Water for droughtstricken Mangondi residents

Water has become a very scarce commodity in most parts of Limpopo, especially in the Vhembe area.

In some villages, residents have to walk for more than five kilometers to the nearest river or well to get water. Mangondi village, some kilometers from Thohoyandou and just on the doorstep of the giant multimillion-rand Nandoni Dam, is no exception. The dam does not provide water for these residents and they have to watch enviously while water is being used at far-flung areas.

These woes have now become a thing of the past, however. A well-known and one of the fastest-growing churches in Limpopo, the Calvary Christian Church International at Lwamondo, under the leadership of Dr Maxwell Masakona, has donated a borehole with a 10 000-litre tank to store water.

Calvary Christian Church project manager Takalani Lethole said the borehole came about after research done by the church as to how they could plough back into the communities where they operate. “We looked at many needs by the community, but we came to the conclusion that providing water would make a big difference as many areas lack water. Just as we were busy with our planning, a crèche from Vhufuli approached us and that became our first water project in 2010. Since then, we have intervened in four communities and this one is the fifth. We hope to roll out this programme to as many villages as possible,” said Lethole.

Local traditional leader Vhakoma Vho-Phineas Ndou said he had settled in the area in the early fifties. “We have always experienced water problems and people would end up going to the nearby Luvuvhu River and drawing dirty water which was not safe. Some were even attacked by crocodiles. This borehole will make a very big difference here. The crèche kids and the community at large will also benefit."

Handing over the borehole, Pastor David Mufamadi said as a church they were directed by the gospel in practice. “This is one of our church’s visions, namely of enriching our communities in a practical way. We will continue identifying needy communities and making the necessary interventions,” he said.

Date:17 April 2015

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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