UNICEF: Regional Director notes progress on safe water in Somalia

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/somalia_53647.html

BOSSASO, Somalia, 13 May 2010 Bossaso, a busy port town on the northern coast of Somalia, is an economic hub in the semi-autonomous Puntland region. Tens of thousands of Somalias estimated 1.5 million internally displaced people live here, shielded from the intense heat only by cardboard and bits of rags.

Despite the poor living conditions, new displaced people continue to arrive every day, fleeing the conflict in central and southern parts of Somalia. Here in Bossaso, they find relative peace and occasional job opportunities. While their hardships were once compounded by a widespread lack of safe drinking water, a water extension project supported by UNICEF and the European Union (EU) is now helping the camps residents access safe water more easily.

Duing a visit to Bossaso this month, UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa Elhadj As Sy inaugurated the new water supply system, which was initiated in 2008 at the onset of the UNICEF/EU project.

Water is the main source of life, but it can also be a source of disease, said Mr. As Sy. So it is vitally important that families have access to safe water.

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• UNICEF
• Somalia
• Bossaso
• Elhadi
• As
• Sy
• EU
• water
• hygiene
• drinking
• children
• safety

[badbopal]

Jim. maybe you should check that under somalia previous g overnment only the capital city mogadishu had the investment of running water. Infact most of the infrastructure was all heavily invested into capital whilst bosaso recieved next to nothing except a mid sized port and 1 road. The rest was built by the citizens after the war broke out in somalia and continues to develop since 1991.

[JimthereT]

How long have these people been on the earth? They claim to have built the pyramids and sailed the world but have yet to develop a running water system. Primitive is as primitive does.