Clean water through gravity: "It has changed so much"
What do clean water, menstrual pads, and coffee plants have in common? Here in South Ari, Ethiopia, they are elements that together contribute to better living conditions for the residents.
“We used to fetch water once a day. Now it’s five times daily, because it’s so quick and we get much more water than before. Now we can wash our clothes and ourselves more often,” says Betelihem Gezahegn.
Together with her neighbor and friend Aster Amene, she collects water from the new water point just a few meters from their homes. The two 16-year-olds describe a completely new daily life since the water arrived.
Gravity system
It all begins higher up in the terrain. Far up one of the hillsides in South Ari, southern Ethiopia, water flows from an underground spring. Some of it surfaces for nearby residents to use, while the rest is piped down to a large water tank.
From there, gravity carries it to 14 different water points established in villages further down the valley. Around 20,000 people now receive water this way, thanks to a gravity-fed system established in 2025 by Norwegian Church Aid and its local partner, Action for Development (AFD). The furthest water point is 17 kilometers away.
Dirty water
“The biggest change is that we now get to school on time,” says Aster Amene.
Previously, they fetched brown, dirty water from a hole in the reddish soil near the road through the village. It could take a very long time each morning. With clean, running water close to home, they get sick less often, and it’s much easier to maintain personal hygiene.
The girls say they used to have skin problems from the dirty water. Before, they might do a full body wash once a week—now they can do it three times a week.
Lack of clean water is a huge problem both globally and in Ethiopia: 48% of the population lacks access to safe water.
Seven hours a day
Betelihem lives with her aunt and uncle and their three children, as her parents live elsewhere. Her aunt, Kebebush Haki (28), is a teacher at Betelihem’s school. Her husband is the school principal.
“This has changed so much,” she says with a smile.
“I used to leave school at 11 a.m. to fetch water and often didn’t return until 6 p.m., even though the distance wasn’t far. There was barely any water in the pond, so we had to wait for it to fill, and many people were in line,” she explains.
She also notices a difference at school:
“Many children didn’t come to school, either because they spent too much time fetching water or because they got sick from it. Now, many more children attend.”
Growing coffee at school
At Mendir School, where the girls study, students do more than just schoolwork. Next to the school building is a garden plot with coffee seedlings. This is part of the climate resilient component of the project launched by Norwegian Church Aid and AFD in 2025.
“Most schools don’t have enough money for supplies like chalk and books, so we established this plot. We provided seeds, and after a while, the school sells the coffee plants to local households and small farmers, who grow them into coffee trees,” says Neway Abayneh, AFD Jinka field office coordinator.
Three such coffee plots have been established in the district.
“When the school earns income from sales, they buy new seeds to replant and purchase school supplies,” he adds.
The investment from Norwegian Church Aid and AFD is a one-time contribution. Collaboration with local authorities is important, and a local coffee expert worked with the school on cultivation.
“Once the coffee project is established, we and our partner step back, and the school committee takes over,” says Gedewon Teka, CRWASH program manager at Norwegian Church Aid’s Ethiopia office.
At the time of the visit, the school hadn’t yet earned income, but five months after planting, the seedlings will be sold and revenue will begin.
“The school earns money, and by planting these, we also get a greener landscape,” says Gedewon Teka.
The school also has a tap connected to the water system established by Norwegian Church Aid. Students use this water to irrigate the plants.
Buying sanitary pads
But the school and local households buying and growing coffee plants aren’t the only ones benefiting.
In this area, Norwegian Church Aid has also supported the launch of small businesses for young women. These women sew reusable menstrual pads, which they sell to girls and women in the community. The plan is also to sell pads to the schools.
“40 percent of the school’s income from the coffee sell will be used to buy pads from the women who produce them. This way, the women earn more, and it helps the girls who attend school here,” says Gedewon Teka.
Many girls can’t afford pads, so they skip school during menstruation — resulting in many lost school days each year.
A right
Now that Norwegian Church Aid and Action for Development have established the water system in this district, a local volunteer water committee takes over operations. But since the area is large, they plan to hire a paid manager to oversee maintenance and repairs.
“The water committee meets with the community to agree on how much households should pay in water fees. It’s important that there’s consensus. The price depends on household consumption,” says Gedewon Teka.
But everyone gets water, no matter how poor they are, he adds.
“Water is a right.”
