Gwabalanda residents relying on one borehole

Gwabalanda, a suburb of Bulawayo, is experiencing severe water shortages, with only one borehole supplying the entire community.

This comes at a time when Bulawayo is experiencing difficulty obtaining water, especially during the prolonged water shedding exercise that surpasses the scheduled 120-hour programme and whose water supply is worsened by faulty pipes and bursts.

In a desperate plea for help, residents in Gwabalanda are calling for more boreholes to be installed in the area to lessen the burden of the water crisis. 

“We are struggling; the water shortage is causing health issues. Although we boil water, there are times when we completely run out, leaving us unable to sanitise the little water we have. This results in stomach ailments,” said Roda Sibanda, a resident who lamented the struggles people faced when taps run dry during a site visit by CITE. 

Sibanda highlighted the lack of alternative boreholes in her section, making it challenging for the elderly to travel to other areas in search of water.

“People now rely on neighbours with JoJo tanks but can that be a sustainable solution?” asked Sibanda.

Sibanda emphasised the importance of water for proper hygiene, stating people could not visit the toilet when the need to relieve themselves came.

“Water is crucial for flushing toilets. If we resort to using bathwater, our toilets emit foul odours, attracting flies and causing diarrheal illnesses,” she said.

Another resident, Busisiwe Mowane, added that mothers with young children were also struggling to cope.

“We have to ask assistance from neighbours with vehicles to transport water from other areas.Our appeal is for boreholes to be installed in our suburb,” Mowane said. 

The residents expressed disappointment by the lack of bowser help and the limited accessibility of the current borehole, as they need to have transportation to collect water.

“Women, who bear the brunt of household chores, are disproportionately affected by the water shortage. While organisations have attempted to assist by drilling boreholes, challenges with water tables persist,” explained Dennis Mathe, a representative of the Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) in Gwabalanda.

Mathe said the inadequacy of the existing borehole to sustain the suburb’s population made access to water a challenge.  

He highlighted community efforts to mitigate the crisis, including pooling funds to purchase water from private suppliers, however stressed the need for long-term solutions to address the water scarcity. 

Another representative of the Bulawayo Resident Association (BURA), one Ngwenya, concurred that although boreholes exist within other boundaries, they are far from residents, compounding the accessibility issue during the crisis.  

 “We have a scheduled timetable but we are not sure about it. We also adjust the timetable based on the water shedding exercise while other residents don’t have enough water containers to store water,” Ngwenya said. 

Residents also mentioned efforts to improve security around the borehole, raising concerns of tampering and theft. 

 “At one point , some people drained water from the system, with an intention to steal the jojo tank,” Ngwenya said. 

The residents asked that more boreholes be put in various locations within the ward to improve access to water. 

Reached for comment, Ward 16 Councillor, Greater Gumede, said efforts to drill more boreholes in the ward by the local authority and other players are underway.

“There are some areas which say they are not receiving water even if there is water from the taps. I raised that issue in council and the engineers said they will also make follow ups and fix it. Maybe it’s an issue of a closed valve,” said Cllr Gumede.

Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart is also on record  reassuring  residents of the local authority’s confidence in the city’s water supply during the dry winter season.