Home > Press Releases

World Water Day 2026: Feed the Children Strengthens Global Water Solutions and Supports U.S. Families With Critical Water Relief

Oklahoma City, OK (March 20, 2026) World Water Day 2026: As communities continue to experience increasingly complex water challenges, Feed the Children, a global movement to end childhood hunger, is marking World Water Day by advancing water access efforts while strengthening water support for children and families. Through long standing partnerships, the organization is expanding access to clean, reliable water by implementing sustainable projects and critical water distribution programs, including a recently completed water access project in Kenya that is already improving daily life for thousands.

A woman in Kenya collecting water in containers.
Community members collect clean water from a newly installed water point supported by Feed the Children in Samburu County, Kenya.

“Water scarcity is one of the defining challenges of our time,” said Emily Callahan, president and CEO of Feed the Children. “Whether supporting relief efforts here in the U.S. or expanding sustainable water systems globally, we are committed to providing children and families with the water, food and essentials they need most to thrive.”

Kenya Project Expands Water Access for Thousands

In Samburu County, Kenya, where families once depended on seasonal riverbeds that often ran dry, Feed the Children supported the installation of a solar-powered borehole providing reliable year-round access to clean water. The system now serves more than 2,500 people across nearly 300 households, improving health and hygiene while helping families protect livestock, keep children in school, and strengthen local livelihoods in the face of increasing climate pressures.

Children in Kenya drinking water from a water spout.
Children access clean water at a community water point supported by Feed the Children in Samburu County, Kenya.

Global WASH Programs Continue to Scale Amid Climate Strain

Feed the Children’s WASH programs operate across El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Kenya, Malawi, the Philippines, Tanzania, and Uganda, where climate driven water scarcity and contamination increasingly threaten children’s health. Over the past year, the organization has:

  • Installed and rehabilitated solar powered boreholes in drought affected regions
  • Expanded community based water management systems benefiting more than 730,000 people
  • Distributed over 4 million water purification packets through its partnership with Procter & Gamble

These efforts aim to reduce waterborne disease, strengthen local infrastructure, and help communities adapt to changing environmental conditions.

A child washing their hands in the water outdoors.
Access to clean water supports hygiene and health through Feed the Children’s global WASH programs in drought affected communities.

Domestic Water Relief Remains a Critical Need

In the United States, Feed the Children, working together with Niagara Cares, the philanthropic division of Niagara Bottling, continues to respond to water related emergencies including wildfires, hurricanes, and contamination events that are becoming more frequent and severe due to climate pressures. In 2025 alone, the organization delivered 276,000 gallons of water to more than 10,300 families facing sudden or prolonged water insecurity.

Building on more than 17 years of collaboration, this partnership supports Feed the Children’s response to disasters, infrastructure failures, and other situations where access to clean water is disrupted ensuring families have a critical resource during times of hardship.

A group of children smiling in the back seat of a car.
Families receive emergency water supplies through Feed the Children’s U.S. relief response, supported by Niagara Cares.

Feed the Children encourages supporters, partners, and communities to join its global movement and to amplify efforts to expand access to clean water. Donations help provide sustainable water solutions, emergency relief, food and essentials to families around the world, so children everywhere have the opportunity to grow and thrive.

About Feed the Children

Feed the Children is committed to ending childhood hunger. We believe that no child should go to bed hungry, and so we provide children and families in the U.S. and around the world with the food and essentials kids need to grow and thrive.

Through our programs and partnerships, we feed children today while helping their families and communities build resilient futures. In addition to food, we distribute household and personal care items across the United States to help parents and caregivers maintain stable, food-secure households. Internationally, we expand access to nutritious meals, safe water, improved hygiene and training in sustainable living. Responsible stewards of our resources, we are driven to pursue innovative, holistic and child-focused solutions to the complex challenges of hunger, food insecurity and poverty.

For children everywhere, we believe that having enough to eat is a fundamental right.

Feed the Children | no child should go to bed hungry

More Press Releases