Providing Water to Isolated Villages in Afghanistan

In eastern Afghanistan, the mountainous province of Kapisa has an average altitude of 2,300 meters, with peaks reaching nearly 5,000 meters. Villages scattered across this rugged landscape of the Hindu Kush are particularly isolated and difficult to access. The 40-year conflict in the region has severely damaged infrastructure, making life even harder for villagers, especially when it comes to accessing safe drinking water. In this context, SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL launched its operations in the region in early 2022 with the support of the Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations. 

The small province of Kapisa, in Northeastern Afghanistan, is home to several villages nestled in the high mountains. 

The region’s inhabitants live in isolation from nearby cities. Most roads are damaged and sometimes hazardous for those who travel them. During rainy or snowy times, some roads even become completely impracticable. 

While some men work in the cities, the local population largely relies on agriculture, growing cereals or vegetables such as walnuts or pomegranates, and livestock farming. 

For the inhabitants of Kapisa province, geographic isolation is a significant challenge. In some districts, reaching the market in nearby cities to buy food takes an entire day. Access roads are very limited and often dangerous: “There are accidents,” explains Shafiq Ahmad, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Deputy Project Manager for SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL. Some people have died because of the poor condition of the roads.” 

Accessing safe drinking water can also be extremely difficult. For example, 13-year-old Khadija had to walk two hours to fetch water for the 18 members of her family in the village of Kunje Hajat Ga. 

Living conditions for the people of Kapisa have significantly deteriorated in recent years due to the drought. Some families in the province have at times been forced to drink unsafe water, such as melted snow, depending on weather conditions. 

SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL has been restoring access to clean, safe drinking water by building networks that bring water points closer to the villages. These infrastructures are designed to withstand all seasons, including floods and severe frost. 

Ten-year-old Ibrima is responsible for fetching water for her family of nine. Thanks to the creation of a water point in her village of Limia, this task now takes her only 10 minutes. 

Until recently, families in Limia had to walk nearly an hour to reach the nearest water source. This water was used to water livestock, wash clothes, and meet household needs, quickly rendering it unsafe for consumption. 

Not a day went by without a child from the village suffering from diarrhea, as the water shortage led to an increase in diseases. Faced with this poor hygiene situation, the locals reached out to SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL. The installation of the pump and the reservoir helped put an end to this problem. 

Children in the region, who could only wash twice a week before, now wash every day. This has been made possible by the water supply brought to the villages and the sensitization regarding new hygiene habits during awareness campaigns.  

Each household also now has its own latrines, and families are trained in their maintenance. Previously, they would relieve themselves in the open, which contributed to the spread of waterborne diseases. 

However, there are many barriers to adopting new hygiene habits in Kapisa, including very low income levels, the remoteness of the region and lack of access to the local market, which prevents families from buying soap or toothpaste.  

Thanks to the hygiene item distributions organized by SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL, children now brush their teeth every day. 

To raise awareness on hygiene standards among villagers, the NGO organized hygiene promotion sessions. Training and raising awareness in small groups allows new habits to gradually spread within communities. 

Women’s groups, for example, benefited from awareness sessions specifically focused on feminine hygiene and health issues that concern them. In the long run, these initiatives will help improve the health of Kapisa’s residents.  

Storing water in a way that keeps it safe requires specific knowledge, which is being passed on to the villagers. In the kitchen as well, residents now boil water to disinfect it before using it.  

All these new habits have gradually become established in the households of the province where SOLIDARITÉS INTERNATIONAL is operating. 

To ensure the sustainability of these improvements, the NGO has created and trained a maintenance committee for the water access infrastructure. Its members are trained and equipped with extra water and maintenance kits to manage and maintain the water network, even after the teams will have left the area.