Improving access to water in South-Western Uganda

The city of Mbarara, located 290km south-west of Kampala, is the largest urban center in western Uganda with its current population of 300,000. Masaka is located 140km southwest of Kampala, and its current population is 200,000.

The two cities suffer from intermittent water supply and aging infrastructure. The government of Uganda with funds from AFD, plans to improve water access in these two cities through the Southwestern Cluster Project (€120M).

Isingiro district is home to more than 300,000 inhabitants. Moreover, the refugee settlements of Nakivale and Oruchinga (hosting 180,000 refugees) are located in Isingiro district. Three quarters of the district’s current inhabitants use unprotected water sources (shallow wells, ponds, and springs).

The project consists of an intake structure at River Kagera, a water treatment plant, transmission main, distribution network, ground reservoirs, standpipes, toilets, sludge disposal and treatment sites within Isingiro district and Mbarara city.

Masaka city will get water from an intake and water treatment plant at Bukakata (Lake Victoria).

• The project will enable a current population of nearly 800,000 and more than 1 million  in the long term(2040) to benefit from continuous access to safe water.
• The project will reduce the time spent fetching water, reduce the expenses borne by families due to illnesses caused by poor water quality, and will offer protection from the abusive prices set by water vendors.
• The project supports the Ugandan government’s innovative policy of successfully handing over the responsibility for water services in refugee areas from the UNHCR to the NWSC.