THE Morgan Foundation is to help bring clean drinking water and improved sanitation facilities to a remote part of Rwanda.
The Foundation has teamed up with Water Aid to fund a three-year programme to help 100,000 people living in in the Bugesera district of Rwanda, 25km south-east of Kigali.
Steve Morgan, founder of the Morgan Foundation, said: “Many readers will remember the atrocities in Rwanda where one million people were butchered during three months of genocide in 1994.
“Since then Rwanda has moved on a long way and thanks to President Kagame and his government the country has made significant economic progress.
“However the one big issue that remains is child mortality due to poor quality drinking water.”
Diarrhea is the biggest cause of death for children under five in Africa.
During a visit to the area, Mr Morgan took part in the villagers’ daily six mile round treks to a muddy river to collect water.
“It’s some walk, very strenuous – and they have to do it every day,” said Steve.
“Our three-year plan is to provide good clean safe water and improve sanitation.
“Lot of places still have no latrines. In one school there are eight latrines for 1,000 children.
“That’s why we have to something to help these people.”
Steve, who is also chairman of Premier League football club Wolverhampton Wanderers, took some of the Wolves’ kits to the village – and refereed a match.
“It was great fun and all of the village have now become massive Wolves fans!”
Five years ago the Morgan Foundation provided running water to thousands of people in south west Uganda.
Rwanda fact file:
Rwanda – population 9.5m – is one of the poorest countries in the world on the UN Human Development Index.
Official figures say 60% of people have access to piped water, but the quality is questionable as it includes water from polluted swamps.
The Minister of Health states that 80% of diseases are water related.
Only 8% of the population has access to hygienic latrines.
On average, people walk two miles to collect water from sources of questionable quality.
