The Center for Safe Drinking Water Solutions, which is operated jointly by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Tajikistan Technical University through the Tajikistan Safe Drinking Water Project, recently granted certificates to eight students for completing a water engineering internship program. The ceremony, which took place on the eve of Global Water Day – March 22 - highlighted the importance of safe drinking water technologies. It was a part of the Navruz festivities at the Construction and Architecture Faculty of the University.

The Center for Safe Drinking Water Solutions was created on March 27, 2010 through the cooperation of the Tajikistan Technical University and USAID. Since its opening, the center has provided hands-on training on modern water engineering practices to 16 advanced students of the university's Water Engineering Department.

The core objective of the Center is to train Tajikistan's future water engineers by providing students with practical courses on water system design using the latest computer software and other technology. The eight interns were involved in fieldwork to find safe drinking water solutions for USAID's rural partner communities.

Funded by USAID and managed by ME&A, the Tajikistan Safe Drinking Water Project provides water infrastructure, health education, and training and development of new strategies for safe drinking water in rural communities in Tajikistan. Over the past three years, USAID has invested in improving 57 drinking water systems that provide access to clean drinking water to 150,000 people in Tajikistan.

Learn more about the Tajikistan Safe Drinking Water Project here.