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Blessing Karubwa recently in Tsholotsho
THE District Development Fund (DDF) has pledged to drill 20 boreholes for Tsholotsho District in Matabeleland North Province to avert water challenges in the area.
This was said by the DDF Permanent Secretary in the office of the President and Cabinet, Mr Christopher Shumba, on Wednesday at Tsholotsho Centre.
He said the pledge was in line with Vision 2030.
Mr Shumba said the visit was a follow-up to one by a hydrologist whom he had sent to Tsholotsho to drill boreholes for chiefs and other needy communities.
The permanent secretary said he wanted to find out why some chiefs got wet holes while others did not.
Presenting the causes leading to the failure of getting wet holes, chiefs from Tsholotsho said the district has collapsible soils.
“We are going to drill more boreholes in the area and we are going to leave a hydro-geologist to survey 20 more sites,” said Mr Shumba
Speaking during the same meeting, Matabeleland North Senator Cde Alice Dube, said the Tsholotsho district is in urgent need of more boreholes and dams.
Cde Dube said the whole district has water shortages for both humans and animals.
She appealed to Government to intervene as averting the issue was in line with Vision 2030.
“Water is really a problem, especially in Tsholotsho North. Villagers walk about 10 kilometres searching for water while in some areas like in ward one there is totally no water,” she said.
“We need boreholes in every village. We have almost five villages in one ward and there are only two boreholes so we wish that every village gets a borehole. We have 22 wards in Tsholotsho district. We are also in need of more dams, our dams are now silted,” said Cde Dube.
She said most boreholes in the district were broken down as they were drilled 50 years ago.
Cde Dube said Tsholotsho is a dry area that needs solar-powered boreholes.
“We are appealing for help, yes, we are seeing the efforts of President Mnangagwa and the council but as long as there is no water there is no life.
“We now want solar-powered boreholes. Our dams are also silted. We wish that those dams can be revived while new ones are being constructed. We want dams maybe one or two per ward so that we do not have conflicts with animals as they also need water just like us,” she said.
Chief Mathuphula, from Tsholotsho North highlighted the need for water adding that villagers are now given schedules to fetch water.
He said a number of surveyors have failed to drill boreholes in a number of areas in Tsholotsho.
Chief Mathuphula said the population in the district continues to increase hence overwhelming the available boreholes which later on broke down.
“The only dams which we had are already silted, forcing us to use the available and overcrowded boreholes to water our domestic animals.
“This has led to the breakdown of the only boreholes we had. In some villages, you would find more than 100 people using one borehole so we have decided to put people in groups and set aside their days of going to fetch water at the boreholes. It is really sad, we need assistance,” said Chief Mathuphula. — @ BlehKarubwa
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