Beitbridge town enters 2nd week with no water

By Tererai Karimakwenda and Warren Moroka
27 September 2005

The Beitbridge Residents Association (BRA) has warned that a major outbreak of communicable diseases is looming as the town entered its sixth day without water. Toilets cannot be flushed and residents are using untreated water from the banks of the Limpopo river.

BRA chairman Salatiel Muleya told our correspondent Warren Moroka the only engine that pumps water to the town broke down more than a week ago and the system dried up. Muleya said the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) has failed to fix the engines and resume pumping. Currently the whole town of 30 000 is without water except within the restricted border area.

Muleya said water shortages haunt Beitbridge every year but the local ZANU-PF led council and ZINWA have continuously objected to the construction of a permanent water reservoir. As a result Beitbridge water supplies come directly from the Limpopo riverbed into the purification works and onto the consumer network because there is no long term storage reservoir.

The Beitbridge Rural District Council (BRDC) accused ZINWA of incompetence and of deliberately neglecting the town. In turn ZINWA has said there is no need for urgency because the rural district council owes them a large amount of money. But our correspondent Moroka said the 2 authorities have had squabbles since 2000 and there is no trust between them. BRA has appealed directly to government for water assistance but to no avail.

Moroka reports that most of the field water engines around the perennially dry Beitbridge district are in a serious state of disrepair, five years after being damaged by Cyclone Eline. He was not able to get a comment from ZINWA’s Umzingwane Catchment Area manager Eric Rosen.

The major cities of Bulawayo and Harare are also experiencing water shortages due to damaged equipment and the lack of spare parts and capital for repairs. The breakdown in all essential services may soon force the Mugabe regime to consider alternatives that were unthinkable just weeks ago.

The national water crisis has been blamed on the government’s failure to design and implement a workable national water supply policy, particularly for the semi-arid south-west of the country.