(ERGO) – Residents of a drought-stricken village in Galgadud region of central Somalia can now access clean, fresh water thanks to the discovery of an aquifer.
The aquifer, discovered by a Turkish water drilling agency in Gideys village, is said to contain water reserves to last for many years.
The residents have historically depended on locally dug wells producing inadequate and dirty water.
Ali Abdullahi Mohamed, 41, father of seven in Gideys, said the discovery has solved one of the longstanding challenges of chronic water shortage in the area.
“It is unbelievable that sweet water is now within the reach of Gideyspeople!” Ali said.
Eight of the 12 salty boreholes in the village dried up in 2016. They served 2,000 families.
Mohamed told Radio Ergo he had lost 150 of his goats over time after drinking contaminated water fetched from the old local boreholes.
“When the livestock drank this salty water, they fell sick immediately and subsequently died. There was one occasion when I lost 13 goats at once immediately after they had drunk from these wells,” he said.
During the major 2016 drought, at least 600 families left the village because of critical water shortages in the area.
Gideys chief, Abdi Elmi, said they are using a solar-powered pump to access the fresh water from the aquifer. Even water tankers are coming to fetch water from the village now.
He recalled that times were very hard in the past and some people had to climb down deep into the old boreholes seeking dregs of dirty water.
Abdirahman Odawa, an MP for the area in the federal parliament, said the drilling and construction of the well by the company Deyanat Turkey cost $120,000.
Osman Ahmed Ali, who runs a tea kiosk, said access to clean water has boosted his business.
“The water scarcity had a huge impact on my business in 2017. I was unable to run the kiosk with 20 litres of water a day, so I was forced to shut down, but now I have reopened the stall and am recovering from the loss,” Ali said.
