A group of six HSBC Malta employees have brought back with them from a week-long trip in Ghana the remarkable tales of remote areas lacking basic amenities such as water and the resilience of the people who face living with such challenges.
The HSBC Water Programme has been implementing projects in Ghana where since 2012 it has been working with the global NGO, WaterAid, to improve access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene. The HSBC Malta staff trip was part of the five-year HSBC Water Programme.
Although with a coastline embracing the Atlantic Ocean, Ghana’s northern region jets further inland into African arid lands and is one of the most water-scarce areas on the continent.
The HSBC Malta group first travelled to the Salaga Senior High School and was captivated by the world of difference that new installations have made in the lives of the students and teachers. They were excited to see that the school of more than 2,000 students now has access to a solar powered mechanised water pump, a biogas system, new toilet blocks and rainwater harvesting tanks. These facilities were installed after HSBC employees in Malta collected €33,000 through various staff fundraising activities held in the past 2 years, and HSBC Malta matched this sum to reach the total project cost of €66,000.
The group then travelled to Kpembi Dam, which was the only source of water for the students before the WaterAid project was implemented at their school. A roundtrip between the Salaga High School and the Kpembi Dam was approximately eight kilometres. The students used to do this trip a couple of times a day to carry water to their school.
“When we arrived at the Dam, we tried to lift a jerry can filled with water, weighing approximately 20kg, and could barely lift it from the ground let alone carry it all the way back to the school,” said Astrid Micallef Saliba, one of the HSBC Malta group.

The group also visited Kulnyevula community which has been supported by WaterAid through the HSBC Water Programme since 2012. They visited the community’s new water kiosk and could visibly see the transformative effect that access to safe water has had on the community. Here, the group met the water vendor who manages the water kiosk, as well as some of the women who were collecting their water. The community spoke of their pride and happiness at having clean water and how as a result illness has dramatically decreased.
Finally the group visited Kakpayili-Shizugu community, where the group was shocked to learn that the community were forced to drink water from a nearby polluted dam. The water was full of insects and was the same water source used by cows and dogs. A water kiosk supplying the community with safe drinking water is being implemented as part of the HSBC Water Programme and soon the community will have access to safe water for the first time. Meeting the people of these communities capped the experience for the HSBC Malta group.
The HSBC group was led by Astrid Micallef Saliba, and included Trudy Vella Gera, Daniel Grech Avellino, Jean Paul Attard, Amanda Azzopardi, and Janika Agius.