Restoring Safe Water and Sanitation in Central America

In Latin America and the Caribbean, approximately 125 million persons live without improved sanitation, and 50 million get their drinking water from an unimproved source, according to the World Health Organization and UNICEF. When natural disasters strike, additional lives are threatened.

In 1998, Hurricane Mitch left more than 10,000 Central Americans dead and some 500,000 homeless, due to catastrophic flooding. In an effort to respond to the effects of this event, CDC’s Global Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene team partnered with the American Red Cross to create The Central America Sustainability Project. This project was designed in an attempt to restore safe water and sanitation to communities. This partnership brought sustainable water, sanitation construction, and hygiene education to affected areas, resulting in long-term health benefits.

Additional Resources

For more information about resorting safe water and sanitation:

• Read "Restoring Safe Water and Sanitation: Saving Lives" [PDF - 2 pages]
• Visit CDC’s Sustainability Research page