Improving Access to Water Supply and Sanitation in Burundi

African Water Facility has undertaken a mission to Bujumbura, Burundi to gather information for a preliminary study for the Water Resources Development Project at the Ruvyironza Multipurpose Dam.

The Water Resources Development project is one of the priority investment projects under the Kagera Basin Development Plan (BDP). It aims to significantly improve water availability through the creation of storage, enhance food security through increased agricultural production, support energy security through renewable hydropower generation, and contribute to environmental sustainability through climate change adaptation.

During the mission, the team undertook a field visit to the Ruvyironza River to identify potential areas for the dam, held meetings with technical and financial partners in the sector to strengthen the coordination of the proposed intervention and create awareness for the project and its preparation.

They further engaged Burundian authorities and held technical working sessions with managers and technicians from Subsidiary Action Programme of the Nile Basin and the Lakes of the Equatorial Nile (NELSAP) – ministries in charge of the project.

This Ruvyironza Multipurpose Dam has a storage capacity of 373 million m3. The project will develop an irrigated perimeter of 14,674 hectares, produce 22 megawatts of hydro-electricity, ensure the water supply and sanitation of more than 270,000 households and restore degraded upstream watersheds in the dam.

Approximately €2 million is expected to be approved in September 2023 for the project which will be implemented over a two-year period.