The DBSA – as the implementing partner of the SADC Water Fund, a regional fund for water and basic sanitation, is launching an €8.8-million basic water and sanitation project in Kazungula.

The Zambian Government with the support and cooperation of the German Government and Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) is co-financing the project.

“This is a significant investment towards sustainable development of the water sector in SADC,” said Chuene Ramphele, Group Executive of Infrastructure Delivery Division at the DBSA.

The first phase of the €8.8-million grant funded project will include the construction of a new water intake structure abstracting from the Zambezi River upstream of the Kazungula bridge. This phase will also include construction of a new treatment plant, larger storage reservoirs, construction rehabilitation and the extension of water transmission and distribution pipelines.

This will significantly improve access to potable water and ensure reliability of supply to Kazungula town. The second & third phases will focus on improving the sanitation system.

“We are excited to launch the start of the construction of this regional project as it will make a positive impact on the lives of the people in Kazungula,” said Ambassador, Margi Hellwig-Boette, German Ambassador to Botswana and Special Representative to SADC.

“Access to clean water and basic sanitation are not only a fundamental right but also essential for good health and well-being,” said Engineer, Joe Kalusa from Zambia’s Ministry of Water, Development and Sanitation.

“This project highlights the importance of developmental financial partnerships in the realisation of SADC’s regional integration agenda, which seeks to provide quality water and sanitation services,” Ramphele concluded.

About the Development Bank of Southern Africa

The DBSA is a leading Development Finance Institution (DFI), wholly owned by the government of South Africa. Established in 1983, the DBSA is mandated to promote economic growth and regional integration by mobilising financial and other resources from national and international private and public sectors for sustainable development projects and programmes in South Africa, SADC, and the wider African continent. www.dbsa.org

About KfW

KfW Development Bank has been helping the German Federal Government to achieve its goals in development policy and international development cooperation for more than 50 years. In this regard, they are both an experienced bank and a development institution with financing expertise, expert knowledge of development policy, and many years of national and international experience.

On behalf of the German Federal Government, and primarily the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the bank finance and support programmes and projects that mainly involve public sector players in developing countries and emerging economies – from their conception and execution to monitoring their success.

Their goal is to help our partner countries fight poverty, maintain peace, protect both the environment and the climate and shape globalisation in an appropriate way.

About SADC Water Fund

The SADC Water Fund is a €15-million grant funded entity. The grant was provided by Germany’s  national development finance institution – Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) and the DBSA serves as the implementing agency. The SADC Water Fund exists to capitalise partner funds and coordinate water and sanitation sector financing. It selects bankable projects proposals and raises funds from development partners. The objectives of the fund are:

• Strengthen the coordinating function of SADC in Water Sector funding
• To create an instrument to channel International Cooperating Partners (IPCs) contributions to the SADC Water Sector; and
• To improve the regional water and sanitation infrastructure