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Nqobile Tshili, Chronicle Reporter
Government will release more funds to address Bulawayo’s water crisis as the city will lose almost 60 megalitres (ML) when it decommissions Lower Ncema Dam later this month.

Last week, the Government availed $10,6 million to Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) so that the parastatal can rehabilitate 15 boreholes and augment water supplies to Bulawayo.

The rehabilitation of the boreholes will increase water obtained from the aquifer to 8ML per day from an average 3ML.

The city is pumping an average of 130ML/day hence the impending decommissioning of Lower Ncema will worsen the city’s already dire water crisis.

Already, residents are going for five-days without running water while those in high lying areas are no longer receiving tap water due to depressed water supplies in the city’s supply dams. The water crisis has seen Government directing Bulawayo City Council (BCC) to identify water projects that will be used to complement the city’s water supplies on a short term basis for funding.

Local Government and Public Works Minister July Moyo on Friday met with BCC management led by town clerk Mr Christopher Dube to discuss the city’s water challenge and how to avert the pending disaster.

He also visited the Nyamandlovu aquifer to assess how the underground water body could be utilised as one of the city’s quick wins.

In an interview, Minister Moyo said council has revealed that at the end of the month it will lose 59ML of water, hence calling for urgent action. “We went to Nyamandlovu Aquifer area so that we try to augment water systems in Bulawayo. This is because they are going to run out of water from Lower Ncema dam”.

The city will lose a lot of water and we have to look for replacement areas. The aquifer has two areas that we can enhance. The first one is already sending three megalitres to Bulawayo which I think we can enhance to 10ML,” said Minister Moyo.

“Then there is another area which we need to repair some boreholes and drill new ones. We can also have another 10ML that we can do in order to avert water shortages.

“The city reckons that when they decommission Lower Ncema they will have a deficit of 59ML. So, we have to look at the alternatives and I have already said to the town clerk and his engineers that give us a list of the areas that you can quicken and they are working on it right now.”

He said Government was waiting for the council’s report on projects that can be funded to ease the water challenge.

Last year Bulawayo lost two supply dams Upper Ncema and Umzingwane dams due to dwindling supplies at the water bodies.

This saw council imposing a citywide water shedding programme which was last week revised to 120-hour weekly.

Minister Moyo said Government believes that the city and Zinwa are up to the task of ensuring that the city does not run dry.

“The city and Zinwa had done a lot in the Nyamandlovu area. The PVC (Polyvinyl chloride) pipes are on ground, pumping station is on ground (in Nyamandlovu aquifer). So, we think as Government if we can assist Zinwa and the city, water in the area can come on line very quickly. They have told us that Lower Ncema will be out before end of May. So, we have to work on these alternatives,” said Minister Moyo.

He said Government was assessing the water situation in most cities for possible national disaster declaration as drought has left most water bodies without adequate supplies.

“We have to assess not just Bulawayo. You know this year has been a drought year and because of that we have assessed those local authorities where the basic water supply sources such as dams and boreholes are dry. Bulawayo is one of them and they are maybe four or five other local authority areas,” he said.

“Yes, we have discussed the issue of declaring these areas disaster areas in terms of water. We are only doing that so that the cities can do proper demand site management and they can ration water without people saying why are you doing it. because they will already know that it’s because it’s disaster.”

The council revealed that it requires $910 million to implement three medium to long term projects to ease Bulawayo’s water challenges with National Matabeleland Zambezi Water Project being the permanent water solution for the city. — @nqotshili