The African Development Bank (AfDB) has agreed to provide financing of €115m to the Government of Rwanda, to support the Rwanda Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Programme.
Image: AfDB and Rwanda officials signing the financing agreement. Photo: Courtesy of African Development Bank Group.
AfDB stated that this financing which includes €114.27m from the AfDB window and $0.8m from the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Initiative Trust Fund will strengthen the original financing of €104m AfDB loan and €43m Africa Growing Together Fund loan approved by the Bank in 2017.
The financing will support water infrastructure and supply 1.5 million more people with drinking water. Out of the beneficiaries, 700,000 live in peri-urban/ rural areas. The funding will cover cities and will address water challenges in areas with 45% or lower access rate, the national average being 85%.
The objective is to support the country in achieving universal access to reliable water and sanitation services by 2024, which is in line with the National Strategy for Transformation objectives.
The increased resources are expected to bring the number of beneficiaries to 2.6 million and of improved sanitation to 475,000 over the programme’s duration.
The African Development Bank Water Development and Sanitation Director Wambui Gichuri said “The Bank’s support for this programme deepens and consolidates the impact of its investments in enhancing resilience to climate change and inclusive growth.”
Last December, when the announcement was first made, AfDB stated that the Government of Rwanda had shown consistent commitment in the sector with reforms and economic transformation to further its National Strategy for Transformation, designed to propel Rwanda into an upper middle-income country by 2035.
AfDB is supporting the country under the first Rwanda Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation programme. The bank has supporting several sub-projects in the city of Kigali and the strategic satellite cities of Rubavu, Rusizi, Nyagatare, Muhanga, Huye, Musanze and Karongi.
Under the programme, Kigali will benefit from a centralized sewerage system. The bank will also support the country in gaining private capital for public private partnership for extraction, treatment and supply of ground water through the Kigali network.
In November 2017, the Bank agreed to provide $171m which includes an initial loan of $121m and $50m Africa Growing Together Fund (AGTF) loan to the country under its Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Program.