Results from a recent study of current living conditions throughout Africa report that more than one billion people do not have enough clean water to provide for their basic human needs. As a result,more than 2,500 children are dying each day.
"When people are desperately thirsty," one official explained, "they are willing to take the risk of disease by consuming water that may not be healthy. For them - it's either risk infection or die from thirst! It is a horrible position to be in."
Unsafe drinking water can carry diseases such as malaria, trypanosomiasis, intestinal worm infections, dengue, and schistosomiasis - as well as bacteria that can lead to deadly diarrheal infections. "In some areas," the report continued, "the level of suffering and misery owing to the inadequacy of clean water is almost beyond comprehension judging by the number of pregnant women and children who suffer from deadly diarrheal diseases such as cholera and dysentery.
"These parasites and diseases feed on very young children and the elderly," explains Fr. Richard Roy. Fr. Roy is the director of the Missionaries of Africa's development office in Washington, DC. "They are the innocent and silent members of society... they have no one to be a voice for them."
"Entire villages and communities are being wiped out by diseases that are living in dirty water," Fr. Roy continued. "Children are dying in huge numbers! For many people, these numbers are so big that they cannot begin to comprehend them - they are statistics! But imagine your own child dying . . . and then imagine if it happened to every child in your neighborhood school! That's when we start to understand how horrible the crisis is! These poor people desperately need our help!" The Missionaries of Africa are currently accepting contributions that will be used to provide safe drinking water for men, women and children in Africa's neediest regions. All donations are tax-deductible.
