21 Sep 2020

Construction of multimillion Pula water desalination plants has been officially commissioned in Rappelspan and Struizendam in Kgalagadi District.

Speaking during a recent ground breaking ceremony, director of department of water and sanitation, Ms Bogadi Mathangwane, said development of a water infrastructure would facilitate economic development in the area.

She said water was a basic necessity that helped drive the economy. 

Ms Mathangwane noted that ground water was the only available source of water in the district, but often difficult to find and if found, it was usually salty hence conception of the project.

The design and build of ground water desalination plants in Rappelspan and Struizendam was carried out under support of the Orange-Senque River Commission (ORASECOM) secretariat, a joint trans-boundary project involving Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states of Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and South Africa.

She noted that Botswana  shared river systems with neighbouring countries, resulting in establishment of working agreements to manage the shared water resources. 

Ms Mathangwane said the development was  jointly executed by the aforementioned SADC member states under ORASECOM secretariat, which managed the symbiosis and flow of the shared water resources found in those countries. 

Botswana lobbied for P25 million funding to be used specifically for construction of water desalination plants in Rappelspan and Struizendam  from international cooperating partners such as the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)-Global Environmental Facility (GEF).

“Our lives revolve around water. Access to clean water is a necessity to sustain all lives so we looked at the needs of the four countries through mapping of the strategic action plan,” Ms Mathangwane said.She highlighted that Botswana had entered into agreements with SADC member states set up institutions to manage shared water resources guided by the revised SADC protocol on shared watercourses. 

The agreements, she said, ensured that even though the country was  landlocked, it could still enjoy shared water resources. 

“Most of the water in Botswana comes from shared water resources. In 2008 Botswana and South Africa signed the cross border water supply agreement to facilitate water supply authorities and water service providers in both countries to enter into contractual agreements for water supply to each other,” Ms Mathangwane said.

For his part, a representative of ORASECOM secretariat, Mr Michael Ramaano, said the project would solve the water scarcity, salinity and quality in the area. 

He said the water would be desalinated and be used for various purposes including horticultural use. Mr Ramaano said ORASECOM secretariat had been allocated P100 million to expend in the four countries. 

Botswana was allocated P25 million to spend on the desalination plants and conduct ground water resources assessments within the ORASECOM basin for the next five years.   

Mr Ramaano said agriculture was a priority, therefore the desalination plants would provide water for such purpose. 

He said the project was still undergoing environmental impact assessment and construction was expected to commence within six weeks. Ends