By
Bongubukhosi Chantelle Ncube<\/p>\n\n\n\n
MASERU \u2013 On a Tuesday, and across Zimbabwe people rush for the \u201cbuy one, get one free\u201d pizza deal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But on the continent, the phrase carries a darker twist: read one promise of progress, get another human-rights violation free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today\u2019s \u201cspecial\u201d? A billion-rand water project in Lesotho that\u2019s flooding communities with problems instead of relief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A Project Meant to Save, but Now Hurting<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Mokhotlong district, high in the Maloti Mountains, the Lesotho Highlands Water Project was billed as a triumph\u2014an engineering marvel delivering water and hydropower to both Lesotho and South Africa. But for at least 1,600 residents across 18 villages, the dream has turned sour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Villagers report houses cracking from blasting, springs polluted by construction runoff, and pastures fenced off without warning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe were told it would bring jobs and development,\u201d says \u2019Masechaba Radebe, a farmer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut instead, we drink water that tastes like soil, and our animals have nowhere to graze.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Facts Behind the Freebie<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A formal complaint filed in September 2025 with the African Development Bank alleges damage to homes, contaminated streams, and inadequate compensation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Research by the Lesotho Highlands Water Commission (2024) warns that unmonitored tunneling could destabilize fragile soils, increasing the risk of landslides and groundwater loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The communities most affected rely on subsistence farming; losing fields and clean water directly threatens food security and health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is an environmental rights issue as much as it is economic,\u201d says Prof. Nthabiseng Motloung, an environmental law scholar at the National University of Lesotho.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWater is life, and any project harming access to it violates the right to health, livelihood, and dignity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Promises vs. Reality<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Officials defend the project, pointing to benefits downstream and eventual compensation packages. But locals say payouts, where offered, barely cover lost crops, let alone poisoned streams or cracked homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Community advocate Thabo Pheko puts it plainly:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t reject progress. We reject being sacrificed for someone else\u2019s progress.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A Call for Accountability<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What could make this a real win rather than a \u201cbuy one, get one\u201d disaster?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u00b7 Transparent consultations before blasting or diverting rivers.
\u00b7 Independent monitoring of environmental damage and water safety.
\u00b7 Prompt, fair compensation for destroyed property and lost livelihoods.
\u00b7 Shared profits: affected villages should see tangible returns from the billions flowing through their land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Without these, the project remains a tale of how grand promises come with hidden costs and how rural voices too often pay the price.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Zim GBC News | Global News From An African Perspective\u00a9\ufe0f2025<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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