Water

Country Water Action: Philippines
Bringing Potable Water to the Far-Flung Islands of the Philippines

On average, two out of three people in the rural areas of the Philippines, particularly in the far-flung islands, lack access to potable water. This proportion is markedly higher than the Asian average of one in three people.

To bring water to the underserved rural areas in the island provinces, the Philippine Government developed the Integrated Water Supply Program for 1986–2000, which accorded high priority to serving communities outside major urban areas. The Second Island Provinces Rural Water Supply Sector Project, funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), was designed to help the Philippine Government implement the program. The project aimed to provide safe and easily accessible drinking water to 16 small island provinces.

The project yielded a variety of results, from the development of 350 spring water sources, to the reduction in the distance that people had to travel to fetch water, to increased hygiene that resulted in fewer water-related diseases. In 78% of the cases, the project succeeded in bringing potable water to people at a lower price.