SIAVONGA COUNCIL CLARIFIES KANYELELE DONOR FUNDED ABLUTION BLOCK

FOLLOWING social media reports over the commissioning of the Kanyelele Market Ablution Block in Siavonga which brought about controversial public debates suggesting that the facility was built under the Constituency Development Funds (CDF), Siavonga Town Council has clarified that the said project was funded by one of its cooperating partners, the German International Cooperation(GIZ).

The project was funded by GIZ to help the community to maintain hygienic standards during the Covid-19 under the D4D iv program which was a follow up project from the first project funded by the same organisation to improve water supply in five markets.

The council has therefore refuted claims by the some sections of society that the structure was built using CDF.

Council Public Relations Officer Gwendolyn Mwanza Mchenga said no CDF was used to construct the facility; rather, the project was funded by GIZ. "The role of the council was to provide a proposal, drawings and engineers’ estimates for the project to GIZ for scrutiny and approval; disburse the funds according to the contract agreement to the contractor and ensure the retirements are done by the contractor to GIZ and supervise the project," she said.

Ms Mchenga added that the duration of the project was from November 9, 2021 to February 21, 2022, with a completion period of 12 weeks.

"The delay in operationalisation was due to delay in water connection and power connection by Southern

Water and Sewerage Company and Zesco respectively, to date the facility has not been connected to power (though all necessary steps have been taken). However, water was connected, hence the opening of the ablution block on Friday 7th October, 2022," she said.

She said that the project is one of the many ablution blocks that GIZ funded in a number of selected districts across Southern Province and other provinces.