Water Projects
Water conservation & rainwater harvesting help Seychelles protect its ecosystems and adapt to climate change
Water conservation and rainwater harvesting are vital for Seychelles to protect ecosystems and build resilience against the effects of climate change. S4S has implemented impactful projects in relation to water conservation and rainwater harvesting.
Water Smart Farms
S4S and the Val D’En D’Or Farmer’s Association have collaboratively worked on an irrigation project. Drip irrigation has been introduced to the farmers in the association as a solution to reduce water consumption and improve energy consumption.
To encourage rainwater harvesting, the farmers were given 1000L IBC tanks to install on an elevated location, making use of gravity rather than electricity to pump water into the tanks. The first phase of this project was successfully completed in 2020. With the help of Seychelles Breweries, the Water Smart Project moved into its second phase in 2021 with the goal of assisting farms across Mahe.
Water Warriors
The S4S and the Seychelles Institute of Technology (SIT) collaborated in March 2016 to launch the Water Warriors initiative with support from Seychelles Breweries.
This new program will bring SIT plumbing students to the community to voluntarily help fix leaks at households which require assistance. Students will also assist a group of women participating in a backyard gardening program run by local NGO, Women in Solidarity and Action (WASO), where they will be taught about rainwater harvesting. Students will also assist in the installation of rain tanks in their gardens.
Promotion and Awareness Raising
S4S has engaged in various initiatives to raise awareness about water conservation and rainwater harvesting. One initiative involved a water conservation campaign sponsored by the PUC, UNDP, SIDS, UNOPS, S4S and Seychelles Breweries.
S4S has also implemented a project aimed at promoting rainwater harvesting in post-secondary schools in collaboration with the Seychelles Agriculture and Horticulture Training Centre, SIT, and the Seychelles Tourism Academy (STA). The Seychelles Prisons agreed to make fiberglass tanks with resources from a British High Commission grant. In August 2014, a short ceremony was held in partnership with the British Foreign Office to mark a donation of water tanks and climate change curriculum guides to several post-secondary schools.
In September 2010, S4S was awarded a grant of USD100,000 from the UNDP/GEF small grants program to promote rainwater harvesting in Seychelles. The PUC and Ministry of Education were major partners in this project which was focused on La Digue and several other districts. Through this project, S4S aimed to raise public awareness of rainwater harvesting in Seychelles using brochures, a portable display, TV and radio spots, articles, and a short how-to video for schools and community groups. Demonstrations with volunteer households showed how small changes can reduce water usage and lower utility bills.
S4S also collaborated with the Ministry of Education to produce a teacher’s guide on water, funded by the COI Islands project. 200 hardcopies of the guide were distributed to schools.
