NamWater forks out N$6 million for canal upgrade

NAMWATER is currently renovating 6km of the water canal between Olushandja and the Omahenene border post in the Omusati region at a cost of
N$ 93,5 million.

This was confirmed by NamWater spokesperson Johannes Shigwedha on Tuesday.

Radial Truss Industries, Imperative Engineering Construction, and Brumar Construction have been contracted to renovate the 49-year-old canal.

Shigwedha said the contractors employed 68 workers from the villages around the canal project.

Construction commenced in February this year, and is to be completed in May 2022.

“So far, the contractors have only constructed a distance of 1,7 kilometres,” he said.

He said renovation takes place in phases.

“The water infrastructure is very expensive. We have to dig and build … It will take time,” he said.

The canal draws water from Calueque Dam in Angola, which is about 25km from the Omahenene border.

Shigwedha said the renovation is necessary because the canal is very old and often breaks.

“When the canal breaks and the water flows out, water becomes disjointed and will lead to water being slow. We then decided to reconstruct the entire canal,” he said.

“It is very expensive and each phase requires money,” he said.

He said NamWater contributes a small portion of funds to the project in collaboration with Germany’s KFW and the Namibian government.

Shigwedha said the reconstruction of the canal involves various challenges.

“When you construct one part of the canal, you have to construct a bypass canal. That bypass canal is a problem sometimes, because water pressure is too much,” he said.

He said the bypass canals are washed away by flowing water due to Angola’s water pressure.

“It is a long process,” he said.

He said the project was delayed from April until July, following the discovery of undetonated explosives.

This has affected the delivery of water to villages in the Oshikoto, Ohangwena and Omusati regions, he said.

“We are reconstructing the canal to increase our capacity so that everybody receives water,” Shigwedha said.

He said NamWater currently distributes water tanks in the most affected villages.

“There are villages that are far from water points in the four regions in the north, and we are working on this to make sure they get water.”