Ministry of National Planning, Housing and Infrastructure has revealed there is currently no island that has been neglected in its initiative to establish water supply and sewerage systems. The ministry has signed agreements with contractors to establish water supply and sewerage systems in the remaining 23 islands.
At the signing ceremony, the ministry signed agreements to establish water supply systems in 23 islands and sewerage systems in 16 islands, at a collective cost of USD 60 million.
When the current administration took office, only 37 out of 188 islands had water supply systems and 69 islands had sewerage systems, leaving 141 islands with neither water supply nor sewerage systems. The current administration began projects to establish water supply systems in 60 islands and sewerage systems in 48 islands in the past three years. So far, water supply systems in eight islands and sewerage systems in nine islands have been established since the administration took over.
Speaking at the ceremony, Minister of National Planning, Housing and Infrastructure Mohamed Aslam said the administration was hindered in its work to begin water and sewerage projects in all islands within the first two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the minister said the administration is working to complete all water and sewerage projects in its first term.
Currently, projects to establish sewerage systems in 33 islands and water supply systems in 53 islands are ongoing with funding from the state budget, and loan assistance from EXIM Bank of India and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID).
The government has spent a total of USD 375 million to establish water supply and sewerage systems in the past three years.