More than 800 people in Navutoka, Tonga now have access to sufficient water after Japan’s Ambassador to Tonga Mr Yukio Numata commissioned the upgraded water supply system at the village Community Hall yesterday.
The total grant for the project was TOP $175,451 which includes a solar pump unit, a tank stand, a water tank, two fences surrounding two tanks stand location, repair works to two old tanks, foundation materials, pipe and fittings.
Ambassador Numata emphasized the significance of the project and its contribution to the objectives of the Sustainable Development Goals but the necessity in ensuring the people of Navutoka have access to water and sanitation.
“In August this year, the Second Pacific Water Ministerial Forum and the Ninth Pacific Water and Waste Water Association Conference & Expo were held in Nukualofa to discuss the water problems of Pacific Island countries. Among the first steps they proposed to overcome those challenges is trying to attain Goal 6 of the Sustainable Development Goals, which is access to water and sanitation for all,” he said.
“As it was discussed in the meetings, efficient management of our limited water resources is crucial for all people, especially here in Tonga, where climate change and economic hardships can prevent vulnerable local communities from accessing a steady supply of clean water. Thus, helping villages to obtain reliable water systems for the provision of safe water to people has been one of the Japanese government’s focus areas.”
The Minister for Police, Prisons & Fire Pohiva Tu’i’onetoa thanked the Government of Japan on behalf of Navutoka village for their assistance. He said this assistance not only benefits this generation, but it would also assist the future generations of the village.
The project was funded through Japan’s Grant Assistance for Grass-Roots Human Security Projects and it was implemented after Navutoka’s Village Water Committee sought Japan’s assistance in March this year to alleviate heavy reliance of the community on the diesel pump system.
Japan’s Grant Assistance for Grass-Roots Human Security Projects was introduced in 1989 in response to various development needs in developing countries. The assistance symbolizes Japan’s commitment to support efforts by the Government of Tonga and its people to achieve its National Strategic Planning Framework and to strengthen the warm and close relations between the people and the Government of Japan and the people of Tonga.