Denmark is supporting the efforts of the government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to improve water coverage for its people. The kingdom has just allocated 10 million Danish kroner (around $1.5 million) to the East African country. The agreement was signed on 1 July 2023 by Kira Smith Sindbjerg, Denmark’s ambassador to Ethiopia, and Semereta Sewasew, Minister of State for Finance and Economic Cooperation.
The funding allocated under the Danish-Ethiopian Strategic Cooperation in the Water Sector (Water SSC) Phase I will be used to implement sustainable water management projects in two towns facing water shortages in Ethiopia. These are Sidama and Dire Dawa. “These towns are experiencing water problems due to rapid population growth, a high rate of urbanisation and high levels of industrial and agricultural development leading to over-extraction”, says the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance.
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The projects envisaged should therefore contribute to a more sustainable use of water resources, mainly underground, which are over-exploited in Sidama and Dire Dawa. The aim is also to preserve the resource and ensure that local populations have access to basic water in the two Ethiopian towns. This new funding from Denmark comes at just the right time, as most of the towns in the country located in the Horn of Africa are also facing drought, which is causing water stress.
On 1 July 2023, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia also benefited from another grant of DKK 60 million (around $9 million) from the Kingdom of Denmark, relating to the Enhanced Danish Ethiopian Energy Partnership (DEEP).
Inès Magoum