DILI, 29 june 2021 (TATOLI) – The conservation of water spring source is most essential and it has been covered to all municipalities in Timor-Leste.
PERMATIL has established 174 water dams in around 12 municipalities including the special regional Oe-cuse Ambeno.
Timor-Leste has plenty of water due to the torrential rain that happens every wet season, however there is no water conservation program to ensure water can be properly used and even all water just goes to the ocean and is useless. It shows most of the 50% population still lack water accessibility and responds to their basic needs.
PERMATIL suggests that water can ensure sustainable development in this country and realize the most essential human basic life. Water can be linked to all sectors comprising Education, Agriculture, Health, Tourism, Sanitation, and more others areas.
PERMATIL has observed that since then the government of Timor-Leste has mostly focused on providing a budget to establish water tanks and pipe installation to provide water accessible to the community in around Timor-Leste. However the government is not investing in water source conservation.
“Since then most of the water spring has dried in the territory included in Dili municipality. PERMATIL comes with an initiative to have water source conservation for up spring level in around Timor-Leste territories,” PERMATIL Director, Eugenio Lemos told to TATOLI Agency, at his office, in Farol, this tuesday.
The initiatives for water up spring conservation to protect our water spring not run out of water and continue to have water existing for a long period and even in the long summer and rainy season.
Since 2017 PERMATIL has initiated a conserve spring water source program and it is an ongoing program and covers all territories in Timor-Leste.
“After one and half years of water source conservation and resulting good progress, the community can be accessing the water again,” said PERMATIL Director, Eugenio Lemos.
He added that good signs for springs on last torrential rainfall happened in last april, some of the water springs that appear in some water conservation areas have been provided through the PERMATIL program.
PERMATIL technically carried out rehabilitation of natural dams in coordination with local authority, cultural spoke person and community to get an agreement for water conservation. It is important to consider the culturally spoken person to requests for blessing based on Timor-Leste cultural process.
“The water source conservation program brings positive impact and the result most all water spring source has been established by PERMATIL can be arising water source,” He said
Since then, this water source conservation program has received financial support from UNESCO Jakarta, French Corporation (NGO), CCFD French International Agency, AFD Agency of France Development, Oxfam and United National Development Program (UNDP).
He calls on government relevant institutions to focus on water source conservation to restore water sources and rehabilitation of water dams damaged by natural disasters that happened last april.
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Journalist: José Belarmino de Sá
Editor: Rafy Belo
