Poverty has reached an all-time high in Guatemala due to Covid. Lack of access to clean water and its contamination is one of the main factors responsible for malnourishment, parasites, and gastrointestinal disease, especially in children.
80% of the indigenous population in Guatemala live in poverty, and misery and have been abandoned by their State in rural areas. These areas do not have roads, bridges, electricity, water, or sewage, and most people live in huts.
47% of children between the ages of 0-and 5 suffer from chronic malnutrition due to a lack of clean water. Villatoro’s Global Foundation wants to reduce the incidence of gastrointestinal diseases and deaths from dehydration among children, by bringing these families the Ecofiltro, an instrument that filters and decontaminates the water collected in rivers and rain to make it drinkable.
Ecofiltro is a water purifier made from mud and sawdust that transforms into a porous ceramic with colloidal silver. It effectively traps solids, including cysts and parasites, and removes fecal coliforms, turbidity, bad smell, and taste, providing 100% pure, fresh water. It also eliminates bacteria causing diarrhea, cholera, and other waterborne illnesses. The filter unit is placed in containers made from various materials, including virgin plastic and ceramic, and must be replaced every two years. The filtering unit weighs 10 lbs, while the complete Ecofiltro system weighs 13 lbs. Ecofiltro offers a practical and efficient solution for ensuring access to safe drinking water.
See the performance infographic
