position paper (:

Ruth Tovar

Ms.Bailey

Period 4

World Health Organization

China

Providing clean drinking water in sub-Saharan Africa

Health begins with the access to clean water. Water is one of the most important recourses in human life. It is the key to health, hunger, education, and poverty. Most of earth’s diseases are due to lack of water. This includes the people that have access to clean water.

Without access to a reliable source of water, food is hard to grow, preserve, and prepare. It takes huge amounts of water to grow food. This causes hunger. Lack of clean water also affects education. So many adults and children get sick from unclean water and children are often left to manage homes and look after the sick. Everyday women and young girls carry unclean water to their homes. With all these problems that unhealthy water causes, education becomes less of a priority. Also unclean water makes billions of people sick, causing them not to work. So they are stuck in a cycle of poverty. Ending poverty in Africa begins with clean water.

China’s economy is huge and expanding rapidly. In the last 30 years the rate of Chinese economic growth has increased by about 8 percent growth in GDP per annum. Although its economy is doing great, rural China still remains poor. China has done more to end poverty than any other country. China has boosted up employment in Africa and made basic goods like shoes and radios more affordable. China is willing to do everything it can to help Africa. The main thing that China is concerned about is increasing global supplies to help the people of Africa live a better life.

Water is located right below of where these people live; all that is needed is wells to get this water out. So the only thing stopping Africa from building these wells is money. Every country can help build these wells by donating money to a non- profit organization that installs wells for clean drinking water. The money would come from donations from people and fund raising by selling of products. In order for this to happen we will also need volunteers. Volunteers would come from people of the UN and people that are willing to sell these products and professionals that can install these pumps and wells. The plan is to build these wells and pumps in many villages, especially in those where water access is difficult. Just one well will provide water to thousands of villagers. By providing clean drinking water to the people of Africa we will defeat AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria and so many other infectious diseases. This is an important issue that needs to come to an end, to end poverty and change people’s lives.

Work Cited

"Health and Water in Africa." Bring Clean Water to Africa - The Water Project. Web. 27 May 2011. .

"The Chinese in Africa: Trying to Pull Together | The Economist." The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance. Web. 27 May 2011. .

"Is China Helping or Hurting Africa? | PRI.ORG." PRI: Public Radio International. Web. 27 May 2011. .

Water Shortage, Drinking Water Crisis Solutions. Web. 27 May 2011. .

Case Foundation Partnership." Water For People: A Global Nonprofit Supporting Long-lasting Access to Water and Sanitation. Web. 27 May 2011. .