São Tomé proposes 1.5 million dobras to boost water supplies
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Téla Nón
Illustrative image · Thilina Alagiyawanna · Pexels · Licence PexelsState-owned company EMAE proposes investing 1.5 million dobras, or around 60,000 euros, to capture and treat river water and supply Mé-Zochi reservoirs. Water director Nilton Lima says the government has not yet granted the funding, as the sources used by the district can no longer meet demand, according to Téla Nón.
The government of São Tomé and Príncipe is considering a plan costing 1.5 million dobras, or around 60,000 euros, to strengthen water supplies from rivers, Nilton Lima, water director at state-owned EMAE, told Téla Nón. The project would capture, treat and channel water from rivers to reservoirs currently supplied by springs.
A technical team found that several reservoirs in Mé-Zochi district were empty. Nilton Lima explained that the springs could no longer meet demand, while climate change was making the situation worse. The government has not yet released the requested funding.
The shortage is affecting, among other facilities, Ayres de Menezes Central Hospital, whose supply depends on the Agrião spring reservoir in Vila da Madalena. Prime Minister Américo Ramos, who met the technical team, acknowledged that water catchments had received little investment and that some infrastructure dated back to the colonial period or the first years of independence.
These facilities now have to serve more than 200,000 people on São Tomé island, compared with around 80,000 when they were designed. The water director also cited ageing pipes and the distribution network, while the government has spent more than 15 million euros over the past 12 months on purchasing and maintaining generators to address the electricity crisis, according to Téla Nón.
