Events ☰

6K Water walk with World Vision UK

by Temi (12 years old)

Do you know how just important water is in our daily lives? Just imagine living without water to drink when thirsty, to bathe when dirty, to wash up dirty clothing, or just have a water slide for fun. Just Imagine!!!

My parent gave me a task one day and asked that I do the following:

Fetch a bucket of water from downstairs and take it up the stairs on my head. Literally, carry the bucket of water on my head. I was happy with the task considering what I will get at the end of the day for executing the task. Low and behold, it was the most difficult thing to do. It was hard. So, I understood immediately what it was like to fetch water and travel miles even hours to take it home. It must be hard especially doing such a task under the scorching sun.

Imagine carrying this bucket of water on you head

Aside from that is the fact that such activities deprive children like me the opportunity to do other valuable things as some children fetch water during school time, after school time, and most times, round the clock.

UNICEF said the 200 million hours women and girls spend every day collecting water is a colossal waste of their valuable time. “Just imagine: 200 million hours is 8.3 million days or over 22,800 years… No matter where you look, access to clean drinking water makes a difference in the lives of people,” said UNICEF’s global head of water, sanitation, and hygiene Sanjay Wijesekera.

“The needs are clear; the goals are clear. Women and children should not have to spend so much of their time for this basic human right.”

I agree.

I couldn’t help but wonder and put myself in that same situation. I would look for hope occasionally. Hope that water which is a basic need of life is available within my reach and I do not need to go many miles to fetch it. I will definitely grumble and feel sad every time.

Take a pause and read two 5-year-olds who live in rural Kenya. Hear their story here - Cheru and Kamama. How revealing is that story, yet it makes one cringe at what others go through every day.

I had the opportunity to join a 6K walk for a Water campaign in 2019 organized by World Vision UK. World Vision UK is a Christian organization working to help communities lift themselves out of poverty for good.

I joined friends and family in Church as we embarked on a 6-Kilometres walk in Leeds to raise funds for children in developing countries in dire need of water. I had a tag on me of someone I would be sponsoring and that gave me every courage to want to raise as many funds as possible to sponsor the child.

6k Water walk with World Vision UK

I took my ‘Donation & Gift aid declaration form’ to my Saturday Kumon lessons and engaged the parent of all my friends to help sponsor the child on my tag.

That was my first time doing such and I raised £85 on the spot. It was fulfilling to see people generously giving to the cause.

We also had the opportunity to talk about our experience to the World Vision coordinator who gave every child that participated a small gift.

You can check more details of the World Vision program here:

Do you also know that Meghan Markle, the Duchess of Sussex was a Global Ambassador for World Vision UK (2016 – 2017)? She travelled in early 2016 with World Vision to see first-hand the importance of water.

The Global 6K is great because one can do it anywhere! Walk or run the distance, by yourself or with your family, and be part of this global movement to change lives. Whether you join from the treadmill or your favourite trail, the neighbourhood, or the track… you’ll bring life-changing clean water to those who need it most.

Afrikindness will join the Global 6K. We will be hosting a 6-kilometers walk in the summer.

Would you like to join us?

If YES, we love to hear from you. Contact us on afrikindness@gmail.com

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