Several Arakan State townships face drinking water shortages

By Admin 22 Apr 2023

DMG Newsroom
22 April 2023, Sittwe

Many townships in Arakan State are facing drinking water shortages as summer approaches, with Rathedaung, Pauktaw, Sittwe, Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U, Minbya and Kyaukphyu being hardest hit, according to local residents.

Not only urban wards in those townships but also rural villages are grappling with serious drinking water shortages.

Ginchaung Village in Pauktaw has two lakes — one for drinking water and one for household use — but the lake supplying drinking water has completely dried up, and the other lake is also drying up, according to villagers.

“We have to fetch water from a stream at a mountain some three miles from our village. We can only go there on foot, and we have to fetch water daily from there,” said villager U Maung Thein Kyaw.

In Rathedaung, the major lake supplying the town has almost dried up, but even the remaining water can be difficult to obtain. 

“We can’t pump water if there is a power outage when they supply water. They only supply water once every three days. So, water usually runs out before the next supply. In that case we have to fetch water from other lakes in the town using barrels,” said Rathedaung resident Daw Aung Nu Sein.

Some villages in Kyauktaw Township are also facing water shortages, and wards are only supplied once every three days. Town residents, however, say the water is too dirty to drink.

“We barely have water either for drinking or household use,” said Daw Aye Kyawt from the Kavi Yadana displacement camp in Kyauktaw Township. “The township municipality supplies water from the dam every three days. The water is dirty and does not smell good. So we have to buy bottled water. But then, the bottled water vehicle does not come every day, and we have drinking water shortages.”

In Sittwe, artesian wells have been dug to supply town residents, but many wards in the town still face water shortages.

Residents facing water shortages can ask for help at the Rural Development Department offices in their respective townships, deputy director U Oo Saw Win of the Arakan State Rural Development Department told DMG.

Residents in Arakan State have called on authorities to develop long-term solutions to address annual water shortages during the summer months.

Despite the fact that Arakan State receives high rainfall, it lacks facilities to store rainwater, and thus faces water shortages, said planning officer Daw Khin Than of the Dr. Saw Mya Aung Foundation.

“Arakan State is facing a water shortage today because of the failure to store rainwater and freshwater systematically,” she said.

Arakan State has many dams built to supply the agriculture and livestock industries, but most of the reservoirs still don’t supply local households.