Across Africa, many women carry big jars of water on their heads in remote areas without nearby, reliable sources of water. These women spend long hours on the road fetching water — often risking their health and safety.
Studies have suggested carrying loads as heavy as these women do, usually at 5 gallons per jug, can cause spine deformities and even contribute to childbirth difficulties. Roads leading to water sources are sometimes peppered with land mines, among other dangers. And in some countries, there aren’t even any roads to speak of.
Enter a U.S.-based social entrepreneur who seeks to ease this process.
The WaterWheel is a water storage and transportation tool that can hold up to 20 gallons of water. The tool is designed to use the force of the water it contains to allow the users to push it, instead of carrying it on the head like a traditional water jar.
The WaterWheel is the brainchild of Cynthia Koenig, a master’s student at the University of Michigan. Her inspiration: exposure during a fellowship in South Africa to the socioeconomic and health effects of the water crisis on women like her. Returning from her fellowship, she founded Wello, the social enterprise focused on identifying and developing innovative solutions to the water crisis in various developing countries.
This wheel-type water transportation and storage product is not unique to Wello. A similar product is already being distributed in Africa as part of a corporate social responsibility initiative of several international companies. But the Wello WaterWheel is cheaper at between $20 and $30, compared with similar products that retail for $100. It is also especially developed for the Indian market, with Wello planning to eventually have the product manufactured locally.
Wello aims to roll out its product in India’s largest state, Rajasthan, by the end of the year. The state was a runaway choice to be the pilot market of the WaterWheel: At least 90 percent of its continuously growing population depends on groundwater and its water table has dropped some 15 meters in the past decade, a reflection of the entire country’s rapidly depleting groundwater supply.
Koenig has made clear her vision goes beyond water storage and transportation. She sees it as a possible source of income for villagers, who can use the device to fetch and deliver water for a fee. The Wello team also expects use of the WaterWheel to allow women and young girls to attend to other chores, develop their own small businesses and attend school.
Koenig’s team is also looking at other innovations beyond the WaterWheel. In the next few years, Wello will develop and distribute filtration and drip irrigation kits, among other water-focused solutions, Koenig noted in an interview with ABC News.
There are also plans to distribute the WaterWheel to other countries. In fact, Wello has been approached by the United Nations to explore the possibility of introducing the product in conflict-torn Sudan, which has an even more difficult environment and worse water problems than in India.
But Wello seems up for the challenge, with Koenig relishing in the “excitement and rewarding feeling” of producing a product that “literally lifts a huge burden from the shoulders of women and girls.”
Read last week’s #innov8aid.
