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A UMNS Report
By Kathy L. Gilbert*
7:00 A.M. EDT June 14, 2011 | MUGHOWO, Mozambique (UMNS)
The new well near Panda United Methodist Church in Phaphu, Mozambique,
furnishes drinking water to more than 800 people. The well is one of 10 recently
funded by the United Methodist Missouri Mozambique Initiative. Each family
contributes 50 cents a month to maintain the well and monitor health issues.
UMNS Photos by Ezequiel Nhantumbo.
View in Photo Gallery
Four communities in remote Inhambane West are praising God and The
United Methodist Church for the lifesaving gift of clean, safe water.
The Missouri Mozambique Initiative,
a partnership between the United Methodist Missouri Annual (regional)
Conference and the Mozambique Conference, has provided funds to drill 10
wells, four in Inhambane West, since February. Each of the wells is
next to a United Methodist church.
The government in Mozambique reports that more than half the
population does not have access to clean water. The World Health
Organization reports that diseases from drinking contaminated water
account for the deaths of 1.8 million people each year.
“Giving water makes disciples for Christ and saves lives,” said Ezequiel Nhantumbo, representative of the Mozambique Initiative in Maputo.
Nhantumbo and the Rev. Rodolfo Carlos Baloi traveled to four churches
in the Inhambane West district recently to see the people benefiting
from the new wells.
With tears rolling down his face, Carlos Maganda Manguele, 70,
greeted the visitors with joy. He is a member of the community around
Mughowo United Methodist Church.
“Thank you, for I know you are the ones who helped drill this well.
You may have seen some people washing clothes in an open well down
there. This was our past. We used to drink from that water as well.
Today things have changed,” he said.
Manguele said the availability of clean water has reduced disease.
This is welcome news, since the nearest medical clinic is more than
three hours on foot from the village.
“We lost many relatives due to cholera, particularly children and
elderly people, who were left with no option but to die on the way to
the hospital. This was and is still true for the pregnant women who
deliver at home with all the risks incurred,” he said.
Before the new well, people in Phaphu used water from under this bridge to wash clothes, feed animals, bathe and drink.
View in Photo Gallery
After leaving Mughowo, Nhantumbo and Baloi traveled many kilometers to Phaphu to visit Panda United Methodist Church.
People were sitting under a cashew nut tree on logs having worship service.
“They had been waiting for us. Immediately we all walked to the well
site,” said Nhantumbo. “There were two women fetching water at the well
and they both ran towards me and one said: ‘We have seen Christ! Christ
has risen! We would like to join this congregation from now on, for you
brought hope and love and, above all, good health through provision of
potable water. In the past, we walked for four hours to the nearest
source of unsafe water. Now we are relieved.’”
More than 800 people drink from the new well, and each family
contributes 50 cents a month. They have a committee that monitors health
issues and maintains the well.
Church members in Mauaela and Mucocane also were grateful for the wells in their communities.
“Oh Lord, your children are no longer thirsty!” said the Rev. Joana
Aminosse, pastor of Mauaela United Methodist Church. “Your children are
no longer sick of diarrhea; your children are no longer late at school;
our mothers now have time to go to their fields and the productivity in
our local sectors of activities increased.
“We are made of the same body of Christ, and this is why our
relationship will never vanish. May God continue blessing us all, and
let the joy be yours and ours as we share prayers and as we support each
other in our daily ministry activities.”
*Information for this report was provided by Ezequiel Nhantumbo,
Mozambique Initiative representative in Maputo, and Carol P. Kreamer,
coordinator of the initiative in the Missouri conference. For more
information on the initiative, contact cpkreamer@hughes.net.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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