Dhaka Rivers Ecological Restoration Project

dropped

To achieve its development objectives, the Project will be supported through Investment Project Financing (IPF) on IDA terms, investing US$635 million across four components. The components are in line with the Government’s Preliminary Development Project Proforma (PDPP), which includes priority multisectoral investments under the DRMP and DSMP that are foundational in nature. The project components are: (a) Component 1: River and canal rehabilitation (US$295 million). To restore the natural drainage function of rivers and canals and reestablish water flow, this component will support demarcation of their boundaries; dredging, reexcavation , and cleanup; dredge spoil management , showcasing a pilot for hazardous waste and plastic management; and land reclamation. The specific location of this component will be selected based on the severity of flow reduction, flooding, or waterlogging and IA readiness to implement. Once water flow is reestablished and rivers and canals are reconnected, they will help enhance water quality (complementing Component 2) and river navigation. The recreational function of the riverfront may revive as well as a result.(b) Component 2: Wastewater collection and treatment (US$330 million). To improve the water quality of rivers and canals, this component will invest in domestic STPs, sewer networks, and other on-site sanitation facilities in informal residential areas (annex 6), closely coordinating with the DSIP that invests mainly in the Pagla sanitation catchment area. To deal with industrial effluents, concurrent investments in ETPs will be made through the Bangladesh Environmental Sustainability and Transformation (BEST) Project (P172817). Public-private partnership (PPP) opportunities will be sought, leveraging lessons learned from other relevant World Bank Group engagements. (c) Component 3: Institutional strengthening and project management (US$10 million). This component will finance the following activities that are aimed at strengthening institutions relevant to the DRMP implementation: (i) development of a decision support system that would enhance institutions’ capacity to regulate and monitor the rivers and canals and facilitate O&M of river infrastructures; (ii) capacity building on PPP structuring on wastewater treatment and dredge spoil management; and (iii) training on soft skills, such as change management and collaborative communication. The component may also support designing and institutionalizing of a pilot land value capture mechanism. Project management support will be provided through this component as well, such as preparation of bid documents and stakeholder consultation.(d) Component 4: Contingent emergency response component (CERC) (US$0 million). A provisional zero amount component is included, which will allow for rapid reallocation of credit proceeds from other project components during an emergency.