MASIVI – Thousands of Masivi residents and those from nearby villages will no longer have to trek long distances to look for water after water pipes were installed in the area. Masivi village is located near Rundu.
Pipes for clean running water were installed thanks to support from USAID’s Southern Africa Regional Environmental Program (SAREP) and the Directorate of Water Supply and Sanitation Coordination (DWSSC). Brand new taps were installed by technicians from NamWater.
The scheme resulted from a long-term collaboration between USAID, NamWater, community construction teams, councillors, DWSSC and the UK Agency for International Development.
The water source is the Kavango River through the main Rundu treatment works.
The scheme comprises of eight standpipes on either side of the B8 road. Notably the pipe laying and backfilling were entirely done by community members who were trained by SAREP engineers.
SAREP designed two phases for the scheme. The first phase is for Masivi while the second phase will be implemented by NamWater and supply water by a main pipeline for an additional six kilometres from Masivi to nearby villages going west along the Rundu-Grootfontein road.
The village also recently received a borehole equipped with three 10 000-litre tanks, a trough for cattle and a solar panel.
“Though we drilled a borehole in this area where people and their livestock are getting water, it was necessary that the scheme be extended to supply water to other areas. NamWater has taken over the scheme to provide water for the rest of the community with the idea to stretch it 12 kilometres along the road,” elaborated Moses Mpareke the regional director of the DWSSC in the two Kavango regions.
Mpareke urged the community to treat the water system as their own.
“This is for all community members, it belongs to all, don’t vandalize it. The government and its development partners are busy doing their part and now it is your turn as a community to use it efficiently, so take good care of it,” Mpareke counselled.
Speaking at the handover, U.S. Ambassador to Namibia, Thomas Daughton, said: “The water system was the result of cooperation between the United States and Namibia to help Masivi residents gain access to clean water needed to maintain healthy and productive lifestyles. The collaboration of the U.S. government with Namibia and regional governments will also help to improve the management of the Okavango River Basin, and thus the health and livelihoods of people who depend on it will be improved,” he stated.
SAREP has been working with NamWater for the past three years, starting at the Karutci community in the Ndiyona Constituency of Kavango West, where they also developed a water supply scheme that is currently supplying the village and surroundings.
Future schemes will supply water to various other villages in the two Kavango regions.