In rural areas of Malawi, the majority of people have traditionally obtained their water from shallow wells and streams, which often disappear during the dry season, thereby forcing villagers to carry their water over long distances. A series of self-help rural piped water supply projects have been undertaken. these systems are typically gravity-fed with sources in the waters of mountain slope rivers and streams. Projects are models of community organization and self-help. The government supplied the piping and some administrative technical assistance, but supervision and labor came from villagers themselves. These systems presently supply over 280,000 rural villagers with water piped to central village outlets; projects to serve another quarter million people are now underway.