Through the Project for the Construction of a Drinking Water Supply System, the multiple aqueduct “Las tres cruces” was left in operation. The work, located in Jamao Afuera, Hermanas Mirabal province, was carried out after more than three years of accompanying their community to make it possible.
The work operates with a solar pumping system and was supported with funds from the Government of Japan, Guakía Ambiente, the Small Grants Program of the Global Environment Facility (PPS-SGP/GEF/UNDP) of the United Nations Program for Development (UNDP), and implemented with the leadership and active participation of the community.
Before the construction of this aqueduct, the community had a limited supply of water when it rained and, with great effort, traveling long distances and very steep slopes to the river. The people with greater economic possibilities bought water tanks from trucks that periodically passed through the community carrying the product.
This situation harmed women in a special way, who had to be aware of the occurrence of rain events to collect water or, failing that, dedicate a large part of their time to reach the river to collect water, overcoming all kinds of of difficulties.
The installed system, which takes advantage of the water from a tributary spring of the Cañada Clara stream, consists of a 10 HP submersible pump, with a pumping capacity of 33 gallons per minute, which lifts the water to the tanks that are 247 meters high from the source. It is powered by an 18.5 kW photovoltaic solar plant and is providing quantity and quality drinking water service to 90 homes and other community structures, including a school, small food supply businesses, and a church.
“With the commissioning of this aqueduct, the faces of the entire community, especially the women, look happier, because something that seemed almost impossible to do was made a reality thanks to the joint effort of the community and committed entities. with sustainable local development, as a sign that when you want, you can”, indicated community leaders during the opening ceremony.
The total cost of the project amounts to more than US$146,000, of which US$81,486 were donated by the Government of Japan under the Non-Reimbursable Economic Assistance Program for Community Human Security Projects of the Embassy of Japan. Through this initiative, the Government of Japan contributes to the improvement and development of Dominican society, and at the same time, to further strengthen the ties of friendship and cooperation between Japan and the Dominican Republic.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by the former ambassador of Japan, Takagi Masahiro; Inka Mattila, resident representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP); Michela Izzo, executive director of Guakía Ambiente; Alberto Sánchez, national coordinator of the PPS-SGP; Juan Ramón Cepeda, president of the Water Committee; Lissette Nicasio de Adames, provincial governor of Hermanas Mirabal, as well as representatives of the community, local and international institutions.
This project is part of the more than 500 community initiatives promoted by PPS-SGP/GEF/UNDP to promote sustainable and inclusive development in the last two decades in the country and that are committed to “Local solutions with global impact”
About the Small Grants Program (PPS)
The PPS-SGP was created in 1992 as a result of the agreements reached at the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It provides technical assistance and financial support to communities to address global environmental problems from a local perspective, under the motto “act locally, think globally”. Currently, the PPS-SGP has a presence in more than 125 countries.
It is a global initiative of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), which is implemented from UNDP in more than 120 countries, and was conceived to support local communities in protecting the environment, generating sustainable livelihoods and local empowerment.