Safe, clean water and adequate sanitation practices are vital to health. Yet less than half of rural Haitians have access to safe, clean drinking water, and in Côtes-de-Fer, women and girls often walk long distances through the commune’s steep hills to collect it. Because toilets are scarce, open defecation has been widespread, contaminating community water sources.

Handwashing is not a habit, further contributing to the spread of waterborne diseases. These risks were underscored in 2022, when cholera reemerged after more than three years without a reported case.

CMMB Haiti partners with families and communities to improve water and sanitation. We build community toilets and encourage families to build their own; distribute water treatment tablets and filters; and promote safe water use and handwashing. CMMB Haiti is also actively responding to the cholera epidemic.