Water: A Sacred Sadaqah For Families In Malawi

The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) said: “The best charity is giving water to drink and he was the most generous in giving charity” (Ahmad). SubhanAllah, with water a crucial daily essential, not having access to a safe, clean source of water is deadly. And that’s why giving water is such a sacred act of sadaqah!

As humans, we can’t survive for more than four days without water. What’s more, for communities unable to access a safe source of water, adults and children risk not only dehydration but also deadly water-borne diseases such as cholera and typhoid.

Sadly, a staggering 2.2 billion people across the globe are unable to access a safe source of drinking water. In Malawi in particular – a landlocked nation with high levels of poverty – climate change is now also impacting on the availability of water.

In a country where 80% of the economy relies upon produced from smallholder farmers, the availability of water and land suitable for agriculture is crucial. However, climate-induced floods and droughts are now sadly resulting in high inflation and high food prices. As a result, the livelihoods of many families are fragile and increasingly vulnerable. Heavy flooding this year in fact affected over 922,000 people across the country, including villages such as Mwalija.

Many women in particular face numerous challenges due to the shortage of clean water supplied from boreholes. With only one hand pump borehole supporting a whole village, it operates for almost 16 hours a day. Although the yield for the pump is high and the borehole provides water continuously, the biggest challenge is the sheer amount of people who need to use borehole at once and are forced to queue for water. These queues can then lead to women and girls waiting for around four hours at a time to fetch water. This therefore affects local girls’ attendance at school.

Recognising the importance of providing safe sources of water, our Malawi WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) Project is providing villages such as Mwalija with the blessing of water, alhamdulillah! Following the floods, we’re now building more local boreholes to help communities recover from flooding and get back on their feet.

Islamic Relief: Providing water and saving lives

One of the many people we’re supporting is Mwalija who desperately needs our support:

If I want to complete some house chores in good time, I have to wake up around 4 o’clock in the morning in order to be the first one to draw water before the sun rises. If indeed these boreholes are provided to us, you’ll be really helping us because it will mean we have time to focus on other things.’

Insha’Allah will your continued support, we’ll be able to provide Mai and countless other women in her village with a safe, clean supply of water. We’ll ensure that girls in her village can go to school like every other child.

By donating to Islamic Relief, you’ll not only be providing this community and many more like them with safe, clean water, but you’ll also be transforming lives.

Save a life today, donate to Islamic Relief.

One of the many people we’re supporting is Mwalija who desperately needs our support:

If I want to complete some house chores in good time, I have to wake up around 4 o’clock in the morning in order to be the first one to draw water before the sun rises. If indeed these boreholes are provided to us, you’ll be really helping us because it will mean we have time to focus on other things.’

Insha’Allah will your continued support, we’ll be able to provide Mai and countless other women in her village with a safe, clean supply of water. We’ll ensure that girls in her village can go to school like every other child.

By donating to Islamic Relief, you’ll not only be providing this community and many more like them with safe, clean water, but you’ll also be transforming lives.

Save a life today, donate to Islamic Relief.