Residents of the West Bank village of Al Auja joyously celebrated a new and improved water distribution project that helps resolve water shortages in one of the hottest areas of the West Bank.
Children joined the festivities May 10, performing traditional folk dances and presenting bouquets to officials at the ceremony. The head of Al Auja’s council was joined by the governor of Jericho, the head of the Palestine Water Authority, and Anera and USAID officials.
The new drinking water network and reservoir will benefit the village’s 4,500 residents who suffered from the 30-year old network that was severely deteriorated. Residents of Al-Auja had long suffered from an unreliable and intermittent water supply throughout the year, with up to 50% water losses. The deteriorated pipes also posed a serious health risk from contamination.
Now completed, the network increases the amount of available drinking water for Al-Auja and greatly reduces water losses. The reservoir provides additional water storagecapacity and decreases the potential for water contamination.
Anera implemented the project with $1.1 million USAID funding through the Emergency Water and Sanitation and Other Infrastructure (EWAS II), which aims at providing rapid emergency relief in the water and sanitation sectors and addressing basic infrastructure needs.
