On average a well can cost up to $2,000 AUD.
This is because it must be dug deep enough to access water all year round. For access to water, it is a small price to pay.
There is something different about Lucia’s house. There is a stillness, a quietness, as if no one is at home. But as we enter, everyone is there. Sitting in the house not saying a word.
Meet Lucia.
They have one child who has special needs and requires constant care. It means she cannot leave for work and she relies on her husband’s income. Uneducated, he works at a local restaurant earning barely enough for their food, let alone their health bills.
For their family, a well means everything. Now without water, they rely on their neighbour’s well and use it sparingly to drink, to cook, and when possible, to bathe. They have 1 acre of land but because of a lack of water, they are unable to cultivate their land.
“Sometimes I imagine if we had a well – we could cultivate our land, both work and earn on our land. I wonder if this dream is out of our reach”.
They are not alone
There are two other families in their same situation and with your support, we will be able to turn around the lives of these three families.
Mariya Rajini – A mother of five, her youngest is one-and-a-half. Without access to water she is reliant on the kindness of her neighbour. She knows she asks a lot but she has no other choice. They need water, they need to bathe, she must cook for them. The continued pressure has left her husband ill and unable to regularly work. So now, with her five children she wonders each day how she can bring the family enough income. With a well, it would not only bring her water for their basic needs, but allow them to cultivate their small land to earn an income. For her and her family, it could change everything.
Mukundini – She is a carer of her disabled husband and a mother. Without water, life is that much harder. She must rent land but with little income she has found a spot very far away from her home. She has little technical knowledge and has no networks in that area. She self learns and makes little profit which her family relies on to meet their needs. Her husband, while having limited physical ability, works when he can, serving in the local restaurant. They use their neighbour’s well for water but sometimes it is hard when the water levels are low. Each day is a struggle but it is one that they continue – because what other choice do they have?
What we can do with your help
To build a well is not as easy as one may think but with your help it will be possible.
With your support we will:
- Get the environmental clearance to build the well (because of the environmental impact we ensure a thorough environmental assessment whenever we construct a well).
- Engage the family and local community members to support with their labour
- Engage a contractor to construct the wells and ensure we will build with the right specifications to have the maximum water – may sound obvious but there are thousands of empty wells throughout the country built by NGOs and Government.
- Ensure safety during the well construction
- Train the families on how to manage their wells
- Ensure water safety of the wells.
The bigger picture
Accessing water is one of the biggest barriers facing these families on their pathway to graduating out of poverty. So while we will begin with the most critical – access to water – these three families are part of a larger program that Palmera is running which focuses on hundreds of families struggling to eat three times a day. To learn more about that program, click here.
How will we update you?
We want to share with you the impact you have had by supporting these families. We will share a video through to your mobile (so make sure you provide that on your donation).
Three Wells
On average a well can cost up to $2,000 AUD.
This is because it must be dug deep enough to access water all year round. For access to water, it is a small price to pay.
There is something different about Lucia’s house. There is a stillness, a quietness, as if no one is at home. But as we enter, everyone is there. Sitting in the house not saying a word.
Meet Lucia.
They have one child who has special needs and requires constant care. It means she cannot leave for work and she relies on her husband’s income. Uneducated, he works at a local restaurant earning barely enough for their food, let alone their health bills.
For their family, a well means everything. Now without water, they rely on their neighbour’s well and use it sparingly to drink, to cook, and when possible, to bathe. They have 1 acre of land but because of a lack of water, they are unable to cultivate their land.
“Sometimes I imagine if we had a well – we could cultivate our land, both work and earn on our land. I wonder if this dream is out of our reach”.
They are not alone
There are two other families in their same situation and with your support, we will be able to turn around the lives of these three families.
Mariya Rajini – A mother of five, her youngest is one-and-a-half. Without access to water she is reliant on the kindness of her neighbour. She knows she asks a lot but she has no other choice. They need water, they need to bathe, she must cook for them. The continued pressure has left her husband ill and unable to regularly work. So now, with her five children she wonders each day how she can bring the family enough income. With a well, it would not only bring her water for their basic needs, but allow them to cultivate their small land to earn an income. For her and her family, it could change everything.
Mukundini – She is a carer of her disabled husband and a mother. Without water, life is that much harder. She must rent land but with little income she has found a spot very far away from her home. She has little technical knowledge and has no networks in that area. She self learns and makes little profit which her family relies on to meet their needs. Her husband, while having limited physical ability, works when he can, serving in the local restaurant. They use their neighbour’s well for water but sometimes it is hard when the water levels are low. Each day is a struggle but it is one that they continue – because what other choice do they have?
What we can do with your help
To build a well is not as easy as one may think but with your help it will be possible.
With your support we will:
- Get the environmental clearance to build the well (because of the environmental impact we ensure a thorough environmental assessment whenever we construct a well).
- Engage the family and local community members to support with their labour
- Engage a contractor to construct the wells and ensure we will build with the right specifications to have the maximum water – may sound obvious but there are thousands of empty wells throughout the country built by NGOs and Government.
- Ensure safety during the well construction
- Train the families on how to manage their wells
- Ensure water safety of the wells.
The bigger picture
Accessing water is one of the biggest barriers facing these families on their pathway to graduating out of poverty. So while we will begin with the most critical – access to water – these three families are part of a larger program that Palmera is running which focuses on hundreds of families struggling to eat three times a day. To learn more about that program, click here.
How will we update you?
We want to share with you the impact you have had by supporting these families. We will share a video through to your mobile (so make sure you provide that on your donation).