A detailed design for the construction of Muvumba multipurpose dam in Nyagatare District in the Eastern Province should be out by October after the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) presented a detailed feasibility study of the project yesterday.

The study was carried out by K-Water and Yooshin companies with funding from KOICA and the Rwanda Natural Resources Authority (RNRA).

Plans to build the dam for hydropower generation and provision of water for irrigation and domestic use commenced in December 2013. The multipurpose dam is expected to ensure stable water supply for domestic use in Nyagatare, Karangazi and Rwimiyaga sectors when it is completed.

It will also serve livestock farmers in Musheli, Rwempasha, Tabagwe, Nyagatare and Rukomo sectors.

The dam will have a total storage of 73.16 million cubic meters, 38 metres high, 1.2 kilometres in length and it will have a reservoir area of 5.56 square kilometres.

After presentation of the feasibility study findings in Kigali yesterday, the RNRA director general, Emmanuel Nkurunziza, said the government was committed to having the dam become a reality, "especially given the acute water shortage facing the country today”.

"Once we have the detailed designs, the government will give its full support to ensure it’s implemented because we now know the importance of multipurpose dams,” he said.

He added that Rwanda had a net outflow of water aligned between the catchment areas of the river Congo and the River Nile meaning the rivers either flow west to the DR Congo or east to the Nile, leaving very limited water resources in the country.

He noted that multipurpose dams have the advantage of increasing the amount of water in the reservoir for domestic use, irrigation and electricity generation.

He said the dam will address the water shortage in the country as the average Rwandan gets 670 cubic meters of water instead of at least 1,000 cubic meters.

"This is why we commend KOICA for taking on a sector that is really important. Today we are transitioning from the feasibility study to how the detailed designs can be undertaken and I hope together we can address the significant water resource requirements that our country faces,” he said.

Choi Sungho, the vice-president of KOICA, said water resource development through construction of multipurpose dams contributed to the socio-economic development of South Koreans, a solution they hope to replicate in Rwanda.

After the feasibility study, KOICA started funding detailed designs for the whole project including some layouts for irrigation, water supply and hydropower. These designs are expected to be completed by October 2015 and are being carried out by Korean Engineering Consultants Corporation, a renowned South Korean firm. The preliminary cost for the dam is estimated to be at $172.6 million although the final cost will be provided after the detailed design.

KOICA has undertaken 106 water projects in the world worth $400 million in total of which Africa takes 25 per cent.

Sungho said Rwanda was priority in the projects as relations between Rwanda and South Korea grew stronger by the day.