Ferro-cement rainwater harvesting tanks to improve horticulture growth in Luro
PRESS RELEASE
Ferro-cement rainwater harvesting tanks to improve horticulture in Luro
October 28, 2017 One hundred people from the communities of Aldeia Abere, Amaira, Ouruma, Etanisi and Oneraba now have five rainwater harvesting tanks to ensure their group managed horticulture activities flourish. Each tank can hold 10,000 litres of rain and spring water, provides water for 15-20 household members, and are made of ferro-cement.
Seven more tanks are due for handover next month to seven other aldeias (sub-villages).
A a result of climate change Timor-Leste has shorter rainy seasons and severe droughts affecting the growth of horticulture.
The installation and handover of the tanks comes as part of the Integrated Actions for Resilience and Adaptation (IA4RA) to climate change project, that works in the nine villages in the area of the Raumoco Watershed.
Financial assistance to construct the tanks was provided by the European Union as part of the EU-GIZ Adapting to Climate Change and Sustainable Energy (EU-GIZ ACSE) Programme, administered by the “international development cooperation company of the German Government (GIZ). The IA4RA is being executed by Hivos, a Netherlands-based global INGO, in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.
The handover ceremonies were graced by the EU Delegation’s Head of Cooperation, Simon le Grand; Director General Manuel Mendes of the MAF Forestry, Coffee and Industrial Plantations; EU-GIZ ACSE’s Country Manager/Technical Advisor, Clinton Chapman and it`s Senior Advisor for Finance and Administration, Beate Herrmann. The Lautem Municipality’s Administrator and concurrent Raumoco Watershed President welcomed and thanked the guest for assisting the Raumoco Watershed.
Simon le Grand, in his message, reiterated the EU’s continuing support for climate change initiatives globally, in the Pacific region and Timor-Leste. “The EU-GIZ ACSE programme helps the people of 14 ACP Pacific Island countries and Timor-Leste to address two common challenges: adapting to climate change and reducing their dependence on fossil fuels. And today in Timor-Leste, we are witnessing the handover of rainwater tanks designed to help vulnerable households with access to water for horticulture.” The tanks are designed to counter water scarcity and store water more efficiently for off-season vegetable production even during the dry season.
Highlights of the handover ceremonies included the signing of a handover certificate by five group leaders, distribution of garden tools, presentation of group current farm map and future map, and the ceremonial planting of cassava in ridges by guests. Guests also had the chance to take a close look at the kitchens of four households using improved cooking stoves provided by IA4RA in place of the traditional three-stone stoves. The women using the Improved Cooking Stoves (ICS) were all praises for the efficiency of the stoves as evidenced by decreased consumption of firewood which in turn has a positive effect on the forest.
After the handover ceremonies in Abere, the guests proceeded to visit the agro-ecological farm of Grupu Ernisi Morin (GEM) which is run by a solar-powered drip irrigation system that the project had installed earlier this year. The GEM presented their Mapa Futuru (Future map) that features the use of agro-ecological technologies for climate change adaptation, which they learned in an Agro-ecology/Permaculture, Training of Trainers in September 2017.
For more information contact, Josephine Prasad +679 9922098
