The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) alongside the Global Concessional Financing Facility (GCFF) and the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has launched the construction of a wastewater pipeline in Amman, Jordan.

The wastewater pipeline is expected to ease the pressure on Amman and generate water for irrigation purposes.

The Water Authority of Jordan has been granted a total of €45 million as a loan for the construction of the wastewater pipeline. Of which, the EBRD will provide a loan of €22.5 million, while FCDO is granting £14 million, and the EBRD Shareholder Special Fund and the GCFF will provide €4.6 million and $2 million loans, respectively.

Philip ter Woort – EBRD Regional Head, Eastern Mediterranean said: “This partnership with the Water Authority of Jordan, with the support of GCFF and FCDO, will help develop the municipal sector in the country and assist in improving the quality of sewage- and wastewater-treatment infrastructure, contributing to the delivery of better services.”

The new wastewater pipeline will connect the existing Ain Ghazal pre-treatment plant in Amman with the As-Samra wastewater plant located in the north of Jordan, to cater to the residents of Amman and Zarqa.

The newly constructed pipeline is also expected to bring down untreated sewage overflows and decrease the risks of environmental contamination and pollution of surface water in the area near the Ain Ghazal treatment plant, said the EBRD.

Jordan hosts 1.4 million plus Syrian refugees, which in particular is causing enormous pressure on Amman’s municipal services, which include water supply and sanitation. The investment is done as part of the EBRD response to the refugee crisis and is intended to enhance Jordan’s wastewater system, and boost its resilience.

To address the water scarcity in Jordan, the EBRD took up the task to invest sustainably in the treatment of wastewater. Some of the earlier investments in the country’s water infrastructure by the EBRD are the East Zarqa wastewater pipeline and the West Irbid wastewater network.

  Ain Ghazal pre-treatment plant, Amman, Commonwealth and Development Office, EBRD, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, FCDO, Foreign, GCFF, Global Concessional Financing Facility, Jordan, Motasem Saidan, Philip ter Woort, UK, Wastewater treatment, Water Authority of Jordan