WaterAid's Annual Supporters Meeting 2014

On 10 October 2014, the UK Coffee Week team was invited to WaterAid’s Annual Supporters Meeting where we had the chance to meet some inspirational people and hear about all of the wonderful achievements WaterAid has made over the past year. WaterAid has been one of Project Waterfall’s trusted partners for many years, and it was an absolute honour to be invited to this celebratory event and to see first-hand how every contribution, no matter how small, has such a powerful impact on the communities we support.

The afternoon was filled with some truly inspirational talks, including a touching address from Ernest Randriarimilala, WaterAid’s Communication Manager in Madagascar. He began his moving story by describing the environment that he grew up in, with no access to clean water or proper sanitation. This story was incredible, as we were able to see first-hand the difficulty and danger of having no clean water. We were also able to see the difference that access to clean water has made to some of the poorest communities across the world. Today, he works to aid people in same life changing way he was once helped. 

At UK Coffee Week, we strongly believe that clean water is a basic human right which everyone in the world should have access to. We are proud to say that by raising money for Project Waterfall we have contributed to WaterAid’s aspiration that everyone, everywhere will have access to clean water and sanitation by 2030. 

Through the generous support of coffee shops and coffee lovers across the UK, UK Coffee Week has raised over £230,000 for Project Waterfall, which in partnership with WaterAid has delivered clean water and sanitation to 10,280 people in the Mbulu District of Tanzania. We would like to take this opportunity to say a massive thank you to everyone who has been involved with UK Coffee Week previously, and to all those who are planning to get involved for 2015.

The event also provided an opportunity to meet WaterAid’s CEO, Barbara Frost, and make our final contribution to Project Waterfall: Tanzania. This project has been a tremendous accomplishment, so thank you again for participating in UK Coffee Week and supporting this fantastic cause.

[Jeffrey Young, CEO and Founder of The Allegra Foundation is handing over a cheque for Project Waterfall: Tanzania to Barbara Frost, the CEO of WaterAid].

Our next Project Waterfall initiative in partnership with WaterAid will focus on bringing clean water and sanitation to the some of the poorest communities in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. We invite everyone to join us for UK Coffee Week in May 2015 and make a real difference to the communities which grow our coffee. 

Martha Tesfaye, 9, enjoys washing with clean water for the first time in her life

[Photo: WaterAid/ Behailu Shiferaw/ Ethiopia]