Spring Gardens residents accessing potable water after decades

Some 60 persons from Spring Gardens, a satellite community of River’s View in Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), are now accessing potable water in their homes for the first time in decades, after extension works were carried out in the community.
Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal visited the community on Monday, met with village Toshao Melena Pollard, and inspected the recently completed works. The Minister was accompanied by the Hinterland Service Director of the Guyana Water Incorporated, Ramchand Jailall.
The Toshao has lauded the Ministry for the recently completed works, noting how essential potable water is. Prior to the extension work, Pollard explained, residents relied heavily on rainwater harvesting.
The works carried out on the system saw the installation of 2.5km of PVC pipe and 15 new service connections, all to the tune of $2 million.
The Minister and team also visited Dagg Point and Westerbeck, where he engaged residents and village leaders on how to improve access to potable water.
Previously, residents from Kangaruma in the Middle Mazaruni also met and engage the Ministry in the company of other officials. GWI, using in-house engineers, and with the help of residents, carried out recent works to rehabilitate the village water supply system.
During his engagement with residents, Minister Croal spoke of the importance of having access to potable water. He noted that the Government aims to increase the coverage of access to potable water in Region Seven from 34 percent to 65 percent within the next year.
Other villages that have benefitted from newly installed water supply systems in the region include Kako, Waramadong, Tasserene, Isseneru, and Kaikan. These projects were executed in 2022.
The population with access to water in Region Seven in 2020 was 3,818 persons, or approximately 34 percent of the population. With the interventions undertaken in 2021, the population with access to water increased to 5,384 persons, which was 47 percent at the end of 2021. Following the completion of the new projects awarded in 2022, the population with access to water will increase to 6,886, which is 61 percent of the population.
As part of the Government’s commitment to fulfilling Sustainable Development Goal Six, improvement projects will also be undertaken in other communities in Region Seven to ensure 100 percent access to potable water is provided by 2025, the Ministry has promised. (G12)