XIKUNDU - The Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry, Ms Buyelwa Sonjica, together with Mr Poul Nielson, European Commissioner for Development, celebrated ten years of cooperation in the water services sector between the European Union and South Africa, by officially opening a Water Weir at Xikundu Village on Tuesday.

The Xikundu Water Weir is part of the Nandoni Dam which will be the biggest dam in the province when finished. Sonjica said that, since the establishment of democracy in South Africa, one of the greatest challenges has been to provide basic services and the related infrastructures to the majority of South Africans. Besides the obvious benefits of receiving clean, safe water and sanitation, the service delivery also aims to improve the quality of life and contribute to poverty alleviation of beneficiary communities, she said.

“As South Africa’s biggest development partner, the EU has recognised the need, as well as the government’s priority focus in this area,” Ms Sonjica said.

She further said that, since 1994, the European Commission has worked closely with the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry in pursuit of providing portable water and sanitation to millions of South Africans.

Sonjica thanked Nielsen for the EU’s continued support to service delivery and poverty alleviation in South Africa. The EU’s involvement in the water sector dates back to 1994, when it supported five initiatives in the sector. These include support to NGO and government programmes in Limpopo and the Eastern Cape.

The Xikundu Water Treatment Works is part of the Luvuvhu River Government Water Scheme. The plant produces 20 megalitres a day and it is supplying several villages that did not have access to safe drinking water before. About 6 000 people of Xikundu village received water from this scheme in 2003. Recently, a connection was made to the existing Malamulele-Mhinga pipeline that saw nearly 60 000 people receiving water from this scheme.

The Minister also said that substantial progress towards reaching targets for basic sanitation had been made in Xikundu village. Xikundu was one of the beneficiaries of the Sector Support Programme that saw the provision of VIP toilets for basic sanitation.