22 Feb 2021

Botswana has adopted World Bank loan condition and will also comply with the bank’s procurement regulations during construction of southern cluster villages’ water project in Boteti.

Water Utilities Corporation (WUC) external funding coordinator, Mr Moeti Matswiri, said this when responding to questions by councillors during a sub-council session in Letlhakane on Thursday.

He stated that construction of the water infrastructure would be done in a way that it would ensure sustainable water supply.

He said construction and design would be done following best international standards and would be run through two parallel procurement processes, being World Bank and Water Utilities Corporation procurement processes.

Mr Matswiri indicated that, as part of the recommendation of the southern cluster project design, the consultant should look at other options of power generation, in line with government policy aimed at moving away from coal generated power to green technology.

The pipes that would be used for the project would be sourced from Lobatse. 

One of the requirements of World Bank, he said, was that whoever awarded the tender should empower local procurement and such should be imbedded in the tender.

Mr Matswiri noted that they were working hard to ensure that they address issues that might cause delays in the project indicating that construction would take over 270 days while design would take 421 days.

WUC head of business centre Letlhakane/Serowe, Mr Innocent Leonard, stated that the project intended to improve water supply and quality to the southern and central cluster villages including Mokobaxane, Kedia, Rakops, Mopipi, Xhumo, Toromoja, Mmadikola and Xere.

He stated that the project would benefit an approximate population of 21 500 people and it entailed equippingas well as electrification of boreholes, pipework construction, reservoir construction and associated works.

Budget for the project stood at P320 million and design review phase was expected to commence in March 23, 2020 but due to COVID-19, the international consultant could not visit the site on time.

He indicated that the construction phase was projected to commence in May 2022 and would run for a period of 18 months.Aegarding construction of the southern villages cluster water project.

He also asked if the consultant could not consider alternative power supply for the boreholes as opposed to coal generated power. 

Councillor Mr  Gosetsemang Gosalamang of Kedia/ Mokobaxane also requested to know time frame needed by the consultant to work on the project design.

Mr Gosalamang had also asked Mr Matswiri to state the types of pipes that would be used on the project allaying fears of pipe leakages. 

He requested explaination how the community would benefit during construction of the project.

And Councilor Basiami Sentsho of Xhumo/ Mmadikola expressed concern with projects funded by World Bank stating that they took long to kick-start.

 

He also asked if the pipeline project would affect land of the neighbouring communities, citing that as some of the issues that might delay the project. BOPA