Water Supply and Sanitation Acceleration Project

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The proposed project comprises 3 components. Component 1 focuses on increasing access to safely managed water supply service through the development of piped water supply system across the selected provinces by supporting public water utilities and private water operators to expand and improve their service, while at the same time bringing in professional water operators to the greenfield areas. Component 2 focuses on increasing access to safely managed sanitation service in selected provincial municipalities through development of wastewater treatment plant, sewerage network construction, and improvement of fecal sludge management service for parts of municipalities that cannot be served by sewerage. Each component above will be accompanied with support on improving sector governance and planning, strengthening institutional capacity, enhancing financial sustainability and sustaining operational management of the service. The last component, Component 3, is the zero-dollar component dedicated for responding to unexpected crises or emergencies in the country. The interventions under the proposed project will complement other previous or ongoing investment projects in selected provincial municipalities, retrofitting existing and/or planned infrastructure to optimize its capacity; and to expand or develop services in unserved areas in provincial towns as well as areas outside of provincial towns.Under Component 1 - Province-wide Water Supply Development, the support will be provided to extend/develop the water supply network and build a water treatment plant in the service areas of Battambang, Pursat and Mondul Kiri water utilities. The support will also be provided to the three utilities to strengthen their operational performance and modernization. For areas outside their service areas (within Battambang and Pursat provinces), a framework to support private water operators (PWOs) will be developed to enable water operators to professionalize their operation, to expand their service coverage within their licensed areas, and to densify their network within the existing service areas. The proposed project support options may consist of a mix of investment finance support (likely in the form of a range of viability gap financing), and technical assistance support to PWOs. The above options are proposed to be underpinned by regulatory measures aimed at exiting weak performers and non-starting PWOs that are unviable for support at the current scale or level of service. While the proposed framework is envisaged to be a country-wide framework, the proposed project will support initial implementation in Battambang and Pursat provinces. Support will also be provided to attract stronger private operators to greenfield sites. In addition to infrastructure investment, the project also aims to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Industry, Science, Technology & Innovation (MISTI) in water supply regulation through improved performance management. This will strengthen the accountability of the public provincial waterworks and PWOs to their users and the MISTI. Specifically, performance management of water operators and the publication of performance data will incentivize inclusive, resilient, and efficient water service delivery and inform design and implementation of water sector policy. By strengthening capacity at the national and provincial levels this sub-component also contributes to improved intergovernmental coordination. The activities would also address sectoral issues, by fostering close collaboration between the MISTI and the Ministry of Water Resource and Meteorology (MoWRAM), to coordinate and plan for water source development. Through better cooperation, both ministries would address water demand and supply-related concerns, in light of climate change exacerbated water scarcity in the project areas. Moreover, the project will also foster joint planning and coordination in water resource management in close collaboration with the proposed Bank-financed Cambodia Water Security Improvement Project. Under Component 2 - Provincial Municipality Sanitation Development, the proposed project will support extension of wastewater collection networks and provision of service connections to the sewerage network in part of Battambang municipality to deliver wastewater to wastewater treatment plants developed under other projects. The proposed project will also support development of wastewater treatment plants, including fecal sludge treatment facilities, wastewater collection networks, andserviceconnections in the selected coverage areas of Pursat and Ta Khmau municipalities. Adopting the concept of City-Wide Inclusive Sanitation (CWIS), support will be provided for city-wide planning for sanitation to guide investments in sanitation in all selected municipalities, to ensure that sanitation solutions are proposed for all parts of the municipalities. In tandem with wastewater investments, the proposed project will support investments in limited key drainage infrastructure in selected municipalities to reduce water logging or flooding in selected parts of the municipalities. Alongside infrastructure, support will also be provided for developing and/or strengthening institutional and operational capacity of a wastewater entity at municipality level to ensure sustainable operation and maintenance (O&M). Implementation of sanitation uptake programs (sewer connections and pit emptying service) and management of sewerage assets in the targeted municipalities will be also supported. The proposed project will also support strengthening of institutional capacity of the Ministry of Public Works and Transport and relevant agencies to promote CWIS in the country.Under Component 3 – Contingent Emergency Response Component (CERC), this component is to enable response to unexpected crises and emergencies during the project implementation period. The CERC will be established and managed in accordance with the provisions of the World Bank Policy and World Bank Directive on Investment Project Financing.