The Gambia Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) on Friday 30th July 2021 presented water quality reagents materials worth over 10,000 US Dollars to the Department of Water Resources Abuko Water Quality Lab at a presentation ceremony held at PURA Conference Room.
Speaking at the presentation ceremony, the Director General of PURA, Mr. Yusupha M. Jobe, said access to safe drinking water is a fundamental human right and a key determinant of a nation’s health.
He indicates that the challenges of maintaining good quality water supply are becoming profound and urgent. Based on this, he adds motivated PURA as a sole utility regulator for water services signed an MoU with the Department of Water Resources in 2009 to monitor the quality of water supplied by NAWEC across the country.
“A lot has been done through our partnership with the Department of Water Resources. Through our MoU, the Authority has supported the lab every two years with reagents, analytical equipment, computers and refurbishing the Abuko Water Quality Lab,” DG Jobe states.
He expressed hope that the venture will contribute towards achieving the National Development Plan, the SDGs targets and more importantly, enhance NAWEC’s performance to supply consumers with water of good quality.
In receiving the donation, the Permanent Secretary for the Ministry of Fisheries and Water Resources, Mr. Omar S.M. Gibba thanked the management of PURA for what he described as ‘great gesture’ for receiving the procured laboratory chemicals and equipment for the water monitoring and control laboratory under the Department of Water Resources.
He said: “It is the pride of the Gambia, especially my ministry to receive such a colossal amount worthy of crucial materials which will go a long towards helping the attainment of quality water for the country.”
PS Gibba hailed PURA’s intervention, stating that this initiative will further cement the bilateral relationship that had ever existed between the two institutions to another level.
He added that freshwater quality is essentially linked to human health, food safety, livelihoods as well as economic growth and social development. In achieving the SDGs, PS Gibba states that it is crucial to have access to quality water that is safe for human use, noting that there is urgent need to protect the quality of world’s water resources in attainment of other Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
