Sittwe IDP camp in urgent need of water

06 May 2021

DMG Newsroom
6 May 2021, Sittwe 

A displacement camp opened at a Buddhist monastery in Sittwe’s Setyonesu ward is facing a severe water shortage and in urgent need of water supplies. 

Ko Kyaw Wai, deputy camp manager of the Ngasayine Chaung camp for internally displaced people (IDPs), said camp residents have to rely on the township Fire Services Department and nearby villages for water. 

“When we run out of water, we have to phone the Fire Services Department and ask for help. If we use [water] economically, it is enough to last us two days. But we feel uncomfortable always asking for help from them,” he said. 

A lake near the monastery has been dried up since February. Though at one point the lake was dredged and water from another nearby lake was piped into it, the lake dried up again due to high temperatures, according to Ko Kyaw Wai. 

“We only have a little water donated by the Fire Services Department yesterday. I am afraid the remaining water will not last until tomorrow. And we have no idea to whom we should ask for help then,” he told DMG on Thursday. 

Camp personnel attempted to dig an artesian well some two months ago, but had to scrap the plan due to stony soil. 

“There are donors and over 20 [20-litre] jugs of drinking water are donated every day. But there are over 100 people at the camp and we have to share it. Regarding water for other purposes, we have to share the water supplied by the Fire Services Department. Men shower at Kandawgyi Lake and women have to shower with the water provided by the Fire Services Department,” said Daw Soe Yin. 

Engineer U Kyaw Myo Htay of the Sittwe Township Development Affairs Committee said the committee supplies water to IDP camps at their request. 

“But we charge 20,000 kyats per vehicle for fuel and the labour costs of distributing the water. We will provide free water only for places that are devoid of water and that can’t afford to pay for water,” said U Kyaw Myo Htay.   

There are a total of 146 IDPs at Ngasayine Chaung camp, most being locals of Namada village in Chin State. 

Sittwe grapples with water scarcity annually in April and May, and a barrel of water is sold for K3,000 to K4,000 during those months, according to residents of the Arakan State capital.