It is feared that communities on the remote western Milne Bay islands of Papua New Guinea may be in a desperate state after six months without rain.
The provincial administration has sent officers to the Trobriands, Woodlark, the Calvados Chain and mainland Rabaraba areas, to assess exactly what condition the people are in.
An administration spokesperson, Nimrod Mark, says their reports are due by the end of the week.
The Milne Bay governor, Tim Neville, says the building of water bores and reticulation plants throughout the province had hit funding problems.
