Faith Haushona-Kavamba 

Erongo governor Andre Neville, representing minister of Urban and Rural Development Erastus Uutoni, along with acting Erongo chief regional officer Seblonica Kauari and Zeraeua Traditional chief Manase Zeraeua this week broke ground for the laying of the Ozondati-Omatjete water pipeline.

The long-awaited project came to fruition as a result of the Erongo Regional Council (ERC), the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) and the Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry (MAWF). It was handed over to the consultants and contractors on 2 May 2023, and is expected to be completed by 1 February  2024.

The pipeline will bring much relief to the water-deprived communities in the Daures constituency, which has suffered a merciless onslaught of drought for the past seven years. This community relies on the ERC to supply them with water bi-weekly. However, it has not been enough to quell their thirst.

Speaking on behalf of Uutoni, the governor said this was a huge milestone, stressing that the relevant stakeholders would ensure the sustainable use of water and other resources alike. 

His office would thus ensure that the project was completed on time, and the governor acknowledged that the point that they had reached in the project was a long way coming, having gone as far as the courts. 

The Daures constituency is one of the constituencies in the region that has the biggest challenge with water supply. The minister said the project is conducted in three phases; one which saw the consultants and contractors search among 46 boreholes, three of which were usable; and now the second phase will be building a pipeline from Ozondati, approximately 23km awa. The final phase will be building the pipeline for the remaining eight kilometres to Omatjete itself.

The project has been well-received by Omatjete community members and its surrounding areas, not only because of the water provision, but because of the employment-creation opportunities.

“Omatjete needs basic services such as water for it to be proclaimed a settlement…” he stressed. It is currently considered a growth point, and the availability of water will go a long way in ensuring it is proclaimed as such.

The governor then called on the community of Omatjete and its surrounding areas to safeguard the project as well as other projects in the constituency against vandalism. Projects such as oxidisation ponds, graveyards and manhole covers have not been spared as community members remove the fencing, plastic lining and manhole covers for their own use.

“I’m giving a stern warning that there shall be no illegal water connections off the pipeline. It’s a strain on the finances of the regional council, and takes away from finances that could have been used to complete other projects. The borehole belongs to the government, the people are the government, so take care of it,” he emphasised.

Chief Zeraeua said he had taken time to knock on a substantial number of doors so as to find assistance to address this issue. He noted that the commencement of the project proved that his efforts were not in vain. In the same breath, he stressed that he hoped that this project would aid Omatjete in advancing economically, as it should bring in more investors. Faith.Kavamba@mict.gov.na

*Faith Kavamba is a senior information officer in the Erongo region.