Villanova group tackles Madagascar's water issues

More than half of the residents of Madagascar have to rely on potentially dangerous drinking-water supplies, and more than 85 percent use sanitation facilities that fail to meet basic hygiene standards.

A team of Villanova University students and a professor are spending part of their summer vacation on the island nation, working to improve those conditions.

The school has partnered with Catholic Relief Services (CRS) on an initiative that began in the classroom and is continuing with six students and seven faculty members working in the field, said Barbara Wall, vice president for mission and ministry for Villanova.

"We are very committed to serving other people throughout the world," said Wall, who planned to leave Saturday to join students in Madagascar, off the southeast coast of Africa.

Both the drinking-water and sanitation facilities in Madagascar, which has 23 million people, are classified as "unimproved," according to the CIA World Factbook.

"It is pretty dire," Wall said.

During the 2014-15 school year, two classes of engineering students worked to design clean-water and sanitation projects. French students worked to translate the engineering designs and business reports into French, the nation's primary language. Business majors designed a template to evaluate the plans of the private utility companies working with CRS.

At the same time, faculty from the College of Engineering went to Madagascar to install water-monitoring equipment and train local workers to use the system.

"At the end of the day, we are helping in the process, not leading the effort," said Jordan Ermilio, director of services learning for the College of Engineering. "It really requires a permanent presence on the ground."

Part of the project is research-based, Ermilio said. In developing counties, 40 percent to 60 percent of water-supply infrastructure fails after five years. The students analyze the systems and look for ways to prevent failure, he said.

The six rising juniors and seniors are working in three separate locations and were paired based on language fluency and expertise, Ermilio said.

The students do not receive academic credit for their efforts. Their airfare was paid for by the university, and CRS covers their expenses once they are in the country working, Wall said.

The university has worked with CRS for about 10 years, since Suzanne Toten, associate professor in the Department of Cultural Studies, established a partnership, Wall said.

Other projects they have partnered on include studying the Rwanda genocide and helping with training programs after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, she said.

Future plans include participation from other colleges at the Radnor school, Wall said.

"The area of nursing will be a big one in the future," Wall said.