The Chief Executive Officer of the French Development Agency, Rémy Rioux has reassured on the commitment of the French government to support Uganda on executing various projects on water, environmental conservation, tourism, education and energy sector among others.
This after the minister for Water and Environment Sam Cheptoris decried low funding to the sector from the government which has affected the ministry’s activities regarding the supply of adequate water and sanitation services.
While speaking during the tour of the newly completed Katosi water treatment plant project in Mukono funded by the French Development Agency, Cheptoris said the country is mainly relying on support from development partners to boost the supply of clean and safe water.
Minister Cheptoris said that due to the high population growth, the demand for water from the wider public is bigger than what the government is currently supplying through National Water and Sewerage Corporation to satisfy the demand.
He also expressed concern over the sharp discrepancies between rural districts and urban districts regarding the access to safe water supply.
“Urban water coverage is estimated at about 75%, and rural water coverage is estimated about 70%, meaning in the urban areas 25% are not drinking clean and safe water, and 30% in our rural areas are not drinking clean and safe water, I wish d to thank AFD for funding the water project, when we have a project of this kind when we have assistance coming from our development partners we should be very thankful,” Cheptoris noted.
For his part, Ambassador of France to Uganda Jules-Armand Aniambossou commended the government of Uganda for the effective and efficient use of resources provided for piped water supply and other projects.
“This Katosi plant was fully a flagship project and a very emblematic one, am an engineer before doing diplomacy, I know a little about this kind of issue, I was very impressed to see Uganda with what you are doing here, this is a very good example, an example of what to do by providing water to the population but at the same time thinking about how to protect the climate,” he noted.
The plant has an initial capacity of 160,000 cubic meters (160,000,000 L) of water daily, expandable to 240,000 cubic meters (240,000,000 L) of water daily.
The French Development Agency – Agence Francaise de Developpment (AFD) is an international agency that promotes development in accordance with policy defined by the Government of France.
With a focus on protecting the planet, stimulating economic growth and improving living conditions, the AFD oversees and finances the implementation of development projects and activities across the world.
Over the course of 25 years, AFD has operated in Uganda funding projects to increase the supply of drinking water, improve sanitation, promote the private sector, support the generation and distribution of renewable energy, and protect natural resources.
The AFD has had a significant role in building infrastructure that supports the private sector, intervening in areas of water supply and sustainable sanitation and waste management practices, as well providing the support needed in the preservation and enhancement of natural resources.
AFD has committed €760M over the last 20 years in sovereign soft loans, with over €400M being poured into the water and sanitation sector within the last 10 years. Today, up to 4.35 million people in Uganda have benefited from access to drinking water, while another 1.09 million have access to a sustainable sanitation system in the areas of Kampala and Isingiro.