January 2013 –The Government of the Republic of Congo received a €1 million grant to finance feasibility studies of drinking water and sanitation systems in five semi-urban centers, and to finance the development of tools to be used to strengthen the operational capacity of the Water Sector Development Fund (FDSE) for the fund to be a sustainable financing tool for projects in the water supply and sanitation sector.

Photo courtesy of Nasa

January 2013- The Municipality of Seme-Podji received a € 1.1 million grant to finance the rehabilitation and improvement of waste management in Grand-Nokoue . This is expected to improve the lives and living conditions of the people of Grand-Nokoue, reducing the spread of water borne diseases, while making good use of the waste collected for treatment and reused as fertilizer sold to farmers at a competitive price.

July 2009 – The Government of the Central African Republic received a € 2 million grant to establish an institutional and regulatory framework to strengthen water and sanitation sector governance and institutional capacity to attract additional funding and make more sustainable investments. The project is expected to enhance national capacities in the sector in terms of water governance, monitoring, management and planning of water resources.

August 2012 – The Government of Zambia received a € 950,000 grant to develop, test, and adopt updated guidelines to program, design, finance, build and monitor multi-purpose small dams. Resources mobilisation activities are also an important part of the project to ensure that the dams be scaled-up. The project is expected help rural communities build resilience to climate variability through improved water storage capacity. The water is expected to increase water security for fisheries, irrigation, domestic use, and cattle.

Photo courtesy of Nasa

July 2012 - The Kenya Rainwater Association (KRA) received € 690,000 grant to mainstream rainwater harvesting and management (RHM) in response to rural development challenges posed by climate change in drought prone regions of Kenya.

May 2012 - The Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO, the technical arm of the Nile Basin Initiative, received a € 2 million grant for a development study to support investment efforts to finance the Baro-Akobo-Sobat development programme. The region holds tremendous potential for the cooperative development of water resources, if enhanced, promises significant socio-economic impacts that can reduce poverty.

April 2012 - The Government of Cape Verde has received a € 1.4 million grant to finance a study that will look at ways to better mobilise and store surface water resources through the construction of dams. The grant will also be used to strengthen the legal framework for integrated water resources management. This will help Cape Verde deal with increased water pressure on the groundwater resources, and build water security for all uses.

January 2012 – The Government of Sudan received a € 3.3 million grant to finance the preparation of bankable investment plans to leverage the US $100 million in financing required to meet the medium and longer term water and sanitation needs of the inhabitants in 15 to 20 small rural towns in Darfur, as well as neighbouring pastoralists and nomadic peoples.

August 2011- The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) received a € 411,000 grant for a study to establish a regional water observatory to contribute the improvement of water sector performance.  The observatory would help strengthen political will on common water management policy amongst ECOWAS member countries, and promote the convergence of national policy outlook and strategy framework to facilitate joint action on transboundary water resources management.

Photo courtesy of Nasa

May 2011 – The Southern African Development Community (SADC) received a € 1.7 million grant to undertake a study to improve knowledge on navigable waterways of the Shire-Zambezi for their reopening. This joint action between Malawi and Mozambique will improve information exchange and promote joint project planning and investment. The reopening of the waterways could increase the volume of transport of goods, trade and the exchange of services.