Together for clean water and hygiene

Climate change, extreme weather and increasing urbanisation mean that families in the poorest regions of the world are increasingly suffering from water shortages and poor hygiene. Around 785 million people worldwide do not have access to a basic supply of clean drinking water. More than half of the world's population—over four billion people—do not have safe sanitation facilities. By 2050, almost 70 percent of the world's population will live in urban areas — particularly in Asia and Africa. Most of these people will live in overcrowded slums with inadequate water and sanitation. Due to the recent hot spells, awareness is also growing in Germany and the rest of Europe that water as a resource cannot be taken for granted.

Clean water, toilets and good hygiene practices are essential, especially for the survival and development of children. Without these basic services, the lives of millions of young people are at risk. Every day, more than 700 children under the age of five die from preventable diseases caused by contaminated water or poor hygiene. Partners Gardena and UNICEF now want to draw attention to this situation once again.

On the occasion of World Water Day on 22 March, Gardena and UNICEF will be renewing their partnership for another year. Customers can make a difference by purchasing a starter set for the economical drip irrigation of plants, where a part of the proceeds will contribute to supporting UNICEF water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) programmes.

Access to clean drinking water for 230,000 children and families

Under the motto “Every drop counts”, Gardena has been supporting UNICEF’s global water, sanitation and hygiene programmes since 2018. As part of these programmes, UNICEF works alongside governments and partners to address the global challenges around water scarcity and poor hygiene in order to enable as many children as possible to grow up healthy.

UNICEF, for example, provides water for village communities in African countries such as Niger or South Sudan, equips schools with water systems and sanitation facilities, installs solar-powered water systems in refugee camps, and develops innovative technologies to better map water sources.

In addition, UNICEF has launched behaviour change communication campaigns to educate families and communities about important hygiene rules, so that they can better protect themselves from disease. This is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gardena has significantly contributed to UNICEF’s WASH programmes to help UNICEF provide more than 230,000 children and families with access to clean drinking water by 2022.

Beautiful, healthy plants in the garden — and saved water

As a visible sign and in support of the partnership, the GARDENA Micro-Drip-System Starter Set S in aid of UNICEF is available in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France and Spain. It contains everything you need for economical drip irrigation of up to five pot plants. Thanks to the adjustable drippers, the plants are watered precisely and individually. With every purchase of a limited-edition irrigation set, Gardena will contribute €5 to support UNICEF’s worldwide programmes for the provision of clean water and hygienic living conditions.