Japan pouring US$17.8 million into Luang Prabang water supply upgrade

The Japanese government is funding a grant aid project worth US$17.8 million to improve the water supply system in Luang Prabang city, under a grant agreement signed in Vientiane on Thursday.
The agreement was signed by the Director General of the Department of International Cooperation of the Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ms Sisomboun Ounavong, and Chief Representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Mr Yoshiharu Yoneyama.

The government of Japan has provided the grant aid to enhance the  pressured water supply for residents and tourism businesses while also increasing awareness and readiness to prevent fires in heritage preservation areas. 
The Department of Water Supply, Ministry of Public Works and Transport, will implement the water expansion project which is in line with the 8th and 9th five year National Socio-Economic Development Plans (2016-2020 and 2021-2025).
Ms Sisomboun said the main objective of the project was to upgrade the water supply system by improving the Namkhan and Phoupung water treatment plants and through the rehabilitation and expansion of the water distribution network in the supply service area as well as the drainage system.
It also includes the construction of new reservoirs with a capacity of 1,500m3 and the installation of 60.2 km of distribution pipelines. “On behalf of the Lao government, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation and heartfelt thanks to the government and people of Japan for their valuable assistance, generous contribution and continued support for development in Laos up to the present,” Ms Sisomboun said.
Japan’s official development assistance, along with support from other partners, is contributing to the improvement of infrastructure and services, leading to better living conditions. Mr Yoshiharu said the project would significantly contribute to the Lao government’s efforts to achieve its 8th NSEDP target by increasing water supply coverage in urban areas countrywide to 80 percent by 2020 and to 85 percent by 2025.
The target population of the project is more than 70,000 people over an area 68,695m2, while foreign visitors will also benefit.
The project will help resolve the increasing demand for water and contribute to stabilising water pressure, especially in the city’s conservation areas. This is where fire hydrants are urgently required so that UNESCO-registered items are fire-protected after completion of the project.

By Sangkhomsay Bubphanouvong
(Latest Update October 11, 2019)