Environmental protection

November 2014- The Government of Somalia has received a €3-million grant to support a project designed to build resilience to climate change and reduce water stress in Somaliland. The AWF grant will support the preparation of a water resources management and investment plan.

January 2010 - The Government of Mali received a €2 million grant to put in place an appropriate framework to improve water knowledge, develop useful tools in order to ensure a better allocation of resources among users, and increase national capacities related to management and exploitation of resources.

Victoria, Seychelles – The Government of Seychelles has received a €1.07 million grant for the development of an Integrated Comprehensive Sanitation Plan for the islands. The 10 year plan will follow an integrated approach, looking at the synergies with related sectors such as waste, energy, water supply and stormwater. It will also promote innovative water re-use technologies. A diagnostic study of the sanitation sector of the Seychelles will be conducted which will include economic, environmental and societal impact assessments.

The rationale for this project is the need to dramatically improve the usability of existing school sanitation facilities through franchised operation and maintenance services and safe handling of faecal sludge for non-sewered urban and peri-urban areas of East London District. This is aimed to facilitate better learning and improve environmental sanitation.

Arba Minch is one of the major cities in Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples Regional States and located app. 500 km south of the capital Addis Ababa. Sanitation is a major issue for the municipality - inappropriate waste collection, treatment and disposal techniques are some of the main reasons of this sanitation crisis, jointly with a lack of demand from households.

April 2008 - The Government of Seychelles received a €955,000 grant to formulate a water supply development plan for the three main Islands of Seychelles to attract the necessary water project investments to meet demands up to the year 2030. This should help improve the performance and service delivery of the water and sewerage division of the Public Utility Corporation (PUC) and improve demand-side management to reduce water usage. The project will boost water security to supply the need of the population, industry and tourism industry.

Photo courtesy of Nasa

December 2013 - The Government of Malawi received a €1.8 million grant to help prepare a project to expand irrigated agriculture in the Lower Shire Valley. The project will help overcome the adverse effects of prolonged dry spells and frequent flooding, improve and spread agricultural production, as well as create employment opportunities through farming and irrigation ventures. The grant will be used to finance a feasibility study and preparatory activities to mobilize funding for an irrigation plan covering 21,000 hectares.

July 2010 - The Water Resources Commission (WRC) received a €500,000 grant to   introduce a market and end-user oriented planning approach that simultaneously closes the water and nutrient loops called "Design for Reuse" in order to effectively capture the economic value of wastewater and fecal sludge nutrients to help finance, operate and maintain treatment facilities.

August 2010 - The Water Resources Commission (WRC) of Ghana received a € 1.8 million grant to finance the Akosombo and Kpong Dams reoptimisation and reoperation study. The purpose of the project is to investigate the technical and economic feasibility of a technique for reoptimising the operations of the Akosombo and Kpong hydropower dams to reintroduce (or at least improve or enhance) downstream livelihoods and ecosystems, while maintaining, and indeed enhancing, power generation output and reliability.

Photo courtesy of Nasa

January 2009 - The Government of Kenya received a €1.9 million to improve the productivity and sustainability of land use systems and water conservation by empowering local communities and government agencies institute improved management of Kibuon and Tende river basins. The project will help improve water quality and quantity through the promotion of sustainable agricultural and land use practices in the catchments, leading to the reduction in nutrient and sediment transport into the water courses.

Photo courtesy of Nasa