Actor Matt Damon Goes on Toilet Strike for World Water Crisis, Watch Video and Take Action
Caption: Co-founder of Water.org, Matt Damon, held a press conference to make an enormous announcement: until every person in the world has access to clean water and a toilet, he’s on strike. But not from acting… For more on how you can, ahem, help by striking or supporting Matt, visit water.org.
The Problem
- 3.4 Million people die each year from water related diseases (WHO 2008)
- Every 21 seconds a child dies from water-related disease (UNICEF and WHO 2009)
- Nearly all deaths, 99%, occur in the developing world (WHO 2008)
- 780 million people lack access to clean water (WHO/UNICEF update 2012)
- Women spend 200 million hours a day collecting water (estimated from combined WHO/UNICEF update 2010)
- The majority of illness is caused by fecal matter (WHO 2002)
- More people have a mobile than a toilet (Estimated with data from: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply and Sanitation. (2010). Progress on Sanitation and Drinking-Water, 2010 Update; International Telecommunication Union (ITU). (2011). The World in 2011 ICT Facts and Figures; United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). (2011). State of World Population 2011, People and possibilities in a world of 7 billion.)
- 443 million school days are lost each year by children who are unable to attend school due to illnesses and/or collecting water (United Nations Development Report 2006)
- Lack of sanitation is the world’s biggest cause of infection (Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (2008)
- This crisis impedes U.S. foreign policy goals
- By 2025, the proportion of the world’s population living in water-stressed countries is set to increase to by two thirds leading to intensified water-related conflicts in those areas
- Absolute water scarcity already affects more than 500 million people in more than 30 countries. Addressing water scarcity, which can create discontent and desperation, can help prevent violence
- Water For the World funding is a mere 350 million
The Solution
- Sustainable water and sanitation solutions
- On average $1 invested in water and sanitation provides an economic return of $3-34 (WHO 2004)
- On average, every US dollar invested in water and sanitation provides an economic return of eight US dollars (UNDP 2006)
- Local partners
- Demand-driven projects
- Appropriate technology
- Integration of health and hygiene education
- Rigorous measuring and monitoring
- Activate the power of the market through the use of the Water Credit Initiative
About Water.org
- We are committed to universal access to safe water and adequate sanitation in our lifetime
- Operational in 8 countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, Bangladesh, India, Honduras, Haiti
- Pioneer of WaterCredit
- Current year budget of 11 million
- 32 full time staff
- Programs are funded through grants, loans, a combination of grants and loans and microfinance tools
- Institutional funders include PepsiCo Foundation, Caterpillar Foundation, MasterCard Foundation, Skoll Foundation
About WaterCredit
- WaterCredit provides affordable credit for water and sanitation improvements
- Leverages microfinance as a distribution channel and a platform for overcoming market failures
- Nearly 65,000 loans made
- 378,000 people directly benefited
- 24 WaterCredit partners in 4 countries
- Average loan size $142
- Over 85% of the WaterCredit clients are women
- Repayment rate is 97%
- $9.2 million in WaterCredit loans made
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