A Woman's Journey to Financial Freedom
July 27, 2016
In the western Indonesian community of Terjun, a 58-year-old woman named Jamila lives with her family. From tending to her children, to earning income through the cleaning of prawns and shrimp, her daily life is similar to many throughout Indonesia. Until about a year ago, the daily financial concerns that filled Jamila’s mind were heavy. Every aspect of her life was complicated and magnified by the high price she paid for life’s most basic necessity: water. But that’s not her reality anymore.
For the past year she has been witnessing the life-change that comes with affordable, safe water. Before Water Mission installed the water treatment system in Terjun, residents purchased water from another station for five times more than Water Mission charges. With economical access to safe water, Jamila has been able to utilize her finances in other areas of life. “It was hard for us to afford the water before. But now, I can use the extra money to pay for electricity,” Jamila said. Her health has also improved, allowing her to work more effectively. “I used to have pain in my back, but with safe water my pain is gone.” For Jamila, safe water has built a foundation for financial success.
Jamila isn’t the only one seeing financial success because of this project. The Safe Water Committee (SWC), a group of leaders elected by community members to manage the water system, has seen excellent growth in both the production and consumption of safe water. Currently the balance in the SWC’s bank account stands at a remarkable $995. For this community of relatively low-income families, the sustainability of the safe water system is a blessing and builds financial freedom.
“Around this area, families are poor but now we have access to clean, inexpensive water." - Jamila, IndonesiaFor Jamila and her five children, safe water has transformed their quality of life. Learn more about how safe water builds opportunity and financial freedom for people like Jamila all over the world by signing up for our email updates. SIGN UP TODAY
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