After a couple years of planning and fundraising, local youth are travelling to a third world country to help provide safe water to its citizens.
Adult Advisor with Water for Life Myles Vanni said they will be visiting the villages of Lwengo, Masindi and Kamwenge in Uganda to build water wells.
"In Uganda, 60 per cent of the country does not have access to clean, fresh water," said Vanni. "They can't take that 10 steps to the kitchen to get a glass of water, they've got to hike a kilometre to get water and it's dirty, it's brown, it's infested and disease ridden. So, we are going to provide clean fresh water for these villages."
He said the experience is not only of great benefit to the villagers, but also for the youth on the trip.
(Water for Life in Uganda. Photo courtesy of Water for Life.)
"It's a great learning experience for them," he said. "I always use the expression, we may be building a well or a school or something in another country, but we're also building our young people here. The youth themselves are engaged in the planning for it, they're working on the project, they're working on the fundraising, they're deciding the program that we're doing, so it teaches a lot around communication and leadership skills."
Vanni said over the years, Water for Life has constructed eight wells in Uganda.
The group will also visit schools in the villages to teach the children about Canada, as well as provide school supplies and take part in different activities and games, including a Canada Day celebration.
