As a part of their water wise wantok campaign, and an initiative of a partnership between Water PNG and the Asian Development Bank, they paid a visit to settlers at 8mile Highlands block .
The awareness program comes under the PNG Government’s Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WaSH) program that focuses on improved service delivery of clean drinking water, sanitation and promotes long term hygiene behaviour change.
With a few funny but short skits from the Watete-Iriputi comedy group, they urged people of the community to use water wisely.
Water PNG General Manager for Government and Community Relations-Mr Honk Kiap spoke of the importance of reporting water leakages and encouraged the people to take care of the water pipes that are in their communities.
“Water is essential to us all. We need water to in order to survive, so you must take care of water.”
He spoke of the previous problems they had come across with community water boards with the previous community meter initiative where communal taps were placed in communities.
With this project, there were people in the community that paid water bills but had little to no water supplied due to illegal connections done that were allowed by those in charge and told the people that would be changed with the new meter farm project that will be rolled out.
“It is important for our personal hygiene that is why as part of our meter farm project, we will be giving meters to the community so that the each household will be able to look after and pay for their own water.”
Whilst educating the people of the process, he warned the community also of the consequences of illegal water connections saying that there would be penalty fines that will be charged to the perpetrators.
There were concerns and questions raised by the community leaders, mothers and youths about the previous project but nevertheless people of the 8mile Highlands block expressed their gratitude and thanked Water PNG for this new initiative that will be rolled out.
Meanwhile Kiap added that construction was underway at the Morata settlement and Hanuabada with other sites like 8mile block and Taurama Valley to follow soon.