The villages of Bqasta (South Lebanon) and Talia (Beqaa) have been experiencing severe water shortages, forcing around 11,500 residents in the former and 4,500 in the latter to purchase additional trucked in water on a weekly basis – an increasing burden amidst the ongoing economic crisis which has caused growing tensions within the communities. In response, USAID’s Community Support Program (CSP) is constructing a 300 m³ elevated water tank in each town and rehabilitating the operations rooms, including the electrical, mechanical and chlorination systems. In parallel, to ensure the sustainability of these interventions, CSP is collaborating with the Fondation Diane CEEDD to build municipal capacities in developing and implementing community awareness campaigns on water conservation. CSP is also training both municipalities on social media management to improve their communication with the community on water availability and usage. Recently, CSP launched both activities through an inception meeting which delineated the local action plan for implementing the awareness campaigns.

“Involving community members in this campaign will facilitate the sustainability of the CSP-provided water tank to resolve the water shortages in Talia”, said Evelyn Abi Haidar, architect and Talia community member.