[Indonesia] Central Sulawesi: Support of village water infrastructure

Peace Winds Japan (PWJ) continues communities affected by the tsunami and liquefaction due to large earthquake in central Sulawesi, Indonesia.
Many houses were destroyed by the tsunami  at the Sirenja district of the Donggala Regency in central Sulawesi, furthermore, due to the ground subsidence caused by the earthquake, there are still areas in which flooding occurs near the coastline at high tide, making road traffic difficult.

The area called Dusun 4 in Lompio Village was a small village where 69 households used to cultivate palm trees before the earthquake and tsunami struck the area in 2017. Many of the houses along the coast nearby were washed away by the tsunami, now the coastal area gets flooded due to subsidence during high tide. People had no choice but to move to Dusun 4. As a result, the population of Dusun 4 has increased to more than 300 households. However, there were not enough toilets and water stations to deal with, and there was concern that the sanitary environment in the region would deteriorate. PWJ and our local partner ACT felt it was important to construct water tanks and toilets and install water supply system.
The water supply pipeline that spreads throughout the village was excavated and installed by the villagers under the technical guidance of PWJ/ACT. Since the water supply facilities are managed by the villagers, a water sanitation management committee was formed to monitor and repair pipelines and manage toilets and water supply facilities.

At the same time, PWJ held workshops for children and adults to improve their knowledge of the water hygiene environment, such as how to properly wash hands, the importance of using toilets, and how to properly use them in order to maintain and improve the hygiene environment.

By simultaneously providing support for building such facilities and improving hygiene knowledge, it will be possible to exert great effects as a more comprehensive support project.
PWJ Local Staff: Eka’s Story
Eka is a local staff member in charge of the project in Lompio village. This was the first big job for Eka. “I was anxious at the start of the project, but the support from my family, especially my mother, encouraged me. And while working with PWJ, I learned many lessons and experiences that I have never had before. Discipline, speaking in front of many people, communicating well with key people in government, controlling the team, including volunteers, and always acting in the interest of many people. The colleagues I’ve been working with up to now have had a great relationship of respecting their specialties at work, even though they are like family. ” Eka said.

“PWJ came to a village far away from Japan with sincerity to support the residents of Lompio. I always feel that PWJ is determined to continue to support the recovery of the disaster victims.”

Local staff like Eka plays a very important role not only in understanding the language, but also in understanding the local background, culture, religion, etc. in order to provide support tailored to the area. While understanding each other, helping each other, and learning from each other, we aim to implement high-quality projects for beneficiaries and support disaster affected areas.

There are more work to be done to help recover disaster stricken communities and PWJ and ACT appreciate your support!

This project is funded by Japan Platform and PWJ supporters.