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| Village children celebrate the availability of clean water |
Fiji’s Attorney General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum (who is the second highest person in charge after the Prime Minister) honored all with his presence at the official opening on July 18, 2012 of Rotary Pacific Water For Life Foundation’s (RPW) 189th project in Fiji.
Kids wore traditional Fijian outfits and carried Fijian Warrior Clubs to escort a 4x4 vehicle across the Wai District School compound. Fiji Water Global President David Ricanati and CEO Roko Nabalarua, RPW Manager Gaël Léopold, and other officials waited near the shade.
When the School Committee presented its request to RPW in May 2012, it was clear that something had to be done quickly, because 125 kids studying in the school ( including 25 living on site) didn’t have access to a regular supply of safe water for basic needs such as drinking, washing, cleaning, and cooking. Kids had to carry buckets and drums from the main water tank to the toilet bocks, dormitories, and kindergarten, etc. At times the tank would go dry when villagers downstream would pull more water for their own needs.
After assessing the situation and discussing his proposed solution with RPW’s Technical Advisory Committee, Projects Coordinator Etika Sing returned to the school with a clear plan to secure an independant and suitable source of water for the school only. Three weeks later, a borehole was completed 200 meters away from the school, new pipes were laid, and water tanks were installed. Today, clean drinking water is now flowing within the compound, and RPW is looking at upgrading a few other elements of their water system, including the toilets block.
This project is another example of what can be done through the Rotary Matching Grant mechanism. This project was funded by the Rotary Clubs of Gloucester in UK and Suva East, with the support of Fiji Water and Vodafone Foundations.
Discover more about RPW on www.rotarypacificwater.org.
- By Gaël Léopold, RPW Manager gael@rotarypacificwater.org +679-9056808
