Reports from the remote Kiribati island of Banaba say residents are again without clean water, just months after two de-salination plants were installed.
Earlier this year the Banabans sought international help after being left months with a meagre supply of water.
With help from New Zealand and Australia two de-salination units were installed.
But a Banaban living in Fiji, Biara Touakin, said the islanders reported the machines had never worked properly.
He said even after Kiribati government engineers spent several weeks on the island, through to last week, people have continued to complain the water is inadequate.
These latest concerns come along with another prolonged dry spell on the island, which does not have any rivers or artesian water supply.
Banaba was decimated by phosphate mining, with most of the island being forced to resettle elsewhere.
The phosphate that was mined there was spread across the paddocks of Australia and New Zealand.
Banabans have frequently called for the governments of both those countries to step up and help them with their ongoing plight.
Photo: supplied RNZ Pacific Caption: An abandoned water tank on Banaba.