Christian World Service is calling for support to transform the lives of people living in remote villages of Uganda where water is a scarce resource and people's health and wellbeing suffers as a result.

Ashaba is a primary four child at Kamuri Compassionate School in Rwendama village in the Isingiro region of southern Uganda where there's very poor access to clean water for drinking or washing. Like many children in her community Ashaba lost her father, Naboth Atuhirwe to HIV-AIDS. Now she has to help her mother care for the family, including carrying very heavy 20L water containers for hours every week. 

Ashaba and her friends lose their valuable time at school due to hours travelling to get water. In the dry season she has to walk four kilometres to collect water for her family.

To avoid that arduous journey, families often resort to collecting water from shallow holes or makeshift dams they’ve dug themselves nearby. Many are contaminated—shared with livestock that drink from them and leave waste behind, sometimes directly in the water.

Travelling long distances for water is not only exhausting, but places women and children in danger from predators. But the danger is that water borne diseases in the closer-by water bores can lead to deaths from diaorrhea and dehydration. 

Water and sanitation engineer Charles Rwabambari leads the Centre for Community Solidarity (CCS), a CWS partner organisation based in Isingiro that is working to build a better way of life for their community.

CWS supports Charles and the CCS team to build rainwater tanks for homes and so far more than 1500 rainwater tanks have been built through the help of overseas donors like CWS. 

Most families in Southwest Uganda live in a simple two-room, mud brick home which has a corrugated iron roof. By adding guttering and a water storage tank, the rainwater can be harvested. It is fresh and safe for cleaning, cooking and drinking, without the need to walk long distances. Excess water is also able to be used for watering crops that are planted around people’s homes. 

But with an average daily income of $1 USD from agricultural products, the communities in Isingiro have no way to afford the water tanks they need. 

A gift to the CWS Christmas appeal can give a family in Uganda a simple rainwater tank leading both the family and their wider community into a healthier future.

• Donate to the Christian World Service Christmas Appeal

Learn more about the 'Give water, Give life' Christmas Appeal here.

Find Christian World Service 2025 Christmas Appeal resources for churches here.