The Hands Helping Haiti Water Project works with communities in Southeast Haiti to develop safe drinking water supplies which will alleviate waterborne diseases and the incidence of malnutrition.
With our community workers we are installing biosand filters in homes which provide safe drinking water for a family, which will alleviate sickness, missed school and work, high infant mortality and premature death caused by drinking unsafe water. In a country that is challenged with poverty and inadequate government services, these filters are sustainable and something that our Haitian friends can accomplish themselves, with our assistance.
The filter program consists of building and installing filters, teaching families proper water, sanitation and hygiene practices, follow-up through the community organizations and continuing health education through our school and medical clinic programs. The costs of the program is $60 per filter, all of which is spent with our Haitian workers and teachers.
Each filter is capable of providing over 100,000 gallons of safe disease free water over its life. We began our program in 2009. Over the past eight years we have installed 2,000 filters in homes, schools and orphanages. We are currently reaching out approximately 100 miles from Jacmel (many hours of driving) to spread clean water village by village through our own networks and partner NGO networks.