In a bid to address the acute water scarcity among citizens in Plateau State, a non-governmental organization with support from different donors has provided solar powered boreholes to Four Communities in Bassa local government area of the State.
At the Commissioning of the water projects in the Four Communities of Oureen Dam, Kpachudu, Jebu Miango and Tafi-Gana, the Project Officer of the NGO known as Taste Nigeria, Mr. Jonathan Makan, said Taste Nigeria is a Christian based organization aimed at assisting less privilege women and children and also Communities that are in dire need of basic social amenities.
He noted that the borehole at Oureen Dam has 10,000 liters capacity with 3 different drawer points and each point has 4 taps. They also built toilet of 4 compartment for the community, 2 each for male and female.
At Kpachudu, Taste Nigeria donated a 25,000 liters capacity overhead tank, solar powered borehole, covering 400 metres with 3 drawer point with 4 taps each. They plan to also support 50 households with toilets in the same community.
Jebu Miango has same water project with 20,000 liters capacity tank which was started by the former member representing Jos North/Bassa Federal Constituency, Hon. Musa Agah before Taste Nigeria took over and completed it. It has 9 drawer points with 3 taps each.
For Tafi-Gana community, it was a 25,000 liters capacity tank, solar powered borehole with 3 drawer points with each point having 4 taps. 50 household will also be supported to own toilets in the community courtesy Taste Nigeria.
Mr. Makan explained that some of the projects were cited based on request but others was to motivate the members of the community to return home after attacks on their communities by gunmen.
The former member representing Jos North/Bassa Federal Constituency who is also the PDP Candidate for the same position in this February general elections, Musa Agah, who was the partner that paid all the counterpart funding for the projects in all the communities, witnessed the Commissioning and expressed gratitude to the NGO. He assured of supporting any developmental project to his people within his reach at any point of time.
The Director of Water Sanitation and Hygiene of Bassa local government council who represented the council Chairman at the Commissioning, Mr. Pam Magaji lauded the intervention aimed at addressing the water shortage in the communities.
Some of the community members especially women and youths who could not hide their feelings, rollout drums, singing and dancing at the Commissioning site to show their gratitude for the intervention. They were optimistic that with the intervention, the water scarcity will be a thing of the past in their communities.
They also believe that the incessant cases of some diseases like Typhoid fever, Malaria and Diarrhoea among them as a result of using unclean water will reduce drastically.
Earlier, the NGO had trained some members of the Communities as Water Sanitation and Hygiene officers who will maintain the projects in the various communities.