By George Bulombola

Mzuzu, March 20, Mana: As is common and a cultural norm in Mzimba District, Mateyo Ndhlovu Village is named after Mateyo Ndhlovu, the Inkosana (traditional leader) in the area – following the area’s Ngoni Tribe lineage.

Perched on the outskirts of Ekwendeni Trading Centre, the village sits just a kilometre away from Lunyangwa River, which is the main raw water source for Ekwendeni and Mzuzu City.

Until 2022, Lunyangwa River provided a lifeline for the village and surrounding areas, albeit at a cost with numerous sanitation and hygiene challenges plaguing the village as the community members drank the raw water from the river.

“We didn’t have safe drinking tap water. Lunyangwa provided water for all our needs from drinking to cooking and bathing. While the water was free, that freeness came at a cost.

We lost lives to cholera and other waterborne related diseases from drinking raw water from the river as the water is unsafe,” explains Inkosana Mateyo Ndhlovu.

According to the traditional leader, during the rainy season, the situation worsened as the water in the river became inconsumable as it was infested with mud, following environmental degradation in the upper areas including its catchment.

“The water was muddy. We could use it neither for drinking nor bathing. Now it became a hustle of walking long distances to look for water as we did not even have a borehole. This greatly affected my community as productivity dropped,” he narrated.

The Inkosana added that his village relies on farming and absence of water meant community members spending a lot of time looking for water instead of tending to their fields of crops.

“And there was one more troubling thing,” he laments with a somber face, “we are farmers and naturally with a lot of livestock. So we were sharing our only source of water with cattle, goats, dogs and wild animals.”

According to Ndhlovu, that brought conflict in the village as his subjects blamed each other for the unhygienic conditions and rising cases of water borne diseases.

“My prayer was always for government to at least give us a borehole. At least, that would have pacified my village,” he lamented.

At the turn of 2022, him and his subjects got more than what they had bargained for – a sustainable piped water system powered by clean energy at Ekwendeni. It was a turning point for Ndhlovu and his subjects as they now started enjoying their full right to safe drinking water.

The Malawi Government, through the Northern Region Water Board, has implemented the Malawi NRWB Water Efficiency Project with €24.6 million financing from the European Investment Bank (EIB).

 Among other interventions, in Ekwendeni, the project has constructed a concrete weir across Lunyangwa River, which has increased the raw water supply available from the river from 1.3 million litres to 8.1 million litres per day; upgraded the water treatment from a paltry 800 000 litres per day to 6.6 million litres daily capacity and upgraded 5.5 kilometres of transmission line to Bobo and Chinungu tanks.

In addition, the project has upgraded 13 kilometres of water distribution network, including extending supply to Mateyu Ndhlovu Village on the outskirts of the town. At the village, the Board installed one of the communal water points as part of the project.  

According to Inkosana Ndhlovu, the safe drinking water has not only helped improve water supply and reduce cases of water borne diseases but has also helped his community dodge bullets of conflicts.

“Imagine sleeping peacefully knowing that we will not work up in the middle of the night to take someone to the hospital because they are sick from drinking unsafe water from the river.

Imagine sleeping knowing that tomorrow, the first thing we will do is to go and tend to our gardens not the previous daily routine of walking a distance to access water before we go to our gardens already tired.

“Imagine sleeping knowing I will not wake up to mediate or resolve water related conflicts where someone has taken his cattle to the same spot we were drawing water from. This water has brought peace in my community,” Ndhlovu explained, beaming with joy.

Today, Inkosana Ndhlovu has moved from the communal water tap to his own prepaid connection at his house where he can easily buy water units with no threat of disconnection.

“Instead of drinking from a public tap, I wanted this feel-good life close to me with this new technology of prepaid meters where I can buy water units without being worried of a disconnection” he says with a grin.

Now, a number of individual prepaid connections are dotting the village, accelerated by Malawi Government’s free new water connection programme - with each household keen to have water at their doorstep.

“We are steadily running with government’s vision of ensuring that everyone has access to potable water by year 2030 and that no one is left behind in line with Sustainable Development Goal no six, which calls for potable water and sanitation for all by year 2030,” chipped in Francis Munthali, Chief Executive Officer of Northern Region Water Board.

Over 15,000 new prepaid connections now dot Ekwendeni Town and Mzuzu City, including Moyale Barracks, as part of the project.

“With prepaid meters, the project has greatly improved our relationship with customers and improved water use efficiency as customers are now able to closely monitor their usage. Constant fights and disagreements over water bills is now history with customers on prepaid connections,” added Munthali.

This peace and tranquility can be felt as the sun sets on Mateyo Ndhlovu Village with its fading orange hues serenely calling it a day on the village – with members of the village calmly sharing last stories of the day in their groups.

The EIB financed water supply project has transformed Ekwendeni from a perennial water stressed area to one with plenty and a happy people.