In Malaysia’s drought-hit Sabah, taps run dry – with more extreme heat expected

The east Malaysian state is surrounded by water, but years of infrastructure neglect and an El Nino-triggered drought have brought severe shortages

Tankers have been deployed to supply villages ‘around the clock’, spotlighting the plight of rural poor in one of Malaysia’s least-developed states

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Cracked soil is seen in a dried-out paddy field in Malaysia’s Sabah state. A drought in the state, driven by El Nino conditions that bring prolonged hot and dry weather, has been made worse by old, failing water infrastructure. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 1:30pm, 26 Mar 2024Updated: 11:10am, 27 Mar 2024

In Papar district, Malaysia’s Sabah state, Eddy’s catering business is suffering, as a weeks-long drought leaves him with barely enough water to brush his teeth.

The drought – driven by El Nino conditions that bring prolonged hot and dry weather to the Southeast Asian nation – has been made worse by old, failing water infrastructure, causing taps to run dry since mid-February in the district, 40km southwest of state capital Kota Kinabalu.

To the west, Papar is surrounded by sea and is bisected by a river. Still, around 150,000 people in the surrounding area are experiencing a severe water shortage, according to state government estimates.

Even on a good day, Papar residents say they are faced with regular water rationing as ageing infrastructure struggles to match demand.

Dozens of water tankers have been deployed to make up for the shortfall, evoking a sarcastic response from Eddy, who only gave his first name and feels short changed by the state government after years of neglect.

“They are sending water around the clock to people in the villages. They are the heroes now,” the 44-year-old cook said.

Much of Malaysia is being affected by the drought, but the federal government expects April and May to bring some relief in the form of thunderstorms and heavy rains before another punishing dry spell from June to September. On Monday, Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi told parliament that a person had died from heatstroke last month in Pahang, a state in Peninsular Malaysia.