30 Jan 2014

The Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Mr Kenneth Matambo, is scheduled to present the 2014/2015 budget proposal before Parliament on February 3.

As a run-up to the budget session, BOPA remembers the development projects that were outlined in the 2013/14 national budget. The minister had underscored in the previous budget speech that despite the global economic downturn that affected Botswana, government would undertake some of the projects during the financial year 2013/14.

Some such projects were water resource development and construction of strategic water resource infrastructure that were mentioned in the previous budget that were on course.

Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources, Mr Thatayaone Dedede said in an interview that construction of Thune Dam was complete and that the dam would distribute water to 10 villages in the Bobirwa District.

Mr Dedede said they were working on infrastructure to distribute water to Bobonong, Molalatau, Mathathane, Kobojango, Semolale, Mabolwe, Lepokole, Motlhabaneng, Tsetsebjwe, and Moletemane.

He said feasibility study for the Chobe/Zambezi River system for the planned Zambezi Integrated Agro-Commercial Development at Pandamatenga was complete while the cross border water supply for the Middlepits cluster was ongoing.

The Middlepits cluster water project entails building pipelines from South Africa to Botswana to supply water to Khuis, Gakhibane, Bogogobo, Kolonkwaneng and Middlepits.

Mr Dedede said work on the North South Carrier (NSC) II was under construction to augment water supply to the southern part of Botswana. The first phase of the Dikgatlhong pipeline from Mmadinare to Palapye started last year.

Meanwhile, work on the 600MW Morupule B power station project maintenance has recently been taken over by STEAG Energy Services of Germany from China National Electric Equipment Corporation (CNEEC).

Minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources, Mr Kitso Mokaila, recently said in an interview that the takeover effected on January 1 when the interim operations and maintenance agreement under which CNEEC has been providing operations and maintenance services came to an end on December 31, 2013.

Morupule B power station has been marred with operational challenges and the negotiations between Botswana Power Corporation (BPC) and CNEEC have been ongoing, but reached a deadlock and as a result compelling BPC to engage a different company.

Procurement of the contractor for the Kazungula Bridge was ongoing. The joint project between Botswana and Zambia will be divided into three components that comprise the bridge, Botswana border facility with associated works, and the Zambia border facility with associated works. Work for border facilities for the two countries is scheduled to take two years while the construction of bridge will take four years.

Other projects that were outlined in the previous budget were the improvement of traffic lights in Gaborone through the establishment of a centralised traffic command centre and construction of three traffic junctions in the city. The design of these projects was scheduled for the financial year 2013/14. ENDS