MALI – The Bozo is a community that lives mainly on the banks or on small islands in the River Niger, in Bamako. Join For Water already provided them with drinking water but the pollution of the Niger, or Badioliba as it is called, is severe. If there is no improvement, the future looks bleak. The children also know this and urge everyone to protect the Badioliba.
The increasing pollution of the waters of the Niger River is mainly due to the untreated discharge of domestic and industrial wastewater from the city of Bamako. This makes the Bozo even more vulnerable because they depend entirely on the river for their drinking water supply and for fishing, their main source of income. They are also increasingly vulnerable to climate change and the degradation of ecosystems.
The Bozo and especially the youth are exposed to many risks such as an increase in diseases caused by dirty water, depletion of water resources, decrease in the water table, floods ánd drought…
Youth for Climate
Accompanied by Join For Water, the children of the Bozo camp Toukoroba 1 in the Magnambougou district of Municipality 6-Bamako launched a message to the Malian youth.
They advocated for the protection of the Niger River during the workshop to launch the “Youth for Climate” project organized by the Belgian Embassy. Five boys and five girls performed a Bambara song asking all young people to become more involved in protecting the Niger River to secure the future of Bozo children.
Their message in a few lines:
“The Badioliba is our future
Protecting this great river means saving the future of us, Bozo children
So let’s help protect this mighty river for future generations.”
Join For Water wants to engage more with young people to make their voices heard, we will keep you posted.
The Bozo are a disadvantaged population who have access to drinking water and sanitation thanks to Join For Water and partners.
Photos: Yassi Diaby
