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Government's plan to end recurrent water shortage
What you need to know:
- The directive comes after DDCA had received brand new modern drilling equipment that are for the purpose of searching for underground water in Dar es Salaam
Dar es Salaam. As water woes continue to bite in Dar es Salaam and some other parts of the country due to prolonged drought, the Ministry of Water yesterday ordered immediate flushing of 197 wells to restore their normal functioning.
Docket minister Jumaa Aweso issued the directive to the Drilling and Dam Construction Agency (DDCA) during his visit to their offices.
The directive comes after DDCA had received brand new modern drilling equipment that are for the purpose of searching for underground water in Dar es Salaam.
“The 197 wells that belong to the Dar es Salaam Water and Sewerage Authority (Dawasa) should be revived to increase access of clean and safe water in the city,” he said echoing recent directive given by Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa.
“We are supposed to do everything in our powers to safely pass through this transition period,” he added.
The premier issued the directive on Wednesday during his visit to the Kigamboni water project as he inspected the situation on access of water in the city.
Yesterday, Mr Aweso said Dar es Salaam has the capacity of about 126 billion cubic meters of water per year, whereas 105 billion cubic meters are found on the surface and 21 billion cubic meters is underground water.
DDCA manager Simon Ngonyani said promised an increase in the volume of water flowing for Dar es Salaam residents in the next few days.
He said they are going to use 25 equipment worth over Sh34 billion that are expected to be utilized across the country.
“We have a large amount of underground water resources in the country. Our responsibility is to ensure flushing enables us to address the ongoing water scarcity in the country, specifically the city of Dar es Salaam,” he said.
For his part, Dawasa’s board chairman General (rtrd)Davis Mwamunyange said the Kigamboni Water Project is expected to reduce existing water challenges.
He called on Dar es Salaam residents to be patient as efforts are being made to reduce the severity of the problem.
“Dar es Salaam requires 544 million litres of water per day. When the situation is good, water supply stands at 520 million litres per day, accounting for a deficit of 24 million litres,” he said.
According to him, currently the deficit is much higher, requiring immediate interventions.
