Municipal corporations getting water trucks to fight drought

Municipal corporations are being provided with trucks to assist with the distribution of water to communities most impacted by drought conditions, according to Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Desmond McKenzie.

"We are providing trucks for all municipalities. At least seven municipalities, so far, have been provided with brand new trucks, coming from allocations that we had made in the last financial year from funding that we had. New trucks will be provided for those municipal corporations that have not yet received trucks," the minister said.

He provided the update during the Standing Finance Committee's review of the 2023/24 Estimates of Expenditure in the House of Representatives recently.

McKenzie said the Government will continue to provide funding for the trucking of water, noting that approximately $35 million remains from the $150 million budgeted in the 2022/23 financial year.

"We have about $35 million, and we have requests for about another $25 million out of that, which will be paid out by Monday [March 6], the latest," he said.

McKenzie said the ministry will continue to collaborate with the relevant stakeholders to implement the necessary measures to alleviate prevailing drought conditions across the island.

He also informed that a survey is being conducted by the Rural Water Supply Limited to examine the feasibility of expanding water supply across four parishes.

"I think we have identified four parishes that they've gone in to do a survey to find out where there are streams and rivers. A part of their mandate ... for the new financial year is to find these areas and to see how we can get water into communities using the rivers," he said.

Additionally, he said more water shops will be constructed to increase access to the commodity in several communities across the island.