Our colleague Sara Fontana in the name of her association, travels to the heart of Africa, to bring water to those who have not the luck to have it at hand.
Sara, who works in our Marketing Communications department of Metaltex in Switzerland, last July made a sustainable tourism trip to Malawi to attend the inauguration of the well funded by *Koiné, an association of Como, to which she is part of and actively participates since 1995.
Last year, *Koiné, together with other local associations, organized a series of events to collect donations to reach what was necessary for the construction of a well in the village of Mabuwa, which also lodges a primary school with nearly 2,000 students.
“The inauguration of a well is a feast for the whole village” says Sara, “but above all for women and children, who oversee water supply. Instead of walking miles to reach often muddy and non-drinkable sources, they now have clean water near home, guaranteed for the whole year”.
The excavation of the wells, together with the construction of schools and medical dispensaries, is part of the Sottosopra Onlus project, founded by David Pantaleoni (Italo-Malawian) to carry out small but constant interventions in local communities, in continuous collaboration with the partners in the area.
The association believes that only with patient work better economic and social conditions can be guaranteed, and sustainable tourism experiences are organized to accompany visitors in the discovery of African reality. In addition to visiting the projects, the trip includes safaris in the country’s natural reserves, a few days on Lake Malawi (the third largest in Africa), mountain and tea plantation excursions and lunches in typical restaurants.
For more information on sustainable tourism in Malawi visit https://sottosopramalawi.com/
*Koiné, is a non-profit association in Olgiate Comasco. Sara manages the homonymous fair-trade shop in Via Repubblica, 5.
