OR Tambo District Municipality executive mayor, Mesuli Ngqondwana, says a lot of economic spinoffs for the district municipality will be realised once the Mzimvubu Water Project starts supplying water to the district, as it will ensure a stable water supply from the source.
He made the comments on the sidelines of Water and Sanitation minister Senzo Mchunu’s visit to Siqungwini Village in Tsolo, on November 13. This will be the site of the Ntabelanga Dam which, upon project completion, will supply water to the OR Tambo District Municipality, as well as Joe Gqabi and Alfred Nzo district municipalities.
The district municipality is currently battling to ensure an uninterrupted water supply, especially in outlying rural areas, with the community protesting over the lack of access to water a regular occurrence.
In August Mthatha Express reported on a protest by a resident of Ngolo and surrounding villages who took their frustrations of not having access to water to the streets by blocking the N2 between Mthatha and Qumbu.
A series of protests over the same problem have also taken place in Qweqwe Village, with the latest one on September 21.
Ngqondwana says that the Mzimvubu Water Project will also ensure a stable water supply for their villages.
“The project plan talks about 662 tertiary command reservoirs that will be taking water to various communities and that is quite a lot,” said Ngqondwana.
Alfred Nzo District Municipality executive mayor, Vukile Mhlelembana, said that the Mzimvubu Water Project will also help address their water supply challenges.
“Our main challenges are aging infrastructure, vandalism and having small dams that run out of water quickly, and the Mzimvubu Water Project will help eradicate these challenges as infrastructure upgrades will be part of the project,” said Mhlelembana.
