Central Java Province Government continues its commitment to achieving 100 percent access to improved water as mandated in the RPJMN. In order to achieve the RPJMN’s target, PDAMs at the district/city levels should have sufficient resources to deliver its services.
Unfortunately, that is not the case in Central Java province. Some PDAMs have abundant raw water sources, but some others are lacking water resources.
Thus, the provincial government established PDAB Tirta Utama to manage the regionalized raw water program initiated by the MPWH. The program helps the PDAMs in the districts/cities that are deficient in raw water for the system to receive the excess of raw water from the neighborhood areas.
Initially, PDAB Tirta Utama only managed Kaligiri spring in Brebes district. Yet, as of 2019, PDAB Tirta Utama has managed three SPAM Regional, namely BREGAS, PETANGLONG, and KEBUREJO. SPAM BREGAS has a capacity of 950 Lps with a target to serve 76,000 houses in Tegal city, Brebes, and Tegal districts.
SPAM PETANGLONG is designed with a capacity of 850 Lps with a target to serve 68,000 houses in Pekalongan city, Batang, and Pekalongan districts. SPAM KEBUREJO’s designed capacity is 600 Lps to serve 48,000 houses in Kebumen and Purworejo.
Unlike SPAM BREGAS that is fully operational, SPAM KEBUREJO and SPAM PETANGLONG still require further construction to optimize the use of the SPAM capacity.
In November 2019, MPWH’s Directorate-General for Human Settlements requested USAID IUWASH PLUS to assist PDAB Tirta Utama in developing a business plan to support the firm expand the SPAM regional.
Responding to the request, USAID IUWASH PLUS provided intensive assistance to PDAB Tirta Utama, which included training for business plan development and a series of offline and online discussions regarding the development plans and other related issues of the business plan from January to August 2020.
In August 2020, the PDAB with support from USAID IUWASH PLUS held a workshop to present the draft of business plan 2020-2024 to the Director-General for Human Settlements of the MPWH and other related local government organizations in Central Java province.
During the workshop, all stakeholders agreed that PDAB Tirta Utama should continue the construction of SPAM KEBUREJO in 2020 and PETANGLONG in 2021, as well as build four new REGIONAL SPAMs, namely WOSUSOKA and DADIMURIA. These SPAM regional in addition SPAM BREGAS will be able to serve a total of 416,000 houses.
Apart from that, the PDAB will serve industrial customers in Batang, Pemalang, Brebes, Rembang, and Kebumen. Thus, PDAB Tirta Utama needs funds of more than two trillion rupiahs, from several funding sources.
The Head of the Central Java Provincial Secretariat’s Economic Bureau, Mr. Eddy Bramantyo, hopes, “This business plan will guide PDAB Tirta Utama for the next five years of work”.
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