Bamako, the capital city of Mali, is experiencing rapid population growth, exacerbated by the internal displacement of people from the conflict-hit north of the country. This compounds existing problems of access to basic services such as drinking water supply and sanitation. The World Bank estimated in 2012 that little more than two thirds of the population have access to safe drinking water. Some neighbourhoods of Bamako suffer from water shortages, particularly at the end of the dry season.

Key objectives of the Kabala 2 - Eau et Assainissement project:

• Double the capacity of the Kabala water treatment plant.
• Construct new reservoirs and extend the water distribution network.
• Connect 34 000 households to the network
• Install 600 standpipes.
• Provide safe drinking water for 560 000 people.
• Construct two night soil treatment plants (to treat the contents of septic tanks and latrines) with a capacity to serve 1 million people and avoid the daily discharge into the environment of 600m3 of untreated sewage.

Increased water treatment and storage capacity will help improve resilience to drought risks. Meanwhile, project components exposed to flood risk (the water intake, water treatment plant and night soil treatment plants) have been designed with an additional safety margin to improve resilience in the face of the risk of higher flood levels.

The EIB is supporting this project with a long-term loan, blending with an interest subsidy under the Cotonou Agreement, to complement funding provided by other IFIs. The Bank has participated actively in the development of this project with other lenders and has provided technical assistance by financing the Bamako water supply master plan study, a feasibility study and an environmental and social impact assessment from the Cotonou Investment Facility.