The whole community is encouraged to take part in the planning and building of the well.
The well is then maintained, mended and generally taken care of by local people without the need for outside help.
The water pump, for example, sometimes breaks, but it can soon be fixed, as the community has been trained in doing repairs with inexpensive, easily available tools.
The schemes also aim to educate people about the need to avoid washing in contaminated water into which waste has been pumped.
Where these schemes have been implemented, the well-being of the whole community has improved dramatically.
However, new agricultural techniques are being developed which can increase food production while using little water.
By using better seeds and boosting soil fertility with the use of fertilisers, farmers can produce higher yields, obtaining the greatest gains from precious water supply.