Funding that aligns with government priorities

The World Bank has approved a new operation to make safe drinking water available to as many households as possible and improve sanitation services in Greater Lomé. This new support for the water sector will be provided through the Togo Urban Water Security (TUWS) project.

With a budget of $100 million (approximately CFAF 60 billion), this project will make several investments in partnership with the private sector to improve the quality of and access to water and sanitation services in Greater Lomé, by providing upstream support for the operational performance of service providers and the management of water resources in Lomé. The project will finance, among other things, the rehabilitation of the water supply systems, the construction of a wastewater and fecal sludge treatment plant, technical studies for the longer-term increase of large-scale water production capacity, and the strengthening of the distribution network.

“The Togolese government has set itself very ambitious targets for the achievement of universal access to water and sanitation, first for more than 86% of the population of Lomé and then 100% access to water supply services nationwide. This project supports the sector reform framework, including through the mobilization of the private sector to help Togo provide water of sufficient quantity and quality to the largest number of households in Greater Lomé,” said Fily Sissoko, World Bank Country Manager for Togo.

The project will support the preparation and implementation of infrastructure investment activities recommended in the Master Plan for Greater Lomé, primarily the expansion and rehabilitation of water supply systems. The time spent on this activity could be reduced for women and girls who, in 83.6% of households, are responsible for fetching water for the entire household.

The Togo Urban Water Security project is part of a broad effort by Togo’s partners to support the implementation of national water access strategies. A roundtable held in December 2022 raised commitments amounting to almost $300 million for the country’s water and sanitation sector, a portion of which will contribute to the development of water production infrastructure in Lomé.

According to Sani Yaya, Minister of Economy and Finance, the project ‘will contribute significantly to achieving the government's roadmap objectives, which targets a drinking water supply rate of 80% by 2025 in Lomé’.