World Water Day: Water is a Right, Not a Luxury

For 35-year-old mother Amina, these infrastructures have been life-changing as she operates a tea shop across the street from one of Oxfam's water points installed in her village. She says she appreciates how easy it is to get water now compared to just six months ago. "I used to get water from another place, it took four hours," she says. Two hours each way, returning carrying water on her back, as she did not always have a donkey or a camel available to carry it for her. "Now," Abdi says, "it is no distance at all."

Thanks to the generosity of Canadian donors and through foreign aid programs like the Canadian Humanitarian Assistance Fund (CHAF), Oxfam Canada continues to support sustainable water management practices, ensuring that communities in drought-prone regions are not left vulnerable when the rains fail.

When Floodwaters Rise: Keeping Water Safe and Accessible

Flooding is just as destructive as drought, wiping out sanitation facilities and contaminating water sources. Without immediate intervention, communities face a surge in deadly waterborne diseases such as cholera and dysentery.

Perlita, a mother of five, shares that her family and about a dozen others in Davao del Norte, Philippines, have long lived without a reliable source of clean water. "We used to fetch water from our neighbour's hand pump about 200 meters away," she explains. But the hand pump was often overburdened, and at times, they had to hike 15 minutes to the Libuganon River, 500 meters from their home, to wash their laundry.

"Sometimes, we felt ashamed to use the hand pump because the owner and their neighbours also depended on it," Perlita admits.

The situation took a turn for the worse when heavy rains from December to January triggered severe flooding in the low-lying areas of Davao del Norte. Once the floodwaters reached their highest levels when the Libuganon River overflowed, entire communities and farmlands were submerged.

Oxfam's approach is rooted in climate resilience. In flood-prone areas, we work to elevate water and sanitation facilities above expected flood levels and reinforce infrastructure to withstand extreme weather events. Emergency water treatment and distribution systems ensure that communities have access to clean drinking water even in the chaos of a flood.

Oxfam staff and local partners distribute emergency supplies for families impacted by flooding. Photo: Oxfam Pilipinas

Perlita was shocked to find their house destroyed by the flood. Once near a creek that drained into the Libuganon River, it had been completely washed away.

Through CHAF funding, Oxfam Canada reached 15,000 people with emergency water and sanitation support. Alongside the immediate response, providing clean water, essential relief items, and sanitation facilities like a new hand pump, our team also delivered cash assistance, enabling families to recover with dignity.

With the new hand pump, Perlita's 15-year-old son no longer has to endure long treks to fetch water from the river or their neighbour's pump. "Now that we have our hand pump, we don't have to walk long distances to get water or worry about our budget for purchasing drinking water," Perlita says with relief.

The once-gruelling daily routine of fetching water, washing laundry, and finding a safe drinking water source has been transformed. While still challenging, life for Perlita has become easier thanks to a simple but transformative intervention.

Water Access in Gaza: A Humanitarian Catastrophe

In Gaza, access to clean water has collapsed to catastrophic levels. Less than seven percent of pre-conflict water levels are available to residents in Rafah and North Gaza, worsening an already dire health crisis. The destruction of infrastructure, ongoing violence, and restrictions on aid have left families with little to no access to safe drinking water. People are forced to rely on contaminated water sources, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks such as cholera and diarrhea, particularly among children.

Clémence Lagouardat, Oxfam's Humanitarian Coordinator in Gaza, explains, "Now that the bombs have stopped, we have only just begun to grasp the sheer scale of destruction to Gaza's water and sanitation infrastructure. Most vital water and sanitation networks have been entirely lost or paralyzed, which is creating catastrophic hygiene and health conditions,".

Duaa is using the hand washing station that Oxfam has distributed in response to people in the Al Mawasi area of Khan Yunis. Photo: Alef Multimedia/Oxfam

People are stopping Oxfam staff and partners in the streets asking for water, while parents are not drinking to save water for their children. "It is heartbreaking to hear about children having to walk for miles for a single jerrycan of water," says Clémence.

Oxfam has been working tirelessly to support affected communities, providing emergency water supplies and advocating for immediate humanitarian access to restore critical water services. The situation in Gaza remains dire, and urgent action is needed to prevent further loss of life. Without sustained international pressure and support, millions will continue to suffer the consequences of being denied access to this basic human right.

The Fight for Water Justice

This World Water Day, we call for urgent action. Climate change is making water crises more frequent and severe. The right to water must be protected in moments of disaster and is a fundamental necessity for life. Together, we must prioritize sustainable water access and invest in long-term solutions that equip communities to withstand the challenges ahead.

Water is not a privilege nor a luxury. It is a right. Oxfam Canada will continue to fight to ensure that right is upheld for all.