Bulawayo, (New Ziana) –The Bulawayo City Council (BCC)
has re-commissioned some of its major water supply dams, which were
decommissioned last year after hitting dead water levels due to
prolonged El Niño-induced droughts that have plagued the Southern
African region for consecutive years.
Umzingwane Dam was decommissioned in November 2023 after reaching 3.95
percent capacity while Upper Ncema Dam was decommissioned on October 2
last year after reaching 2.08 percent (its dead water level).
The recommissioning of the dams comes as a result of improved water
inflows during the 2024/2025 rainy season.
Town clerk Christopher Dube said Umzingwane Dam has received cumulative
inflows of 16 571 560 cubic liters and is currently 34.67 percent full.
“Since January 3, 2025, the City has begun abstraction of water from the
dam, and its current available volume depletion is projected to be in
December 2025,” he said.
“Upper Ncema Dam has also seen a significant recovery, with inflows of
13,738,580 cubic liters, bringing it to 33.21 percent capacity.
“The Upper Ncema, a crucial reservoir located on the same river as the
Lower Ncema Dam, is a reserve dam for the City. As such, abstraction of
water from this dam is via Lower Ncema Dam. Since the onset of the
current rainy season, the City has not released water from Upper Ncema
to Lower Ncema,”Dube explained.
Despite the improvements, Dube said the city’s overall dam water levels
remain below the required threshold.
“As of the current date, the global dam water levels have shown a 13.87
percent increase in relation to overall capacity, with inflows recorded
since November 4, 2025,” he said.
“However, the water levels in the city’s dams are significantly below
the required threshold, necessitating ongoing water conservation efforts
and strict adherence to the existing water-shedding schedule,” he said.
Speaking during a recent stakeholders’ engagement meeting, city mayor
David Coltart highlighted that construction of Glassblock Dam will
address water shortages in the short to mid-term.
“When completed, the dam will secure our water needs until 2040 and will
effectively eliminate the major water shortages we currently face.
“We had a very constructive meeting in Morocco where we tried to raise
the US$99.9 million needed to build it,” he said.
In December, Coltart led a delegation to Morocco to attend a meeting of
the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the African Investment Forum in
Rabat.
They lobbied for investment in the proposed Glass Block Bopoma Dam,
which is expected to increase water inflows into the city by 70 percent.
The Glass Block Dam project represents a beacon of hope for a city
determined to overcome its water woes, Coltart said.
New Ziana