Project ends suffering of water-starved villagers

KOTA BELUD: On June 5, 2015, an earthquake measuring about 6.0 on the Richter scale shook Sabah, claiming 18 lives.

The earthquake and the 48 aftershocks that followed also caused damage to public assets and infrastructure in the state.

Buildings were damaged, roads were cracked and even Mount Kinabalu lost part of its iconic Donkey's Ear Peak. However, that was not all. It also disrupted water supply at Kampung Tiong Kemburaon, here, because it caused three out of four springs that supplied water to their village to disappear into the earth.

Today, two years later, many of the physical damages have been repaired but the people of the village are still struggling with the problem of water supply,

They have been forced to rely on the one remaining spring that was unaffected by the earthquake. This meant that water supply was irregular and limited, and had to be rationed for daily use.

It has been difficult for the 46 families affected to survive without a stable water supply. Exacerbating the matter was the location of the village, located atop a hill.

Kampung Tiong Kemburaon is located only 40km off Kota Belud town, yet the journey from town can take over an hour due to the road condition and the remote location of the village.

“It is not so much of a problem during the rainy season as we can harvest rainwater for storage, but during droughts, we rely solely on the spring.

“What is more saddening is when the villagers fight with each other over water supply,” said Raymond Gundok, 47.

Raymond felt that the situation had become so critical that it was threatening the peace and harmony enjoyed by the villagers for decades.

The main source of income for the community comes from palm oil and rubber, but villagers also farmed sweet potatoes, pineapples, rice and other vegetables for consumption and trade.

Raymond, who is the chairman for the village's water restoration committee, told Bernama that prior to the earthquake, the village had never experienced disrupted water supply.

However, with the destruction of the three springs, villagers had to turn to other alternatives to survive.

Among them were harvesting rainwater and taking turns acquiring water supply from the remaining spring.

Some also sought aid from a small number of homes in the village which were hooked up with piped water supply.

A large majority of the village, which population is around 300 people, did not have access to piped water supply.

The most unfortunate of the lot were those who lived higher up on the hill slopes, as they had to hoist tens of litres of water in a bucket up the hill every day from the spring, which is located in the lowlands.

The villagers were finally able to heave a sigh of relief in April when the water supply was restored, thanks to Coca-Cola Malaysia and Raleigh International.

Through the Clean Water For Communities (CWFC) project, the two organisations helped open three new springs, built two dams and numerous water tanks as well as two new gravity-fed water systems to bring clean water piped into homes and central points in the village for daily use.

This brought great relief to the 36 households that have suffered over the past two years due to the disrupted water supply .

The project also marks a milestone for the CWFC programme by both international organisations as it hits the 50th village mark to bring clean, potable water to rural communities in Sabah.

Since it began in 2006, the programme has seen Raleigh's youth volunteers building or repairing gravity water feed systems in remote villages deep in the interior of Sabah,

Since the CWFC project started, Coca-Cola has provided nearly RM 850,000 in funding for project material. This year, the Coca-Cola Foundation further committed USD60,000 (about RM257,175) to extend the project for another two years.

“Coca-Cola intends to return to communities and nature an amount of water equivalent to what is used in our beverages and their production by 2020 and we are working toward water balance through diverse, locally focused community water projects and one of the ways we are doing so is by improving safe access to water and sanitation which also helps to improve local livelihoods, help communities adapt to climate change and improve water quality,” said Coca-Cola Malaysia's Public Affairs and Communications Director, Kadri Taib.

Raleigh volunteers come from all over the world, from as near as Malaysia to as far as Switzerland and the Netherlands.

With the water problem resolved and the knowledge learned from Raleigh volunteers, Raymond said the Village Development and Security Committee felt that the village could benefit from becoming a tourist destination. There are now working out a plan to realise the ambition.

“Before the volunteers came, we had never thought about the potential of our village in the tourism sector. Now we have come to realise it and the village folks are also more open to having foreign visitors around,” he explained.

This writer concurred with Raymond as the scenery around the village was indeed breathtaking. A friendly local community, natural attractions like waterfalls and rivers and a rich local history makes the place a complete package.

Swiss volunteer Jessica Brown said that the warmth and hospitality of the villagers exceeded her expectations.

“We were treated very well. They would always bring us bananas and pineapples and help with the construction of the water system. In the village everyone seems to know each other. Back home I have talked to my neighbour maybe only a few times. Everyone is always private there and here everyone just loves to get together. I like the spirit of togetherness,” said the 18-year-old.

Meanwhile, 18-year-old Malaysian volunteer Ang Kah Hoe from Kuala Lumpur said that his wonderful experience there made him feel like a tourist in a foreign land. - Bernama