ORISA® water purifier at the heart of a project in Brazil

From 14 to 16 August 2024, as part of a pilot project, 5 ORISA® water purifiers were deployed in the small rural community of Quilombo Guarimã, located in the state of Maranhão in northern Brazil. Of these purifiers, 4 were deployed free of charge thanks to our Karito programme. For every 100 ORISA® purifiers purchased, a purifier is donated to a humanitarian association.

A collective project to promote access to clean water

For this project, the BGS Group and its subsidiary Brasimpex, ORISA® distributors in Brazil, were responsible for deploying the water purifiers.

Involving public players at the heart of the project

The Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Farming (MDA) was also involved in this pilot project. It financed technical assistance and a rural extension programme for the beneficiaries. These programmes were implemented in the field by the Instituto de Desenvolvimento Socioambiental (IDS), a partner of the National Agency for Technical Assistance and Rural Extension (ANATER). They enabled the beneficiaries to easily appropriate these filtration systems and benefit from their health advantages. Finally, the Institut National Afro Origem played a key role in this project. Its actions consisted of liaising with government representatives and community leaders, as well as supporting the training of beneficiaries in hygiene practices.

Trainings, distribution of purifiers and filtration analysis

Trainings were first provided to raise awareness among the beneficiary community of the importance of drinking clean water, hygiene practices such as hand washing, and the use and maintenance of ORISA® purifiers.

Following this trainings, purifiers were distributed to families in the community to enable them to filter the water they drink on a daily basis.

Finally, water samples were taken to analyse and monitor water quality before and after the use of ORISA® water purifiers.

  • ©Brasimpex - Training beneficiaries

  • ©Brasimpex - Handover of purifiers

  • ©Brasimpex - Explanation of how ORISA® works

First positive feedback

The Quilombo Guarimã community has welcomed the initiative and the beneficiaries have expressed their satisfaction with the training they have received. The project represents a major step forward in improving the health and well-being of these people by ensuring access to quality water.

In addition, the results of analyses carried out by the Cernitas laboratory confirmed the relevance of ORISA® for this community. Samples taken before filtration showed that the water did not comply with current legislation, due to the presence of coliforms such as Escherichia coli, high turbidity (7.70 NTU) and apparent colour, as well as the presence of free residual chlorine. The ORISA® water purifier proved effective, as the samples taken after filtration met the legal standards, as evidenced in particular by the absence of Escherichia coli bacteria and turbidity of less than 0.2 NTU.

©Brasimpex - Little girl using ORISA®

Monitoring the social impact of ORISA® water purifiers

Follow-up visits, financed by ANATER, are planned until mid-October to assess how beneficiaries are adapting to using the purifiers. These visits will also help to identify the first challenges encountered, gather information on their integration into daily routine and measure their impact on users' quality of life. In November 2024, a ceremony will be held to present the results of this pilot project. Due to its success, 25 additional purifiers will also be distributed.

Brasimpex - ORISA® deployed in Brazil

‘Access to water remains a major problem. We bring autonomy to people whether they are in emergency or humanitarian development situations.’

David Monnier, former humanitarian, Chairman and co-founder of Fonto de vivo, your point of contact for humanitarian programmes dedicated to access to clean water.

‘Adapting filtration technologies to individual needs and making them affordable, to meet the social and environmental challenges of our time’.

Anthony Cailleau, French representative for projects in Colombia, Managing Director and co-founder of Fonto de vivo, contact for development aid and international cooperation.

Humanitarian contact

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