June, 2009
USAID concluded the Emergency Water and Sanitation Program (EWAS) which started on September 27, 2005 and lasted until December 26, 2008. The program had a total budget of $16.8 million funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and was implemented by ANERA. Through different activities, the EWAS program responded to emergency situations in the field of water and sanitation and addressed humanitarian needs in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The program also created short-term employment opportunities for poor and outlying Palestinian communities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The Emergency Water and Sanitation Program addressed urgent water needs and solved sewage problems in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. While the program started off mainly by rehabilitating water and sewage networks, it also addressed water and sanitation needs identified by other USAID Strategic Objective partners in support of their activities. Water and sewage projects were also implemented in schools, clinics and hospitals.
By the conclusion of the program, approximately 2,258,000 beneficiaries have received assistance through the USAID-funded Emergency Water and Sanitation Program. All funds provided by USAID have helped Palestinian communities to significantly increase their access to water and sanitation services. By the end of December 2008, the EWAS program was able to complete and start a total of 138 projects (117 in West Bank and 21 in Gaza Strip) that positively impacted the lives of Palestinians.
Approximately 738,221 people now have access to a clean and regular supply of potable water in their homes at reasonable prices. This has been achieved through laying 180,000 linear meters of pipes and the installation of water reservoirs and cisterns. It is anticipated that the rehabilitated water networks will deliver, on average, an additional 5,750,000 m3 of water per year to these households.
In addition, approximately 975,100 people now have access to improved sanitation facilities, thus relieving them from water pollution through sewage leakage, which affects the health of these family members, especially children. This has been achieved through laying 34,162 linear meters of sewage pipes within the communities.
Eleven clinics and four major hospitals now have proper water and sanitation facilities in place. EWAS interventions have improved the sanitation units and installed sinks in the emergency rooms. Moreover, the water supply has been improved by the renovation of cisterns, installation of water tanks and water filters. The completed interventions allow for a more hygienically safe environment for providing medical care within the health facilities.
Ten schools had their water and sanitation facilities upgraded through EWAS interventions. The projects rehabilitated and installed cisterns, added toilets and drinking fountains and installed water tanks in support of private schools in the West Bank.
Eleven communities now have proper storm water drainage systems in place. This intervention relieves town and village centers from annual flooding, which resulted in blocked streets, economic losses, reduced safety and interrupted access to either schools or vital services such as medical care.
In addition to creating a cleaner, safer water supply for Palestinians, the EWAS program created approximately 74,000 days of employment opportunities (equivalent to around 2,850 short-term jobs opportunities) in areas where jobs are most scarce, such as rural and remote communities.
Approximately 17,500 m3 of storage capacity for potable water (192 cisterns in total) has so far been created within Palestinian communities by installing rainwater collection cisterns and one water reservoir. The cisterns will provide these families with free water for their daily use for cooking, drinking and sanitation. In summer, the cisterns can hold water brought by water tankers. The targeted communities are typically poor, without water networks or access to any other water sources. |
