South Africa to source water from Zimbabwe

SOUTH African Minister of Water and Sanitation Nomvula Mokonyane will visit Zimbabwe on Friday to try to secure more water for the country's thirsty industrial machine, her office said Thursday.

Minister Mokonyane will meet her Zimbabwean counterpart, the Minister of Environment, Water and Climate, Saviour Kasukuwere, to move towards having feasibility studies leading to the pumping of water to South Africa, the Ministry of Water and Sanitation said.

In addition, Mokonyane will attend the signing ceremony of the Certified Agreement on the Cooperation on Water Resources Management and the establishment and functioning of the Joint Water Commission between South Africa and Zimbabwe, her office said.

The signing ceremony between the neighbours comes after a joint agreement between them to undertake a technical study to evaluate the possible water resource developments and transfer options of water from Zimbabwe to South Africa.

They signed the agreement last month after deliberating and agreeing on constructing a pipeline that would draw water from the Zambezi River to Cowdray Park in Bulawayo and through to South Africa.