By Vincent Gunde
BASEflow is set to pilot a project aimed at strengthening groundwater security at Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa District, where more than 60,000 refugees, asylum seekers and host community members depend on limited water resources.
The project titled ‘Strengthening Groundwater Security through Managed Aquifer Recharge’ seeks to capture water during the rainy season and store it underground for use during the dry season.
Presenting the 12-month pilot project to the Dowa District Executive Committee (DEC), BASEflow Programmes Manager Tamandani Kamuyanja said groundwater resources at the camp are under pressure due to limited storage capacity, seasonal rainfall and increasing demand during the dry season.
She also highlighted contamination risks, noting that some water points are located near pit latrines.
Kamuyanja said the project will rehabilitate the Totolonga Dam catchment to capture runoff from the camp, while 100 lead farmers will be trained in deep-bed farming and supported with monitoring points.
Tamandani Kamuyanja
She said infiltration boreholes will also be established near runoff pathways in the southwestern part of the camp, where infiltration tests had already been conducted.
Kamuyanja acknowledged potential challenges, including limited land access, community acceptance, contamination, clogging and uncertainty about how the aquifer would respond to recharge activities.
She said these risks wil be addressed through land-use agreements, water source screening, careful site selection, regular inspections, cleaning and monitoring.
Kamuyanja said the project will be implemented in three phases, beginning with mobilisation, design and construction, followed by the installation of a manageable Managed Aquifer Recharge (MAR) system.
She said the final phase will focus on operation and monitoring to generate evidence on the project’s technical and social feasibility.
Kamuyanja said the budget will cover recharge infrastructure, livelihood activities, recharge agriculture, community engagement, education, monitoring, evaluation and learning.
On the project’s exit strategy, she said successful methods will be scaled up, with investment redirected towards the approach that performs better, while underperforming interventions would be reviewed before further investment.
In his remarks, Dowa District Council Director of Planning and Development Phillimon Maseko urged development partners to support the initiative to achieve its objectives.
Maseko also called on partners to regularly share progress reports on their interventions with the District Executive Committee, saying this will strengthen cooperation, accountability and transparency.
