SUVA, May 21 (Xinhua) -- The Fijian government said on Monday that it is committed to providing water and sanitation access to all ordinary Fijians no matter where they live.
According to a press release by Fiji's Department of Information on Monday, Fiji's Minister for Waterways Mahendra Reddy said at the 2018 Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Summit that Fijians must pull their resources together and address this most important task of ensuring that their people have access to clean water, safe sanitation and good quality of life as stated in their constitution.
Currently, 78 percent of Fiji's population, or 135,498 households, have access to proper water supply, while 25 percent of the population, or 43,281 households, have access to central sewerage systems.
The Fijian government has allocated a budget of 413 million Fijian dollars (about 198 million U.S. dollars) in 2017-2018 for the implementation of WASH projects and programs within the various ministries. This is an increase from 376 million Fijian dollars (about 180 million U.S. dollars) for the period 2016-2017.