Kigoma Municipal water project for completion 2017

 

THE 39bn/- water project implemented by the government in collaboration with the European Union (EU) and Germany through KfW Bank in Kigoma municipality is due for completion April, next year.

This was revealed yesterday by the Minister for Water and Irrigation, Mr Gerson Lwenge, when responding to a question by Mr Zitto Kabwe. Mr Zitto who is a Member of Parliament (MP) for Kigoma (Chadema) had wanted to know when the water project will be completed as the previously planned date has already expired and thousands of Kigoma residents are suffering for lacking water.

“I also want to know legal action and disciplinary measures which have so far been taken against the contractor carrying out the water project for such unnecessary delay,” Mr Kabwe queried. The minister said the project executed by Spencon Services Limited started in March 2013 and was due for completion in March 2015.

He said when completed water shortage will remain a thing of the past. He said the water project is long overdue because there was a delay in compensating residents who surrendered their pieces of land for the project and the deadline was extended to December 2015.

The minister said that due to change of company’s management and limited capital, the contractor failed to speed up the project’s execution and as of last month, implementation had reached 66 per cent. Basing on the contract, the Minister told the House that the government penalised the contractor for delaying the project by imposing a fine of 3.9bn/- , which is 10 per cent of the total project cost.

“We have also written to the contractor informing him that the ministry has placed him under the non performing category and all relevant authorities including Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and the Contractors Registration Board (CRB) have been informed,” the minister noted.