The residents of Rosu village in Cahul rayon had one of the risk factors affecting their health excluded. It refers to consumption of drinking water.
This winter marks a year since a drinking water supply project by building a new water pipe had been successfully completed in the village. The locals, who recognize they used to argue for a bucket of water, are now happy that they can have it whenever they want.
Every year the National Public Health Center warns that the groundwater is a hazard for the health of people. The share of test samples taken from centralized underground sources of drinking water that do not meet the chemical parameters is almost 75 per cent.
The bright side is that there are places where a good idea, supported by money and engagement, has changed the situation. Rosu village is an example – people consume safe water here. None of the 128 wells in the village has drinking water and liver diseases were the main causes of seeking doctor services. In November 2012, on village’s day, the locals solved this problem by commissioning a water pipe.
A Common Success of Authorities and Villagers
Construction of the water pipe was a real challenge for Rosu village and the whole region, especially since the end result is a complex one. “We originally proposed to supply water to the village only, but we were told that to win the project, it must have regional impact. Then we were consulted by international experts who guided us in the right direction and suggested that we should build a sewerage system as well. With the support of rayon authorities, with support from the Regional Development Agency South, and financed by the Romanian Government and the German Development Cooperation through GIZ, we made our dream a reality,” the mayor Grigore Furtuna said.
The success of this project is partially due to the villagers, who understood that most diseases were caused by water quality. They mobilized, formed working groups and participated directly in construction works. Thus, the process of technical connection of the households to the water pipe was facilitated, and almost 500 connections took place in two months. Today, of the 850 households, about 70 per cent have drinking water in their taps.
Currently, the residents of Rosu village pay 12 lei for one cubic meter of water, but the price may change if a regional operator that will manage water supply systems in the entire Cahul rayon is established. “In fact, the initiation of regionalization of water supply services in the rayon is a significant result of this project. The “Apa Canal” Cahul enterprise currently manages both the system built in Rosu and the water pipe in Crihana Veche and Manta, which are ready for expansion to other localities as well,” the head of the project management unit of South RDA, Eugen Lupascu, said.
The people in Rosu village also have only positive words to say about this achievement. In fact, their satisfaction was seen in the massive attendance of the official ceremony last year, also attended not only by local leaders but also by the Secretary of State in the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Construction of RM, Anatoly Zolotcov, representatives of RDA South and GIZ. “It is much better now, when we have tap water. We have a well here, but there was much quarrel among the neighbors when it ran short of water. The quality of water also improved”, Elena Cretu, a villager, says.
The water supply project was managed by the South Regional Development Agency, with financial support provided by the Romanian Government through “Modernization of Local Public Services in Moldova”, implemented by GIZ. The value of the project amounted to MDL 2.8 million.
