The first phase of the Integrated Water Security and Sanitation Programme (PISEA) launched by the Senegalese government has already received its first support. The World Bank has announced that it will release $200 million to treat wastewater and strengthen water systems, particularly in Greater Dakar.
Senegal, like most West African countries, is not yet up to date with the implementation of the sixth Sustainable Development Goal (SDG6), which focuses on water and sanitation. The Senegalese government is well aware of this and has been multiplying initiatives for some time. The only obstacle is the scarcity of capital. The World Bank wants to be a leading ally in this area.
A few days ago, the financial institution approved $200 million in funding for the first phase of the Integrated Water Security and Sanitation Programme (PISEA). The aim over the next ten years is to “support the improvement of safely managed sanitation services and water resources in priority water security areas”.
These areas include Greater Dakar, which is no longer as attractive as it used to be. The work will involve the modernisation and installation of “reliable” water and wastewater systems for the 600,000 or so people living in Dakar. Specifically, the PISEA project involves the design and construction of sewerage systems covering part of the communes of Pikine and Guédiawaye, and an activated sludge treatment plant equipped with a tertiary treatment system.
In the name of SDG6
This investment will be beneficial on a national scale, particularly in terms of the rational management of resources. “The treated water will be pumped back to rural areas, in the Niayes, where a distribution network for irrigation will be built”, explains Stéphane Dahan, a specialist in SDG6 at the World Bank. Initially, the initiative will benefit 3,000 farmers, who will be able to irrigate 600 hectares using treated wastewater.
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Other water and sanitation projects are underway in the land of Teranga. These include a sanitation programme in 10 Senegalese cities, involving the installation of wastewater collection and treatment systems, including five wastewater treatment plants, five sludge treatment plants, 28 pumping stations, and the construction of 335,349 linear metres of sewerage network in the municipalities of Dakar, Kaolack, Louga, Matam, Pikine, Rufisque, Tambacounda, Saint Louis, Tivaouane and Touba. Senegal’s urban sanitation rate is 67%.
Benoit-Ivan Wansi
