Residents who often face water shortage in some parts of Kigali city and Kigali peri-urban areas are likely to wait a bit longer after Covid-19 disrupted the progress of the water supply project. Residents in areas such as the Nduba sector of Gasabo district are among those affected, according to officials. In 2019, the Water and Sanitation Corporation (WASAC) pledged that the water shortage in these areas would end in 2020 after constructing reservoirs. Now this deadline has been extended to June this year. Responding to residents’ complaints that were not even accessing mobile tanks to supply them water last week, WASAC pledged to soon have a short-term remedy as they wait for a more sustainable solution which they say has been disrupted by the pandemic. “We have solved the issue of mobile tanks. There was an issue with getting movement clearance. That will do as we work on a more sustainable solution which is not a long time from now,” said Richard Dan Iraguha, the Head of Communications at WASAC. He said that construction activities for the project to supply water to the area were disrupted by delays in the delivery of construction materials. “We were supposed to build big reservoirs of piped water. However, last year, there was high demand for construction materials such as cement and others due to many construction projects such as classroom construction. Some of the materials are also imported and Covid-19 became a challenge in the process,” he explained. Besides cement that is locally produced, he added, other construction materials supply include pipes that had to be imported. “The imported pipes didn’t arrive on time. So some works were delayed to start while those that had started were also disrupted,” he said. 4,700-cubic metres expected Iraguha said that part of a peri-urban water supply project is expected to supply 4,700 cubic metre per day in Nduba. “Once the 93 km water supply network is completed between May and June this year, a citizen could get at least over three jerry-cans per day,” he said. The project is part of a big project dubbed Kigali and peri-urban water supply system” that started at the end of 2018 to end water shortage issue in Kigali and its outskirts. The bigger picture The entire Kigali and peri-urban water supply system project will serve around 400,000 people in the districts of Nyarugenge, Gasabo and Kicukiro. Also to benefit are residents of Runda and Rugalika sectors in Kamonyi district, Ntarama in Bugesera, Muyumbu and Nyakariro in Rwamagana district, Shyorongi in Rulindo district areas. It is composed of many sections including Kanzenze Water Treatment Plant (in Bugesera District) that is expected to add 40,000 m3 of which 10,000 m3 will be supplied to Bugesera district and 30,000 m3 to the Kigali City’s water volume. “The plant has been completed,” Iraguha said. However, distribution is yet to reach communities as networks are still being constructed. Meanwhile, he said that Water and Sanitation Corporation (WASAC) has started delivering water, through mobile tanks, to communities in the City of Kigali which have a shortage. At least 26 mobile tanks were deployed each with 10,000 litres in different parts of the city. There is a need for 145,000 cubic meters (m3) of water to meet the daily water demand for the Kigali City dwellers, but only 105,000 m3 are available. According to WASAC, besides the Kanzenze project, other projects such as the upgrade of Nzove and Karenge water treatment plants will ensure sustainable supply of water within and in suburbs of the City of Kigali.
