Caring Report 2025—Clean Water and Sanitation
Imagine being a student trying to focus on school, but it’s hard to attend class and focus on your studies because of thirst. This was the reality for students like Bibata in Burkina Faso—until the Church’s WASH initiatives. “Now we have easy access to water on site for all our needs, instead of having to bring it from home or travel long distances,” she shared. “All of this puts us in a better position to study and succeed.”
2025 WASH Initiatives
Access to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) is essential for health, stability, and opportunity. It enables individuals to stay healthy and support their families and lays the foundation for education, employment, and community development. In 2025, the Church, alongside other organizations, supported 227 WASH projects, which helped individuals in need regardless of their faith or background.
Clean Water, Stronger Communities
For students like Bibata, having access to clean water at school is not just about hydration but also about dignity, safety, and the opportunity to thrive. This is also true in communities worldwide.
For example, in Mexico the Church collaborated with a local organization to bring a sustainable drinking water system to the community of Villa de Santa Ana Nichi, benefiting 2,500 people across five neighborhoods, many schools, and a hospital. The project features a solar-powered pump, 88 solar panels, and a long-term maintenance plan to ensure reliable access to clean water and improved health for years to come.
Supporting Education Through Clean Water Efforts
In a Bolivian village, a young girl named Yolanda used to wake hours before school to collect water from a river—a daily routine shared by many children in her community due to the lack of clean water at school. That changed when Water for People and the Church collaborated to install a safe drinking station, bathroom stalls, and handwashing facilities at her school. Now Yolanda and her classmates arrive at school refreshed, no longer burdened by the exhausting task of hauling water, and enjoy their days learning and playing together.