African bank commits $131 million to Rwanda water upgrade

December 19, 2018 in Finance, Infrastructure, Investment, Land & Agriculture by Editor

Gichuri said the Rwandan government has shown consistent commitment to sector reforms.

The African Development Bank (AfDB), Rwanda’s main partner in the water and sanitation sector has approved additional funding support of the €115 million ($131 million) to the country’s Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Program.

“The Bank’s support to this program further goes to deepen and consolidate the impact of its investments in enhancing resilience to climate change and inclusive growth,” Wambui Gichuri, the AfBD Director for Water Development and Sanitation said in a statement.

The funding will cover strategic cities and address water and sanitation challenges in areas with a low access rate of 45% − a figure that is way below the national average of 85%.
This money will help scale up the country’s largest water and sanitation sector investment program. The program is co-financed by the European Investment Bank and the OPEC Fund for International Development.

In November 2017, AfDB approved an initial $121 million loan and $50 million from the Africa Growing Together Fund (AGTF) lending to Rwanda under its Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Program.

According to the AfBD, Rwandan government has shown consistent commitment to sector reforms and economic transformation in furtherance of its recently-approved National Strategy for Transformation − designed to propel Rwanda into an upper middle-income country by 2035.

The program is bolstered by the country’s new Vision 2050, which aims to ensure a high standard of living for all Rwandans. Of the 1.5 million people to be provided water access under the additional funding, 700, 000 live in peri-urban/ rural areas.