Water, Dignity and Opportunity: Why Every African Child Deserves Access to WASH
When we marked the 2026 Day of the African Child under the theme, “Ensuring Universal Access to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene for Every Child in Africa,” I found myself reflecting on my childhood in Kitui County.
Like many children growing up in rural Kenya and informal settlements, my mornings and evenings revolved around one essential task—fetching water. Before and after school, we walked for kilometres carrying jerricans or leading donkeys in search of water that was often unsafe for drinking. We usually returned home after dark, leaving little or no time to study or simply enjoy being children.
At the time, it felt normal. Looking back, I realise that no child’s future should be shaped by the search for water.
Unfortunately, millions of African children still live this reality today.
Water Shapes a Child’s Future
When we talk about education, we often think about classrooms, teachers and books. Yet, for many children, education begins with something much more basic: access to clean water and safe sanitation.
A thirsty child struggles to concentrate in class. A learner without access to proper sanitation may miss school altogether. Many girls face additional challenges during menstruation when schools lack adequate hygiene facilities. For countless families, children spend valuable hours collecting water instead of learning, playing or resting.
Water, sanitation and hygiene commonly known as WASH are therefore much more than development priorities. They are fundamental rights that give children the dignity, health and opportunity they deserve.
A Personal Journey Comes Full Circle
Earlier this year, my journey came full circle when I returned to Kitui County for the groundbreaking of a transformative project at Kalwila Comprehensive School.
Supported by the M-PESA Foundation through an investment of KES 22.5 million, the project includes modern classrooms, an administration block, improved sanitation facilities, a borehole and water storage tanks.
For the learners and the surrounding community, this is far more than a construction project. It is an investment in opportunity.
Reliable access to clean water means children no longer have to spend hours searching for water before or after school. Instead, they gain more time to learn, play and focus on building brighter futures. Improved sanitation will also promote better health, restore dignity and create a safer learning environment, particularly for girls.
The Ripple Effect of Clean Water
We have already witnessed the life-changing impact of similar investments at Kithumuoni Comprehensive School in Kitui County.
Through a KES 40 million investment, the school now enjoys reliable access to clean water and improved sanitation facilities. The results extend well beyond infrastructure. Better attendance, healthier learners and improved learning outcomes demonstrate how access to water creates the conditions children need to thrive.
Water does more than quench thirst. It unlocks potential.
A Promise to Every African Child
Universal access to water, sanitation and hygiene is not simply another development target. It is a promise to every African child.
It is a promise that their dreams will not be limited by preventable barriers. It is a promise that where they are born will not determine how far they can go.
For me, this mission is deeply personal because I know what it feels like to walk those long distances in search of water. Today, I also know what it means to help create solutions that spare another child from that experience.
It Begins With Water
As we celebrate the resilience, talent and promise of African children, we must continue investing in solutions that restore time, dignity and opportunity.
Every child deserves the chance to learn without worrying about where the next bucket of water will come from. Every learner deserves access to safe, clean and dignified sanitation facilities. Every community deserves the opportunity that reliable water brings.
Because when we invest in water, sanitation and hygiene, we are not simply meeting a basic need—we are investing in Africa’s future, one child at a time.
The African child deserves more than access to education. Every child deserves the conditions that make education possible.
And it all begins with water.
By Nicholas Mulila
Group Chief Risk Officer at Safaricom PLC.
