The Worshipful Company of Paviors are supporting Sand Dams Worldwide as its Master’s Charity for 2025.
A presentation was held by David Jordan OBE, Chair of Sand Dams Worldwide, and Miguel Veiga-Pestana, Chief Sustainability Officer at Drax and a member of the Sand Dams Worldwide Board.
Can any Pavior, who has had a family holiday by the seaside, honestly say that they have not had the urge to dam that little stream that runs across the beach at low tide? I know I have.
Nowadays, I use a grown-up shovel with a six-foot handle, which yields quicker results and saves my back. I will even introduce rocks, seaweed, and driftwood to create a dam with a difference. Purely for the benefit of the grandchildren, of course.
With this background in mind, I was very curious to learn more about the Sand Dams Charity, which was the Master’s chosen charity for his year in office. So, on the evening of the 30th, avoiding the trick and treaters out in force on Halloween night, I ventured into the wilds of West London, to a very nice “cottage” (well, far bigger than my house) on the Kew Gardens Estate to find out more.
This is what I learned:
The Sand Dams project focuses on alleviating poverty in the semi-arid areas of Sub-Saharan Africa, which remains the region with the highest poverty rates globally.
According to World Bank estimates (as of recent years), about 35-40% of the population in SSA lives on less than $2.15 per day, the international poverty line. They rely heavily on growing their own food in order to provide for their families.
Sand Dams focuses on those semi-arid areas of the world where, unsurprisingly, there are huge deposits of the right quality sand. But surprisingly, we were told that this region has as much rainfall in a year as London (around 26 inches). But unlike London, all of it falls in two short rainy seasons. The result is that over 90 % of the rain flows straight back out to sea.
Sand dams are a self-help project where trained engineers, with support from first-world engineering, work with local experts to select the ideal location and design, and provide all the necessary materials to construct the chosen dam. The foundations and concrete construction to turn the plans into reality use the free labour of the local inhabitants, who are expected to benefit from the project.
The project, therefore, becomes a self-help initiative, owned and cherished by the locals, who then have every incentive to maintain the dam in the long term. This allows the supporting benefactors to see the benefits of their efforts and generosity, being applied 100% to the intended beneficiaries.
I understand that adventurous Paviors who want to get even more involved and “physically touch” the project, meeting the beneficiaries, can even waive a spade and pickaxe to help with the construction too! To those adventurous Paviors looking for a holiday with a difference and a purpose , this may add to the appeal.
From what I can gather, the combination of water and sand trapped behind the dam forms a sort of slurry, with the waterlogged sand helping to reduce evaporation and extend the valuable life of the precious water resource.
A new water table is created behind the dam, allowing trees and bushes to grow. This, in turn, supports wildlife and provides local people with a greater certainty of daily food on their plates, as they can grow food and rear sheep, goats, and chickens.
A sand dam also helps to slow down the desertification of the surrounding landscape and reduces the extremes of temperature in the vicinity of the dam. Irrigation can then extend outwards from the dam to create self-sustaining arable land.
The health and well-being of the local population, particularly children, are improved. In times of hunger and drought, it is always the youngest who suffer the most.
The girls in the surrounding village, who are currently expected to walk up to 6 hours every day to fetch and carry water from the nearest water hole, can now reallocate their time to attend school once the dam is complete. There are numerous winners arising from this project.
A worthy cause indeed, and hopefully many Paviors like myself can identify with, in one way or another.
Andrew Edwards