NamWater Invests N$93,5 million into Canal Upgrade

At the cost of N$ 93,5 million, NamWater is upgrading 6 kilometers of the Omusati district water canal between Olushandja and the Omahenene border post. On Tuesday, NamWater spokesperson Johannes Shigwedha confirmed this.

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The Omusati district water canal, which is 49 years old, will be renovated by Radial Truss Industries, Imperative Engineering Construction, and Brumar Construction. According to Shigwedha, the contractors hired 68 people from the canal project communities. Construction began in February of this year and is expected to be finished in May of 2022.

The Canal’s Upgrade

The contractors have completed almost 1,7 kilometers of the project thus far. Renovations, according to Shugwedha, are done in stages. The Omusati district water canal gets its water from Angola’s Calueque Dam, which is roughly 25 kilometers from the Omahenene border. The restoration is important, according to Shigwedha, because the canal is quite ancient and frequently breaks. He said that when the canal breaks and the water rushes out, the water gets fragmented, resulting in sluggish water. We, therefore, decided to rebuild the canal as a whole.

NamWater, in partnership with Germany’s KFW and the Namibian government, provides a tiny percentage of funding to the project, he added. According to Shigwedha, the canal’s rehabilitation is fraught with difficulties. Due to Angola’s high water pressure, the bypass canals are wiped away by rushing water.

Following the discovery of undetonated explosives, the project was postponed from April to July. This has hampered water supply to settlements in the Oshikoto, Ohangwena, and Omusati areas.

Shingwedha also stated that the firm is renovating the canal to enhance capacity so that everyone has access to water. NamWater is now distributing water tanks in the most impacted areas. There are communities in the four northern areas that are currently far from water sources, and the business claimed that they are striving to ensure that these villages have access to clean water as well.