This article is focused on these Sustainable Development Goals:
Throughout these past few months, we have all heard the line "wash your hands." Living in a community that always has a constant supply of clean water, I did not even think about other communities who do not have that access. If people do not have clean water, how can they wash their hands? This problem was brought to light to me by Ms. Doyinsola Ogunye, a change-maker who founded the COVID-19 Water Challenge.
Lack of clean water is a problem that many communities in Nigeria face every day and is a problem that needs to be addressed to not only prevent the spread of the coronavirus, but to also give communities a constant supply of water for purposes such as cleaning, drinking, and hygiene. The COVID-19 Water Challenge will provide communities around Lagos with safe drinking water by building water tanks in community areas and partnering with businesses that supply this water. If the partnerships continue, many communities will benefit in the long-run by having basic services such as access to safe drinking water.
The COVID-19 Water Challenge was made possible by the funds collected through Ms. Ogunye's Instagram. Through her advertising and constant posts, she was able to raise money to build more than two tanks for communities in need. With the help of young advocates like us, she will be able to raise many more funds and build many more tanks. By doing this, more and more communities around Lagos will benefit as they will be able to prevent the spread of COVID-19 by washing their hands with clean water and keeping up the hygiene of themselves and their children. In order to make this possible, however, she will need the help of every one of us to not only donate but also raise awareness for her cause. While we may have a constant supply of clean water to wash her hands, others in communities, such as the ones in Lagos, do not. During this pandemic, it is important for us to think of those around us in addition to caring for ourselves to ensure that everyone is safe from the virus. With enough funds and partnerships, this project will be able to continue beyond this pandemic and impact the lives of many in the long-run.
Globally, about one in three people do not have access to safe drinking water. The Associate Director of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene at UNICEF says that “Children and their families in poor and rural communities are most at risk of being left behind." Despite progress, billions of people still lack safe water, sanitation and hand-washing facilities. This means that it is our responsibility to raise awareness for this issue and provide communities in need with basic services, especially during this time where it is important to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
SDG goal number six, Clean Water and Sanitation, is a goal that is essential to work towards. Having access to clean water is a basic human right and is a right that we must provide to the people in need. By donating to and raising awareness for organisations such as the ones initiating the COVID-19 Water Challenge, we will be able to make progress towards the goal. If we want to reach universal access by 2030, we will need to step up our efforts to ensure an essential foundation for good health.
In addition, while stepping up our efforts to accomplish this goal, we will be able to also help accomplish SDG goal number eleven, Sustainable Cities and Communities. In order to make cities and communities sustainable, we need to first ensure that these cities and communities have basic services, one of these services is having access to clean water for drinking, hygiene, and sanitation. Though the proportion of the global urban population living in slums fell from 46 to 23 per cent, that 23 per cent may still not have access to these basic services. This means that it is time for us to come together as a community to help these communities in need.
During this pandemic, while we wash our hands, let's think of the people who do not have the privilege of doing so. One way to help them is by supporting organisations which are dedicated to providing clean water to communities in need, such as Ms. Ogunye's initiative to build water tanks in communities around Lagos. While donating to these causes would be the best way to make an impact, raising awareness for these causes will also be extremely beneficial. With the connections seen above to the UN Sustainable Development Goals six and eleven, you can see that you too can help reach these goals by doing something as small as raising awareness for prominent issues in our world. Remember, change starts with you.
External Resources
The founder of the COVID-19 water challenge (Ms. Doyinsola)
Works Cited
1 in 3 people globally do not have access to safe drinking water – UNICEF, WHO. (n.d.). Retrieved June 08, 2020, from https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/18-06-2019-1-in-3-people-globally-do-not-have-access-to-safe-drinking-water-unicef-who
Goal 6 .:. Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. (n.d.). Retrieved June 08, 2020, from https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg6
Goal 11 .:. Sustainable Development Knowledge Platform. (n.d.). Retrieved June 08, 2020, from https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg11
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