Jordan Times
Friday, March 16, 2007
US grants to support
water sector
AMMAN (JT) — The US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) on Thursday provided
two grants worth $742,000 to support the Kingdom’s water sector.
The first grant, worth $450,000, will fund a feasibility study, carried out by
the Water Authority of Jordan, for establishing a wastewater treatment plant to
serve the southern areas of Balqa Governorate.
Towns in the area currently rely on cesspits and septic tanks to dispose of
wastewater, according to a US embassy statement.
The USTDA-funded study will analyse wastewater collection, treatment and
effluent reuse from communities west of Salt to determine the most appropriate
technical solutions for a wastewater collection and treatment in the area.
The second $292,000 grant will finance technical assistance programmes to
analyse the Aqaba Water Company’s distribution of water from the Disi aquifer
with the goal of upgrading the reliability of the system.
Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Suhair Al-Ali and American
Ambassador David Hale signed the grant agreements yesterday.
During the ceremony, Al-Ali said scarcity of water was one of the most serious
challenges facing the Kingdom and expressed Jordan’s appreciation for the US’
continued support, particularly to this key sector.
She also noted that the US annually allocates around $70 million in technical
and infrastructure development projects to support the water sector in Jordan,
according to a Planning Ministry statement.
Opportunities to participate in the programmes supported by these grants will be
by open competition via the US government’s Federal Business Opportunities
website at http://www.fbo.gov.
Interested firms should submit proposals according to the instructions in the
Federal Business Opportunities announcement. The Water Authority of Jordan and
the Aqaba Water Company will select the contractor, according to the US embassy
statement.
USTDA, which started its activities in Jordan in 1996, provides funding for
feasibility studies and orientation visits that support the economic needs and
priorities of countries around the world.
In Jordan, USTDA is most active in the telecommunications, power, and
transportation sectors.