08 Mar 2020

Minister of Land Management, Water and Sanitation Services, Mr Kefentse Mzwinila has urged Parliament to approve his ministry’s budget proposals for 2020/21 financial year totalling P3 billion.

Out of the amount, P1 billion is for recurrent budget while the development budget stands at P2 billion.

The bulk of the development money, P937 million or 45.3 per cent of the budget is allocated to Water Supply Pipelines.

Mr Mzwinila said projects to be financed from that allocation included the ongoing North South Carrier (NSC 2.2) covering various projects such as Kanye NSC connection, Molepolole NSC connection and other water transfer schemes.

Water Supply and Sanitation Networks, he said, had been budgeted for at P658 million and would be used to finance Maun Waste Water project, Kasane/Kazungula

Water Networks, Kanye Sanitation, Moshupa Sanitation and Molepolole Sanitation projects.

Minister Mzwinila proposed P367.5 million for land servicing and P107 million for other projects.

The minister however said Botswana continued to face challenges of inadequate water supply, which had been exacerbated by effects of climate change.

He stated that the sparse population distribution also created major engineering and financial challenges.

The minister said in their budgeting, they had major transfer schemes that were costly and also had to decentralise water treatment and water storage.

He said they had to decentralise water infrastructure, which means they had to design and build pump stations, treatment plants and storage tanks across the country.

Minister Mzwinila said the total annual water demand in the country stood at 245 million cubic metres and expected to increase to 340 million cubic metres per day by 2035.

However, the annual supply stands at 225 million cubic metres.

Furthermore, he explained that water supply depended on 10 major dams with a total annual safe yield of 156 million cubic metres, annual sustainable groundwater abstraction of 96 million cubic metres and 12 million cubic metres of total annual abstraction from Okavango and Chobe rivers.

“There are however plans to ensure long term water security and these initiatives include implementation of the 2006 National Water Master Plan Review and implementation of the National Integrated Water Resources Management and Water Efficiency Plan of 2013,” he said.

The ministry, he added, was implementing mega water projects both in the form of water supply pipelines and distribution networks.

He cited the North South Carrier 2.2 (NSC 2.2) which transmits water from Palapye to Mmamashia.

The minister said the project was ultimately intended to supply villages in the Mahalapye cluster, Greater Gaborone, Lobatse, Barolong Sub-district, Thamaga, Moshupa, Kanye and Molepolole and their associated localities.

Minister Mzwinila said in future, from 2030 onwards, the country a third pipeline would be required to cater for the projected demand in the southern part.

He further said the Mmamashia-Kanye project had been completed and the water situation in Thamaga, Moshupa and Kanye had improved significantly.

The second leg of the same project, which runs from Gamononyane to Molepolole through to Thebephatshwa is at procurement stage and will also supply villages along the pipe route.

Minister Mzwinila pointed out that the implementation of Maun Water Supply and Waste Water project had commenced following litigations.

In addition, he said, a pipeline from Thune Dam from Bobonong to Lepokole was also was at tendering stage.

He noted that the rehabilitation of existing treatment plant in Shakawe was ongoing and meant to increase capacity to meet heightened demand, adding that construction of the storage reservoir, pump station and pipeline had been completed.

Government, he explained, was also undertaking the Botswana Emergency Water Security and Efficiency (BEWSE) Project through a loan from the World Bank.

He said the project aimed at improving the availability of water supply as well as improve wastewater management across different parts of the country.

Projects to be undertaken, he highlighted, included the construction for the North East and Tutume Sub-district Water Supply Upgrading.

Others are the construction of Selebi Phikwe - Serule Water Transfer Scheme, design and installation of Mosu Treatment Plant, design and installation of Booster Station at Mokatako as well as Kuke and Bere Water Supply projects. ENDS