Sand Dams were invented by the Romans some 2,000 years ago, to provide clean water for the territories they conquered in Europe and beyond.

Their use has now become a staple supply of safe clean water in many arid areas of Africa. The dams are built by village self-help groups on dry river beds.  The dams fill with sand over a couple of rainy seasons and this helps store water and filter it.  Safe drinking water can then be drawn off for human & animal consumption and in many places to provide irrigation for crops.  This produce is either sold or used locally to help sustain the village.

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The Water Women of Wambiti (nominated for a Smiley Charity Film Award!) We are delighted to share with you our new film, 'The Water Women of Wambiti', telling the story of three generations of women from Wambiti Village in southeast Kenya who are transforming their own lives and land with sand dams.  This film has been nominated for a Smiley Charity Film Award. To watch the film, and vote for it to win the award (voting closes on January 30th), please click on the link below. Watch 'The Water Women of Wambiti' A learning visit between Micaia Foundation and Dabane Trust: connecting Mozambique and Zimbabwe Last year, Micaia Foundation, who are Sand Dams Worldwide's partner in Mozambique, participated in a learning visit to Zimbabwe, where they spent a week with our Zimbawean partner, Dabane Trust. Dabane have specific expertise in implementing environmental protection measures alongside sand dams to support the restoration of degraded lands, providing the team a vital opportunity to see-first hand some of the measures being implemented, and enabling Micaia Foundation to introduce similar measures in Mozambique. By facilitating sharing of knowledge amongst our regional partners through learning visits like this, Sand Dams Worldwide is helping more organisations implement sustainable development projects that promote long-term food and water security and climate resilience for rural dryland communities. Click here to find out more Community stories New possibilities We spoke to Susan and Musya from the Ukilyo wa Iveto Ndoo Women self-help group (SHG) in Kenya. When we spoke to them, they had very recently constructed their sand dam and were in the early stages of reaping the benefits. Susan and Musya tell us more about what life was like before their sand dam and what their aspirations are since its completion. Read more A better tomorrow for generations to come Due to water scarcity, the children at Kitile Primary School, in southeast Kenya, were left unable to enjoy their experience in school. In this story, we hear from Kitile's deputy headteacher and various pupils to understand what school was like before a water tank was built and how things are looking up since it’s implementation. Read more Help to end hunger with sand dams Read Lucia's story to hear how a sand dam project has helped her and her community to achieve food security, and please donate what you can to help more dryland communities to end hunger with sand dams and climate-smart agriculture projects.