Water chore

The water chore is the daily time spent fetching water, often several hours' walk from home. In Niger it falls mostly on women and children — it prevents children (especially girls) from attending school and women from developing activities. Building a well at the heart of the village removes it.

Details

• Takes up much of children's day, on donkeys, loaded with jerrycans
• A village well frees up time for school and income-generating activities
• A direct lever for women's empowerment and girls' schooling

Related terms

• Village well — A village well is a shallow masonry well (10-40 m) dug at the heart of a village, providing drinking water for approximately 500 people with a lifespan of ~30 years.
• Water access in Niger — In Niger, access to drinking water is among the lowest in the world: 2 out of 5 Nigeriens have no access to safe drinking water.
• Women's cooperative — A women's cooperative is a group of women formed around a well to develop income-generating activities (crafts, sewing, leatherwork, market gardening, food processing).