WASH Systems in Ethiopia
WaterAid Ethiopia launches a project to strengthen urban water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) systems in Ethiopia .
WaterAid Ethiopia launches phase two of its Urban WASH System Strengthening Project which aims to strengthen Ethiopia’s urban WASH systems in 23 cluster lead towns. The Project will be implemented in five years, from 2020/21 to 2024/25, and Yorkshire Water, a UK-based water company, has committed to partially fund the project.
This utilities systems capacity development project is the continuation of WaterAid’s 20 towns flagship project that was implemented in four regions in the period between 2014 and 2019.
Yaekob Metana, Country Director of WaterAid Ethiopia said: “WaterAid Ethiopia is committed to contributing its part to develop the capacity of utilities so that they get modernised and able to manage the water, sanitation and hygiene services to residents they serve. We will continue to collaborate with the Government for water, sanitation and hygiene to become priorities in the development endeavours, and work with partners to solicit funds to meet the project objectives”.
This phase two project covers three regions and 23 cluster lead towns at a total cost of £1.25 million GBP (ETB 50.4 million). It takes a region-wide cluster approach to its programming in Oromia, Amhara and Tigray to improve WASH systems of cluster lead urban utilities and aims to roll the approach out to additional cluster towns linked with cluster leads.
The launch ceremony, which happens today, 24 September 2020, will go ahead virtually in light of COVID-19, bringing together senior officials from the Ministry of Water, Irrigation & Energy, Ministry of Health, NGOs, academics, regional bureaus, and water utilities, as well as WaterAid UK, the East Africa region, and WaterAid Ethiopia.
Phase two will continue to focus efforts in the ‘missing middle’ of small-to-medium sized towns, particularly the zonal capital towns that will serve as cluster units.
Key partners of this project are the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Energy, Ministry of Health, Amhara, Oromia and Tigray regions, and project target urban towns where the project will be implemented over the coming five-year period.
