Water for All, comprising a consortium of Atlas Copco, Rand Air and Epiroc, has installed a new borehole in Mathabatha, in Limpopo, to alleviate a shortage of water and bolster sanitation and hygiene amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

The installation of boreholes provides a simple and cost effective means for underprivileged communities to easily access clean water directly from an underground source, while also assisting communities in creating and maintaining food gardens, which sustain and nourish families in the community.

“The community houses over 100 orphaned and vulnerable children alone along with other family units. The borehole has therefore provided huge relief and a marked impact to the people of the community,” said Water for All spokesperson Bongani Ndlovu.

The garden’s produce enables income generation as the food is harvested and sold at cost to those situated in and around the community.

The new borehole replaces a 2019 installation that had eventually dried and forced the community to purchase water sold off a mobile water tank.

The lack of water availability not only impacted the community’s immediate needs, it also halted the community’s farming efforts.

“The provision of the borehole during this period has saved numerous lives and equipped the community to handle cleanliness concerns which are in direct relation to the pandemic.

“It really does prove that any contribution or financial aid, no matter how minimal it may be perceived, has a ripple effect and positively impacts the lives of so many who, especially during the climate we find ourselves in, would have otherwise perished.”

“We therefore urge companies and individuals alike to contribute and help the less fortunate in whatever capacity they are able to,” he urged, noting that, now more than ever, large corporates, nongovernmental organisations and individuals need to partner to contribute to betterment of citizens in whatever way they can.

Water for All has plans to aggressively continue supplying communities in South Africa with water.