AfDB approves €115m in funding for Rwandan water and sanitation programme

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved €115m in additional funding to support Rwanda's Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Programme. The initiative aims to improve access and reliability of sustainable water supply services for 1.5-million people, 700,000 of who live in peri-urban / rural areas.

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%.

The new financing is to scale up the country’s largest water and sanitation sector investment programme. The programme is co-financed by the European Investment Bank and the OPEC Fund for International Development.

In November 2017, the bank approved an initial $121m loan and $50m Africa Growing Together Fund (AGTF) loan to Rwanda under its Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Programme.

“The bank’s support to this programme further goes to deepen and consolidate the impact of its investments in enhancing resilience to climate change and inclusive growth,” said Wambui Gichuri, the bank’s director for water development and sanitation.