Zimpapers Logo

Innocent Ruwende Senior Reporter
HARARE’S water supply situation is set to improve as council has started drawing water from Lake Manyame for the first time in five years.

However, US$30 million is required to restore capacity at Morton Jaffray.

The city recently commissioned an elevator which goes down a shaft for a kilometre.

It has been down for five years.

The elevator goes down a tunnel that has a pipeline linking Morton Jaffray with Lake Manyame where council engineers draw water from the source over 15 kilometres away.

The development is expected to improve Harare’s water quality. It will also reduce the number of chemicals used to treat water.

The city used to get 60 percent of its water from Lake Manyame, but stopped after the elevator malfunctioned.

This forced council to draw the bulk of its water from the heavily polluted Lake Chivero.

Council engineers at Morton Jaffray yesterday told The Herald they needed a week to draw water from Lake Manyame.

The Herald witnessed the occasion when the pumps were put on for the first time in five years during a field visit to Morton Jaffray by the Embassy of Netherlands to familiarise themselves with the water supply in Harare.

Netherlands is funding Harare City Council to the tune of $2 million in a project to optimise the dosage of water chemicals in partnership with Dutch firm Vitens Evides International (VEI).

VEI project manager Mr Toine Ramaker, who is attached to Harare Water, said $30 million is required for Morton Jafffay to pump 614 mega litres a day as per its design capacity.

The plant is currently pumping 450 mega litres a day.

“We are trying to see if we can optimise the dosage to save cost and also to improve water quality. The total programme is roughly US$2 million, of which US$600 000 is equipment, software computers and so on.

“The rest is in kind, technical assistance and training on the job,” he said.

“The major part of the job is not about money, not about investments, but support in terms of training and technical assistance in (conducting) studies, and doing analysis.

“The funding is coming from the Government of Netherlands and also the water utilities from Netherlands while Harare City Council is contributing using its own resources. About five to 10 percent of the total budget is coming from internal budgets.”

He said Harare Water requires about US$1,6 billion in the next 20 to 30 years to restore all damages and rehabilitation of old works, sewer pipes, water pipes, pumping station, reservoirs and Morton Jaffray.

City Engineer Victor Shana said the city was battling water pollution, climate change impact, poorly working waste water treatment facilities, increasing water demand and shortage of chemicals.