RESIDENTS around Mangochi Boma will have to wait a little longer before starting to experience an improvement in water supply from the new multibillion kwacha water treatment plant that President Peter Mutharika opened last week.
Authorities at the Southern Region Water Board (SRWB) admitted that Malawians will continue facing water challenges if the current power outages will not be solved.
These sentiments also have come after people complained of erratic water supply despite that the new plant has a capacity to store and supply more water than the current water demand for the district.
The board’s Zone Manager for Mangochi, Bright Piyo, said that they are failing to efficiently operate the plant due to erratic power supply by the Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi (Escom).
He said unless there is an alternative source of power, the situation will remain the same.
“The only challenge is energy to pump water from our source. We are facing continuous electricity interruptions from Escom and having an alternative power supply like generators might be more expensive, such that the cost of water can be unbearable for our consumers and we don’t want that to happen,” he said.
On March 22, Mutharika officially opened the water treatment plant which has a capacity to supply 8 million litres of water per day and it is projected that the plant can serve the population of Mangochi for the next 15 years.
However, water problems in Mangochi have persisted as the plant is not functioning properly.