| Work Detail |
The Kunzvi Dam, located northeast of Harare, is currently progressing well, with the dam already 33 percent constructed, and scheduled for commissioning in 2026.
The first Harare water supply reservoir that is not on the Manyame River is the US$109 million Kunzvi Dam, which is situated on the opposite side of the metropolitan region from Morton Jaffray Water Works and Lakes Chivero as well as Manyame.
The construction of Kunzvi Dam has been continuously postponed, mostly due to financial issues and the misguided belief that the water sources already available were adequate.
As the Second Republic keeps its promises to transform the nation into an upper middle-income economy by 2030, in accordance with the National Development Strategy 1, and without leaving any place behind in development, significant progress has been seen in the construction over the past year.
Davis Marapira, deputy minister of lands, agriculture, fisheries, water, and rural development, stated during a visit to the dam that the work’s progress has been impressive despite certain obstacles.
Mr. Lianmin Jin, a representative of the contracting company Makomo Engineering, on the other hand, expressed confidence that the deadline for commissioning would be met.
Mr. Brian Muteyaunga, the Zinwa Site Surveyor, said revealed that the main dam’s excavation is at a 17 percent completion rate, the main dam’s embankment placement is at a 15 percent completion rate, and site establishment is at a 90 percent completion rate.
Despite the fact that some families’ relocations are taking longer than expected and slowing them down, he claims that progress is still being made.
Kunzvi dam
Construction of the Kunzvi Dam which is expected to end the water woes will be constructed at the confluence of the Nora and Nyaguwe rivers in the Goromonzi district and falls in a different catchment area from Chivero, Manyame, Seke, and Harava dams that draw their water from the Manyame River.
The project that will be constructed by a Chinese firm, Sino-Hydro will be located about 70 km northeast of the city under a build, operate, and transfer arrangement and is expected to produce 250,000 cubic meters of water for the city daily.
The dam is estimated to cost US $400m to construct but other major works such as laying a pipeline and building new waterworks will push the price to US $680m. As early as the 1990s, the government had intended to build the dam but financial challenges stalled the project.
Harare water woes
Harare serves 2.5 million residents water and an additional 2 million residents from neighboring towns requiring 1200 megalitres a day. The 4 reservoirs Harava Dam, Seke Dam, Lake Chivero, and Lake Manyam located on the Manyame River greatly suffer from pollution.
Harare city officials earlier confirmed that Harare’s water supply dam, Lake Chivero is left with a limited 18 months supply. This is brought by the siltation, droughts, and algae that have also affected the water quality. Water rationing was introduced in order to manage the available resources. |
