The Guinea worm is a fearsome parasite that is native to Mali in West Africa. The Guinea worm infests water fleas when it is in larva stage, and is transmitted to humans by drinking unboiled water. When the larva of the worm enters the human body, it grows and, within six months' to one year's time, can reach a length of one meter. When the worm matures, it then bores its way out of the body so that it can lay eggs, biting through the flesh as it goes. The pain for the human host is excruciating at this stage. It becomes difficult to walk, people lose appetite, and their energy is exhausted. Severe cases can even be fatal.

Potable water supplies to village areas of Mali are still insufficient, and many people drink contaminated, unboiled water. The lack of potable water has caused the incidence of Guinea worm disease to increase.

Moreover, it is quite expensive to maintain boiled water sterilization, which has led to proposals to build simple, deep water wells. Mali, however, does not have the technology or budget to dig these wells, and thus Japan has been poviding grant aid to build simple, deep water wells.

Since the start of this project, the incidence of Guinea worm infestations has gradually decreased. The wells have also eliminated the heavy labor required of women and children every day to collect water. All of these improvements have brought smiles back to the faces of children in Mali.

Villagers celebrate the completion of a hand pump (Sakuraji Village, Mali).