Safe water for Goroka eyed

NEARLY 80 per cent of the population of Goroka district in Eastern Highlands need safe water and proper sanitation, according to the District Water Sanitation Hygiene Programme.
Programme coordinator Martin Moses said a research in Goroka district confirmed that 77.5 per cent of the population did not have access to safe water and proper sanitation facilities.
The research stated that sanitation facilities had been overlooked over the years.
It stated that the programme had been neglected in Goroka district for a very long time, posing threats to public health and
disease outbreaks such as typhoid.
The district is going into a partnership with Oxfam Papua New Guinea International to provide safe water for people to
drink, cook and use for personal hygiene.
He said the district will also work with the Papua New Guinea Medical Research Institute to study the microbiological quality of drinking water to ensure the water meets health standard guidelines.
The Goroka District Development Authority and Oxfam Papua New Guinea International have signed an agreement to
implement the programme in Goroka.