Access to drinking water in Phnom Penh
Context
Cambodia enjoys abundant water resources yet only 37% of urban populations have access to real drinking water. The situation is better in Phnom Penh where there is an 85% coverage rate in central districts. However, the city’s outlying neighbourhoods still do not have a distribution network and water is often supplied by private transporters at a very high cost.
The Phnom Penh Water Supply Authority (PPWSA) is an autonomous public establishment under the supervision of the Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy. It is in charge of producing and distributing water in Phnom Penh and its outlying neighbourhoods (i.e. to 1.3 million inhabitants). PPWSA has made a spectacular recovery thanks to donor support since the signing of peace agreements in 1993 and the strong involvement of its teams under the impetus of its General Director Ek Sonn Chan. Its performances are now on a par with international standards: an 8% loss rate and a billing recovery rate of nearly 100%. Its good results have made it a model in Asia.
AFD allocated a first direct loan (without passing through the State) to PPWSA in 2006 to finance a treatment plant to allow it increase its drinking water production capacity. Due to the rapid increase in Phnom Penh’s population (2.8% annually) and the consequent rise in water demand, AFD allocated a second loan for the construction of the Niroth plant to the south of Phnom Penh.
Objectives
The project aims to help improve water supply in greater Phnom Penh and, more specifically, in the outlying neighbourhoods which are still only partially connected to a drinking water network.
The objectives are as follows:
- to raise PPWSA’s production and distribution capacity
- to consolidate its financial base and its autonomy.
Project description
The project aims to create a new drinking water production plant and to extend Phnom Penh’s water network.
The new facilities are built on the Niroth site to the south of the city. These investments include the implementation of a raw water point on the Mekong, the transfer of raw water to the plant and the creation of a treatment plant.
The City of Paris is completing this mechanism in the framework of France’s Oudin-Santini law by financing new connections that will give the most disadvantaged populations access to the network. This mechanism provides subsidies to individuals on the basis of social criteria.
Impacts
Economic impacts: the project gives 350 000 people access to the drinking water network. It reduces water bills for households benefiting from connections. Without this project they would have continued to buy water from private vendors at a cost three times higher than the average PPWSA tariff. The saving amounts to USD7 per month and per household (i.e. a quarter of average income).
Social impacts: the project increases connections on the existing network and extends them to outlying neighbourhoods that are not yet covered by the distribution network. The number of connections in these neighbourhoods is expected to increase by half. 18 000 disadvantaged households have already been connected to the water network. 2 000 new households should be connected every year.
Health impacts: improving water quality has a positive effect on population health and reduces health costs by 25%.
Dates and Amounts
2006: 11 million euro loan
2008: 16 million euro loan
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