After a sand dam project was completed in the Wiriamo community in Mozambique, our partner, the Christian Council of Mozambique (CCM), caught up with a local farmer to find out more about the project's impact on her life.

What is your name?

My name is Lucia Guezane.

How old are you?

I am 44 years old.

How big is your family?

We are six family members, one boy and three girls, my husband and I.

What was your life like before the sand dam project?

Before working with CCM life was too tough, especially because of the hunger and shortage of water.

Can you describe a typical day? How hard did you find it?

There was a time when we had no alternatives to get water...

"We started to walk to our community water well at 4am. At that time we thought we would be the first there, but we arrived and found a long line of people already waiting to get water. We returned home around 3pm, spending more time collecting water than weeding and working on the farm."

The hunger had affected us greatly. We did not even have time to take care of our own families. I had cattle, but they all ended up dying in that period because of the drought and lack of water.

How did you cope in this difficult period?

We did not have other choices, we had to accept that the moment was difficult and we endured until we could reach the rainy season.

For food, we had to work in other people's farms to get something to eat and we only ate once a day. Our children did not have time to attend school (because they too were collecting water). It was the most difficult time I've ever experienced.

How have your lives changed since the sand dam project?

A lot has changed in my family. Now we have enough water almost all year (the construction of the sand dam has increased the capacity of water that no longer dries out), which allows us to do the work on the farm without difficulties.

CCM has supported us to install a hand pump that will help to extract water a lot. Even our cattle always have water to drink now.

I was able to increase the production and consumption of food. And we were also able to sell some of the produce; I used the money to buy 5 chickens, children's clothes to go to school, also school supplies such as pencils, notebooks and uniforms.

I also bought seeds that I will use for the next agricultural season.

What new crops are you now able to grow?

Lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, and cabbages.

How do you feel when you think about your sand dams and everything that you have achieved as a community?

I want to thank all the people who supported the construction of the sand dam here, and also to encourage them to continue supporting people suffering from water and food scarcity.

We are not affected anymore by malnutrition in our community because of the sand dam project.

Thank you very much.

Please consider making a donation to Sand Dams Worldwide so we can empower families in drylands to feed themselves and transform their own lives with sand dams