary of State Colin Powell congratulating the WAWI effort. The secretary said: "It gives me great pleasure to recognize activities that support partnerships to address sustainable development -- government and non-governmental actors working together to reduce poverty and foster sustainable development."

The secretary・s statement came on the eve of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), to be held in Johannesburg August 26 to September 4, which both he and Natsios are slated to attend.

Powell added that WAWI "is an integral part of a larger water initiative that the United States will bring to Johannesburg. By working together, we hope to leverage the resources and expertise of all stakeholders and accomplish more than what we might do separately."

According to World Health Organization (WHO) statistics released by the United Nations, 1,200 million people -- or 20 percent of the world・s population -- do not have access to safe drinking water, while 2,400 million people lack access to proper toilet facilities and sanitation.

The percentage of the rural population with access to safe water in Ghana is 49 percent; Mali, 58 percent; and Niger, 56 percent. Meanwhile, the percentage of people living in the countryside with proper sanitation is, for Ghana, 64 percent; Mali, 58 percent; and Niger, 5 percent.

Recent foreign aid initiatives for Africa announced by the U.S. government include:

-- a $500 million, five-year International Mother and Child HIV Prevention Initiative for Africa and the Caribbean, as well as a pledge to increase the U.S. share of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria to $500 million;

-- a five-year, $200 million initiative to support primary education in Africa; and

-- an additional commitment of 190,000 metric tons of food to drought-stricken southern Africa.

Altogether, USAID administers development and humanitarian assistance programs for sub-Saharan Africa that are worth more than $1,100 million a year.

(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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