Recently, the Zambia Kafulafuta Water Supply System Project, constructed by PowerChina's Sinohydro Bureau 1 Co., Ltd., reached a historic moment—the dam's flow-passing target was successfully achieved. The attainment of this key milestone marks the official entry of this livelihood project, which carries the hope of drinking water for a million people, into the full operation stage, adding another brilliant stroke to the high-quality development of China-Zambia Belt and Road cooperation.

As a "life project" to solve the water shortage problem, the Kafulafuta Water Supply Project is located in Zambia's Copperbelt Province and is the country's largest comprehensive water conservancy hub project in recent years. The dam site has a catchment area of 2,489 square kilometers, a normal storage level of 1,178 meters, a total storage capacity of 117 million cubic meters, and a designed annual water supply of more than 100 million cubic meters. Once completed, the project will completely solve the drinking water shortage for about 1 million residents in cities such as Ndola, Luanshya, and Masaiti, significantly improve water quality, and drive regional economic development. Since its launch in June 2018, construction has lasted nearly seven years, going through key stages such as cofferdam closure, gate lowering and impoundment, and completion of the main structure. In particular, after impoundment began in June 2023, the Sinohydro Bureau 1 construction team overcame complex geological and climatic challenges and achieved early completion of the main structure in June 2024.

The core challenge in the construction of the Kafulafuta Dam was the rare geological condition of ferromanganese nodules. This stratum is highly hard and structurally complex, making traditional trenching techniques inefficient and costly. The Sinohydro Bureau 1 construction team innovatively adopted a "rotary drilling rig + percussion drill composite process," combined with digital geological modeling technology, successfully increasing trenching efficiency by 40% and overcoming leakage control difficulties. In addition, the project team introduced a monitoring and water management system to ensure that the flow-passing process was safe and controllable through real-time monitoring of dam stress, water levels, and basin hydrological data. As a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative, the Kafulafuta Project has consistently adhered to the philosophy of "building a project and cultivating a batch of talent." According to statistics, local employees accounted for 83% of the workforce at the peak of construction, and training courses in welding, surveying, and mechanical equipment operation were offered on the project, with more than 800 skilled workers trained in total.

With the achievement of the dam's flow-passing target, the project has entered the full operation stage. From now on, local residents will bid farewell to the history of relying on seasonal rivers and groundwater and will obtain a stable and compliant drinking water supply. Agricultural irrigation and ecological protection zones are planned around the project, which is expected to drive the development of industrial chains such as increased grain production and fishery aquaculture, injecting new momentum into the regional economy. The Kafulafuta Project not only carries clear river water but also embodies the friendship of a shared future between China and Africa. This monument standing on African soil will continue to witness Belt and Road cooperation pouring hope through practical actions, building a community with a shared future for mankind, and letting the sweet spring of development nourish the hearts of more people.