Second Water Sector Investment

closed

The objectives of the Second Water Sector Investment Project are to promote more efficient management and operation of selected public irrigation schemes by participating farmers; to improve access and consumption of drinking water for rural households in communities; and to assist Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, and other stakeholders to make better decisions relating to integrated water resources management in Tunisia. The project has 5 components: (1) irrigation management: activities include creation of new irrigation schemes, rehabilitation and modernization of schemes, drainage, minor works and analytical and capacity building activities for the central government, regional agencies and farmer organizations; (2) Rural water supply: activities include developing new water supply systems and testing alternative service provision arrangements in remote areas and capacity building for community organizations; (3) groundwater management: activities include investigating groundwater resources, developing water resources monitoring networks, supporting communities in managing aquifers, developing an integrated information system and pilot participatory aquifer management in two areas; (4) environmental protection: activities include installation of soil and water quality monitoring systems, conduct of awareness-raising campaigns to support use of treated wastewater in agriculture, and training on environmental protection; and (5) institutional strengthening and capacity-building: activities include training, monitoring, four research activities and development of a forward-looking strategy to manage water in 2050.