We have discussed in previous posts that with the digging of a well community members receive a better water source and the community itself grows exponentially. Churches are built, housing increases, and schools are attended. Whenever we visit Uganda, we love seeing the kiddos running around in the school yard, and it is always a joy witnessing each boy and girl growing up healthy now that the risk from water borne diseases has been significantly reduced.
Here are 3 ways education opportunities (brought on by having a clean water source at or near the school) can improve a child’s future:
- Classrooms provide an opportunity to learn about preventable diseases, such as HIV and malaria. In fact, with education, women are less likely to contract HIV, be pulled into human trafficking, marry early, or have multiple children. This inevitably will change a young girl’s life. She will not die young of an easily avoidable disease or become trapped in poverty from too many children to support on a small paycheck. School can show her the path to a successful and healthy life. Academicexchange.wordpress.com
- Because of this opportunity, the children who are borne by educated mothers are less likely to have growth defects or be malnourished. Specifically, for every year a woman receives education (provided by an educational system), her child’s mortality rate decreases by 2%. In this case, a chain reaction is the best kind of reaction. Academicexchange.wordpress.com
- Most of the time, children drop out of school because they are consistently sick or their family requires the extra labor. Access to clean water opens the door for a domino effect. A child who is no longer dehydrated or contracting diseases through unclean water is no longer sick every day. Now that he feels better, he can receive higher levels of education, avoid HIV and a premature death. He can grow up to be a successful citizen in his society and be financially stable for his family. He can also be successful enough to send money back to help out his parents who allowed him go to school instead of working at home. Humanium.org
How much better to get wisdom than gold, to get insight rather than silver! Proverbs 16:16
