The Timor Leste Rotary Consortium team of Vijay Susarla and Justine Paragreen has returned from Timor-Leste, on a scoping trip for the next stage of the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Project. As part of the trip for the next stage of the WASH Project, they undertook due diligence and assessment of potential sites for toilet blocks and water tanks in several villages, such as Triloka as the project expands into Manatuto, Viqueque and other parts of Baucau Districts in Timor Leste.
The first site of the project consisted of installing toilets in the village of Manlala. Almost half of Manlala’s 124 houses (averaging 20 occupants) are without a toilet, and diarrhoea and infection are common, especially between the dry and wet seasons.In the next stage, the Consortium is hoping to fund the installation of a further 20 x 5,500L water tanks and three toilet blocks (made up of three cubicles, with handwashing facilities and WASH training).
The team met with each Chief of Village (Xefe Suku in Tetum), members of the Ministry of Health, committees, religious leaders, teachers, community leaders and villagers.
An MoU was signed by NFP, Timor Verde and the sponsor Rotary Clubs for the Consortium, agreeing to volunteer to act as a facilitator/local coordinator for builds in the Baucau District. And, to enable it to act as facilitators for Water and Sanitation builds in Soibada (Manatuto District), Friends of Soibada wishes to sign such an MoU.
Around half of the assessments for the next stage of the Timor Leste Rotary Consortium’s WASH Project have centred on schools in the District. At Lavateri Catholic School in the Baguia District, two toilets are shared between the 268 students (kindergarten through to Grade 9) and 17 staff. It’s common for the toilets to backup and overflow and the hand washing facilities have been broken for five years. The school hosts training for 30 other local teachers, two days a week, who also use these toilets.
Another school, the Liaholiho School (pictured), in the village of Afalocai (population of 285) has no toilets, water or hand washing facilities for their two volunteer teachers and 30 students (aged 3-12, split into two classes). Without a toilet, they use the bushes or river (which is very dangerous in the wet season). If they’ve reached puberty, the girls often don’t attend school when menstruating. The school which has been built on donated land was funded entirely by the community. During the team’s visit, and pending the Consortium’s positive assessment (and subsequently providing the required training, equipment and materials, and delivery), it was made clear that the community would volunteer its labour to construct a toilet block and install a water tank. This ‘buy in’ ensures sustainability of the WASH Project, as communities are able to maintain their own infrastructure.The project could not work without the ongoing assistance of Dili Rotarian, Jummar Speedy Rata Martins Administration & Finance Officer and Club Treasurer, Liaison Officers, DfG TL Ambassador, and Mario de Jesus, Director of NGO Rotarians Helping Timor, ROMAC Coordinator in Dili and Rotary Liaison Office in Timor-Leste Coordinator. The efforts of the amazing, volunteer Timor Rotary Consortium Team must also be acknowledged. Each member is fully self-funded:
- Vijay Susarla, Project Manager and President of the Rotary Caroline Springs
- John Walmsley, Deputy Project Manager and member of the Rotary Club of Camberwell Inc.
- Justine Paragreen, Project Assistant Manager and Secretary of the Rotary Club of Camberwell
- Patrick Docherty, Past President of the Rotary Club of Camberwell
For more information: Please email to Project Manager: susarla2008@gmail.com
Author signatures: Justine and Vijay