Ondjiva — The President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Félix Tshisekedi, will witness, on Saturday (05), the inauguration ceremony of the Ndúe and Calucuve dams, in the southern province of Cunene, as a special guest of the Angolan Head of State, João Lourenço.

According to the program of the visit to Cunene, Félix Tshisekedi will be received, on Saturday, by his Angolan counterpart at the 11 de Novembro Airport, in Ondjiva City, from where they will proceed to the municipality of Cuvelai, the site of the inauguration of the two strategic infrastructures for combating drought in the southernmost region of Angola.

Alongside the dam inaugurations, President João Lourenço will inaugurate the "Olukeno" Youth Center this Friday, as part of the social responsibility actions of the Ngana Zenza Foundation for Community Development (FDC), an initiative of the First Lady of the Republic, Ana Dias Lourenço.

At the end of the afternoon on Saturday, the Congolese President returns to Kinshasa, while João Lourenço departs for Luanda, after concluding his working day in Cunene. Implementation of the Drought Relief Program

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The Drought Relief Program in Southern Angola has received ongoing monitoring from the President of the Republic, João Lourenço, who made regular visits to Cunene province in 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024.

In the same context, the Angolan Head of State inaugurated, in 2022, the Water Transfer System on the Cafu Canal, which guarantees access to water for 235,000 people and 250,000 animals, in addition to irrigating 5,000 hectares of agricultural fields. The Ndúe and Calucuve dams are two of the five key projects to combat drought in Cunene Province.

The Ndúe dam, located 97 kilometers from the town of Mukolongodjo and influencing the municipalities of Cuvelai, Chissuata, and Cafima, will initially benefit approximately 55,000 inhabitants and 60,000 head of cattle, in addition to creating direct and indirect jobs, mostly for young people.

The infrastructure is 32.80 meters high and 1,500 meters long, with the capacity to store 170 million cubic meters of water. It has a 75-kilometer-long aqueduct and 15 water reservoirs for economic and social purposes, benefiting the population, agriculture, and livestock along the Canal.

The Calucuve dam, located 34 kilometers from the town of Mukolongodjo, in the municipality of Cuvelai, will benefit more than 80,000 inhabitants and nearly 200,000 head of cattle.

The infrastructure is 31.60 meters high and 2,184 meters long, with the capacity to store approximately 141 million cubic meters of water. It also includes a 240-kilometer-long water supply canal and 22 water pumps.

The construction of the Ndúe and Calucuve dams began on October 28, 2021, with the laying of the first stone by the then Minister of State for Social Affairs, Carolina Cerqueira.

The two projects constitute important infrastructure for combating the drought that cyclically affects the populations of the southern region of Angola, impacting water supply, livestock farming, and agricultural activity. QCB/ART/TED/jmc