The Government intends to spend US$200 (approx Rwf 120 billion) on the construction of the Mutobo water project, Infrastructure Minister, Albert Nsengiyumva, told Parliament yesterday.The project, according to the minister, would facilitate the piping of clean water from Mutobo in Musanze District to Kigali.“Mutobo has the capacity to produce water that could supply the entire Kigali City and the neighbouring districts,” Nsengiyumva told the Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee this week.According to Energy Water and Sanitation Authority, Mutobo water treatment plant that was first installed in 1988, currently processes 2,162 cubic litres of water but has a daily capacity of 12,500 cubic litres.A government commissioned study conducted in 1999 indicated that more clean water would be pumped from the area.The bulk of water supply to Kigali City come from Kimisagara, Nzove, Karenge among others. The current water production in the city stands at about 68,000 cubic metres per day which would gradually rise to 93,000 m3/day with the optimisation of the Nzove water treatment plant.“Ever since we put Mutobo project on the market, there have been many companies that have expressed interest in piping the water to Kigali; we picked eight of them. They will present their offers in July and that is when we will pick the best,” Nsengiyumva explained.Elaborating the current state of the Mutobo water project, the Minister said that it is a friendly project because the water is clear and does not require a lot of purifying chemicals but singled out laying of pipes to pump the water to Kigali as the expensive component.“We actually want the company that will take this tender to also construct a pipe manufacturing factory…Water is a social good and it’s difficult for a private investor to put in their money but the government subsidises the costs to enable all people to access water. This is why we are considering many options to ensure we realise this project.”In issuing the bids for potential contractors, Nsengiyumva said his ministry would pick the best companies that offer the best policy to source for funding for the project and the incentives that accompany the rollout.Currently, four different companies have expressed interest to conduct the supervisory task while another eight look ahead to to carry out construction works scheduled to kick off next month.Earlier, State Minister for Energy, Emma Francoise Isumbingabo, was questioned by lawmakers about a study and proposals undertaken by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) on the Mutobo water project. The government had earlier consulted IFC as an advisor to conduct a feasibility study of the project whose findings indicated that the project was impossible to realise on the grounds that it was very expensive and required a Public Private Partnership model. But the minister said the government had ignored the IFC’s advice. “We are going ahead with this project because we believe it is best for us and we are getting quality water that doesn’t require much treatment. We decided to proceed with the project considering that it’s a social good and we have to increase clean water accessibility in the country.” She pointed out that, Mutobo water project has an added advantage considering the topography because it does not require any pumping which makes it cheaper.Part of IFC’s study had indicated that if the project is to be realised, a 100km pipeline had to be constructed to supply 100,000 m³ to Kigali per day.
