Feature Stories
Water for All
MARKETPLACE 24 October 2019
The latest estimates from WHO and UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme 2017 showed that three in ten people worldwide, or 2.1 billion, lack access to safe, readily available water at home, and six in ten, or 4.5 billion, lack safely managed sanitation. Water scarcity affects more than 40% of the global population and is projected to rise, especially in poor rural areas.
In dedication to SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation to ensure universal access to safe and affordable water, YTL Power International (YTL PI) signed a Collaboration Agreement with Agensi Inovasi Malaysia (AIM) and the Global Peace Foundation (GPF) in 2018 in order to uplift the welfare of targeted rural and underserved communities through the provision of clean and safe water.
To date, YTL PI has provided RM184,600 of funding to Communities Unite for Purewater (CUP), a social intervention programme run by the Global Peace Foundation. A total of 70 units of clean water filters were installed in Kampung Sion and Kampung Semada Belatok benefitting over 400 people from both villages.
The volunteers under CUP projects also came out with solutions to solve water poverty and quality issue at Kampung Sion and Kampung Semada Belatok alongside with the WaSH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) training to empower the communities through an understanding of the relationship between their water resources, sanitation and hygiene to health.
In addition, YTL Jawa Timur (YTLJT) has developed a number of water conservation and water access programmes in collaboration with local government and community members in order to provide clean water access for local communities.
Under the Water Access and Conservation Programme, eight hydram pump units were installed for small houses and mosques, called “Musholas”, which help to divert water to inaccessible and remote houses as well as to provide clean water access and better sanitation for the local community.
500 bamboo and 700 Gayam seeds have been planted in Sumberrejo Village and other neighbouring villages in order to preserve water streams and strengthen water catchment areas. Meanwhile, 29 infiltration wells and seven water storage tanks were built to improve the water distribution system and conserve water during the rainy season. YTLJT has also helped improve the intake pipe system in one of the water springs in Selobanteng. These conservation programmes have successfully fulfilled the daily water needs of the local community, whilst conserving water for long term storage, and benefitting more than 1,900 people in the rural communities.
