Sunday, 8 March 2026, 5:30 pm
Press Release: ChildFund New Zealand
Too many women in our shared home of the Pacific still
struggle to access clean water for their
families.
“It’s the 21st century, and yet only hours
away from New Zealand, women have to watch their children
get sick, or worse, from contaminated water. They have to
prioritise finding clean water instead of focusing on
earning an income or building a future,” says CEO of
ChildFund New Zealand Josie Pagani.
“Clean water has a
domino effect. Get that right, and development across the
whole Pacific will improve.”
Nearby Pacific nations
continue to face barriers to health, including access to
clean water. Women and their children often walk for hours
to collect and boil unsafe water, a time-consuming and
exhausting task.
“This is a practical problem that can
be solved if we just come together as donors, businesses and
aid charities to make it happen.
“At ChildFund we
believe New Zealand could make sure every child in the
Pacific has access to clean water by 2036, if we stick to
this clear target and work together.”
ChildFund New
Zealand has partnered with Pacific communities for many
years, as well as supporting women and children in places
like Ukraine and Gaza, Sri Lanka and Africa. As part of a
global ChildFund alliance, it reaches over 36 million people
in 70 countries.
Access to clean water is a global
issue:
1 in 4 people worldwide still lack access
to safe drinking water. ( WHO)Women
and girls collect water in about 7 out of 10 households
without water on the premises. ( WHO)Globally,
women and girls spend 250 million hours per day collecting
water. ( UN
Water)Over 1 billion women globally lack access
to safely managed drinking water services. ( UN)
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“Thanks
to our supporters, we provided access to clean drinking
water for 4,309 people across the world last year. What
makes a real difference is that when donations go to water
projects, every dollar is matched by five dollars from the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” says Josie Pagani.
Solar-powered
water purification units, costing only $250 each, plus
desalination tanks, and water tanks have been introduced in
remote Pacific communities in the outer islands across the
Pacific.
“Gender equality is not an abstract thing.
It’s about everyday rights: clean water, good health,
economic security for women and their children.
“When
communities have the basics sorted, like clean water, women
are free to realise their potential, earn a living. All of
which helps to lift their communities out of
poverty.”
“Clean water changes everything. So on this
International Women’s Day, let’s roll out more water
projects to women and children across our own region,” says
Josie Pagani.
For more information about ChildFund New
Zealand’s work in the Pacific and how women and
communities are leading their own change, visit childfund.org.nz.
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