Help us reach our target of RM$100,000

Water4Power will be led by Engineers Without Borders Malaysia in collaboration with University of Nottingham Malaysia following the successful Water4Life project last year! We will also be joined by REACH, a medical NGO based in Kuching which has brought healthcare to many rural communities in Borneo for over 10 years.

The primary aim of Water4Power project is to provide lighting and electricity to a Bidayuh community in Kampung Sapit located in the Bornean interior, a village of ~200 people. The secondary needs are for clean water, educational support, health and waste management.

Who? 

The Bidayuh is the collective name of several indigenous groups native to the island of Borneo.  In the Bidayuh village of Kampung Sapit, the Bidayuhs’ main source of income is from small scale farming and trading of local produce. There are about 200 villagers in 59 households; most of the villagers are elderly and young children whilst majority of the young people work in towns.

Why?

Need for power

Indigenous people are often one of the most vulnerable and marginalised groups in our increasingly globalised world. Electricity supply is considered a basic amenity to most of us in towns and less remote villages but this is absent in significant proportion in Borneo’s vast interior. At present, the electricity supply to the village is using individual generator and the source of fuel is diesel. The cost of diesel is considered very expensive for the very low income community at approximately RM 5 per 1.5L, but necessary for lighting purposes. The elimination of the need to purchase diesel with the installation of the micro hydro generator will most definitely lighten the burden of this very low income community consisting of mostly older age groups.

 

Need for clean water, healthcare, education and waste management

The water supply to the village is via gravity feed with no filtration system. It is unsure if there is a problem with the quality of the water or any reported frequent cases of water-borne diseases. Initial assessment of the water quality will be carried out.

There is no health support or clinic in the village. The nearest government health centre with visiting medical doctor is located some distance away from the village. The reported common ailments are common cough, cold, diarrhoea and skin diseases. A planned medical check up and health screening will be carried out during the trip. We will work with the medical volunteers from a Kuching based group named, the Rural Expeditions Aiding Community Health (REACH).

There is a primary school, Sekolah Kebangsaan Kambug, within walking distance from Kg Sapit, which has about 200 students. This school has around 6 to 8 teachers with basic boarding facility and gravity feed water supply. As the school rarely ever receive visitors, it would be beneficial for the children of the primary school to engage in fun activities and games with our student volunteers. Classes focusing on basic hygiene and first-aid will also be provided to the children.

Currently there is no waste collection provided for the village and they disposed of their waste by burning. There are ways to improve the use of some waste materials for recycling for example and how waste can be best managed in the village. These issues will be reviewed and studied by the student volunteers as part of the deliverables of the project.

Donate at: http://ewb-malaysia.org/water4power/