Bicol to get P200-M water facilities fund

SANTO DOMINGO, Albay -- Bicol region will get P200 million for the construction of water facilities in 1,800 remote villages under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2020, the Ako Bicol Party-List (AKB) said on Friday, Jan. 10.

AKB Representative Elizaldy Co said the fund under the GAA would initially finance the construction of Levels 1 and 2 water facilities in 100 far-flung villages across the Bicol peninsula, particularly those not served by local water districts and private water concessionaires.

President Rodrigo Duterte recently signed the P4.1-trillion GAA for 2020 in Malacañang Palace.

Co said that in a recent study, only half of the over 3,000 villages in the region have adequate water system while close to 2,000 still do not have clean and potable water facilities in their community. “So, our vision for this year is to address these social and health deficiency issue,” he added.

He said the multi-million project aims to construct a water system facility in 1,800 remote villages.

“By these facilities, we would be able to address the problem on the insufficiency of water in rural communities,” Co said.

The construction of a water system involves drilling,water filtration and setting up of a solar panel system that will operate a water pump, which, in turn, will distribute water to the various households in the community.

At least P100,000 will be spent for the construction of each water facility.

Co said the project is among the flagship programs of the AKB aside from those on education, health and social aspects as well as on infrastructure that would boost economic and agricultural development in the region.

Co, with fellow AKB Rep. Alfredo Garbin, inaugurated on Friday the 7th and 8th Level 1 water system in Barangay San Andres, an upland village here and in Barangay Bagacay, a remote village in Legazpi City, both in Albay province.

Garbin told villagers during the simple program, “Water is a basic human right issue where its services are badly needed in every community because water is the first line of defense against sickness.”

Barangay San Andres in this town is a remote upland village with 139 households while Barangay Bagacay, a far-flung village of Legazpi, has 403 households. (PNA)