The National Water and Sewerage Authority (NAWASA) has begun developmental operations under the Climate-Resilient Water Sector in Grenada (G-CREWS) project.
The work will be done in two phases. Phase one (1) involves data collection to facilitate preliminary designs and phase two (2) will see tank and pipe works being undertaken on sites already owned by NAWASA and acquisition of other sites required to facilitate tank construction and pipeline installation.
Manager of NAWASA’s Planning and Development Department Mr. Whyme Cox, asserts that preliminary designs are ongoing and procurement of pipes and tanks should commence before the end of 2020.
The project will see new dams and storage tanks being constructed at a number of Water Treatment Plants across the islands, as well as new ground water programme, redrilling and rehabilitation of existing wells as well as upgrades to distribution lines, bringing improvements in water quality and quantity.
This transformational G-CREWS project valued at EC $135 Million, is the single largest investment in the island’s water sector to date, and will ensure that there are significant upgrades to certain systems throughout the island.
Of the total budget, 12.5 million dollars is assigned for projects. It allows for NAWASA to comprehensively mainstream and implement climate resilience throughout Grenada’s entire water sector, addressing two main climate risks and vulnerabilities: freshwater availability and disaster preparedness.
Over the next six years, the Ministries of Finance and Infrastructure Development, the Grenada Development Bank (GDB) and the National Water and Sewerage Authority (NAWASA), will partner with the German Development Cooperation (GIZ), to implement the project, which will be developed in five components:
Climate-Resilient Water Governance;
Climate-Resilient Water Users;
Climate-Resilient Water Supply Systems;
Additional Contributions of the Water Sector to Grenada’s climate goals; and
Regional learning and replication.
The project is jointly financed by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) under its International Climate Initiative (IKI), the Government of Grenada and the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) in the sum of 45.297 Million Euro (Approximately $135 million XCD).
As a first step in getting the project going, NAWASA officials and other stakeholders, recently participated in two half-day sessions hosted by the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) that provided an in-depth look into the objectives, deliverables and requirements of the project.
The inception workshop was also attended by stakeholders from government, statutory bodies, private sector, civil society, youth, NGOs and media.
