Local functionaries lauded the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) in developing a systematic planning approach during the Workshop on Municipal Water Supply, Sewerage and Sanitation Sector Plan (MW4SP) Preparation held on July 13-16 in Subic.

The event is the first MW4SP Workshop conducted by DILG through the Office of Project Development Services-Water Supply and Sanitation Program Management Office (OPDS-WSSPMO) in line with programs prioritizing the provision of water supply systems for waterless municipalities, and giving assistance to those that have identified water supply and sanitation as their priority projects.

Also referred to as the Local WatSan Plan, the MW4SP is established to assist LGUs, Water Service Providers (WSPs), and communities in developing a Medium-Term Sector Investment Plan for Water Supply covering a period of ten years.

The three-day activity was attended by eighty (80) participants composed of Sangguniang Bayan Members, Municipal Planning and Development Coordinators, Municipal Engineers, Municipal Health Officers, Liga ng mga Barangay Presidents, Civil Society Representatives and City/Municipal Local Government Operations Officers of the LGU recipients under the 2014 Sagana at Ligtas na Tubig sa Lahat (SALINTUBIG) Program all over from Regions 1, 2, 3 and 6.
Participants presented the historical, geographical and demographic profile of their municipalities along with the existing water and sanitation conditions in their areas. The presentations were then utilized by Ms. Charito Araza of WSSPMO for the assessment and presentation of guidelines relative to the formulation of MW4SP.

A template of the plan was also discussed during the sessions to assure that MW4SPs of each participating LGU would be appropriate and effective for water supply systems. WSSPMO Resource Persons also underscored the need to expand the approach in planning to include sanitation and sewerage facilities.
The orientation-workshop is one of the capacity development programs for LGUs and Barangay Water and Sanitation Associations (BWSAs) to enhance and improve their capability to manage, operate, and maintain their local Water and Sanitation (WatSan) system which delivers accessible, affordable, potable and safe water to their constituents in a sustainable manner.

MW4SP is in support of SALINTUBIG and the Bottom-up Budgeting (BuB)-Water Programs which aim to contribute to the attainment of the national goal of providing potable water to the entire country as defined and targeted in the Philippine Development Plan 2011-2016, Millennium Development Goal (MDG), the Philippine Water Supply Sector Roadmap, and the Philippine Sustainable Sanitation Roadmap.