Djibouti has received a US $11 million grant from the European Union (EU) to finance projects aimed at improving access to potable water.

The East African country’s water crisis has been the result of extended droughts which have often led to water scarcity. The problem has been aggravated by rapid demographic growth, climate variability refugee inflow. There are now plans to dig six boreholes equipped with solar panels in six different sites in the country.

Chief of the EU delegation to Djibouti Joseph Silva and the Djibouti Minister of Economy and Industrial Finance Ilyas Moussa Dawaleh signed an agreement on the new grant at an event in the country’s capital. Silva said the project will be driven by the collaboration of the local community.