Africa-Press – Eswatini. His Majesty King Mswati III brought smiles to the populace of Shiselweni Region when he told them to wipe their tears as he had heard their cries.
In vernacular, the King said; “Namuhla ngitonesula tinyembeti ngoba ngikuvile kukhala kwenu.” The King said this yesterday after cutting the sod for the construction of the over E3.5 billion Mpakeni Dam, which is part of the multi-billion Emalangeni Mkhondvo-Ngwavuma Water Augmentation Project. The project will be carried out in phases and Phase I is the construction of Mpakeni Dam, in Lavumisa, Shiselweni Region. He said they always send the Eswatini Water and Agricultural Development Enterprise (ESWADE) out to assess communities and it usually comes back with reports which comprises of the people’s various needs and means on how those needs could be met.
He said all along, the Shiselweni Region was one of the most affected regions in the country during times of famine. However, he said with construction of the dam project, such would be a thing of the past as the people of Shiselweni would have sufficient water supply to survive. On top of that, the King said another need, which was contained in the ESWADE report, was that the people of Mpakeni and surrounding areas travel long distances when going to hospital because public transport was scarce due to poor roads. “It was painful for me to hear this,” the king said.
He said it was for this reason that as government, they decided that the dam project should also come with a state-of-the-art health facility that would service the people of Mpakeni and surrounding areas. On top of that, he King said they also agreed that the project should also come with a development of the road infrastructure. In that regard, he said the dusty gravel road from Siphambanweni (along Nhlangano/Lavumisa Public Road) to the dam, would be tarred. He said the tarring of the road would be done in two phases.
When the King was announcing the developments the populace of Mpakeni and surrounding areas in the Shiselweni Region responded by clapping hands, blowing whistles and shouting ululations and praises to the King. In that regard, the King said Mpakeni Dam construction was the first component under the Mkhondvo-Ngwavuma Water Augmentation Project. He said it was a momentous occasion for the Kingdom of Eswatini and their entire population of the respective chiefdoms, which would benefit immensely from it.
Irrigation
After that the King said in its early phase, the dam project was expected to put about 10 000 hectares of land under irrigation in the Shiselweni Region, with the potential to expand and develop more in the future. “In its totality, the project will irrigate 30 000 hectares of land and benefit a total of 100 000 emaSwati,” the King said. He said the project design presents infinite investment opportunities and socio-economic benefits, such as a proposed multi-billion Emalangeni Eco-City, a hydropower plant and an agro-industrial processing zone. “It is, therefore, anticipated that 10 000 jobs will be created for emaSwati,” the King added.
He said the kingdom remains grateful for the continued partnerships and good relations with international development funding institutions, like the African Development Bank for financing Phase I of the Mkho- ndvo-Ngwavuma project to the value of E3.5 billion.The King also thanked the financial institutions for providing loans to farmers, particularly sugarcane associations. He also highlighted that the project targets eight chiefdoms in the Shiselweni Region: Qomintaba, Zombodze Emuva, Manyiseni, Nsingizini, Kaliba, Lushiyini, Nyatsini and Ndushulweni. He then encouraged all these chiefdoms to work closely with the contractor so that this project could become a great success.
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