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The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the Government of Rwanda have signed a €115 million financing agreement to support the government’s Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation Programme. According to a statement released by the AfDB on Thursday, the financing agreement comprises €114.27 million from the AfDB window and €0.8 million from the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Initiative Trust Fund.

The funding will reportedly supplement a previous AfDB loan worth €104 million and €43 million Africa Growing Together Fund loan approved by the AfDB’s Board in 2017. This additional financing will support mostly water supply infrastructure and provide 1.5 million more people with access to reliable and sustainable water supply services.

700,000 of these beneficiaries live in peri-urban and rural areas. The funding will also cover strategic cities and address water challenges in areas with a low access rate of 45 per cent – below the national average of 85 per cent.

The objective of the fund, according to the statement, is to support Rwanda in achieving universal access to reliable water and sanitation services by 2024. This is in line with the objectives of its National Strategy for Transformation. The scaled-up resources will bring the number of beneficiaries of improved water services and sanitation to 2.6 million and 475,000, respectively, over the duration of the programme.

“The Bank’s support for this programme deepens and consolidates the impact of its investments in enhancing resilience to climate change and inclusive growth,” said Wambui Gichuri, AfDB’s Director for Water Development and Sanitation, who added that the AfDB is a lead development partner in the water and sanitation sector in Rwanda and it enjoys a strong partnership with the government.

To promote sustainable financing of water and sanitation investments, the AfDB, through the Kigali Bulk Water Project, is also helping the Rwandan government to mobilize private capital for the extraction of groundwater, its treatment and supply to Kigali network through a public-private partnership.

“This additional financing increases the on-going Bank support for the water and sanitation sector in Rwanda to €282 million, demonstrating the Bank’s desire and readiness to match the government of Rwanda ambitions to achieve speedy socio-economic transformation,” said Martha Phiri, AfDB’s Country Manager for Rwanda.