Middle East and Africa: USAID and IWA sign strategic partnership to advance water utilities

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the International Water Association (IWA) signed an agreement at the Fifth World Water Forum [on 20 March 20009]   to work together to increase access to clean drinking water and sanitation throughout the Middle East and Africa by strengthening water utilities and their regional associations. This partnership focuses specifically on access to clean drinking water and sanitation for the urban poor, water safety and quality management, leadership gaps and climate change.

[...] USAID and IWA will work to strengthen water utilities and their regional associations, such as the Arab Countries Water Utility Association (ACWUA) and African Water Association (AfWA), by:

• Providing information and expertise on business planning and programs and services;
• Brokering and facilitating global or regional Water Operator Partnerships, e.g. partnerships between mentor and recipient water operators;
• Working together to create a regional Future Water Leaders program; and
• Collaborating on and disseminating pertinent information such as reports, analyses, and resources.

IWA and USAID are working closely with ACWUA: IWA can provide resources and experts to build knowledge and capacity where needed within the association and individual utilities; USAID is providing strategic and expert resources to assist ACWUA in expanding its business plan for sustainability, supporting its knowledge management and communications strategy as well as facilitating the technical working groups on poverty orientation and utility management.

USAID and IWA will promote leadership strengthening for mid-level water and wastewater management professionals to build up the water and sanitation sector. USAID is promoting Middle East leadership in the sector by bringing twenty-five future leaders from nine Middle Eastern countries together to discuss issues that they will face as leaders in ten years time. IWA has a Young Professionals group and mentorship program that offers support and guidance. Both parties will collaborate on curriculum design and creating linkages among young professionals across countries and regions, as well as connections to senior mentors in order to build leadership capacity and networks in support of Future Water Leader career development.

Source: USAID, 20 Mar 2009

Iraq: Emergency Water Supply Project

The World Bank approved a US$ 109.5 million IDA credit for the Emergency Water Supply Project on 10 June 2008.

The project aims to support the Government of Iraq’s efforts to improve water supply and sanitation services in selected governorates through upgrading and reconstructing/replacing existing facilities. Other objectives of the project are to start laying the foundation for a sustainable policy framework for the sector, and continue the programs of support services and training. The project will also create vitally needed short-term employment, help build Iraq’s capacity to manage medium to large-scale reconstruction and mitigate health hazards posed by contaminated water as a result of deteriorated pipes and networks.

Source: World Bank, 10 Jun 2008

Iraq, Kurdistan: Swedish NGO Qandil to be project leader for water contract

The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) plans to support water network management in Erbil City, the regional capital of Iraqi Kurdistan. The project will be managed by the Uppsala-based NGO Qandil, which has been working in Northern Iraq since 1992. The Sida budget for the two-year contract is about SEK 10 million. The project aims to support (managerial and technical skill development) the Directorate of Water Department of Erbil (DOWD) to provide a continuous supply of safe drinking water in one confined block of Erbil City.

Source: Development Today (subscription site), 22 Jul 2008

Arab Water Academy Launched in Abu Dhabi

High level officials from more than 15 Arab countries, including 8 ministers in charge of water, and some 80 water experts from the Arab region and beyond attended the formal launching [on 6 July 2008] of the Arab Water Academy (AWA) in Abu Dhabi, under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Zayed Al-Nahayan, deputy prime minister of the UAE and chairman of the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD).

The Arab Water Academy is the brainchild of the Cairo-based Arab Water Council (AWC), a regional water policy think-tank chaired by Dr Mahmoud Abu-Zeid, Egypt’s Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation and former President of the World Water Council, who also attended the meeting. Hosted by the Islamic Development Bank (IDB)’ s Dubai-based International Centre for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), in partnership with EAD, the Academy is a groundbreaking regional capacity development programme targeting decision-makers and industry executives. The Academy is being supported by the IDB and the World Bank.

[...]

Speaking to, reporters, Dr Shawki Barghouti, the ICBA Director General, said “The Academy will serve as a regional center of excellence for capacity development,for example, in integrated water resources management, utility management and water governance with a view to improving the delivery of water services through sustainable water sector strategies for advancing national economies of countries in the Arab region”. The Academy will also make extensive use of virtual communication platforms, media and broadcasting resources.

[...] the Academy will also forge strategic partnerships with leading academic and research institutions worldwide, such a Harvard University, Oxford University, Cambridge University and Cranfield University.

Source: SPA / IDB, 15 Jul 2008

Yemen: Water Sector Support Program

This proposed World Bank-supported programme aims to improve access to water supply and sanitation services, increase returns to water use in agriculture, and strengthen sector institutions for sustainable water resources management and environmental protection. This will be achieved through a sector-wide approach (SWAP) aligned behind the National Water Sector Strategy and Investment Program (NWSSIP, 2005). NWSSIP is the approved national strategy and investment program for the water sector in Yemen and is regarded as one of the most advanced in the Arab world.

Yemen is facing major challenges: groundwater resources are rapidly dwindling, rural areas and the economy are under threat, while urban and rural water coverage have only kept pace with population growth and not with continued community expansion.

In its entirety, the programme is estimated to cost in the range of US$300 million (US$60 million/year) to be financed by IDA (US$90 million) and parallel/joint co-financing from Germany (US$163 million), DFID (US$35 million), and the Netherlands government (US$38 million).

The proposed program will have five components:

• Urban Water and Sanitation
• Rural Water Supply and Sanitation
• Irrigation Improvements
• Water Resources Management
• Capacity Building

The estimated date of Board approval by the World Bank is 18 December 2008.

World Bank Project web site