Ondjiva - The minister of Energy and Waters, João Baptista Borges, on Tuesday said he was pleased with the degree of execution of the Ndué and Calucuve dams, whose aim is to combat drought in southern Cunene Province.
The two dams are expected to benefit 136,000 people, 260,000 heads of cattle, besides allowing the irrigation of 11,600 hectares of agricultural land.
Speaking to the press, the minister said that despite some constraints verified at the beginning of the project, the works progressed at a good pace and are expected to be concluded within the established timeframe.
"With the work underway, we can guarantee that by 2025 we will have the two dams and canals concluded, hoping that there will be a good rainy cycle, with sufficient water availability", the minister said.
João Baptista Borges said the two dams are part of the structuring projects on the left bank of the Cunene River, as part of the programme to combat drought in the region.
With the two dams and associated canals being built, the minister said, the set of structuring works that began with the Cafu canal will be concluded and the cyclical problems of drought in Cunene Province will be resolved.
The minister admitted, however, that some problems led to payment delay, stressing that the situation is being sorted out by the Finance Ministry.
State of Execution of the works
The Ndué dam will be 26.3 metres high and 1,260 metres long made up of a 75-kilometre-long channels and 15 wells heading to Namacunde municipality, Cubati (Cuvelai) and Oshimolo (Cuanhama) municipalities
The Calucuve dam will have 19 metres high, a storage volume of 141 million cubic metres of water, a network of canals,with a 111 kilometres length and a further 44 wells.
The minister, who is on a three-day working visit to Cunene, is due to travel to the municipalities of Cahama and Curoca on Wednesday to assess the degree of execution of the projects of the right bank of the Cunene river and the Katchavali and Ndalele dams. FI/LHE/VIC/Amp/jmc
