Education
How Water and Sanitation Impact Education
Safe water access is intertwined with education opportunities. Time lost from fetching water or being sick from waterborne diseases keeps many children out of school. Without education, cycles of poverty can continue from one generation to the next.
While safe water and bathrooms are critical for schools, so is hygiene education. Water For People supports schools in implementing curricula around health, handwashing, and proper care for new water and sanitation facilities. Children then take their knowledge and good hygiene habits home, spreading awareness and healthy behaviors to their families and communities.
447 million children lack basic drinking water at their school.¹ To close this gap by 2030, the world needs to double its progress in reaching schools with water, sanitation, and hygiene.²
The overall loss in human capital due to the lack of education for women is estimated to be between $15 and 30 trillion globally.³
Children who grow up with access to running water and sanitation are more likely to achieve a better education and tend to have children who attain higher
levels of education.⁴
"If education is the key to helping children escape poverty, access to water and sanitation is key to helping children safely maximize their education. To neglect this is to be careless with the well-being and health of children."
– Kelly Ann Naylor, Former Global Chief of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene at UNICEF
What the Crisis Looks Like
Period poverty: Why millions of girls and women cannot afford their periods
This UN Women explainer dives into the global impact of period poverty, highlighting its effects on education, health, and dignity.
Crisis in the Classroom: The State of the World’s Toilets 2018
This ReliefWeb report by WaterAid examines how poor toilet access undermines children’s education globally, especially affecting girls’ safety, dignity, and attendance.
World Water Day: To Retain Girls in School, India Must Better Manage its Water Crisis
This Deccan Herald opinion piece discusses how India's water management crisis affects girls' education, especially in rural areas.
Students at Chilomoni Primary School in Blantyre, Malawi
The Work We're Doing
When students have access to safe water, well-managed bathrooms, and the knowledge and tools to practice good hygiene, they enjoy better health and lead prosperous lives. That’s why Water For People partners with schools – so the benefits of water and sanitation follow a child, wherever they go.
Bolivia | Meet Yolanda
In a remote community in Bolivia, a small school sits tucked between rolling hills. Here, students are no longer required to bring a heavy bucket of water to school for daily use. However, this was not always the case. Yolanda's story changed when access to water and sanitation at school became a reality.
Rwanda | Water Gives Dreams
When Water For People partnered with Binaga School in the remote countryside of Rwanda, the school and surrounding communities didn’t have safe drinking water or proper bathrooms. Access to water changed all of this. It gave students a future and provided the foundation for them to dream and hope.
Peru | Supporting Teachers
Teachers are key partners in ensuring children's education and safety at school. When Martiza saw that her students didn't have safe access to water and sanitation, she rolled up her sleeves and got to work. This is the story of one determined teacher who changed the future for an entire community.
The Dehydrating Book A tangible experience of the global water crisis
Designed as a symbol of water’s direct impact on a child’s learning ability, The Dehydrating Book is the first of its kind and needs water to be read. The story within, as imagined by the students of Palmira in Peru’s Cascas Valley, is a powerful reminder that access to water is access to education, opportunity, and a brighter future.
Further Reading
- Progress on drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene in schools 2015-2023: highlights. Read the report.
- This book can be read only when it’s wet - Fast Company. Read Fast Company's feature.
- "Triple Force for Hygiene" Three sisters passionate about hygiene at their school in Malawi. Read their story.
- "Making Hygiene Fun" Hygiene corners, hygiene education, and training for teachers in Guatemala. Read the Water For People article.
Sign Up
Sign up to learn more about the global water, sanitation, and hygiene crisis and how you can take action.
"*" indicates required fields
¹ WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP), Progress on WASH in schools 2000–2023: Highlights for 2024, 2024.
² WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP), Progress on WASH in schools 2000–2023: Special focus on menstrual health, 2024.
³ Quentin Wodon, Claudio Montenegro, Hoa Nguyen, and Adenike Onagoruwa, The High Cost of Not Educating Girls, Global Partnership for Education, 2018.
⁴ The World Bank, Water for Shared Prosperity, 2024.