The General Directorate of the National Office for Water and Sanitation (ONEA) organized a press briefing followed by a discussion workshop with journalists this Friday, April 7, 2023 at the Water Trades Center in Ouagadougou. This was an opportunity for the public-owned company to unveil its hot period management plan, outlook and customer management strategy.
Despite the difficulties in mobilizing water resources and other constraints, particularly security, ONEA still intends to take up the challenge of ensuring the supply of drinking water to its 59 centers throughout the national territory. To achieve its mission, the company communicates on its activities. This is the whole point of this press briefing and this information workshop which aim to share with media men the actions taken to meet drinking water needs during this hot period, on the projects in progress and customer management actions.
According to the Secretary General of ONEA, Valentin Sirima, also representing the Director General at the opening of the works, this meeting of exchanges is part of the dynamics of communication of the company with its customers, through journalists, to inform them about the daily efforts made by ONEA. To provide drinking water and reduce the production and distribution deficit as well as the difficulties encountered in the field in the accomplishment of certain missions. According to him, the objective for ONEA is to sustainably meet drinking water needs, especially during hot periods, when the need is felt.
40,000 m3 more water per day in Bobo
To cope with the high demand for water in this hot period of 2023, the company has undertaken several actions in its deficit centers in order to strengthen production capacity. These include, among other things, the connection of at least fifty new boreholes in about twenty localities, which will make it possible to mobilize 12,000m3 of water/day; the renewal of vital equipment in certain centres; the acquisition of 10 generators; the extension of the drinking water network in centers; the acquisition of vital relief equipment and spare parts; the implementation of alternate distribution; availability of tanks and treatment products.
In Bobo-Dioulasso, according to the Regional Director of ONEA, Jean Ouédraogo, four new boreholes located at the transmitting center and at Pala have been connected. They made it possible to increase production capacity by an additional 4,000 m3/day. Also according to the Regional Director, the company ensured the availability of production and pumping equipment, acquired spare parts and equipment for vital production equipment in order to meet the high demand for water during this period of heat wave.
This work was carried out under the Drinking Water Supply Program (PAPEP). If to date some works have been completed, others are still in progress in the city, still within the framework of the program. These include, in particular, the construction of a 5,000 m3 tank, the laying of 17 km of adduction network and the connection of 2 new boreholes with a production capacity of 2,400 m3/day. Ultimately, the PAPEP project will double the production capacity of the town of Bobo with 40,000 m3 of additional water/day.
The current production capacity is around 47000m3 of water/day. In addition to this project, ONEA, in the opinion of Jean Ouédraogo, is seeking funding to build a water production center in Samendéni in order to draw water from the dam to the town of Sya by serving Dandé, Bama and the other localities located on this axis. “The current drinking water supply system is unable to meet demand, especially during peak hours. The extension of the DWS system in the city will enable ONEA to meet water demand by 2030,” also underlined Blaise Guiguemdé, Director of the project management of ONEA who announces the end of the ordeal of the Bobolais by May 2023.
Make up for the daily deficit of 110,283 m3 of water
In its prospects of ensuring better coverage of the Hauts-Bassins region in terms of drinking water supply, ONEA also plans to drill three boreholes in Dandé with a production capacity of 1230m3 each, the construction of a 500m3 water tower and the construction of 40 km of distribution network. Also, the locality of Toussiana will benefit from three boreholes of 1200m3, a water tower of 500m3 and 67 km of distribution network. A sewage sludge treatment station will also be built in Houndé. In its projects, the national blue gold also plans to increase the pumping capacity of the stations of Ouagadougou, Koudougou, Dori, Kaya and many other localities. The objective, according to the General Management, is to move to an average daily production of 349,742m3 to 462,025 m3. That is a daily deficit of approximately 110,283 m3 to be filled.
Innovations in customer management
ONEA is also announcing major innovations in the management of its customers. Among these, the digitization of connection requests, the establishment of a new contact center to facilitate the management of customer requests, the upcoming deployment of the new version of the ONEA customer application with more features and options and the use of smart meters which is in its test phase.
“The company has set itself the objective of meeting the challenge of providing drinking water to its customers and of being able to bring them to be satisfied with the service offered to them. It is a perpetual challenge because we are customer-oriented, we must dare to create, imagine and innovate to provide quality service and always bring life”, reassures the Secretary General of ONEA, Valentin Sirima.
Ousmane TRAORE
