The Kamanjab Village Council has procured 200 prepaid water meters to phase out standpipes in informal settlements at the town. The council is prioritising development of informal settlements and has appointed consultants to bring basic services such as water and electricity closer to people living in the informal areas, Village Secretary, Miriam Nguaiko told Nampa last week. “Restoring the dignity of the Kamanjab community is one of my priorities as mandated by the council. The council wants to do away with standpipes. We will install water meters at each house in the New Land informal settlement so that every resident there will have water in their homes and not walk long distances to fetch water,” she said. The council will install pre-paid meters in both informal settlements at the village but opted to start with New Land, she said. Nguaiko added that due to limited resources on the part of the council, residents are required to purchase the water meters for N$1 800 per meter for each household. “Because the council has limited resources, the pre-paid meters should be purchased and land tenants can pay for them in affordable instalments,” she said. The construction of services for the Kap en Bou informal settlement will commence as soon as the appointment of consultants is revised to start drawing the design for water and sewer reticulation. Nguaiko added that the council has successfully electrified the New Land informal settlement and plans to electrify Kap en Bou are on the cards. She reiterated, however, that the village is faced with a challenge of a high influx of people from all over the Kunene Region. “The population of the village is increasing because of the drought and another reason is the earthquake that was experienced at Anker settlement this year,” she said. The village currently has a population of about 10 000 inhabitants. -NAMPA