Shire Valley project deadline extended
Malawians will have to wait longer to see benefits of the Shire Valley Transformation Programme (SVTP), a multi-billion kwacha mega irrigation project, as the rollout deadline has moved from this December to June 2025.
Project implementers have attributed the delay to changes in the construction of a water intake for the canal.
During President Lazarus Chakwera’s visit to the project site in Chikwawa yesterday, it also emerged that an additional $150 million (about K263 billion) is required for the completion of Phase 1 of the project.
Speaking in an interview yesterday, SVTP project coordinator Stanley Khaila said initially they wanted to construct the water intake separately from the Electricity Generation Company Kapichira Dam on the Shire River, but now the plan is for the intake to be part of the dam.
“However, for the rehabilitation of the dam, the designs are not ready and a contractor is yet to be recruited which means the construction of the intake will be delayed,” he said.
Khaila said they have since started constructing a temporary conveyance to tap water from Shire River to the canal at SVTP. He said this is expected to be completed in May 2025.
The conveyance will allow farmers belonging to Mwanaalirenji and Kambadwe cooperatives to start growing crops such as cotton, soya beans and pepper on at least 500 hectares (ha) from June 2025.
Khaila said the plan is to continue expanding the land under cultivation and in the long-term attract investors who will set up processing plants in Nsanje and Chikwawa for value addition.
On the additional funds, he said they will cover construction of main and secondary canals, grants to farmers and operational costs.
“We have money for phase 2, but we do not want to take this money to complete phase 1 works,” said Khaila.
Briefing the President during the tour monitored on MBC television, Kambadwe Cooperative chairperson Samson Beyadi said they plan to invest K1.83 billion comprising K1.4 billion project grant and K431 million from their contributions to cultivate 112ha.
Mwanaalirenji Cooperative board secretary Theresa Mwalija said their budget is K14 billion out of which K10 billion will come from SVTP and the cooperative plans to cultivate 774ha.
In his remarks, the President encouraged the farmers to take advantage of the project to realise desirable fruits and transform their lives.
The SVTP targets to irrigate 43 370ha in Chikwawa and Nsanje districts where 48 400 households are set to benefit through irrigation.
Works include construction of 118-kilometre (km) canal as well as bridges, drainages, footbridges and flood protection banks. It is expected that 52 km of the canal would have been completed by December this year.
SVTP is jointly financed by the World Bank, African Development Bank, International Development Association, Fund for International Development, Global Environment Facility and the Malawi Government with a budget of about $519 million or about K910 billion ($234 million in phase one and $285 million in phase II).
