Forests for Water, Water for Life - Malaysia

Malaysia is tropical and lush with enough water for its needs on an annual basis but there are still certain times of the year where shortages occur and many Malaysians accept water cuts as part of everyday life.

Heavens Above - Kenya

Two thirds of Kenya is arid or semi-arid and therefore access to water is scarce. Fifty per cent of the population has no access to a safe or adequate supply of water. Women spend several hours each day collecting water from distant dams, sharing the water source with animals that drink from it and contaminate it.

The annual rainfall in Kenya ranges from 150mm to 2,000mm and rainwater is the most common accessible source of water. Rainwater catchment systems have a long history but until recently this simple yet effective method of water collection and supply has been regarded as a last resort. The Kenya Rainwater Association decided to help develop rainwater harvesting technologies in the rural areas.

Play Pumps - South Africa

In the rural areas of developing countries, the only access to water is from bore holes. The chore of fetching water is usually the responsibility of women and children who cover large distances in order to collect sufficient water for their family's daily requirements. It is estimated that the minimum amount of water a human needs each day is five litres which is a huge physical burden for the women and children drawing the water.

Traditional sources of water collection are from dams, springs, rivers, streams and farm reservoirs, with the introduction of bore holes where these traditional sources of water are unavailable. In the past, bore holes have been operated by hand pumps because the use of modern alternatives such as diesel, petrol or electric pumps are costly to install and carry a constant financial burden of fuel and maintenance costs.

Water Cigars - Greece

Traditionally, the bulk transfer of potable water around the world has been in tankers. However, in conjunction with research carried out by two British University research teams, the concept of using polyurethane bags to transport potable water was pioneered in the 1980s. Recognising the historic, current and anticipated world shortage of water, Aquarius was set up in 1992 to develop a low cost and environmentally friendly system of transporting potable water in bulk using flexible polyurethane bags.

Ramming It - Nepal

The automatic hydraulic ram is a pumping device for lifting water to heights of over 100 metres. It is powered by falling water and has been widely used for over two centuries in many parts of the world. The pump works by using the energy of a large amount of water falling a small height to lift a small amount of that water to a much greater height. In this way, water from a spring or stream in a valley can be pumped to a village or irrigation scheme on the hillside. Wherever a fall of water can be obtained, the ram pump can be used as a relatively cheap, simple and reliable means of raising water to considerable heights.

Further Reading

TVE/ Practical Action gratefully acknowledge support for the HANDS ON programmes from the UK's Department for International Development (DFID), the European Commission (EC), the UN Foundation and UNDP/The Equator Initiative in collaboration with the Government of Canada, IDRC, IUCN, BrasilConnects and the Nature Conservancy.