ACCESS TO WATER AND GOOD HEALTH.
J
ulio de Jesus Nunes, Head of Gariana Village in Vatubou Administrative post, Liquiça Municipality:
He said that since Timor-Leste gained independence, the community has faced great challenges in accessing clean water.
In 2012, the Government installed a clean water system in Gariana, and the community is very happy to have access to water right in front of their homes. However, in 2022, the water supply stopped due to low water volumes, and the system lacked proper maintenance to keep it running.
Julio said, recalling the hardships the community has faced for a long time, “I feel very sad to see the community walking so far every day just to get drinking water.” The community has to walk almost a kilometer to the spring twice a day—morning and afternoon. “My heart hurts when I see this.”
In 2023, the Timor-Leste Red Cross (CVTL) will step in to continue the Government’s efforts to rehabilitate the water supply system. The rehabilitation aims to ensure that households in Gariana—a total population of 135 and a total of 77 households—once again have accessible water directly in front of their homes, with a more reliable and sustainable flow than before.
CVTL’s support is not only the supply of clean water. But through various programs, CVTL has helped form land groups and small loans and empower communities in sugarcane production. With access to better water, families now use it not only for cooking and washing clothes but also for processing sugar. Some of the vegetables are eaten, the rest are sold to earn income for daily needs—including buying school supplies for their children. Children go to school in clean clothes. And parents spend less time fetching water, giving them more hours in the day to work and support their families.
“Life is slowly improving, thanks to CVTL, our community now has hope and opportunity for good health and a better future.”
Emilia Bareto Emilia is 68 years old; said she was very happy because she now had access to water near her front door.
for many years, I had to walk long distances to fetch water. Because my place of residence is different from others who live in the plains, I live in the mountains and have to walk down the mountain to draw water and carry it back up the mountain. This work is done twice a day, in the morning and afternoon, and it makes me very sad. I don’t worry about food because even though I’m old, my hands and feet are still strong and my eyes can see. I am still forced to farm because I am a farmer. I have often told my children and grandchildren that we can be rich, we can have a lot of money, we can have a car, but life is not happy because we have difficulty accessing clean water. When we have access to water in front of the house this is a complete life because good health comes from water eating healthy food must be washed.
Through the support of the Timor-Leste Red Cross (CVTL), I now have access to clean and safe water in front of my house. This change brought me and my family great joy
