USAID, the Palestinian Water Authority and the Water Committee of Ein Al-Sultan Camp held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on May 14, 2003, at Duyuk Spring near Jericho, inaugurating a new water pipeline and reservoir. USAID funded the construction of the 3,750 meter water pipeline and 500 cubic meter reservoir to bring water from Duyuk Spring to Ein Al-Sultan Camp, four kilometers away.
Participating in the ceremony was David Satterfield, Department of State; Jeff Feltman, Acting Consul General; Larry Garber, USAID Mission Director; Dr. Sa'eb Eerkat, Palestinian Minister of Negotiation Affairs; Abdel Karim Sider, Mayor of Jericho; and Tom Neu, Middle East Representative for ANERA.
Addressing the gathering, Larry Garber described USAID's involvement: "The nearly 4,000 residents of Ein Al-Sultan Camp suffer from a chronic water shortage, one that becomes severe during the dry months of summer. A request from the Ministry of Local Government encouraged us to support the construction of this pipeline and reservoir. By tapping into this new source of fresh water, we can guarantee that this summer, Palestinian families living in Ein Al-Sultan will finally have sufficient water."
Prior to the opening of the Duyuk Spring pipeline, 107 cubic meters of water was available each day for the residents of Ein Al-Sultan, an amount significantly below the needs of the community. That amount has now tripled, to more than 350 cubic meters per day.
The water pipeline and reservoir was constructed by the Afaq General Contracting Group, with project oversight furnished by the American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA.) Despite challenging circumstances, the project was completed on schedule in three months, and on budget at a cost of $533,00.