From nightly walks to fetch water to solar-powered piped water to her home

“After years of suffering, it is so hard to believe that I have water available at home," says Shah Bano, "I do not have to go out of the house at night to fetch water and then wait till the morning for it to become clean and drinkable. My children and I get clean water at home. Our life has become so much easier and productive.”

Peshawar District in Pakistan, where Shah Bano lives, was once famous for its freshwater springs, wells, and waterways where the residents would enjoy crystal-clear drinking water directly from these water sources. Sadly, these water sources are now in danger and the region is currently experiencing a serious shortage of clean drinking water, and faces risk of permanent decline in groundwater levels due to unplanned urbanization, increase in population and uncontrolled installation of tube wells across the region.

Like many countries around the world, Pakistan is heavily dependent on their groundwater, a newly released Word Bank Report has found that groundwater 'supplies 90 percent of domestic water in rural areas of Pakistan, 70 percent of domestic water nationally, and over 50 percent of agricultural water. It plays a pivotal role in mitigating the impacts of increasingly variable canal water supply and rainfall.'

Climate change is placing increasing demands and pressures on the world’s clean, freshwater resources. Groundwater will play a critical role in adapting to climate change. so we need to work together to sustainably manage this precious resource, balancing the needs of people and the planet.

With support from Australia through their Water for Women project, International Rescue Committee is finding innovative and sustainable ways to bring accessible water supply to communities, like Village Landi Akhon Ahmad in Peshawar District, where 300 households are now able to access safe drinking water from a solar powered supply scheme!

Like many others in Village Landi Akhon Ahmad, Shah Bano used to fetch water at night. Until a few months ago, every night before going to bed, Shah Bano would walk a distance to fetch water from an unprotected spring, carrying a jar made from baked clay. She would then add a piece of alum to purify water as alum coagulates the colloidal impurities present in water, as a result these impurities settle down over time and the water becomes drinkable.

Her village experiences serious power breakdowns which last from 15 hours to 20 hours a day. Working within this context and with recommendations from the inclusive WASH Jirga (inclusive community committee), IRC implemented a solar power-based drinking water supply scheme for the village.

The main objective of the scheme was to provide a low-cost, continuous, and sustainable drinking water system to the people of the village.

 
Before (left) and after works commenced on the water supply in Village Landi Akhon Ahmad

Through the solar-based system, pipelines have been provided to more than 300 households who otherwise had to go through several hurdles to fetch water for their family needs. Shah Bano’s family also received a connection from the solar-powered water system, which has been life changing.

The solar panels that power the water supply system

Many rural voices are echoed in Shah Bano's story. The solar-powered system has made water available to a large population and has reduced walking and waiting times of the residents, especially women.

International Rescue Committee's Water for Women project has reached thousands of families in the rural and urban suburbs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by increasing access to basic drinking water, reducing the burden on women who have primarily been responsible for collecting water.

The project is also promoting the role of women in the decision making around WASH. It is only through gender and social inclusion that we can ensure WASH services and systems are accessible and effective for everyone, more climate-resilient and sustainable.

What we do on the surface matters underground - safely managed and inclusive water and sanitation services and systems are integral to protecting groundwater from contamination, and also ensuring that access to these precious water sources is equitable and sustainable.

Photo: Ms. Aqsa Ahmad, International Rescue Committee Pakistan