Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) will set up more than 500 solar-powered desalination plants in the coastal areas of Bangladesh to mitigate the acute drinking water crisis faced by local communities.

The plants, using Reverse Osmosis (RO) technology, will provide safe drinking water to low-income households in Satkhira, Khulna, and Bagerhat districts. PKSF has already installed 83 desalination plants in the coastal belt, according to a press release.

The announcement came at an inception workshop on the ‘Safe Water Project’ held at PKSF Bhaban in Agargaon, Dhaka. PKSF Managing Director Md Fazlul Kader chaired the meeting, while Additional Managing Director Dr Mohammad Jashim Uddin, Deputy Managing Directors Dr Fazle Rabbi Sadeque Ahmed and Md Hasan Khaled, and General Manager Dr AKM Nuruzzaman also spoke.

Financed by the Adaptation Fund, the Safe Water Project aims to increase access to potable water in project areas from the current 30.3 percent to 95 percent within three years, directly benefitting around half a million people. Special focus will be given to extreme-poor households, forest-dependent families, and marginalized rural communities.

In his speech, PKSF Managing Director Fazlul Kader said people in coastal regions are often compelled to consume saline water due to the absence of easily accessible fresh water sources, which has worsened their living conditions. He noted that drinking saline water is linked to waterborne diseases, skin ailments, hypertension, and reproductive health problems for women.

“To tackle this crisis, PKSF is installing desalination plants through an appropriate business solution with active community participation,” he said.

Additional Managing Director Dr Mohammad Jashim Uddin highlighted that PKSF has been working to ensure safe drinking water in coastal areas since Cyclone Sidr in 2007.

Deputy Managing Director Dr Fazle Rabbi Sadeque Ahmed explained that RO plants purify water by forcing saline water at high pressure through a semi-permeable membrane, which allows water molecules to pass while blocking salts and contaminants.