Water for life in the West Bank

Although there is no shortage of water in the West Bank, Palestinians are facing a water crisis. World Vision speaks to families finding alternative ways of harnessing one of life's essentials.

Israel is on the cusp of its rainy season. Any day now the heavens will open and wash away the dust and dirt, changing the landscape from dry desert to a blanket of green.

But until the rain comes Palestinians in the West Bank are surviving with a serious water shortage. After the 1967 war access to water for Palestinians in the West Bank decreased by 20%. Palestinians receive only 33-40% of average water requirements advised by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

World Vision has been able to effectively transform the lives of 53 families in West Ramallah through their ‘Water for Life’ programme.

Visiting families in the villages of Deir Abu Mashal and Aboud in the organisation’s long-term development programmes, it is clear the situation has become serious. Both villages have undergone water cuts, often there is no water for four out of seven days each week.

No agriculture can be sustained in these conditions. But since the separation barrier was built dividing Palestinians from one another and further impeding Palestinians’ ability to work in Israel, unemployment has increased in the Palestinian territories to about 40% (World Bank), often making agriculture the sole source of income and financial security. 

There is water available, but it is transported to the villages untreated in huge tankers, and is very expensive. One cubic metre of water costs between three and four pounds, this is up to ten times the normal price of water in Israel. Water from the tankers is then stored in whatever container is available, often unclean. This results in the spread of bacteria and diseases.

Because of the poverty of the people, water can only be obtained for essentials, drinking and cooking. Regular bathing is out of the question for thousands of families.

In Qibya, a village on the edge of the green line that separates Israel from the West Bank, water was cut off for 40 consecutive days this summer. Crops failed because of lack of irrigation. The result is a serious food shortage for the 5,500 inhabitants of the village.

The villagers are deeply frustrated that the nearby Israeli settlements are given priority and do not experience water cuts.

"The problem is often not lack of water, but access to water," says Ashraf, a World Vision field worker, working with families in West Ramallah.

In neighbouring Aboud, there is a natural spring just outside the village but the community is forbidden from transferring the water to their homes. Instead it replenishes the ground water, which is fully controlled by the Israeli authorities.

In response to these restrictions, World Vision has now implemented a water harvesting technique to help the community.

Rainfall in the West Bank ranges from 150 to 700 mm/year. The idea is that the rain water is gathered in a catchment area, usually the roof of a house, it is then passed through a conduit into a sedimentation tank and finally stored in a cistern.

Twenty families in Deir Abu Mashal have benefited from this system. Deir Abu Mashal with a population of more than 3,500, is particularly poor. The streets are dusty and empty, half built or crumbling buildings line the streets. As it is the fasting month of Ramadan most men and women are in their houses. Only a few small boys played in the streets.

The village is surrounded by olive groves. The trees are ripe for harvest, but this has been postponed until after the month long fast.

Much of the income for Deir Abu Mashal comes from the women who cross stitch the traditional Jewish kippahs (skull caps), which they sell to local shops in exchange for food. The men are mostly day labourers, any agriculture is hard to sustain with the lack of water.

Ahmad, 61, used to be a day labourer, getting jobs in construction when and where he could.

He lives with his wife, five children and five grandchildren. The sixth is on the way.

When we arrived at Ahmad’s house three of his grandchildren, Farah (10), Nihad (6), and Rahmeh (18 months) greeted us excitedly. Farah and Nihad have not been to school for several weeks.

There is no school for Palestinian children in most parts of the West Bank because government workers have not been paid for eight months and teachers are on strike. They have not been paid because of the lack of funds coming into the country since the international community boycotted the Hamas government which came into power in February 2006.

The girls were happy to play at home in the beginning of the strikes, but now they are becoming increasingly bored.

“I want to see my friends, I miss them,” said Farah.

In Palestinian society, it is not as acceptable for young girls to play on the streets as it is for boys. This means Farah and her sister haven’t been able to see their school friends and are very isolated.

Ahmad built a cistern next to his house, and cleared land of rocks and rubble. He was helped and advised by a World Vision.

Now he is growing lettuce and other vegetables to feed his family, any surplus he will sell. The crops are growing well because of the drip irrigation system, combating wastage of water through evaporation.

Mohammad (40) and his wife Muzayyan (38) and their four children, also live in Deir Abu Mashal. Their home is neat and clean with rows of washing drying on their roof, but they are living hand to mouth.

Even though it is Ramadan, and Mohammad and Muzayyan are fasting from food and water until after sundown, they offer us sweet tea as we sit in the shade by their house.

All the children were at home because of the school closures. Mohammad is a day labourer and gets work where he can. Muzayyan makes kippahs and also works in their newly irrigated field.

Because of ‘Water for Life’ they are able to grow lettuce, cauliflower, spinach, beans and parsley.

“Muzayyan is a good farmer, she comes from good farming stock, that’s why I married her,” jokes Mohammad.

Muzayyan just smiles, serene in her white head covering.

Before the water cistern Muzayyan and her family were able to bathe once every two weeks. Thankfully none of the children got sick because of the unhygienic conditions.

Now at last there is water to wash more often.

“‘Water for Life’ is important not only for the water it brings, but also the nutrition, through vegetables produced, and for the hope it gives,” said Charles Clayton, national director of World Vision Jerusalem.

“The impact is huge because the 'Water for Life' message is that we haven’t forgotten the people, even though they feel the world has.”

8 November 2006