Tunisia – Northern Tunis Wastewater Project

The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today 17.6.2010 approved the Northern Tunis Wastewater Project  for US$8.03 million project to reduce the environmental impact of treated wastewater discharge into the Gulf of Tunis by building a submarine outfall. The project will also increase the quantity and quality of treated wastewater to encourage its reuse in agriculture.

There are three components to the project, the first component being transfer of Treated Wastewater (TWW) to increase its reuse in agriculture. This component will focus on the investments necessary to transfer the TWW from its existing discharge point close to the El Kehlij agriculture drainage canal up to a storage basin, from which it will be made available for reuse in agriculture. 

The Global Environmental Facility (GEF) grant will finance a portion of the investments under this component. The second component is the improvement of the discharge of the remaining TWW in the Mediterranean Sea. This component aims at developing the infrastructure necessary to improve the discharge of the remaining TWW in the Mediterranean Sea. Activities under this component include: TWW transfer; submarine outfall; and studies.

Finally, the third component is the monitoring and capacity strengthening. This component will fund important accompanying measures for the implementation of the project, including consulting services to strengthen: (i) water quality monitoring systems in the project area; and (ii) coordination mechanisms among agencies involved in wastewater reuse, in particular Tunisian National Sanitation Utility (ONAS) and Ministry of Agriculture, Hydraulic Resources and Fisheries (MARHP).

Contact: Hafed Al-Ghwell  (halghwell@worldbank.org)

Tel: (202) 473-8930

 More information:  

Source: World Bank Projects & Operations, Jun 2010

Morocco, Tunisia Seal Several Cooperation Agreements

Morocco and Tunisia signed,  several cooperation agreements at the closing ceremony of the 16th Moroccan-Tunisian joint committee.

The 12 agreements covered the sectors of drinking water, renewable energies, environment, building and public works, as well as the parliamentary and religious fields.

Morocco’s Prime Minister Abbas El Fassi and his Tunisian peer Mohammed Ghannouchi, who co-chaired the closing ceremony, expressed their satisfaction at the positive results of this meeting.

Both officials also voiced their common will to implement the signed agreements and iron out the difficulties hindering the achievement of the fixed goals, as part of their bilateral cooperation and partnership.

Source: Agence Maghreb Arabe Press, 7 May 2010

Tunisia: National Sanitation Utility (ONAS) starts international operations

Under the patronage of, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, ONAS signed a partnership agreement with the enterprise “ Ajroudi Investment” on 27 March 2010 concerning the setting up of ONAS International.

ONAS International will conduct studies and operations on behalf of environmental institutions (master plan studies, engineering studies), It will also provide technical assistance, training and management services.

This new enterprise will make promote Tunisian capacities, expertise and technologies in water pollution control in particular in Arab Gulf countries. It will help create enterprises overseas and boost employment in the water, wastewater and environmental protection fields.

Source: ONAS, March 2010

First Arab Water Forum held in Riyadh, 16-19 November 2008

The 1st Arab Water Forum (AWF) was held at the King Fahd Cultural Centre in Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in conjunction with two other big events: the 3rd International Conference on Water Resources and Arid Environments, and the awards ceremony of the Prince Sultan Bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water. The Arab Water Council (AWC) is set to organize Arab Water Forums (AWF) every three years prior to the World Water Forums to become the most important inclusive water-related event at the regional level. The objective of the AWFs is to mobilize all water stakeholders in the region, to identify priorities of water-related issues and define solutions that can successfully address regional and country specific water challenges.

The AWF comes only four months before the 5th World Water Forum (WWF5) that will be held in Istanbul on 16-22 March 2009 with the main theme “Bridging Divides for Water”. Hence, the AWF focussed on presenting and discussing the progress of the MENA/Arab Region’s preparatory processes towards the WWF5, for which the AWC acts as the regional coordinator.

The preparatory documents of 1st AWF are available on the Arab Water Council web site [please note that many of the links were broken on 22 Dec 2008].

The Water Demand Initiative for the Middle East and North Africa (WaDImena) presented progress and findings of its applied research and pilot projects at the AWF. See a list of presentations below:

• Water Governance in MENA Region InWent experience
• GICs in Tunisia – by A BelHassan
• Greywater reuse in Jordan – by N AlHmoud
• Greywater reuse in Lebanon – by Ghogassian
• Saline water use in Morocco – by M Chati
• Wastewater reuse in Palestine – by M AbuMadi
• Bridging divides bet rich & poor – by H Laamrani S AbdDayem K AbuZeid M Hefny
• Challenges of WDM in MENA – by H Laamrani
• Inwent experience in MENA – by V Detlef
• Theme 4 Governance and Management – by H Laamrani
• WDM Tunisian experience – A Hamdane
• WDM in Jordan

Source: IDRC, 27 Nov 2008