IADB approves Ecuador water and waste management loan

The Inter-American Development Bank (IADB) has approved a $120m loan to Ecuador to improve water, sanitation and solid waste management in the country.

The China Co-financing Fund for Latin America and the Caribbean is also contributing $30m for the programme, while the local contribution is approximately $51.6m.

The funds will be used to expand and improve access to drinking water, sewage services and treatment of wastewater and solid waste.

Ecuador’s National Program for Investment in Water, Sanitation and Solid Waste calls for infrastructure, financial and environmental impact studies of projects, as well as institutional strengthening for providers of drinking water and sanitation in 100 mid-size municipalilties, which are eligible to receive funds from the programme. The government intends to help 21,000 households with new water hook-ups, as well as another 35,000 new sanitation connections, either as part of a grid or individually, which will help to dispose of around 165t of solid waste a day.

Around 72% of people in the country bring their water from the public grid, according to data from the National Census of 2010, while the national coverage level is about 54% for sewage services. Ecuador has around six million people who do not have access to water in their homes and about eight million people without proper sanitation. The Environment Ministry said that 28% of solid waste ends up in landfills and 72% in open air dumps, waste incinerators, creeks or rivers, which is a major sanitary and environmental threat.

The IADB loan is over 25 years, with a grace period of four years and an interest rate based on LIBOR.