For more than 100 HHs of 535 HHs in RW 07 in Harapan Mulya, Bekasi city, having sufficient water supply throughout the year was such a blessing.
Although many people had a well at home, the wells did not produce enough water, especially during the dry season. The well water is also murky and smelly. This situation forced the families to get water from other neighbors whose wells produce more water.
In 2017, the situation improved for some houses, especially those in RT 01 and 06 when Bekasi city government through KOTAKU program built two SPAM Komunal (community-based water supply systems) in those neighborhoods. Since then, more than 100 houses in RT 01 and 06 have connected to this facility.
To sustain the SPAM Komunal, USAID IUWASH PLUS also supported the establishment of community-based organizations to manage the system’s operation and trained them on the SPAM operation, maintenance, management, and customer relations.
“I observed that the people in RT 01 and 06 no longer faced water shortages since the SPAM Komunals were built. Too bad those facilities’ capacity is so limited that they can only serve RT 01 and 06. I am dreaming that more houses in RW 07 connect to SPAM Komunal so that they no longer struggle to get water,” said Waka, the Chief of RW 07.
To make his dream come true, Waka organized the community in RT 05 to build a self-financed SPAM Komunal. He began with RT 5 because he lives in this RT and he saw his closest neighbors struggling to get water.
Waka’s idea received positive responses from the community because they also wanted to have water throughout the year. To implement his idea, Waka contributed Rp10 million from his pocket and sought help from BKM and local material building shops.
Waka received a total of Rp2.5 million from five BKMs in Harapan Mulya urban village and 10 PVC pipes from a local building material shop to build the SPAM Komunal. The community in RT 05 also contributed Rp450,000 per house to build the house connections.
To prepare the construction, Waka invited the representatives from the organizations that managed the SPAM Komunal in RT 01 and 06 to share their experiences in the SPAM construction and maintenance. Not wanting to waste time, the SPAM Komunal construction in RT 05 began at the end of 2018.
As of September 2019, the SPAM Komunal in RT 05 has benefitted around 100 HHs, which consists of 72 HHs in RT 05 and some HHs in RT 04 and 07 located adjacent to RT 05. A community group to manage the facility was also established in RT 05.
“Thanks be to God water is now easily and abundantly accessible at home throughout the year,” said Dian, a beneficiary in RT 05.
Seeing the benefits of the self-financed SPAM Komunal in RT 5, the community in RT 4 and 7 will also build a similar facility in the respective neighborhood in November 2019.
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