One hundred and fifty water tanks will be installed in the most drought‑affected areas in the Western Division from today.
This is to ensure water for communities can be accessed by as many people as possible as the drought conditions worsens in a number of areas.
The provision of water tanks was made possible with the support of over $45 million from the European Union Building Safety and Resilience in the Pacific project which is implemented by the Secretariat Pacific Community (SPC).
These tanks will be installed in temporary roadside locations filled by the National Disaster Management Office throughout the Christmas season to ensure the most severely affected areas can access clean and safe drinking water.
Acting Principal Assistant Secretary for the National Disaster Management Office, Uraia Rainima says the team are targeting ‘red zone’ communities identified across the Nadi, Nadroga and Ba districts as they have been identified as the most at risk.
Rainima says the predictions show these conditions will persist until at least March next year so they are working to ensure they can get clean and safe drinking water to as many people as possible across the country.
European Union Ambassador for the Pacific Andrew Jacobs says the use of resources is critical for protecting communities against the impact of this El Nino weather pattern causing the drought.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner Western’s Office has so far carted 20 million litres of water to over 50,000 people in the affected areas of the Western division.
