Right royal African water mission

13/01/2004

A North East water worker is set to travel more than 10,000 miles representing the region on a fact-finding mission with the charity, WaterAid.

Thirty-six-year-old Andrew Blakemore will leave his home comforts in Spennymoor, Country Durham, on Saturday (17 January) to experience a very different lifestyle in Malawi.

The two weeks Andrew will spend in Africa will also be very different from his usual role as Regional Sludge Treatment Centre Manager at Northumbrian Water’s Bran Sands, Teesport.  Previously to this Andrew was Distribution Manager for Northumberland, covering from Berwick to Mopeth and across to Hexham.

It is hoped that Prince Charles, President of WaterAid,  will be able to attend a planned meeting with Andrew and others from the trip to share their experiences.

Andrew, who has never been to Africa before, said:  “Two of the main home comforts I will not have is clean, safe drinking water and sanitation.  Women and children in Malawi have to walk up to 20km a day to collect water from rivers and muddy holes.  It is back-breaking work and the water often brings disease to their families.  A child dies every 15 seconds from water-borne illnesses.

“I have a gluten allergy which I sometimes find difficult to live with, but compared to the daily struggle of people in Malawi I consider myself very lucky.  In the North East we take for granted that at the turn of a tap we have clean, safe water and the flush of a toilet takes away our waste.

“I am hoping to meet local leaders to discuss the effects of living without safe water and sanitation.  On my return to the UK, I am planning to raise awareness of these issues and more positively find solutions.”

During Andrew’s stay he will visit deprived villages in the bush to see WaterAid’s project work in action.  He will also spend a day with a family in Salima and experience at first hand their daily battle for survival.

In February Northumbrian Water is sending out WaterAid appeal leaflets with water bills. It costs £15 to provide someone with clean, safe water and sanitation for life.

For further information and interviews with Andrew contact Cara Hall, Communications Adviser, Northumbrian Water on 0191 301 6720.