Clean up the Amazon: project in partnership with MAB transforms the reality of affected families
MAB and ADAI begin the process of registering families participating in the Amazon Cisterns program. The initiative is the result of the movement’s struggle and organization in response to the needs of the affected communities
Published 22/07/2025 - Updated 02/09/2025
In the Upper, Middle, and Lower Madeira regions of Porto Velho (RO), water scarcity is a reality that persists both during droughts and floods. Elizete Mota Leite, a resident of the Bom Será I community for 19 years, shares the daily challenges faced by her family. “Our water is terrible. When the river floods, we are forced to use its water. Today, we are without water, and this happens almost every day,” says Elizete.
Elizete’s challenging reality is shared by many other families living in the region. However, hope has arrived on the banks of the Madeira River with the implementation of the Cisterns Program, bringing about a transformation that will forever change the lives of all those who benefit from it. However, it is not just water that needs to arrive.
Another major challenge faced by affected communities is the lack of basic sanitation. The precarious state of sanitation facilities compromises not only the health but also the safety of residents in their daily use.
Elisabete Leite Lagos, who has lived in the Bom Será I community for 12 years and is the mother of three children, says that, like other families, they experience a daily lack of infrastructure and basic conditions in the region. “In addition to going days without water, the bathroom is makeshift. In fact, there is no bathroom, no cesspit, nothing. We have to close it with a cloth to take a shower because there is no door.”
“The arrival of Clean-Up the Amazon was met with a mixture of joy and gratitude. “Now I am hopeful. I hope this bathroom really comes, to improve the situation, which is not good. Having a proper bathroom will improve our quality of life,” concluded Elisabete.
The Clean-Up the Amazon project’s core mission is to restore dignity and transform the quality of life of affected populations in the Amazon, ensuring essential access to drinking water and basic sanitation services that promote health and well-being for all. The project is part of the Federal Government’s Cisterna Program, a public policy of the Ministry of Development and Social Assistance, Family, and Fighting Hunger (MDS), implemented in the North and Northeast regions, in partnership with the National Council of Extractive Workers (CNS) and the Chico Mendes Memorial, with investments from the Growth Acceleration Program (PAC3).
In Rondônia, the Clean-Up the Amazon project is run by the Interstate Agricultural Development Association (ADAI) and the Vitório Régia Institute, in partnership with the Movement of People Affected by Dams in Rondônia (MAB).
