Fountains of Hope: Innovating to Provide Clean Water In Africa

Making access to clean water universal remains one of the world’s greatest challenges in 2023. Clean water is a human right, and fundamental to the flowering of civilization. In areas of the world where millions of people lack access to safe, clean drinking water – like rural sub-Saharan Africa – one can always find widespread poverty, disease, and hunger. Without water, communities struggle to survive.

Africa is home to vast quantities of water, but it mostly exists underground, inaccessible without the expensive investment of drilling into the ground and building a well. Embrace Relief has been constructing new water wells in sub-Saharan Africa since 2013, in an effort to fight water scarcity in this part of the world. These wells have given hundreds of thousands of people clean water, improving health conditions, promoting agricultural production and the local economy, and overall quality of life. Each well is a significant investment made possibly by Embrace Relief and our donors, but it is an investment that continues to produce results.

An innovative approach

However, as our work has progressed, we became aware that an astonishingly high proportion of water wells in the region are no longer in use, either because of unaddressed mechanical issues, or simply because they had been abandoned. At any given time, more than half of all existing water wells in Africa are estimated to be nonfunctioning. This stunning revelation led Embrace Relief’s team and our local partner organizations to discuss how these wasted resources could be repurposed to help people. After thoughtful conversations and planning, in 2021 we developed a new approach to the clean water crisis:

Fountains of Hope.

It quickly became clear that if we could locate, rehabilitate, and re-open a broken or abandoned water well, we could provide nearby communities with the exact same quantity and quality of water as one of our newly-built wells. But crucially, a reconstructed well costs less money and involves less engineering work: a Fountain of Hope costs roughly one-third of the cost of a brand new well. That means that Embrace Relief can now provide clean water to three times as many communities for the same amount of money as before.

Our Impact

Fountains of Hope has been a game changer for Embrace Relief. In less than three years since the launch of this project, we have been able to reconstruct more than 170 wells in Chad, Cameroon and Nigeria, providing clean water to more than 170,000 people.

And in each community benefitting from a Fountain of Hope, we have seen enormous tangible impacts that have reduced suffering and increased prosperity.

When a village gains access to clean water, it grows – quickly. Clean water instantly reduces the prevalence of the waterborne diseases that are so common in this part of the world. The abundance of water promotes increased food production, ensuring that communities have enough food for all. The economy grows as farmers can now plant greater quantities and varieties of crops, which can be sold at local markets. Women and girls, who previously had spent hours each day fetching water, can now use that time to take care of their families, receive their education, or join the workforce.

Struggling villages turn into thriving towns when we give the gift of clean water. Our wells represent a powerful tool to bring hope to the people of Chad, Cameroon and Nigeria.

Rebuild a Fountain of Hope today!

Fountains of Hope continues to grow thanks to the support of our donors. Our rebuilt wells are changing the trajectory of entire communities for the better – permanently. But we know there is still much work to do. There are still thousands of abandoned wells in Africa, each one holding the potential to benefit hundreds and thousands of people.

That’s where you come in. By making a donation to the Fountains of Hope project, you can make a profound impact on the lives of thousands of people for years to come.

Each well comes with a guaranteed minimum five-year warranty, covering annual maintenance checkups and all necessary part replacements. This ensures that the water will continue to flow for years to come.

The cost to rebuild a Fountain of Hope with Embrace Relief is just $1,500 – one-third the cost of building a water well from scratch. Whether you’d like to rebuild your own water well (which entitles you to name it), or whether you’d like to be a part of a group water-well fundraiser, you can change lives with just a few clicks right now. Donate to Fountains of Hope and give the gift of priceless, life-changing water to people in need today!