AMMAN — Jordan and the US agreed on a $33.3
million joint project to improve
water supplies in the southern part of the
Kingdom, Al-Mamlaka TV reported.
اضافة اعلان
The project will be headed by Ministry of Water and
Irrigation in cooperation with
USAID, an independent arm of the US government
which funnels humanitarian and security assistance to US allies.
The four-year project is expected to improve the
performance and efficiency of Jordan’s scarce water resources, and ameliorate
the network’s infrastructure by cutting water loss by 20 percent, according to
Al-Mamlaka.
The agreement was signed by
Khaled Al Obaidyn, Aqaba
Water Company director-general, and Andrew Lecken, head of USAID Office of
Water Resources and Environment.
Minister of Water and Irrigation Mohammad Najjar
said the ministry recently endorsed a national strategy to reduce water loss
nationwide by less than 25 percent.
Najjar expressed appreciation to Washington’s
continuous support to the Kingdom.
USAID funded the project with $26.453 million, while
the Aqaba Water Company contributed $6.926 million.
Bashar Bataineh,
the
Water Authority’s secretary-general, said the agreement sets the stage for
mapping out a new infrastructure plan in southern Jordan and conducting a
hydraulic study to reduce water loss with the ultimate goal of providing people
with additional water.
The agreement also envisages raising the capacity of
the
Disi water pipeline to 12 million cubic meters annually. The Disi pipeline
will provide around 7 million cubic meters of water each year in the initial
stages, according to Bataineh.
He said the agreement also calls for technical
support to the
Aqaba Water Company by improving the water treatment system in
Aqaba, providing equipment, tools, and techniques needed for better sanitation
services.
With USAID support and the funded program, water
loss in the Aqaba Special Economic Zone is likely to fall by 20 percent, saving
9 billion cubic meters of water annually, Bataineh contended.
The agreement is the latest between USAID and the
Ministry of Water and Irrigation, represented by the Water Authority, the
Jordan Valley Authority, Yarmouk Water Company, Miyahuna, and the Aqaba Water
Company to help Jordan address water challenges and support the ministry’s
water strategy in the upcoming years.
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