A Royal Reception

The efforts of Fastflow’s owner Neil Armstrong to provide clean water and sanitation to thousands of people in Nepal have received Royal recognition.

The owner and Managing Director of Fastflow and his wife Bridget, explained the reasons behind the project to His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales, at a celebration to mark WaterAid’s 30^th anniversary celebration.

As consistent supporters of the international water charity, Neil and Bridget were among a specially invited audience at Clarence House, where guests celebrated the work of those who have helped to find sustainable solutions to the global water crisis.

Fastflow is currently funding a £68,000 water and sanitation project in Biratnagar, Nepal which is delivering clean water to around 4,000 people.

The project is designed to cut alarming mortality rates – particularly among children. Every year in Nepal, nearly 8,000 under fives die from diarrhoea caused by unclean drinking water or poor sanitation. Worldwide, a child dies every 20 seconds because of unsafe water and sanitation.

The funded work, in Nepal’s second largest city, involves the creation or rehabilitation of almost 400 wells. It is also developing proper sanitation systems for 2,200 people and delivering hygiene initiatives designed to teach the local people how to reduce the incidence of disease and illness by maintaining basic hygiene.

Said Neil: “It was a great honour to be invited to attend such an impressive event, meet Prince Charles and tell him about the project which we hope will further the great work which WaterAid carries out all over the world”.

“We have been involved with the charity for many years now but wanted to do something really significant. The challenges faced by this community, just because they don’t have the clean water which we take for granted, is a genuine struggle. There were a number of projects put forward by WaterAid and it was a really tough decision to make, but having two young children of my own the shocking mortality rate among under fives in Biratnagar was what swayed me”.

“The work is now well underway and I hope to travel out there soon to see it all happening on the ground. Wherever possible, local people and companies have been involved in supplying materials and carrying out the work. This way they gain a greater understanding of the project and develop a true sense of ownership.”

Rebecca Lloyd, Head of Private Giving at WaterAid, said: “We are incredibly proud to be celebrating our 30^th year of transforming lives through improving access to safe water but we know that we could not be where we are today without the private donations which are made.

“We are thrilled that Neil, and Fastflow, have chosen to support our charity. Seventeen per cent of wells in Biratnagar show signs of arsenic contamination so this generous contribution will make a huge difference to those living in the area.”

WaterAid operates in some of the world's poorest communities. Together with its partners it works with local communities, using a mixture of low cost technologies to deliver lasting solutions. It also seeks to influence policy at national and international levels. The charity works in rural and urban areas and has programmes in 26 countries in Africa, Asia and the Pacific region.