Koforidua, Sept.1 GNA - The Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA) on Thursday presented 51 Yamaha motorbikes valued at 1.14 billion cedis to 17 District Assemblies in the Eastern Region at a ceremony at Koforidua.

The package was sponsored by the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA) through its Rural Communities Water and Sanitation Programme (RCWSP) to build the capacity of stakeholders in the provision of potable water.

Mr Philip Amanor Eastern Regional Manager of the CWSA, said the motorbikes would facilitate the work of Environmental Health Assistants (EHA) in the districts who had been trained to follow up activities on water and sanitation facilities provided for the rural communities. He said the Agency had in addition, made available 110 million cedis, for the training of the EHAs in motorbike riding and procurement of their licenses.

Mr Amanor said under the DANIDA programme in the region, 4,477 boreholes, 78 hand-dug wells and two rain-harvesters had been provided, in addition to 4,539 household latrines and 233 institutional latrines in the region.

He commended the Eastern Regional Co-ordinating Council(RCC) for their support that facilitated their achievement in the region. Mr Amanor called on the District Assemblies to play their roles effectively to realize the objectives of the CWSA in the provision of potable water, ensuring sanitation and hygiene promotion in rural communities in the Eastern Region.

Mr Yaw Barimah, Eastern Regional Minister who presented the motorbikes to the Assemblies, said government had priority on water and sanitation issues because they were critical to effective and efficient socio-economic development.

He commended the CWSA in the improvement of sanitation and water for the rural communities in the region and thanked the Agency and DANIDA for their contributions towards development in the region and the country.

Mr Barimah asked the District Chief Executives (DCEs) to ensure that the motorbikes were used solely for the intended purpose and appealed to the riders to follow the maintenance schedules to prolong their life-span.

Nana Akwasi Adjei Boateng, New Juaben Municipal Chief Executive(MCE), on behalf of his colleagues, pledged to provide fuel and servicing of the motorbikes as expected of the assembles and thanked the CWSA/DANIDA for the support.