To tackle the growing water supply challenges in Entebbe and its surrounding areas, the National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) has commissioned designs for a new Water Treatment Plant (WTP) following the fact that the current Entebbe WTP cannot meet the increasing demand driven by residential, commercial, and industrial growth.
In recent weeks, NWSC engineers have been evaluating, modeling, and comparing various potential sites for the intake, treatment plant, reservoirs, and pipeline routes. These sites include locations along Entebbe Road and Nakawuka/Kasanje. The preliminary studies completed this week identified three optimal sites in Kasanje, Garuga, and Bugiri. These sites were selected due to their shorter pumping mains to the nearest reservoir, access to fresh open lake waters, and land availability.
Additionally, the best reservoir sites have been identified at Akright and Buzzi hills. These sites were chosen for their high elevations, proximity to the WTP, and central location within the targeted supply area.
To ensure the preliminary designs align with actual ground conditions, a team of engineers from the NWSC Head Office, including Eng. Denis Taremwa, Eng. Joe Kamanyi, Entebbe Area Engineer Ms. Sylvia Takali, and Mr. Peter Ochan, on June 27th, 2024 spent considerable time verifying land availability, access routes, and ownership for the proposed reservoir sites. A 6-million-liter reinforced concrete tank is planned for these locations.
The team also visited the Bugiri Water Treatment Plant site to confirm the presence of suitable access routes, high-voltage power lines, and land ownership. Following this successful visit, environmental and social safeguards experts will be engaged for the next steps. Additionally, water quality and bathymetric investigations are set to begin next week.
The new Entebbe Water Treatment Plant will have a production capacity of 20 million liters of water per day, and will be the third plant after Katosi and Ggaba to use Dissolved Air Flotation (DAF) technology, which is ideal for treating raw water with light flocs and algae, ensuring excellent water quality for Entebbe and the surrounding areas.
NWSC aims to complete the final designs and tender documents by mid-July to initiate the works tendering process promptly.
