CNI News

23 Feb 2023

As lakes have run dry before the summer, some townships including Kyauktaw, Minbya, Pauktaw, Ponnagyun and Sittwe in Rakhine State have been hit by water shortages, according to local residents.

Lakes at IDP camps have dried up fast this year due to the scarce rains and residents have pumped river water into lakes but they will dry up within one or two months, an internally displaced person from Yahta Butar IDP camp in Kyauktaw Township told the CNI.

He said, "We have faced water shortages earlier this year than previous years. Water is scarce. Normally, lakes dry up in April. There was little rain during the monsoon. There are three or four lakes near the IDP camps. The lakes have dried up since December. We had to go to town to fetch water with carts. It was very difficult for us. We collected money from IDPs and pumped river water into the lake with the help of the CDN, an INGO. Now, difficulties have eased but the lakes will dry up again within one or two months."

Lakes have dried up earlier because some well-to-do people are pumping water from the lakes to their homes through pipes and they do not rely on water supply from development affairs committees, some residents said.

The entrance to Kyauktaw.

Residents of IDP camps have been hit harder by water shortages, Ma Oo Moe Nwe, a local resident said.

She told the CNI, "There is a water supply network in Kyauktaw but some people are pumping water from the network. As a result, water is not available in some areas of the town. So, people rely on water from dams and there are water shortages, which will be more severe than previous years. Some well-to-do people pump water from dams by using pipes. They do not use water from creeks. Residents of IDP camps are hit harder by water shortages."

As lakes have dried up in some villages, residents have to go and fetch water from distant places. Water shortages will be more severe in the summer, according to residents.

Although lakes have dried up in Sittwe, residents do not suffer difficulties as they have dug tube-wells. However, people in Kyauktaw, Pauktaw and Ponnagyun townships cannot rely on tube-wells, most of which produce salty water.