“The best form of charity is giving water (to drink).” (Hadith of the Prophet ﷺ, narrated by Ibn Majah) Water is so much more than just a drink: it’s needed to cook food, water crops, and livestock, wash hands and cooking pots to stop diseases spreading… Islamic Relief aims to give people all over the world water for life.

How Islamic Relief is helping

Islamic Relief believes in giving water for life. When we build systems, we want to ensure that after we leave, the locals never need to ask for help accessing water again. That’s why we take a carefully tailored approach in each area. We build wells in multiple counties, but in some areas, there is no groundwater, so digging a well won’t work – we build a rainwater catching system that helps store water. In countries that have wet, rainy seasons followed by long, dry periods, we construct micro-dams and reservoirs, which enables a village to store the water safely for use all year round. And to save women and children the difficult physical task of pumping water by hand, we harness natural energy with solar-powered wells. It isn’t just about building systems – it’s about building people too. Five years ago, more than 50,000 water points across Africa had failed, because no-one taught the communities how to maintain and repair them when they broke. We train local people to take care of their new systems, as well as teaching them how to use water safely to improve health and hygiene so that when we leave, they have truly been given water for life.

A Blessed Gift

“When a person dies, all their deeds end except three: a continuing charity, beneficial knowledge, and a child who prays for them.” (Hadith of the Prophet ﷺ, narrated by Muslim) Ongoing charity – sadaqah jariyah – is one of the most valuable acts we can do in this life, which continues benefiting us in the next, even after we have left the earth. InshaAllah, we hope that our water projects are not only a continuing charity, providing water for years to come, but also include beneficial knowledge, teaching communities to access water and keep themselves and their children healthy, knowledge which will be passed on through the generations!