OVER 200 villages in need of proper water services in Yuweng community in Markham District in Morobe Province will now benefit from a clean water services.
This follows the completion of water supply construction project untaken by the World Vision Papua New Guinea in just seven days with the help of Yuweng people.
Easy access to clean water supply has been a lifetime need in the Yuweng community because the community is known for villagers walking for more than a kilometre to fetch water for drinking, cooking, washing, and other domestic purposes over the years.
The village has about 35 households situated on a valley surrounded by steep slopes overlooking the Leron River and scenic Markham Plains.
Life in the Yuweng community has been tough, especially with the long distance to the water source.
School children have been attending school without bathing, women and girls bathing once a day even during menstruation, and mothers and children carrying litres of water for drinking and cooking.
It has always been their prayer to have a proper water supply in their community with accessibility until World Vision made the dream a reality.
The World Vision is making this possible through its Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) project supported by the Australian Government through the Water for Women Fund.
The WASH program aims to improve the health and well-being of the people through a participatory approach involving everyone to be more informed and resilient to climate change effects in managing the water systems and their toilets.
Water for Women-Markham WASH Project Officer, Joel Johnson expressed that seven days of construction of the water supply system was through effective collaboration involving both men and women.
“Community’s collaboration and cooperation have resulted in the timely completion of the Water System.
“The main water source is right up in the mountains and is a 1.4 kilometre distance from Yuweng and this is where the dam is constructed,” he said.
“In just seven days, the established WASH Committees took on the responsibilities and delegated tasks as we began constructing the dam, doing drainage and piping system, installing tap stands at the households, and we had the water flowing at the taps.”
Joel thanked the hardworking people of Yuweng for taking the initiative and assisted diligently to have water services at their homes.
Picture caption: Salome Issac enjoying the clean running water at her home in Yuweng village.
