Since November 2024, the Autonomous Region of Bougainville has been experiencing below average rainfall and drought conditions.
This has significantly impacted food insecurity, the availability of fresh water, and the loss of cash crops and other income earning opportunities across the atoll communities of Nissan, Nuguria-Fead, Carterets, Takuu-Mortlock, and Nukumanu-Tasman Islands, affecting over 10,000 people.
The atoll communities have a high economic dependence on fishing and marine resources, and marine coral bleaching has negatively impacted fishing grounds, reducing local members of the community’s ability to source their own fish and seafood.
In addition to the lack of rainfall since November 2024, there has been saltwater intrusion on the remote communities, which has damaged the remaining freshwater sources and food gardens. Together with the drought, this has caused the loss of food gardens, cash crops, and traditional coping mechanisms used by atoll communities.
Communities are entirely reliant on rain-fed tanks and water wells for drinking and cooking. The toll communities can experience very high temperatures, increasing risks of dehydration, health complications and death among vulnerable groups.
In good times, they have bananas or cassava growing. During a drought, the crops dry up so they have to go back to mangrove seeds and coconuts to live on, which means drinking water from coconuts as well. But in Nuguria, there was a king tide last year and so many of the coconut trees died out.
Declaration of Emily Meren, CARE International in Papua New Guinea’s Humanitarian Projects Manager.
In response to the drought in Bougainville, CARE Australia received funding from the Australian Government to provide water, sanitation and hygiene, food assistance, and logistics support to the Bougainville atolls of Nuguria-Fead and Pinipel.
CARE International in PNG’s ongoing work will include the rehabilitation of damaged infrastructure such as water tanks and rainwater collection systems, as well as installing new water infrastructure to increase the overall water storage and rain harvesting capacity of the region.
CARE’s response will lead to an increase in water storage capacity of 108,000 litres. Prior to the response, the region had a water storage capacity of about 17 days; after CARE’s response, the islands of Nuguria-Fead and Pinipel will have 26 days of water storage capacity
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