For years, the residents of Mundanya Village in Manyinga District faced a harsh reality—children and families risking their lives fetching unsafe water from the crocodile-infested Kabompo River. Safe drinking water was a distant dream, and poor sanitation hindered their health and well-being.

This article is a powerful story highlighting how a modest intervention, a personal plastic cup, greatly improved hygiene, hydration, and learning conditions in four schools in the Lualaba province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It recounts the longstanding lack of potable water at Amani Primary School in Mutshatsha and the transformative impact of a borehole installed in 2022, which gave over 1,600 students access to clean water. However, without drinking containers, students were still unable to hydrate safely and effectively. In early 2025, a donation of 3,625 plastic cups across four schools allowed students to drink water hygienically and comfortably. This simple addition significantly reduced water waste, improved hygiene, and helped students stay focused in class. The initiative, part of World Vision’s Gifts-In-Kind (GIK) program, illustrates the profound impact of addressing overlooked details in development work.

World Vision International's annual report, highlighting the impact of our work across Fiscal year 2024.

This article highlights the impact of projects implemented thanks to the Chosen initiative. The Karawa AP, a beneficiary of this initiative, now has access to a clean water supply program, which has significantly reduced cases of disease and decreased the distance that women and children had to travel to fetch water, a much longer journey just a few years ago. Thanks to the support of sponsors, waterborne diseases have decreased, and children can now thrive.

Watch Djawahir’s Story: Learn how World Vision’s WASH efforts are rewriting stories of struggle into tales of triumph in CAR.

World Vision’s impactful engagement at the 2025 N4G Summit drove nutrition commitments, child participation, and global advocacy for malnutrition solutions.

Discover how Deya’s life changed with clean water as World Vision brings hope to communities in CAR.

We spoke with Fahim, a teenager from Badghis, who, like many in his village, had no access to clean water. Forced to rely on contaminated sources, he developed kidney stones, a painful condition linked to unsafe drinking water and dehydration. Two months later, we returned to his village to see the impact of World Vision's newly installed water network - and whether his health had improved. On this World Water Day, witness how access to clean water transforms lives - and why urgent action is needed.