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Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on Thursday tied up with local government institutions to ensure safe drinking water in an arsenic-prone district.
The project has been launched as thousands of people are drinking arsenic-contaminated water in Bangladesh, but intervention to mitigate the contamination is said to have slowed down in recent years.
In a media statement, JICA said it will make a 'safe water supply plan' and prepare 'sustainable' model of arsenic mitigation activities at arsenic-prone Ashrafpur Union of Kachua Upazila under Chandpur district where the main water source shallow tube-well has not been tested since 2005.
A JICA survey shows there are alternative devices to pump arsenic contamination-free water in that union, 'but those remained inactive and users committees are not repairing them.'
They will make an arsenic contamination map, and safe water device location map with GIS technology.
Under the project, they will also build capacities of union parishad personnel to mitigate the arsenic contamination and raise awareness in the community level.
The project will also support the Union Parishad's users committees in maintaining water devices after construction.
Additional Secretary to Local Government and Cooperatives Zuena Aziz extolled the endeavour at a seminar on Thursday in Dhaka where details of the project were disseminated among stakeholders.
According to the media statement, speakers at the seminar agreed that activities "to mitigate arsenic contamination has slowed down in recent years, so the risk is growing higher."
It is estimated that about 30 million people of 270 upazilas are exposed to arsenic-contaminated water in Bangladesh where 0.05 mg/L arsenic level in water is considered safe.
In 2011, around 57,000 patients were identified to be suffering from arsenic-related diseases.
JICA says it has provided the water supply sector with more than $ 500 million in assistance and 30 million people are being benefited in the last 40 years of cooperation.
- The Latest News @2012
Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on Thursday tied up with local government institutions to ensure safe drinking water in an arsenic-prone district.
The project has been launched as thousands of people are drinking arsenic-contaminated water in Bangladesh, but intervention to mitigate the contamination is said to have slowed down in recent years.
In a media statement, JICA said it will make a 'safe water supply plan' and prepare 'sustainable' model of arsenic mitigation activities at arsenic-prone Ashrafpur Union of Kachua Upazila under Chandpur district where the main water source shallow tube-well has not been tested since 2005.
A JICA survey shows there are alternative devices to pump arsenic contamination-free water in that union, 'but those remained inactive and users committees are not repairing them.'
They will make an arsenic contamination map, and safe water device location map with GIS technology.
Under the project, they will also build capacities of union parishad personnel to mitigate the arsenic contamination and raise awareness in the community level.
The project will also support the Union Parishad's users committees in maintaining water devices after construction.
Additional Secretary to Local Government and Cooperatives Zuena Aziz extolled the endeavour at a seminar on Thursday in Dhaka where details of the project were disseminated among stakeholders.
According to the media statement, speakers at the seminar agreed that activities "to mitigate arsenic contamination has slowed down in recent years, so the risk is growing higher."
It is estimated that about 30 million people of 270 upazilas are exposed to arsenic-contaminated water in Bangladesh where 0.05 mg/L arsenic level in water is considered safe.
In 2011, around 57,000 patients were identified to be suffering from arsenic-related diseases.
JICA says it has provided the water supply sector with more than $ 500 million in assistance and 30 million people are being benefited in the last 40 years of cooperation.
- The Latest News @2012