BRAZIL: Swiss family provides wells in two Indigenous villages
Communities now assured access to drinking water supply
(MissionNewswire) Christof Hürlimann, a citizen of Switzerland, financed a water project in São Marcos, in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso. He visited the area with his wife Angela to meet his friend, Mariano Wadzerepruwē, Xavante chief of the Obra de Maria village.
The meeting came after years of friendship which began when Hürlimann’s father was in Brazil as part of the Ambulant Missionary Assistance project and Wadzerepruwē was working as a driver and truck mechanic in the region. The AMA Project is promoted by the Salesian Saint Alphonsus Liguori Province of Campo Grande Brazil.
Arriving in the village of Obra de Maria, Hürlimann found that there was a severe water shortage. Families washed their clothes only three times a month and fetched water from another village. In the mornings, they used the scarce reserves for cooking and drinking, while in the afternoons they reused the water stored in the barrels for washing.
Hürlimann decided to finance the drilling of an artesian well through the Swiss MANNA – Aid for Brazil Association. The work took place in October. The new well reached a depth of 60 meters, guaranteeing approximately 30,000 liters of water per day. With the remaining funds, the team drilled a second well in the Nossa Senhora das Dores village.
The Obra de Maria village houses around 30 people under the leadership of Chief Mariano Wadzerepruwē, while the Nossa Senhora das Dores village has 65 people under the responsibility of Marcelo Tserewadzi.
Salesian Deacon José Alves accompanied the Swiss couple and recounted the impact of the visit. He said, “While we were drilling in these two villages, other Indigenous people from the villages of Maria Nossa Mãe, Cristo Redentor, Santuário and José and Maria arrived, all of whom lack water in their villages.”
With the completion of the drilling, the communities are now assured a drinking water supply and have reduced the use of turbid water from the São Marcos River. According to Deacon Alves, the experience has consolidated the commitment to the indigenous cause.
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Sources:
Salesian Missions – Brazil
World Bank – Brazil
