Lilongwe-Salima water project among priorities in K 2.2tn Malawi budget

The Tonse Alliance government is geared to execute the much-awaited Lilongwe-Salima water supply project to tap water from Salima to Lilongwe which was awarded to  South Africa-based engineering firm, Khato Civils.

Minister of Finance Felix Mlusu on Friday  said when he presented the 2020/ 2021 National budget estimated at K2.2 trillion, that the Lilongwe-Salima water supply  has been included in the fiscal year.

“Madam Speaker, under the Irrigation and Water Development, Government will implement a number of projects including the following: Southern Region and Blantyre Water Board Projects; Lilongwe Water and Sanitation Project; Salima-Lilongwe Water Project; Nkhatabay Town Water Supply Project; and Karonga Town Water Supply Project,” said Mlusu.

The  Lilongwe –Salima water supply project, if done, is expected to provide water to the city of Lilongwe via a 120- kilometre pipeline from Lake Malawi.

Mlusu said the Tonse Alliance led government will speed up implementation of development projects by ensuring that “only projects with detailed designs are allocated resources in the budget.”

He said  some projects may have designs but still require to undergo a review as those projects may have taken time to commence.

Khato Civils, owned by South African-based Malawian business mogul Simbi Phiri, was awarded the US $400 million Lilongwe-Salima water project  but has cut the cost to about US $298 million citing a new innovation in delivering the project.

Simbi Phiri stated that the company had brought new equipment that could do the job in a shorter period, leading to the reduction of project cost. He did not reveal the details of the new equipment and the technology involved.

However according to the company’s profile, the firm has over the past few years made significant investment towards building a strong equipment backbone.

The Lilongwe-Salima Water Supply Project has in the past failed to roll out as it has been marred by controversies for years. The civil and legal issues surrounding the project implementation have since been resolved. Work on the project is set to commence soon.

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.