BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – LOCAL experts and policymakers have convened at the Ocean Terrace Inn with the aim of improving the quality, supply and conservation of the Federation’s water supply.
The half-day seminar was organised by the Ministry of Housing, Public Works, Utilities and Energy and the UNESCO Small Islands Voice (SIV) youth group in observance of World Water Day 2010.
According to the UN website, countries around the world have been tasked with fostering awareness of water quality management in areas such as prevention, clean-up and restoration.
The 2010 Water Day theme is “Clean Water for a Healthy World – Water Quality, Supply and Conservation”.
“The overall goal is to raise the profile of water quality at the political level so that water quality considerations are made alongside those of water quantity,” said Oaklyn Peets, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Public Works.
“Water is intricately linked to our development. It has ecological, health and sanitation, and economic value. That is why government has made the necessary investment over the past 15 years.”
Peets revealed that the government had secured a EC$18M loan from the Kuwaiti Fund for Arab Economic Development in the late 90s that was used to construct eight reservoirs, drill new wells, and create new water pipelines and replace old ones.
He added that another EC$20M was approved from 2003 to 2006 for the ministry’s water supply improvement project, which had resulted in an additional one million gallons of water.
“The move brought much needed improvement to the supply in the areas of Cayon, Mattingley Heights, Ogees and Conaree. The department will continue to make sustainable water a priority through the expansion of our water chlorination programme, our information system and the development of a comprehensive water master plan.”
At the end of the seminar, participants will compile a report of recommendations to be submitted to Peet’s ministry for further implementation. The list of delegates ranged from water management and education officials to secondary and sixth form students and private sector representatives.
UN statistics estimate that over 2.5 billion people are living without adequate sanitation, and that over 1.5 million children die from water diseases each year.
One of the organisation’s Millennium Development Goals is the achievement of environmental stability through a number of measures, including cutting in half the proportion of the global population without access to safe drinking water by 2015.
Bearing that in mind, Peets was adamant that water conversation and preservation should be a nationwide effort.
“It is not just my problem, it is not just your problem; this is something that affects us all,” he stressed.
“Government can no longer do it alone and it is time for more involvement by the private sector and non-governmental organisations,” Peets added.
