Arusha — Water projects and associated schemes, which cost about Sh800 million, would serve villagers and their large herds of livestock in the semi-arid area.

Implementation had gone alongside the introduction of new technologies in water harvesting, use of solar power for pumping and a de-fluoridation project to remove excessive flouride from water.

Inaugurating the scheme on Friday the deputy minister ,for Finance and Economic Affairs, Mr Jeremiah Sumary, who is also MP for Arumeru East, called on residents of the area to protect the water projects against vandalism.

"You must also sustain the projects once the donors leave both in maintenance and meeting all costs," he told hundreds of wanannchi at Ngarenanyuki, Kyamakata and Mkuru villages.

According to the general director of Oikos East Africa, Mr Giuseppe Bonati, the mission of his NGO was to promote, carry out and facilitate the conservation of natural and cultural resources for equitable and sustainable development. The NGO was registered in Tanzania in 1999.

"Our mission is based on a strong, systematic vision and is implemented through natural resource management, climate change, environmental enterprises and gender equality," he said.

He said the water project at Kyamakata and Uwiro will serve nearly 2,000 people and 3,000 head of cattle for the next 20 or so years.

The Kyamakata project alone has cost Euro 92,000 (about Sh170 million).

Villagers there have formed water user groups and a water committee. They have also been trained on health and sanitation projects.

Mr Bonati said families at the village will pay a fee to meet basic maintenance costs as well as the cost of a village technician.

Before these projects, water was sourced from the slopes of Mt Meru, very far from the villages.

The cost of supplying water to Ngarenanyuki health centre and Mkuru village in the lowlands was Euro 14,000 (about Sh26 million) and Euro 44,000 (about Sh80 million) respectively.