WASHINGTON, July 18, 2006 - The World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved a $10 million International Development Association credit*, in additional financing, for an ongoing water sector project in the Republic of Niger.

    The Niger Water Sector Project, which began implementation in September 2001, aims to increase and maintain access to potable water and sanitation services in urban and rural areas by rehabilitating facilities and strengthening institutions responsible for oversight and policy making.

    The additional financing, requested by the Government of Niger, will scale up the projects impact and support unanticipated costs associated with rehabilitating water distribution systems in small towns and provide about 5,000 new private connections to the water distribution network, 70 public standpipes and 1,500 household latrines to fulfill a strong demand from the public.

    The water systems in small towns face various problems, including insufficient levels of water from which to pump (especially during the dry season), a lack of reliable production equipment, and a poor quality of water due to the presence of fluoride and iron.

    "Implementation performance is satisfactory and the project is likely to achieve or exceed its development objectives," said Matar Fall, the World Bank's Task Team Leader for the project . "Results achieved so far outperformed most appraisal targets, both in terms of physical infrastructure and development impact."

    As of December 2005, 265,000 additional people in urban areas have gained access to potable water, representing a 20 percent increase in the level of access (from 62 percent in 2001 to 82 percent in 2005), already exceeding the end-of-project target.

    "By securing additional production capacity and increasing transfer capacity through water transmission mains, the project has led the ground work for future operations to increase access through additional private connections and public standpipes," said Eustache Ouayoro, the World Bank Sector Manager for Water, Sanitation and Urban Development for Western and Central Africa .

    The original IDA credit, in the amount of $48 million, was approved May 3, 2001. In addition to the World Bank, co-financing of the project was provided by the French Development Agency (AFD), the West African Development Bank (BOAD) and the Republic of China. With the additional financing, the project is scheduled to conclude December 31, 2008.

    * The credit is provided on standard International Development Association (IDA) terms, with a commitment fee of 0.35 percent, a service charge of 0.75 percent over a 40 year period of maturity which includes a 10-year grace period.

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