The African Development Bank (AfDB) has allocated a loan and a grant to finance a $26-million water project, in Mahe, in the Seychelles.

With water shortages common in Mahe, the Seychelles’ largest island, the project aimed to assist in achieving the Seychelles 2008-2030 water development plan target with the support of the African Water Facility, which was hosted and managed by AfDB.

Currently, the country could only meet about 60% of its potable water needs owing to limited storage capacity, increased demand for housing construction and water losses along the network. During the dry seasons, water rationing was also enforced.

The funding comprised a $20.6-million AfDB loan and $1.4-million grant from the Middle Income Country Technical Assistance Fund. The Seychelles government would provide the remaining $4-million.

The Mahe sustainable water augmentation project sought to promote the country’s economic development by improving water supply capacity and resilience against climate change.

The project would improve water supply services by reducing the number of days when water was rationed and increase water production capacity to cover areas in the island’s northern region.

The project was anchored in the country’s medium-term national development strategy 2013-2017, which focused on strengthening the foundations of economic growth, improving the quality of life and ensuring environmental sustainability.

The project was also in line with the AfDB’s adjusted Seychelles 2011-2015 country strategy paper (CSP), which focused on infrastructure development, concentrating solely on the water infrastructure subsector.

The CSP was aimed at enhancing the country’s water storage capacity, allowing it to better respond to climatic variability and increasing water demand. It would also help promote economic growth by reducing overreliance on desalination and improving social development by increasing access to water and sanitation.

The AfDB’s intervention would also contribute to greater diversification and competitiveness of the Seychelles economy.

Demand for water on the Mahe island was projected to increase by up to 130% by 2030, with domestic, industrial and tourism use, which accounted for 36%, 1% and 5% of the total water demand, expected to increase by 140%, 400% and 190% respectively.