Tunisia is receiving €285 million in funding from the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) and the European Union (EU) to accelerate water and sanitation projects. The funding, consisting of loans and grants, is part of an envelope of 315 million euros granted by the two institutions to the North African country.
Of this financing of 285 million euros dedicated to the water and sanitation sector, 265 million euros will go to the Tunisian Ministry of Agriculture, Resources and Fisheries. Funds from the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), the German development agency, and the European Union (EU) will support the implementation of five projects aimed at preserving water resources in the face of droughts and floods.
The Storage, Transfer, and Flood Protection System (STPCI) Improvement Program is funded with €204.55 million, consisting of a €164.7 million loan from KfW and a grant of 39.85 million euros from the EU. These funds will support the establishment of water storage facilities with a combined capacity of 140 million m 3 and a new 100 km long water transfer pipeline. The program will also make it possible to protect 150 km of the Medjerda valley against flooding. According to the EU, these measures will, directly and indirectly, improve the living conditions of around 7.7 million people by 2027, when the STPCI program ends.
The agricultural and rural development project around the hill lakes (Daral) benefits from 37.94 million euros, including a grant of 14.94 million from the EU. This funding will be used to implement the second phase of this project, which aims to improve water availability in response to water stress, as well as the integrated management of natural resources in the governorates of Kasserine, Jendouba, and Siliana. Still, to improve the climate resilience of farmers, the Laaroussia Canal, which has been supplying the public irrigated perimeters (PPI) of the Lower Medjerda Valley for 60 years, will also be modernized. KfW and the EU have mobilized 10 million euros for this project which will allow the irrigation of 27,000 hectares of crops.
Strengthen the drinking water supply
Part of the funding granted to the Tunisian Ministry of Agriculture, Resources and Fisheries, ie 12.40 million euros, will be used to implement two drinking water supply projects. Thanks to this EU grant, 11.95 million euros are allocated to the performance improvement program in the networks of the National Company for the Exploitation and Distribution of Water (Sonate) in order to reduce losses in its drinking water networks in the seven districts of central and southern Tunisia, notably in Kairouan, Kasserine and Sidi Bouzid, Gafsa, Gabès, Médenine, Tataouine. At least 500,000 euros will be devoted to the technical study of the project.
A grant of 400,000 euros will support the implementation of the project to improve the drinking water supply in rural areas in the governorate of Béja, located in northwest Tunisia, about fifty kilometers from the capital Tunis.
Reuse of treated wastewater
To preserve water resources in Tunisia, the government is also counting on the recovery of non-conventional water, particularly wastewater. Thus, a loan of 20 million euros was granted to the National Sanitation Office (Onas) by KfW. The public body will use this funding to pursue two ongoing initiatives, in particular the Sanitation Program for 10 medium-sized towns II which benefits from 15 million euros. This program concerns the rehabilitation and extension of existing sewage networks, as well as the construction of sewage treatment plants in several towns, some of which are among the most disadvantaged in Tunisia.
At least 5 million euros will be dedicated to the rehabilitation and extension program for wastewater treatment plants and pumping stations. Overall, the challenge is to recover treated wastewater in agriculture and watering green spaces. This approach will also reduce pressure on groundwater reserves, which are overexploited due to water stress.
