Harriet washes her son in a basin full of water now that she has easy access to clean water at home in, Uganda, May 2024. WaterAid\/ James Kiyimba<\/p>\n
This Mother’s Day, while many mums will wake up with a cup of tea delivered to them in bed or a relaxing bubble bath, millions of mums around the world will face a different reality.<\/p>\n
For them, the day begins not with joy, but with the heavy burden of securing something most of us take for granted \u2014 clean water for their families.<\/p>\n
In countless communities, the simple act of turning on a tap is not an option and mothers bear the weight of making sure their family survive without it.<\/p>\n
In fact, globally, women and girls spend 200 million hours every day collecting water.<\/p>\n
In Papua New Guinea,pregnant mother Jennifer is preparing to welcome her second child. But unlike many expectant mums, her journey to motherhood is filled with obstacles most of us can\u2019t imagine.<\/p>\n
The local health centre, which serves more than 8,500 people, is crumbling. The building is riddled with termites, the delivery room lacks sanitation and the water tanks are rusted and contaminated. With no running water and broken toilets, Jennifer is forced to use the bushes or walk to the river \u2014 even while in labour.<\/p>\n
The risks are serious. Without clean water, infection is common. Mothers must bring their own water to take medication. Staff clean instruments with bleach when no steriliser is available. In the wet season, overflowing pit toilets pose serious health hazards.<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u201cIf the clinic had clean water and proper equipment, I would feel safe to give birth here,\u201d Jennifer says. \u201cBut it doesn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jennifer Kenea, 23, and her son Michael wait outside Kuriva sub-healthcare centre, Central Province, Papua New Guinea. WaterAid\/Tariq Hawari<\/p>\n
In Uganda,\u00a0mums like Harriet go to extraordinary lengths every day to protect and provide for their children.<\/p>\n
Harriet\u2019s story is a powerful reminder of the impact water can have on a mother\u2019s ability to care for her family. For years, Harriet and her children relied on unsafe, contaminated water sources shared with animals. The consequences were severe: stomach aches, skin rashes and frequent illnesses became part of daily life.<\/p>\n
Before gaining access to clean water, Harriet said:<\/p>\n
\u201cI really feel envious when I see that the other villages have water, and we don’t. I feel like the world belongs to them and we’re just visitors in this world. \u201c<\/p>\n
The search for water also consumed much of Harriet\u2019s time, time she could have spent earning an income or helping her children thrive. Instead, the family\u2019s limited resources were diverted to medical expenses, leaving nothing for essentials like school fees or nutritious food.<\/p>\n
But with access to clean water, everything changed.<\/p>\n
Sumaya, 9, Aidah, 10, and their mother Harriet going to collect unclean water from a<\/p>\n
pond for their household use in Uganda.\u00a0WaterAid\/ James Kiyimba<\/p>\n
Today, Harriet\u2019s children are healthier. The financial strain of constant illness has eased. The time once spent searching for water is now used to build a better future. Clean water hasn\u2019t just transformed Harriet\u2019s day-to-day life \u2014 it has restored her hope.<\/p>\n
In Cambodia,Sun, 33, lives with her four children. Her husband works in Thailand, sending money home when he can. Like many mothers in the region, Sun carries the full weight of raising her children without reliable access to safe water.<\/p>\n
Each day, Sun walks to a nearby well or pond, collecting just one bucket of water at a time.<\/p>\n
The water looks clear, but she worries about illness. Her youngest child suffers from stunting, a lasting impact of not having enough nutritious food or safe water during pregnancy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen she was born, she weighed only 1.5kg. I wanted to take her to hospital, but I couldn\u2019t afford the transport.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sun still dreams of a simple tap at home.<\/p>\n
Sun Seiya, 33, with her children (left to right) Chantha, 5, baby Channa, Sreyleak, 4, and Samnay, 10 in their community in, Cambodia.. WaterAid\/Tariq Hawari<\/p>\n
Nicole Ryan, Acting Director of Community and Corporate Engagement at WaterAid Australia,\u00a0said:<\/p>\n
\u201cThis Mother\u2019s Day, let\u2019s not forget that for many mums like Sun in Cambodia, there are no flowers or breakfast in bed\u2014just another day of walking for water and worrying about their children\u2019s health.<\/p>\n
No one should have to raise their children without access to something as basic and essential as clean water. At WaterAid, we\u2019re working alongside our partners in Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea and beyond to make sure every mother has the chance to watch her children grow up healthy and strong\u2014with clean water close to home.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Harriet washes her son in a basin full of water now that she has easy access to clean water at home in, Uganda, May 2024. WaterAid\/ James Kiyimba This Mother’s Day, while many mums will wake up with a cup of tea delivered to them in bed or a relaxing bubble bath, millions of mums […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17546,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-17544","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-australia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17544","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17544"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17544\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17545,"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17544\/revisions\/17545"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17544"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17544"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pacificposts.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17544"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}