by Shongedzai Mugwagwa
The Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) has said the $33 million Marowanyati water reservoir is 96 percent complete with only final touches being done on the spill ways, The Harare Post can report.
China Jiangxi International Corporation, which was contracted by Government to construct Marowanyati Dam in Buhera, announced last year that they had reinvented its work ethic and introduced 24-hour working shifts which, apart from resulting in massive physical progress, enhanced prospects of finishing major works at the water reservoir before the rainy season.
The project is being administered by ZINWA and Government is implementing the bulk water supply scheme as part of its effort to foster reliable access to water for communities where the impact of climate change is being keenly felt.
Construction of the Dam suffered at least 10 years of deferment under the previous regime. Regardless of its centrality to the vision of providing multi-purpose water to thousands of people in rural and peri-urban segments of Buhera.
The total cost of the project is US$33, 251, 852, 69.
A statement released by ZINWA revealed that that the 50 million cubic litre reservoir had reached 96 percent completion and it will provide water for irrigation schemes in Buhera.
“This dam will provide water for Murambinda. There will be 1200 hectares to be irrigated downstream of the dam. Relevant agencies are already working on that with surveys for canals starting mid 2019.”
“All this water is already held in the term which will irrigate over 1200 hectares of land in arid Buhera and also provide a reliable raw water source for Murambinda,” reads a post on ZINWA social media platform.
The contractor has also boosted the equipment and machinery to speed up the pace. Some 20 tippers are now on the ground and a skyscraper and concrete pump were being mounted to ameliorate construction of the intake tower and access bridge.
A concrete pump will be used to feed concrete directly to higher levels, a method that is more effective than the use of a crane.
The water reservoir has potential to transform and support the lives of the families and agricultural communities that live along its banks and ensuring that the growth of Murambinda will not encounter obstacles and bottlenecks in the near future.
Marovanyati Dam is located on the Mwerihari River, a perennial stream with an annual flow of 182 million litres.
