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Prosper Ndlovu, Business Editor
TREASURY has disbursed $205 million in support of efforts to improve water supply in Bulawayo, which is experiencing serious water shortages.

The City of Bulawayo has experienced perennial water challenges owing to population growth and adverse climate change that has caused recurrent droughts.

The city’s population has increased over the years but there has not been corresponding expansion of the pumping capacity hence the daily supplies are failing to meet demand.

Successive droughts during the past seasons have resulted in the city’s six supply dams holding an average of about 30 percent of their capacity.

The city’s daily supply is 94ML against demand of 155 ML.

This has forced council to implement a tight water shedding regime in which residents only get water twice a week with high lying areas no longer getting any supplies at all.

Council is using bowsers to supply water to a few affected suburbs while residents from the rest of affected suburbs now rely on borehole water and other unprotected sources which expose them to water-borne diseases.

In an update issued yesterday detailing Government support towards Bulawayo’s water supply improvement, Treasury said Government was working with the City of Bulawayo and other stakeholders to address the water crisis facing the City of Kings.

A phased implementation of the Bulawayo Water Supply Improvement Project, which is being implemented through the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) is already underway as part of measures to ameliorate the water challenges facing the second largest city.

Phase One of the programme, targeting rehabilitation of the Nyamandlovu system Rochester boreholes has now been completed and 10ML/day of water has been added at a cost of ZWL$18 million.

Phase One also involved rehabilitation of valves at Insiza Pump Station, which works have increased capacity from 17,5 ML to 41 ML per day.

Phase Two of the programme, which comprises the drilling of an additional 10 boreholes at Rochester system and the equipping of 20 boreholes at the Epping Forest system, with potential to supply another 10ML of raw water is now underway.

“The contractor is expected to be on site on or before 21 August following the disbursement last week of ZWL$130 million by Treasury,” reads the Treasury update.

“In another disbursement made last week towards water provision to Bulawayo, Treasury has availed ZWL$75 million of the ZWL$184 million required to optimise water abstraction through the Mtshabezi Pipeline from the 17,76ML/day to 25ML/day under Phase Three.”

Phase Four of the project, to be implemented by Bulawayo City Council will involve the optimisation of the Insiza Pumping Scheme at a cost of ZWL$106 million and preparatory works including the mobilisation of the requisite resources is already underway.

Finance and Economic Development, Professor Mthuli Ncube, who recently toured the Nyamandlovu aquifer system to appreciate progress, said provision of portable water was critical and also key to the revival of industries in the City of Kings.

“Water provision is a key economic enabler and as Government, through this action, we are showing our seriousness and commitment to permanently resolving Bulawayo’s water challenges once and for all,” he said.

Prof Ncube said the efforts underway will ensure that Bulawayo has access to at least 14 months’ supply of raw water.