Four hundred solar-powered boreholes will be drilled by the Government in Matabeleland North by the end of this year, which will boost access to clean water and facilitate establishment of nutritional gardens in line with the Presidential Rural Development Programme.

Over the next five years the Government plans to drill a borehole in every one of the 35 000 villages, plus one in every one of the 9 600 schools, but the teams are working in all provinces and districts so the network will be a little patchy at first and get denser as ever more boreholes are drilled.

Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Minister Anxious Masuka launched the ambitious borehole drilling programme for the province on Friday in Ward 12 of Makhwatheni area under Chief Sikhobokhobo in Nkayi District.

The minister, who was accompanied by local Member of the House of Assembly Dr Sithembiso Nyoni, who is also Minister of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprise Development, and Matabeleland North Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Cde Richard Moyo, handed over one borehole drilling rig and said four more rigs will be delivered to the province next month.

The upliftment of lives of rural populations is at the heart of the Second Republic’s inclusive economic transformation agenda, and buttresses the devolution focus, which is aimed at ensuring that no place is left behind in terms of development.

The first drilling was championed by President Mnangagwa at the now thriving Sekusile Nutritional Garden at Makoroko, Mangwe District, in Matabeleland South last year in December.

The programme has now covered all rural provinces countrywide and goes a long way in helping communities to use local resources to uplift their lives. Nkayi is one of the districts prone to water challenges linked to climate change and non-availability of boreholes in many places, which frustrates villagers and civil servants operating in such areas.

While Nkayi district is well known for being dry and for having deep water table that can go beyond 100 meters, at just 25 meters the borehole rig by Friday had hit water with engineers saying they will sink the hole deeper to ensure sustainable supplies.

“The Presidential Rural Development Programme is a programme that the President has deliberately launched to uplift the livelihood of all Zimbabweans,” said Dr Masuka in his address.

“It has three components, the first that we see here is that every village in Zimbabwe should have a borehole. Vision 2030 cannot be achieved when women and girls walk long distances with 20 litres on their heads.

“There are 192 wards in Matabeleland North and this drilling rig and the four that are coming will drill initial two per ward so that is about 400 boreholes that we will drill before Christmas this year by the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa).

“The Provincial Minister (Richard Moyo) if you could also make sure that all chiefs who don’t have boreholes as the rig passes, they drill also at the chiefs’ homesteads.”

Dr Masuka said under this programme, President Mnangagwa has vowed to provide clean water and that clean water will also be an economic enabler.

He said each of the 35 000 villages in the country will have a borehole and a nutrition garden by 2025, adding that Zinwa has been given the mandate to drive the programme.

Dr Masuka said the borehole drilling equipment will not leave the district before the mandate of each village having a borehole is achieved while the other four rigs that will be given to the province will be sent to other districts.

“Next month, just after Heroes, we will be delivering four more rigs to Matabeleland North Province. Initially, each rig will drill two boreholes in a ward,” he said.

“So, this drilling rig will not leave Nkayi until it has covered two villages per ward and the other rigs will be allocated to other districts. Your one-hectare garden here will be the training center for Nkayi District.

“You need to select 10 people who will be taken to Makorokoro Village (Mangwe District) to learn what is happening and start practicing here.”

Dr Masuka said departments under his ministry will also assist the village in coming up with the prosperous nutritional garden.

Besides the 400 boreholes for the province this year, Dr Masuka said more boreholes will be drilled for schools and youth run projects

“We will drill two boreholes per ward for Youth Agricultural Development Centers. We are also going to drill a borehole in every school, for the 9 600 schools in Zimbabwe,” Dr Masuka said.

“For this school here, Makhwatheni Primary, we will connect pipe water for the pupils and to the teachers houses.”

Dr Masuka warned against abuse of the rigs by politicians saying the water facilities were being installed with satellite-controlled system for easy tracking while maps for where boreholes are to be drilled in each district have also been availed for further monitoring.

In his remarks, Minister Moyo hailed President Mnangagwa and the Second Republic for transforming rural livelihoods and extending such programmes to his province.

He said the Presidential Rural Development Programme was a game-charger, which will transform the lives of people and lift them out of poverty as water was a key resource.

“The launch today of the Presidential Rural Development Programme should be seen as a for-runner to the better times that the Second Republic is focused on bringing to the generality of the citizens,” said Minister Moyo.

“This programme is a highly welcome development in the province and we wish to assure you that we will give our uttermost support and keep this rig safe.

“It is, therefore, without doubt that the programme is addressing a number of socio-economic gaps that are extended in our rural communities.

“The programme has potential to radically uplift the rural community livelihood and to reduce the inequality gaps between rural and urban communities.”

Minister Moyo said the construction of Ziminya Dam, which will come with a complete modern treatment plant to address Nkayi urban water challenges, as well as an irrigation scheme, was testimony enough of the Second Republic`s commitment to industrialise rural areas and uplift the lives of the people throughout the country.

Dr Nyoni said they chose Makhwatheni village after community leaders had sent her to President Mnangagwa last year to plead for a solution to the water problems.

“President Mnangagwa`s politics is developmental and we must all welcome this. This development shows that our President is a listening President who responds to our requests,” she said.

“We need to start digging to prepare for the piped water scheme in our homes and institutions.”

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