By Chisomo Phiri

BLANTYRE-(MaraviPost)-Lilongwe Water Board (LWB) has secured additional grant of USS45.00 million from the World Bank for the implementation works of its Lilongwe Water and Sanitation project.

This brings the total financing by the World Bank for the project to USS145.00 million following the initial grant of USS100.00 million received earlier this year.

According to the Parliamentary statement of approval, the grant was made on March 17, 2022 and released on March 19, 2022.

The Lilongwe Water and Sanitation Project is aimed at increasing access to improved water services and safely managed sanitation services in Lilongwe City.

The Project scope involves rehabilitation and upgrading of the city’s water distribution network to reduce water losses and improve the reliability of water supply.

It also aims at expansion of LWB’s water supply network to other underserved areas in response to the rapid urbanization being experienced by the city.

The project is further designed to support priority sanitation improvements (both sewerage and onsite sanitation), which are expected to have significant impacts on public health and environment in line with the aspirations of the Malawi 2063 Development Agenda.

The project is also designed to strengthen the Lilongwe Water Board’s ( LWB) and Lilongwe City Council’s implementation capacity to provide improved water services and safely managed sanitation.

The project is expected to directly benefit a total of 250,000 people with improved water services and particularly those in the peripheral areas of the city of Lilongwe where intermittent water supply and access to potable water are key challenges.

The LWSP is a five-year project which became effective on March 26, 2018 and shall be concluded on June 30, 2023.