Water plays an important role in our bodies. It flushes waste from the body, regulates body temperature, transports nutrients throughout the body, and so forth.
Around 60 percent of our body is made up of water. That is why drinking potable, fresh drinking water is necessary to supply the needs of our bodies. More than that, it is a necessity used in everyday routines such as cooking, bathing, etc.
In the southernmost part of the Philippines, particularly the island provinces such as Sulu and Tawi-Tawi, access to safe drinking water was one of the main problems.
Farma Lajib Madong, a resident from the island province of Sulu, used to purchase a pale of water worth P30 to P50.
Every day, she traverses kilometers from their barangay to another village just to have potable drinking water.
For years, this was her and other residents’ everyday struggle.
For the Bangsamoro Government, this was a case that needed immediate intervention.
Through the Ministry of Interior and Local Government (MILG), ten (10) units of desalination machines that will convert salty sea water into fresh drinking water were provided and installed in the island provinces of Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.
“Di na kami nahihirapan ngayon, kung dati ay doon pa kami bumibili sa kabila [barangay], ngayon, may libreng tubig na—masaya po kami,” Farma said.
She emphasized that this project of the Bangsamoro Government has greatly helped and addressed their problem of availing free potable water.
“Malaking tulong po ito sa amin. Atsaka [ngayon] ‘di na kami bumibili [ng tubig inumin] doon sa kabila, dito na kami kumukuha,” she added.
“Nagpapasalamat kami sa (BARMM) sa pagbigay ng malinis na tubig,” Farma said.
With an amount of over Php143 million, the desalination machines were procured from the 2020 contingency fund of the Office of the Chief Minister, and implemented by MILG under its Project Management Development Division.
This project hopes to cater to more Bangsamoro constituents, specifically in the island provinces. Soon, desalination machines will also be put up in the province of Basilan. (Aisah Abas/Myrna Tepadan/BIO)
