For three weeks in a row, some districts in the Southern Region have been facing intermittent water supply, a development that is putting people’s lives at risk of contracting water-borne diseases.
The affected districts include Thyolo, Mulanje, Balaka and Machinga.
In Thyolo, for instance, almost the whole district, including Thyolo District Hospital and district council offices, have had dry taps.
In an interview on Monday, Thyolo district director of health and social services Arnold Jumbe said the situation worsens at the hospital when there is power outage.
“It is a general problem here in Thyolo, but luckily we have electric pumps that help to tap water.”
In a separate interview, Southern Region Water Board spokesperson (SRWB) Ritta Makwangwala said they are aware that some of their customers are facing intermittent water supply.
She attributed the situation to an increase in water demand and Electricity Supply Corporation of Malawi low power voltage in some areas.
“There is pressure because of population growth and most of our water sources are dwindling. So, we are rationing hoping that the rains will be coming soon,” said Makwangwala.
She, however, said SRWB is working on upgrading some of its water treatment plants to meet its customers’ demand.
