West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad) continues to provide access to potable and affordable water supply for urban poor communities with the recent connection of some 800 residents at Baseco Compound in Tondo, Manila.
The Dubai Housing of Baseco is comprised of poor families who used to rely on expensive water deliveries from vendors for their daily needs. After Maynilad laid a 300-meter pipeline along Dubai Main Road to connect the community to its network, the residents now use potable surface water from Maynilad.
This pipe-laying project ended the community’s almost decade-long waterless situation. “Dati kaming nagbabayad ng mahigit P1,000 para sa isang buwang supply ng tubig. Ngayon, higit P100 na lang ang ibinayad namin sa tubig na siguradong maiinom,” says Baseco resident Luz Marie Bustria.
Residents of Baseco are among the 22% of Maynilad’s customer base that belong to the low-income segment, which receive subsidized water rates.
“We have always sought to provide communities with access to potable water regardless of their social standing. This is why we continue to look for ways to connect poor households. They, too, have the right to enjoy safe water at affordable rates,” says Maynilad President and CEO Ramoncito S. Fernandez.
Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines in terms of customer base. It is the agent and contractor of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) for the West Zone of the Greater Manila Area, which is composed of the cities of Manila (certain portions), Quezon City (certain portions), Makati (west of South Super Highway), Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon all in Metro Manila; the cities of Cavite, Bacoor and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario, all in Cavite Province.