User:Soin200982591/Etaka canal
| Etaka canal |
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The canal is located at the northern border of Namibia. It is carrying water from the Kunene River via Olushandja dam and Calueque dam from southern border of Angola. The canal runs for more than 200km through Omusati region towards Oshana and Oshikoto regions. The canal constructed in 1950s under the program of Master Water Plan (MWP) to meet the estimated demand of water and supply water to the northern communities of Namibia. The following water supply infrastructure have been considered including Etaka canal;
- Extension of the system of canals and pipelines to feed water from the
Calueque Dam in Angola into the interior of Namibia.
- Continued construction of storage dams which could he fed with water
from local runoff or from the proposed water supply network.
- Drilling of additional boreholes in the eastern and western stock
farming areas.
- The construction of wells anti cisterns to serve rural schools anti clinics.
- The establishment of irrigation schemes.[1]
The drainage has formed with the purpose of water balance from the dams and to assess the potential for distribution of water to people who are living along it. The inhabitants of Omusati region, who are living near dependent on canal water for their livelihood and subsistence agriculture such as;
- crops farming
- livestock farming
- fishing. [2]
The other artificial water resource and supply is Cuvelai basin drainage systems.The sharply fluctuating water conditions of the Cuvelai catchment area between good and bad rain years, from flood to severe drought, because of semi-arid climate in the northern part and in the country at whole, the system formed to rise to many water supply projects in the northern part of Namibia. It was planned to connect this system of excavation and pump-storage dams which were built in the 17th century with the Kunene via a high capacity canal system. It was further planned to develop large scale irrigation by such a comprehensive water supply system for the densely populated areas of four regions (Omusati, Oshana, Ohangwena and Oshikoto).[3]