Africa Water, Sanitation & Hygiene January - February 2016 vol.11 no.1 | Page 8
NEWS in brief
Around Africa
This comes as much of
South Africa remains in
the grips of the worst
drought in two decades.
Water levels at the
country’s dams continue
to fall.
Mokonyane
visited
Mbhashe
local
municipality in Dutywa
to assess water security. She is also handed over much
needed water tankers to desperate residents.
Nomvula Mokonyane visited Mbhashe local
municipality in Dutywa to assess water security.
The minister says she believes the intervention will address
the crisis.
“We have now since agreed that we are going to bring in
teams together with MEC (Fikile) Xasa that will deal with
Dam safety that will fill assessment of these two sites and
whether to proclaim them as dams because they belong
to the municipality and second thing is that municipalities
must give us information about the dams that they belong
to them so that we assess whether they are up to standard.
Tanzania
Tanzania to Get Sh3 Trillion for Massive Water Project
Dar es Salaam — Minister for Water
and Irrigation, Hon. Eng. Gerson
Lwenge assured citizens that by 2020
, the lack of clean water in parts
Tanzania- especially in rural areas- will
be over.
Tanzanians, especially those in rural
Hon. Eng. Gerson
areas have had to deal with lack of
Lwenge
water and struggle on a daily basis
to secure safe drinking water by walking kilometers and
endangering their lives in crocodile invested rivers.
Eng. Lwenge said donors from different parts of the world
like World Bank, Bank of Africa and Bank of France have
confirmed that they will provide US dollar 1.4 billion around
TSh3 trillion to help solve the country’s water problem.
Sudan
He said his ministry needs TSh6 trillion to reach this goal
but the TSh3 trillion from donors will help in making sure
that the project starts soon as the government budget for
the water ministry is not yet planned until parliamentary
sessions begin soon.
AfDB and Sudan launch US $26-million Water Sector
Reform for West Kordofan State
Uganda
Mbale Cholera Cases Rise to 110
Mbale — Authorities
in Mbale District have
expressed
concern
over the rising cases of
cholera.
Waterhole in West Kordofan
Ihe African Development Bank (AfDB) and the
Government of Sudan launched the US $26-million Water
Sector Reforms and Institutional Capacity Development
project, which will benefit West Kordofan State and some
federal water sector institutions.
The project is funded with an AfDB grant of US $22
million over the next five years, financed from the Bank’s
Transitional Support Facility and its Rural Water Supply
and Sanitation Initiative. The event was presided over
by the Director of Drinking Water and Sanitation Unit
(DWSU) at the Ministry of Water Resources and the AfDB
Resident Representative Abdul Kamara. It was attended
by representatives of federal Government of Sudan, West
Kordofan State and various stakeholders and beneficiaries.
6
Africa Water, Sanitation & Hygiene • January - February 2016
Acting district health
officer Jonathan Wangisi
said since the epidemic
broke out in December,
cases have shot up from
56 to 110 while five people have died.
War against cholera.
Dr Wangisi said at least four new cases are registered every
day.
“The cumulative figures of cholera are worrying. This is
compounded by many factors, and among them is lack of
clean water in many areas,” he said.
Dr Wangisi said the most affected is Bunghokho-Mutoto
which has contaminated water sources and no pit-latrines.
The district health officer said some private clinics admit
suspected cholera victims without referring them to the
isolation centres.