23 Feb 2025

Maun water woes will soon be a thing of the past as the long-awaited mega water project is near completion. 

The minister of Water and Human Settlement, Mr Onneetse Ramogapi, who toured the project to appreciate its progress, expressed gratitude in an interview, noting that the project was a permanent solution to the longstanding water crisis experienced in Maun. 

The P3.4 billion Maun Phase II Water Supply and Sanitation project, which is aimed at ensuring water supply security and improving sanitation, is said to be 98 per cent complete and the minister anticipated that it would soon be fully operational as contractors. The project is expected to improve the water supply in Maun and the outlying villages.  Mr Ramogapi acknowledged that certain components of the project had been put in use even before the completion of the whole project, citing the Sexaxa water treatment plant aimed at improving water supply in Sexaxa area and surrounding villages. 

Matsaudi, Shorobe, Sekapane and Sexaxa villages are said to be benefiting from the project as they have been connected to the upgraded water supply network. The minister highlighted that the plant was providing clean and safe water for human consumption. 

“I acknowledge that residents have suffered for many years as Maun has been experiencing persistent water shortage and I can assure them that the project is almost complete and water scarcity will be the thing of the past,” he added. 

The project was undertaken by four contractors working on interconnected phases focusing on water reticulation, sanitation networks, boreholes, treatment plants, storage reservoirs and water supply connections among others. 

The first contractor focused on the design, supply and building of water distribution network, sanitation reticulation, telemetry and other associated works while the second one undertook borehole equipping, boreholes collector lines, water treatment plants and transmission pipelines, booster stations and associated works. 

The other ontractor focused on Maun wastewater treatment plant at east and west including instrumentation and control associated works while the last one implemented Maun satellite villages connections including a treatment plant at Sexaxa. 

The project consultant, Mr Daves Nkala concurred that the project was almost complete as the contractors were working on final touches. Some project components, he said, had been commissioned citing that they were awaiting electricity connection at some boreholes and working towards completing the sanitation works. 

He said Maun wastewater treatment plant was completed last October and urged residents to connect the wastewater lines to the sewage system in large numbers, adding that currently, only 600 homes had been connected. “We need over 2000 people to connect because the full capacity of the project is huge. 

Efforts are underway to embark on public education to sensitise members of the community about the importance of the sanitation services as well as to encourage them to fully utilize it,” he added. ENDS