Water Power

Residents in Tskordza, Georgia work together to plan and implement a system to deliver clean water to their village. Photo: Mercy Corps Georgia

In many communities around the world access to clean, safe water is taken for granted. For many years the village of Tskordza in Georgia was one of those communities. All of that changed after the collapse of the Soviet Union when its infrastructure began to crumble and the money to maintain its water system dried up.

In addition to the health risks the limited access to clean water had on the people living in Tskordza, the situation also began to have a psychological effect leading some to believe they could have no future living there and forcing younger villagers to move away.

Last year when the villagers learned that they could receive support from Mercy Corps' East Georgia Community Mobilization Initiative, many were skeptical. Other groups and people had been to the village before and offered to help, but nothing had ever come of it. Even if something came to the village, they said, they thought it would probably end up going to some individuals, not helping the whole village. Nonetheless, they decided to participate and see what happened. It was no surprise that they named getting water to the village as their top priority.

Working together in groups, the residents planned and carried out a project to bring drinking water to the village. The impact has been dramatic.

"Before we thought we couldn't manage such a project - the village is too small - but now all of us can see that something good was achieved. We've changed our minds about what we can do," said one of the community leaders.

With this new confidence the community has found it easier to take on a second project to fix the internal distribution system for water within the village.

And bringing water to the village has had another impact: "Lacking the basic things in life made people here aggressive and depressed. Now that we have water everyone is much happier, it has changed our attitudes. If you begin the morning with a smile you can love you neighbors much more than if you are struggling with basic problems. So actually, changing this situation is also improving our relationships with each other," one villager said.

Launched in September 2000, Mercy Corps' East Georgia Community Mobilization Initiative is a four-year umbrella grant program funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID). With community mobilization as its primary goal, Mercy Corps awards grants to local groups and non-governmental organizations for projects such as winterization of homes, health care, education, local economic development, environmental protection, human rights advocacy, and activities that support the role of women and build bridges among diverse communities.