People in the central region can now breathe a sigh of relief as parliament has approved a loan amounting to about K 300 billion for the most anticipated Salima-Lilongwe water project.
This comes as members of parliament approved the note by minister of finance for Khato and Zambezi contractors to get loan from Australia for the project.
Speaking to MIJ Online, Sosten Gwengwe Minister of Finance expressed hope that once the project is completed, water woes that have been affecting the districts will be a thing of the past.
According to Gwengwe, contractors are supposed to commence the construction project as soon as possible so that the Salima Lilongwe Water Supply company start to be providing water to people through Lilongwe and Central Region water boards respectively.
Details about the project
Khato Civils and South Zambezi Engineering Services, another South African engineering firm, will build a water intake in Lake Malawi. The intake will pump up to 50,000 cubic meters of raw water per day, through a 50-centimeter diameter pipeline to a new treatment plant situated about 2 kilometers away.
Three reservoirs, each with a capacity of 5,000 cubic meters, will hold the water before it is distributed to the populations of Lilongwe and surrounding localities through a combined distance of 111-kilometer pipeline.
The government of Malawi, through the Lilongwe Water Board (LWB) will finance the project. Lilongwe Water Board has already pumped in about US $17 million into the project.
