Four ministers later and having already had a sod-turning event in 2014, the much-anticipated multibillion-rand Mzimvubu water project in Eastern Cape is nowhere close to seeing the light of day, according to the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Senzo Mchunu.
Mchunu, in response to questions by IFP MP Angela Buthelezi, said the project had faced several challenges, one of those being that long-term funding for the project was not assured.
“The processing of tenders for the procurement of construction materials is underway. Alternative options are being considered for the completion of construction of the access roads,” the minister’s written response reads.
On the project completion date, the minister wrote “TBC”, or “to be confirmed”.
At the sod-turning event in April 2014, a month before the general elections, former president Jacob Zuma promised locals that over 7 000 jobs would be created by the project.
Zuma was flanked by the then-minister of water affairs, Edna Molewa, former premier of Eastern Cape Noxolo Kiviet, then-minister of economic
development Ebrahim Patel and erstwhile minister of public works Thulas Nxesi.
“The project is expected to create about 6 700 jobs per annum during the construction phase and 6 500 jobs per annum during the operational phase…
“Our government will indeed not rest until all our people have access to decent shelter, water and food. And please go and vote during the elections on the seventh of May, for these achievements to be consolidated,” Zuma said at the event.
It was understood at the time that the South African and Chinese governments were engaged in negotiations on funding models available for the project through the bilateral Forum for China-Africa Cooperation agreements.
The Mzimvubu water project entails developing two dams – the Ntabelanga and Lalini.
The proposed Ntabelanga Dam will store an estimated 490 million cubic metres of water, with the smaller Lalini Dam holding 232 million cubic metres.
The Mzimvubu River flows from the northeastern end of Eastern Cape, from Matatiele bordering Lesotho, through to the Indian Ocean at Port St Johns.
The river is one of the largest currently without a dam in the country.
Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane expressed his displeasure at the delay of the project but said the minister of finance had committed that a funding model and partners will be finalised before the mid-term budget policy statement set for October.
“Taking into consideration the state of the area (it is rural and residents drink dirty water from the river), how are they expected to continue living healthy lives?
Where are they expected to have access to clean water from?” he asked.
Mchunu also listed other major water projects that have been delayed across the country.
These include the Great Letaba water augmentation project (Nwamitwa Dam) in Limpopo, which he said was delayed because of “insufficient funding for project implementation”.
The Berg River Voëlvlei augmentation scheme in Western Cape has also been delayed due to “delay in securing funding and delay in finalising water supply agreements”.
The Stephen Dlamini Dam in KwaZulu-Natal has also been held back because of a lack of funding.
“The minister issued a directive to Umgeni Water to fund and implement the Stephen Dlamini Dam project,” reads the minister’s response.
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