A Clean Start for Egypt's Villages

By Laura Sheahen

In poor villages in the Fayoum area of Egypt, a lack of proper garbage and sewage facilities means that residents often fall prey to diseases like tapeworm. Catholic Relief Services works to improve sanitation and educate villagers about ways to prevent illness.

CRS replaces pipes and drainage systems, builds pump stations, and creates disposal sites so people do not have to throw garbage away in canals or empty lots near their homes. To protect the environment, CRS creates composting facilities for agricultural waste, encourages people not to burn garbage and distributes trees for planting. As the final part of an integrated project, CRS offers classes that teach new mothers how to keep their households clean, how to bathe and care for their babies, and how to prevent childhood diseases.

Click through this photo gallery to see how CRS is making Egyptian villages cleaner, greener—and healthier.

Photos by Laura Sheahen/CRS

Laura Sheahen is CRS' regional information officer for Europe and the Middle East. She is based in Cairo.