US $8.8m grant has been approved by Nordic Development Fund to the African Water Facility for projects in the Sahel and Horn of Africa.
The AWF is a Special Fund established in 2005 by the African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW), and hosted and administered by the African Development Bank (AfDB). The NDF, a Nordic international finance institution established by Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden in 1988, focuses on the intersection of climate change and development in lower-income and fragile countries.
Read:Heloika Energy wins US $34m contract for drinking water project in Gambia
Water and Sanitation in Africa programme
The board of directors of the NDF approved the grant funding for investment of water supply, sanitation and integrated water resources management projects. The funds will support the AWF’s COVID-19 Recovery through Water and Sanitation in Africa programme, an initiative that relies on a climate-resilient approach to prepare investment in water sector projects that will benefit the vulnerable and underserved poor urban communities, including the displaced, in the two targeted regions.
The program’s estimated budget is US $34.6m, of which the Danish government will contribute a grant of US $23.8m. The Bank and AWF will provide a grant of US $1.1m. Governments in the targeted areas are expected to provide in-kind contributions.
“We are very pleased to build and leverage on our relationship with the AWF to support Build-Back-Better and Greener, climate-resilient approaches. We also welcome the possibility to provide access to Nordic knowledge, technology, and potential partnerships on innovative water and sanitation solutions by financing a long-term consultant,” said NDF managing director Karin Isaksson
In the target countries, the average rate of access to safely managed drinking water facilities is 53.8%; the average rate of access to safely managed sanitation facilities is 23.4%. This situation constrains the use of water and sanitation as a measure to contain the spread of COVID-19 and other water-related infectious diseases.
The AWF assists African countries to mobilise financing and apply the funds to address water supply and sanitation needs, to enable the countries meet the African Water Vision 2025 as well as water-related Sustainable Development Goals.