NRWB pledges potable water for all by 2020
Northern Region Water Board (NRWB) has unveiled an ambitious plan to supply potable water for all by bringing taps to nearly 1.5 million people to achieve the target.
On Tuesday, NRWB launched a strategic plan, which requires its 400-strong workforce to ensure that all people have safe drinking water by 2020.
NRWB chief executive officer Titus Mtegha said the board’s water system covers nearly 80 percent of the region with almost 40 000 connections supplying tap water to about 280 000 people.
Mtegha indicated that the coverage area has jumped from 60 to 80 percent in the past decade. However, a head count mirrors a huge unmet demand with the 2008 Population and Housing Census showing the Northern Region has more than 1.7 million people.
Mtegha decried rapid population growth for exerting pressure on the board, catalysing “an urgent need” to construct new dams to avert a looming water crisis in Mzuzu and Mzimba.
“Time has come for the board to set a new course of action contained in the strategic plan,” he said.
The statutory company plans to invest nearly K1 billion by June 30 this year, marking a start of over K5 billion injection to increase access to safe water in the next five years, according to Mtegha.
“The strategic plan calls for a shift from basics to excellence. It also mirrors another commitment by NRWB to further improve the supply of potable water in the Northern Region,” said board chairperson Peter Mwanza.
Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development Principal Secretary Sandram Mawelu commended NRWB for making “a lot of gains” in 19 years of existence.
