The three-dam system that provides water to the Central Areas of Namibia is said to be in a strong position.
Currently, the Von Bach, Swakoppoort and Omatako dams that supply the central area of Namibia have a combined storage of about 82 million cubic metres, representing 53.1% of their total capacity.
Speaking at the annual stakeholder workshop on water supply to the Central Area of Namibia (CAN) in Windhoek, the chief executive officer of NamWater revealed that the Swakoppoort Dam is currently standing at 78%, while the Von Bach Dam is at 64.3% and the Omatako Dam at 4.6%.
Abraham Nehemia noted that in addition to the three-dam system, CAN is also supported by the Windhoek reclamation plant, groundwater and managed aquifer recharge.
"Beyond the three dams, the CAN is sustained by groundwater sources in Kombat, Berg Aukas and the Windhoek aquifer. The Windhoek aquifer and the management aquifer programme are initiatives recognised internationally as modules of innovation in arid water management. These are not just water backup systems; they are strategic national assets, and their protection is not negotiable."
Nehemia attributed the dams' strong position to good rainfalls and the strict water management that NamWater implemented with its stakeholders.
However, he says despite this positive record, climate change, population growth, rapid urbanisation and the expanding economic development activities continue to place threats on the dams' potential.
"The strategic projects on our horizon are ambitious; the Kavango Link water supply system represents a long-term national solution of the highest importance. The expansion of the Berg Aukas construction and transfer capacity, the atomisation of the Waterberg water supply scheme and the Omatako bypass initiative and ongoing investigation into alternative sources within the 100-kilometre radius of Windhoek – these are not aspirational concepts; they are infrastructure imperatives, and today's workshop is part of the process of advancing them."
He urged stakeholders to ensure that the water agenda is guided by NamWater's three core principles: equity through fair access to safe water for all Namibians, economic efficiency through responsible and waste-free resource management, and environmental sustainability through safeguarding the natural systems on which water supply sources depend.