18 Feb 2025

Thorough investigations will be carried out to establish the possible cause of kidney related disease in Maun and surrounding areas, says the minister of Water and Human Settlement, Mr Onneetse Ramogapi.

Responding to concerns raised by some residents during a kgotla meeting yesterday, Mr Ramogapi said the ministry was aware of some reports where some residents associated the kidney disease with water from Water Utilities Corporation and assured them that they would engage experts to get to the bottom of the issue.

Some residents complained about the brownish colour of the water supplied by WUC, alleging that it was unclean and suspected to be causing kidney diseases.

However, Mr Ramogapi informed residents that several water-sampling tests were conducted and had proven that there were no direct links to adverse health impacts, but the residents were not satisfied with the results arguing that many people were losing lives due to kidney failure associated with drinking unclean water.

The minister also pointed that they had realised that many people had drilled boreholes in Maun and were drinking water that had not been tested and suspected that the water could pose a threat to public health.

“This issue of unclean water is disturbing as it involves public health and I can assure you that experts would be engaged to establish what could be the cause of kidney related deaths and a detailed report will be produced soon,” he said.

He pointed that access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation were some of the fundamental human rights, noting that his ministry was committed to provide quality water and improved sanitation. He acknowledged that water supply has not been satisfactory particularly in Maun and promised residents that the ministry would do all in its power to find a lasting solution.

He said they intended to engage the relevant ministry to see how best they could utilise the 10 identified boreholes at Komoti, which were drilled in 2002 to stabilise the situation. Mr Ramogapi said the boreholes were idle yet they were drilled to supply wildlife with water and believed that they could assist towards improving water supply in Maun.

“I believe the boreholes can be part of the solution to severe shortage of water in your area and I have also been informed that frequent power disruption also exacerbates the situation of water shortage as some of our boreholes use electricity to pump water,” he added.

When welcoming the minister and his entourage, senior chief representative, Kgosi Oleyo Ledimo decried the severe water shortage in Maun indicating that some areas stay some months without water.

Kgosi Ledimo said the community pinned their hopes on the ongoing Maun Phase II Water Supply and Sanitation project, which aims to improve water supply and sanitation services but it has experienced delay in completion.

“The most valuable and significant natural resource on earth is water and without it, there is no life,” he said. ENDS