UNICEF East Asia and Pacific’s Post

In Wa Zun Chaung, a remote village in southeast Myanmar, accessing clean water was a daily struggle. Families walked kilometers to murky streams, boiled water when they could afford firewood, and watched their children fall ill again and again. For Daw Shwe War and her five children, every sip carried uncertainty and fear. “We collect water from ponds or the stream. Some days it’s okay. Other days, we know it’s not clean—but we drink it anyway,” she said. In early 2024, UNICEF and local partners, with funding from the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), delivered life-saving solutions: LifeStraw water filter buckets, hygiene kits, handwashing stations, and shelter support. Simple, durable, community-driven interventions that transformed daily life. Today, thanks to a LifeStraw water filter — a simple device that filters unsafe water so families can drink safely – and improved hygiene practices, children go to school, parents worry less, and communities flourish. Saw Wai Moe Eliana Drakopoulos United Nations OCHA