(Business in Cameroon) - Because of the coronavirus pandemic, water supply project Paepys (68% completed in October 2020) will not be able to meet its initial December 2021 completion deadline as stated in the contract with Chinese construction company Sinomach. Rather, the completion date is now July 21, 2021, according to the Ministry of Water and Energy (MINEE).

Paepys, which is aimed at supplying drinking water to residents of Yaoundé and its surroundings through the Sanaga River, is funded by a XAF399 billion loan from Eximbank China. It is aimed at ending the drinking water deficit in Yaoundé by supplying an additional 300,000 m³ of water in its initial phase. That volume will be extended to 400,000 m³ daily in the project’s extension phase. Thanks to this additional water supply, neighboring towns like Batchenga, Obala, Nkometou, Soa, and Ntui can also have access to drinking water.

In Yaoundé, the daily drinking water need is estimated at 315,000 m³. However, its only water supply plant, the Akomnyada plant, produces nearly 100,000 m³ of water daily.

This represents a production deficit of  215,000 m³  daily. As a result, Yaoundé is under permanent water rationing.

S.A.