PNG lacks water, sanitation policy

PAPUA New Guinea does not have a water and sanitation policy in place that would look into improving conditions in these two areas.
The rural water supply and sanitation programme (RWSSP) funded by European Union and the national government is organising a national conference for next month to discuss the need to come up with the policy and the approach to implementing it.
The RWSSP had implemented several projects in various parts of the country including the community-led total sanitation (CLTS) project which has proven to be successful in Eastern Highlands.
RWSSP believed that PNG could adopt the CLTS into all rural communities to solve the sanitation problems but it needed government intervention.
“CLTS has really supported the Healthy Island concept because it is simple and very effective. It has basically got the whole valley excited about building the one thing which was so difficult to do before,” pilot coordinator for CLTS in Eastern Highlands; Esther Silas said.
Silas had organised two trained teams to visit 100 villages in Henganofi district.
The CLTS implementation took less than two months using two teams and was completed just three weeks ago.
She said in one village with a population of about 450, it had only six toilets but that had now changed with almost every household owning a minimum standard toilet.
“I believe that Henganofi will have its first open defecation-free village soon and will be the first ward in the country where nobody is allowed to defecate outside anymore,” she said.
“There are four local level governments (LLG) along the valley and it is not too unrealistic to suppose that Eastern Highlands may have the accolade of announcing the first LLG in PNG to be completely open defecation free,” RWSSP engineer Stuart Jordon said.
He further stressed that the government would not be able to supply water or sanitation without a specific and coherent policy on rural water supply and sanitation.