[Seattle, March 22, 2024] – Splash, the global nonprofit dedicated to providing clean water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) solutions for children, announces the launch of a new campaign on World Water Day to ensure the completion of Project WISE (WASH in Schools for Everyone) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Since its inception in 2019, the goal of Project WISE has been to transform the lives of children by providing essential WASH services in schools.

Through Project WISE, Splash has already made significant strides, transforming WASH at 537 schools for more than 650,000 kids in Addis Ababa alone. Yet, the work is far from over. As Splash endeavors to reach its goal of bringing safe water, child-friendly sanitation, and hygiene education to all government schools in the city, there remains a critical need to support the remaining 38 schools and their 41,000 students.

"On World Water Day, we want to bring attention to the fact that so many children in Ethiopia and around the world still lack access to adequate water and sanitation while they're at school. At Splash, we know that every kid deserves clean water, and our goal is to bring sustainable, locally driven WASH solutions that can be replicated independent of Splash," said Yodit Zenebe Mekuria, Ethiopia Country Director.

The 38 additional schools in Addis Ababa over the last few years are refurbished older buildings that lack safe drinking water and adequate sanitation and handwashing facilities for students and teachers. Splash's mission is to change that. By collaborating with Addis Ababa's government, Splash ensures that every school, both existing and future, will have access to essential WASH infrastructure.

"In any infrastructure project, sustainability is critical," emphasized Mekuria. "Splash not only provides water and sanitation systems but also trains school staff on maintenance and repair to ensure the longevity of these systems. Additionally, teachers and staff are educated on hygiene practices and menstrual health to empower them to pass on this knowledge to students and parents."

Today, Splash operates in partnership with local organizations and governments to ensure that their interventions are sustainable, child-friendly, and can be maintained by local actors in the future. With the support of generous donors and advocates, Splash aims to raise $90,000 to fulfill its commitment to the children of Addis Ababa and provide them with the fundamental right to clean water and sanitation.

About Splash: Splash is at the forefront of a growing movement to ensure that children in urban poverty have the resources they need to thrive and realize their full potential. We design and implement child-focused water, sanitation, hygiene (WASH), and menstrual health solutions with governments in some of the world’s biggest cities. And then we get out of the way: our goal is to demonstrate that our model works, build local capacity, and transition management to local organizations and governments. Founded in 2007, Splash has worked in eight countries and served more than one million kids worldwide.

Media Contact:

Lily Young
Senior Marketing and Communications Manager
Lily@splash.org