Caption: Minister for Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management Hon. Sakiasi Ditoka with residents of Vanuadogo Settlement at their newly-built foot-crossing last Friday.
SUVA – Days of having to rely on a tree trunk to get to and from their homes are now well over for residents of Vanuadogo Settlement in the district of Batiwai in Serua.
This is after the commissioning of their new and improved foot-crossing by the Minister for Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management, Hon. Sakiasi Ditoka last Friday.
Funded under the Ministry of Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management’s Community Access Roads, Footpaths and Footbridges (CARFF) Programme, the project is aimed at providing a safer and sustainable means of access for residents of the settlement, and nearby communities.
Ms. Siteri Bilitaki has been living with her husband and three children at the settlement for the past three years. The new foot-crossing, she said, was an answered prayer to them, especially the elderly members of their community.
“Whenever it rained, it will be very hard for our children to get to school. Last year, our children had to swim across the small stream that we had to cross to go and sit for their external exams because it was raining and the water level had risen. Whenever the water level rises, we would either have to swim across to get to and from our homes, or we cannot come across at all,” she said.
Completed at a cost of more than $22,000, the newly built foot-crossing will offer relief to the villagers.
In the past, residents of the settlement would depend on a kayak to get to their homes when floodwaters would restrict access.
“However, with this new infrastructure, we are very happy and thankful to the Government for helping address our plight,” Ms Bilitaki added.
Caption: Minister for Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management Hon. Sakiasi Ditoka and Permanent Secretary for Rural and Maritime Development and Disaster Management Mr. Isoa Talemaibua with villagers of Nakorovou in Serua after the commissioning of their Ecological Purification System (EPS) last Friday.
Minister Ditoka also commissioned an Ecological Purification System (EPS) Project at Nakorovou Village in the district of Batiwai, Serua last Friday.
The project was completed at $38,000 and benefits 360 people from 70 households.
The provision of the improved water source is intended to ensure access to clean, safe, and quality drinking water for the villagers of Nakorovou, and also improve hygiene and safeguard the community from water-borne diseases.
Nakorovou villager Ms. Maraia Tuibau acknowledged the Government for the much-awaited infrastructure, saying the assistance could not have come at a much better time.
“We had three other water sources initially which would dry up whenever there’s a dry season. During such times, we would rely on a nearby stream to fetch water for consumption and other necessities. But with this new system, we are hopeful that this would be very different because water will be filtered before we consume it, and supply would also be consistent this time around. We sincerely thank the Government for this crucial and timely assistance,” said the 67-year-old.
Caption: Ms. Maraia Tuibau of Nakorovou in Serua after the commissioning of their Ecological Purification System (EPS) last Friday.
