Seven Weeks for Water 2026: Week 2 - Water and conflict: How accessibility is ensured in conflict zones for marginalized groups

The second of the Seven Weeks for Water reflection is authored by Tewaney Seifesellassie Yohannes, a senior climate advisor and head of the Peace, Advocacy, and Ethics Department at the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Development and Inter-Church Aid Commission, Ethiopia. He works closely with faith-based and interreligious institutions on water, climate justice, peace-building, and the protection of vulnerable communities in fragile and conflict-affected contexts. In this reflection, he highlights the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian tradition, where water is a sacred gift, essential for life and spiritual renewal, yet in Ethiopia, water scarcity has become a source of conflict and injustice, especially for marginalized communities. However, collaborative faith-based initiatives to restore water sources have demonstrated how equitable water access can foster peace, health, and social cohesion, embodying the biblical call to care for creation and serve those in need 23 February 2026 Mary Achol supervises a water point inside the Protection of Civilians area in the United Nations base in Malakal, South Sudan. Residents of the area can line up and fill their containers with water during certain hours of the day. Mary Achol maintains order and hygiene at the faucets. Some 35,000 people live in the camp, protected by UN peacekeeping troops. They were displaced from Malakal following the outbreak of a civil war in 2013. The armed conflict has a strong element of ethnic tension, and the mostly Shilluk and Nuer residents of the camp fear for their security from the largely Dinka population that has moved into their former town. Photo: Paul Jeffrey/Life on Earth Pictures Texts (Guided by Psalm 46:1–4; Matthew 25:35–36; Genesis 2:15; Isaiah 58:10–11; Jeremiah 2:13; Revelation 22:1–2)   Reflection In the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian tradition, water is more than just a natural resource; it’s a sacred gift from God, essential for life, purity, healing, and communion. Holy water is central to worship and spiritual life, reminding believers that God’s grace flows freely for the renewal of both body and soul. However, in today’s Ethiopia, water is increasingly fragile and contested. In conflict-affected and climate-stressed areas, access to safe water and sanitation has become deeply entangled with displacement, environmental degradation, and widening inequalities. For marginalized groups, especially women, children, persons with disabilities, and internally displaced people, water scarcity is not an abstract challenge, but a daily experience of injustice that undermines dignity, security, and survival. This reality is vividly expressed in the rural highlands of North Shoa (North Shewa) Zone in the Amhara Regional State. At the subdistrict level in Ankober Woreda, the communities of Afajehegn (in Gorgo subdistrict) and Ayigeber, together with their respective neighboring subdistrict villages, reveal how water can either fuel conflict or become a pathway to peace. In the Gorgo subdistrict, the spring known as Afajehegn bears a name that speaks of suffering and division. Locally understood as “you created a hot conflict,” the name recalls serious disputes among irrigation water users during periods of scarcity. Recurrent drought, land degradation, and instability damaged water sources and dried downstream flows. Families were forced to rely on unsafe water, and women carried the heaviest burden, walking long distances each day to fetch water while caring for children, the elderly, and the sick. What should have sustained life instead became a source of fear, exhaustion, and social tension. Such experiences directly challenge the biblical mandate in Genesis 2:15, where humanity is entrusted to “till and keep” the creation. This command is both ecological and moral. When conflict destroys water systems, when rivers are polluted and springs neglected, stewardship is violated. Creation suffers, and injustice deepens—especially for those least responsible for environmental degradation yet most affected by its consequences. Nearby, Ayigeber subvillage reflects a similarly painful history. Its name is rooted in collective memory of longstanding poverty caused by persistent rainfall failure. Here, environmental stress, injustice, and survival have long been intertwined. Women and children travel across rugged terrain to fetch small quantities of water, often from unsafe pond sources. The impact of this daily struggle goes far beyond physical exhaustion. Household economic productivity declines as labor is consumed by water collection. School enrollment, attendance, and learning outcomes especially for girls are negatively affected, the quality of education deteriorates as teachers are unwilling to live in such harsh conditions. Water scarcity even reshapes social relationships, increasing isolation and vulnerability within the community. In these fragile settings, the promise of Psalm 46:1-4 speaks with particular power: when the earth trembles and nations rage, there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God. This vision offers both comfort and protest, affirming that chaos, fear, and deprivation are not God’s intention. It calls communities of faith to bear witness to life-giving alternatives. A turning point came through deliberate ecumenical collaboration between the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Development and Inter-Church Aid Commission and Norwegian Church Aid. Working closely with communities at subdistrict level, the churches identified water as both a humanitarian priority and a peacebuilding entry point. Springs in both Afajehegn and Ayigeber were rehabilitated, protected, and governed through inclusive community structures. Integrated catchment treatment restored groundwater recharge, reduced competition among users, and stabilized access to safe drinking water. Women were recognized as custodians and decision-makers, reinforcing dignity, agency, and justice. The impact of these interventions extended beyond infrastructure. Health improved as water-borne diarrheal diseases—particularly affecting children, pregnant, and lactating mothers—declined. Trust among neighbors was rebuilt, social cohesion strengthened, and communities once defined by tension were safeguarded from recurring conflict. This transformation reflects the promise of Isaiah 58:10-11: when the needs of the afflicted are met, communities become like a watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. These lived experiences illuminate the teaching of Jesus in Matthew 25:35-36: “I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink.” In this teaching, access to water is not optional charity, but a measure of faithfulness. To restore water is to encounter Christ among the vulnerable. At the same time, the warning of Jeremiah 2:13 reminds us that broken systems ecological, social, or political cannot sustain life when the spring of living water is abandoned. The biblical vision culminates in Revelation 22:1–2, where the river of life flows freely, bringing healing to the nations. For Ethiopia and other conflict-affected contexts, this vision calls for integrated approaches that link water access, peacebuilding, and care for creation. When water governance is rooted in justice, stewardship, and faith-informed ethics, it becomes a powerful instrument of reconciliation. Caring for creation and ensuring equitable access to water is therefore central to living out the Gospel in a broken and thirsty world.   Questions for Discussion In your own context, how does water scarcity or insecurity affect women, children, and other marginalized groups, especially during times of conflict, displacement, or crisis? What practical role can faith communities play in promoting just and peaceful access to water while caring for creation?   Practical ideas Faith communities can actively advocate for the protection, rehabilitation, and fair governance of local water sources, ensuring meaningful participation of women, displaced people, and other marginalized groups. Churches and faith-based organizations can integrate water justice, sanitation, care for creation, and peacebuilding into preaching, education, community dialogue, and advocacy.   Resources  Genesis 26:17-22 (first conflict over water recorded in the Bible) https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/bible-studies/seven-weeks-for-water-2024-week-7-water-for-peace-in-the-africa-region Music on Water (Lyrics by Tewaney Seifesellassie): Tewaney Water EWN Tewaney Seifesellassie Yohannes, a senior climate advisor and head of the Peace, Advocacy, and Ethics Department at the Ethiopian Orthodox Church Development and Inter-Church Aid Commission, Ethiopia. See more

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