Watershed moment for Bakwena
Gamononyane multimillion Pula water project to ensure adequate potable water for Molepolole village
President Dr. Mokgweetsi Masisi will on Monday officiate at the groundbreaking ceremony of the multimillion Pula water project at Gamononyane that will ensure there is adequate potable water for Molepolole village.
Under the theme; ‘ Embarking on a journey to hydrate Molepolole’, the project is part of the NDP 11 projects that will be implemented in 12 months from November 2020 to November 2021. It is currently slightly above 50 percent at the end of August 2021.
The project will augment water supply to Molepolole, Mmanoko cluster villages, Thebephatshwa Botswana Defence Force Camp, Kopong, and Gamononyane villages through a connection pipeline to the North- South Carrier pipeline at Gamononyane pump station. The present water supply sources within the villages are inadequate. The demand for the cluster is 0.24 Ml/ day against the supply of 0.18 Ml/ day making a deficit of 0.6 Ml/ day. The project includes the construction of a 43km 700mm dia. Steel Pipeline from the Gamononyane pump station to the proposed 20ML reservoir in Molepolole and the construction of a 4km 160mm dia. uPVC pipeline from the proposed Gamodubu takeoff node to the Gamodubu existing village tank.
It will also include the construction of a 1000l/ s Mmanoko Pump station and upgrading of the Gamodubu pump station to 1000l/ s, as well as the design and build of a 20ML concrete reservoir in Molepolole. In an interview, Chief Executive Officer of Water Utilities Corporation ( WUC), Gaselemogwe Senai said the project was awarded in August 2021 to ZHENTAI DANS- Joint Venture at an amount of over P785.5 million, VAT exclusive.
A minimum of 40 percent of the value of the project is reserved for citizens. He said the consultancy for Design and Tender Management commenced on 8 May 2020 and was completed in September 2020.
The award amount was over P33.9 million ( VAT Inclusive) and the consultancy duration for Design and Tender Management was four months and the Environmental Management Services for the project is contracted to Royal Pioneers Investments PTY Ltd to the tune of over P3.3 million, VAT exclusive.
Senai said government undertakes projects infrastructure developments for sustainable water supply and for the overall economic growth. These are milestones in government efforts to develop water supply infrastructure to achieve resilience and sustainability in the water supply. He said the achievements of these projects are a fulfillment of the National Water Master Plan ( NWMP) and funded under the National Development Plan. The expenditure of projects done under NDP 11 from 2017/ 2018 to 2020/ 2021) amounts to P7.5 billion and the ongoing major projects include Maun Water Supply and Sanitation; Kasane Kazungula Water Networks; Rehabilitation of Shakawe Treatment Plant; Mmamashia Water Treatment Plant; Gaborone Water Master Plan; Kanye Sanitation; Moshupa Sanitation; Lobatse Water Master Plan Implementation; Molepolole - NSC Connection ( Gamononyane); Kgalagadi North Water Supply Project; Shakawe Rehabilitation Plant; Selebi Phikwe- Serule Water Transfer Scheme; Boteti Southern and Central Cluster Villages Water Supply Scheme, Sowa Water Supply Scheme; Mambo Wastewater Treatment Plant Refurbishment; Letlhakane Wastewater Treatment Ponds Expansion; and North East and Tutume Sub District
Water Supply Scheme. Senai said the NWMP of 1991 which was last reviewed in 2018 estimated national demand to be about 245Mm3/ year, as compared to the available water at 225Mm3/ year, creating a shortfall of about 20Mm3/ year. The NWMP provided a framework of resource and infrastructure developments to meet the current and future demands up to 2035. He said during NDP 9 and NDP 10 the focus was on developing and securing bulk water sources such as the construction of dams and development of wellfields and during NDP 11, the government focused largely on the development and optimisation of existing distribution infrastructure through network upgrades, renovation, refurbishment and increasing the national water distribution system footprint through connection to new areas and increasing adequacy to existing areas.
Further that the NWMP recommended a reduction of this demand by 4.5 Mm3/ year by 2020 and by 21.2 Mm3 / year by 2035 which can be realised by managing the demand for domestic and industrial water.
Senai said the current water resources are from 10 major dams at 156Mm3; Okavango and Chobe Rivers is 12Mm3; groundwater supply capacity stands at 96Mm3 of which only 28Mm3 was is in use. He said projects identified under NMWP are Letsibogo, Dikgathong, Ntimbale, Lotsane, and Thune dams as well as North- South Carrier ( NSC1) which have all been done. Their completion led to the villages of Serowe, Kanye, Moshupa, and Thamaga being connected to NSC1, while NSC 2 is partially done up to Palapye. The ongoing projects under this plan are Gaborone Water Master Plan, Waste Water Reclamation, and Molepolole connection to the NSC2011. “Feasibility study is ongoing for the three earmarked projects namely Pallaroad Wellfields, Chobe Zambezi connection to the NSC and Lesotho Highlands”.
Senai said the Ministry of Land Management Water and Sanitation Services ( MLMWS) conceptualised multiple projects in its attempt to stem out water challenges in an implementation context that is constantly evolving on account of variable climatic conditions, particularly the spectre of El Nino. And that some of these projects albeit conceptualised, get de- prioritised on account of fiscal considerations.
This de- prioritisation occurs at various phases of the project cycle, some are done at pre- feasibility, some at feasibility, whereas others are at more advanced stages.
“The dedicated 100 kilometers Masama pipeline is one of such projects that was conceptualised and de- prioritised and could not be accommodated under NDP 11 on account of fiscal considerations”. He said in May 2019, the government declared 2018/ 19 a drought year, in the context of emerging information that had projected drought for the period 20192020 which was likely to be persistent through to 2020- 2021, the Ministry made a re- assessment of its water projects implementation strategy in order to alleviate the current and projected water challenges. Preliminary project implementation data indicates that the pacing, sequencing, and roll- out of the current water projects implementation strategy is unlikely to ameliorate the water challenges in the Southern part of the country in the short- run.
He added that the NSC Scheme is designed to address water deficits along the pipeline corridor and in the Southern part of the Country, Gaborone Cluster, Mochudi Cluster, Ramotswa Cluster, Lobatse Cluster, Borolong Cluster, Kanye and Easter Kweneng Cluster of villages.