23 September 2016
The goal of this project which came out of an IDEALS assessment back in 2014 was to improve drinking water safety in Gaza in each of the five governorates.
Water in the Gaza aquifer is severely depleted and also contaminated by both seawater and nitrates (from wastewater and fertilisers), with more than 90 percent of water unsafe for human consumption. Palestinians living there now have to spend large amounts of money buying water privately with the UN predicting that Gaza will be uninhabitable by 2020.
The objectives of the project were to improve routine microbiological and chemical testing of drinking water in Gaza. It also looked to help to provide capacity for water testing during emergencies. During past conflicts the lack of portable water testing kits has meant that there hasn’t been the ability to properly test water if parts of Gaza are cut off from one another.
Working with the Ministry of Health and UNRWA the team from Public Health England (PHE) travelled to Gaza to run a series of training days and supply the laboratories and field engineers with equipment including portable water testing kits.
Due to the Gaza blockade delivery of some of the equipment was delayed, which resulted in the training workshops being delayed. MAP has robust equipment procurement protocols and considerable experience procuring equipment in the region. This also proved important in overcoming the significant difficulties posed by the Gaza blockade and restrictive Israeli legislation.
Nigel Silman, the PHE Senior Business Development Manager, told MAP about the success of the training that was given to a mixture of field and laboratory staff;
“Whilst there is obvious poverty in Gaza the awareness of water safety is good. A lot of the focus of the programme was ‘training the trainer’. Without systems in place there is a real danger of a rise in water borne diseases, including life-threatening cholera and typhoid”.
Featured image: The goal of this project which came out of an IDEALS assessment back in 2014 was to improve drinking water safety in Gaza in each of the five governorates.