Needs assessment commences to address water woes in Mabaruma

Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal has committed to short term interventions as well as a needs assessment exercise which will guide future plans for safe water delivery in Mabaruma, Region One (Barima-Waini).

The Minister, along with GWI’s Hinterland Service Director, Ramchand Jailall, other engineers, and regional officials visited pump stations and water sources in the district. The pump stations visited include; White Water, Wauna, Wanaina, Barabina, Mabaruma, and the Hosororo and Khan’s Hill Water Source.
Already a team of engineers has commenced visits to several satellite villages in the Sub-District with the aim of coming up with a comprehensive plan to improve service delivery. In instances where there is no service, the data collected will shape plans to bring services to those communities and also give guidance on what is required to improve existing systems. According to the Housing Ministry, throughout the visit, the common issue of insufficient water supply to the residents within the service area was raised. Residents complained of a breakdown in communication as it relates to the distribution schedule between the Water Inc and regional officials, at the peril of their day to day activities being disrupted.
In addition, the poor quality of fuel supplied to the Wanaina Pump Station has caused damages to the pump resulting in downtime which has adversely affected the supply of water to neighbouring Wauna and some sections of Hosororo.
Underscoring the importance of safe water delivery, the Minister reminded residents this critical service has become even more a necessity in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.