The Director General of Jirama, General Hajatiana Rasolomanana, took advantage of the 50th anniversary celebration of Jirama in Mahajanga last Friday to visit the electrical facilities operated by the service provider Enelec in Marolaka.
During this visit, he observed that Enelec’s production capacity covers only 37% of the needs of Jirama subscribers, falling short of the commitments stipulated in the contract. This production remains insufficient to meet the daily demand, which is estimated at 17 MW.
Faced with this situation, the Director General demanded a rapid increase in production and provided an action plan with an implementation schedule to restore production capacity to 100%. Power cuts and load shedding continue to affect several neighborhoods in Mahajanga due to this significant electricity production deficit.
The situation is equally concerning regarding the drinking water supply. For several decades, subscribers in the majority of the city’s twenty-six fokontany have been suffering from persistent shortages. Many households remain deprived of water, and residents must source it daily from communal standpipes or water kiosks, despite the work undertaken under the Drinking Water Supply Improvement Project (PAAEP), which has been underway for several months in Mahajanga.
The price of a 20-liter jerrycan reaches 500 ariary when purchased from ‘water carriers,’ or ranadahy, compared to 100 ariary directly at the standpipes.
Water production in Mahajanga faces a daily deficit of 7,000 m³, against an estimated requirement of 34,000 m³ per day. Current production amounts to only 27,000 m³ per day.
According to technicians, this insufficiency is mainly due to aging infrastructure, which has become inadequate for the constantly increasing demand. The effects of climate change, as well as recurring equipment failures, also aggravate the situation.
The Director General of Jirama also visited the sites of the emergency phase of the PAAEP project, carried out by the company SOMEEIM, to assess the progress of the work. He urged the parties involved to adhere to the schedule. ‘Jirama is contributing to the installation of nine water boreholes in Mahajanga. The collaboration with the World Bank under the PAAEP project primarily aims to install generators in all boreholes, build a pumping station for the Mangatokana reservoir, and lay 8.5 km of DN 600 mm diameter pipes. These projects are all already in progress,’ stated General Hajatiana Rasolomanana.
Vero Andrianarisoa
Captured & Published at: 2026-07-07 00:12:51 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/07/consommation-la-production-deau-et.html