My twin 6-month-old grandchildren from Ethiopia nearly died from lack of access to clean water. In the next two months, Congress, with no additional cost, has the opportunity to improve the way it spends U.S. foreign aid on clean water, sanitation and hygiene programs so that countries with the least access become the priority, but the bipartisan bill that would do so is not yet a priority for our lawmakers.
This lack of access to clean water kills. Globally, it contributes to two of the three leading killers of children under 5. Diarrhea is the most serious of these diseases, killing almost 1,400 children every day. Most assuredly, my grandsons would have been two of these 1,400 had they not been saved through adoption.
Clean water is an issue that most of us don’t have to think about. We simply turn on the tap to wash our hands, shower, take a drink or cook dinner. But 748 million people around the world go without clean water, many of them children.
We have the power to keep these children alive, and all it takes is a quick call to your member of Congress to make sure they know about the Water for the World Act, a bill that is currently before the U.S. House of Representatives.
By amending the Water for the Poor Act of 2005 and responding to USAID’s new Global Water Strategy, the Water for the World Act will make better use of existing funding, strengthen accountability for water programs already underway, and ensure the greatest impact on communities worldwide without spending new money or creating new bureaucracy. More importantly, it will save lives. Please join me in encouraging your representatives to sign this important legislation. It will take about two minutes.
However, time is running out to pass this bill before the 113th session of Congress closes, and the women and children who spend hours each day collecting water from bacteria-ridden ponds and streams can’t wait another year for clean water. Please contact your representative today and ask them to support the Water for the World Act (HR2901) to save children and families.
Carol Smith, Acton
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