The stated objective of the Lilongwe Water and Sanitation Project (LWSP) for Malawi is to increase access to improved water services and safely managed sanitation services in Lilongwe City. There are four components to the project:

1. Water distribution network rehabilitation, expansion and Non-revenue Water (NRW) reduction. This component involves investments in priority network rehabilitation to remove bottlenecks, increase hydraulic capacity of the existing network and reduce losses, and network expansion to increase coverage.

2. Priority sanitation improvements. This component will finance various investments to increase access to safely managed household and public sanitation services in Lilongwe.

3. Technical assistance. This component will finance technical assistance (TA) activities designed to support preparation and supervision of all infrastructure investments planned under the project; and to enhance capacity of Lilongwe Water Board (LWB) to plan future investments under the Lilongwe Water Program.

4. Institutional Capacity Strengthening. This component will finance a set of activities designed to: (i) strengthen the capacity of LWB to implement the project and to provide improved water services to its customers; and (ii) strengthen the capacity of Lilongwe City Council (LCC) to implement the sanitation component of the project, operate and maintain the sanitation infrastructure and support the reforms needed to provide and promote safely managed sanitation services in Lilongwe.

APPLICABLE SOCIAL & ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS

According to available documents, the following Bank policies have been triggered:

Environmental Assessment OP/BP 4.01 - This safeguard is triggered due to the potential negative impacts associated with the project activities largely associated with civil works emanating from digging of trenches to install water pipelines; and water treatment plant. The negative impacts will include soil erosion due to cutting down of trees, grass and people's crops, generation of construction related solid waste, increased noise and dust emissions due to earth moving equipment and machinery, and oil spillage from construction equipment and machinery.

Natural Habitats OP/BP 4.04 - This safeguard is triggered due to trenching activities associated with rehabilitation/expansion of the distribution network, which will have impacts on natural habitats such as wetlands and rivers, and therefore have environmental and socio-economic issues associated with such activities.

Involuntary Resettlement OP/BP 4.12 - This safeguard is triggered because the project will result in loss of land, other private assets and income and temporary displacement and resettlement of the project affected persons (PAPs). Some people's property will also be permanently resettled resulting to loss and disturbances in businesses.

Safety of Dams OP/BP 4.37 - This safeguard is triggered because one of the investments under the project (the new water treatment plant, TW3) is linked to the planned raising of Kamuzu dam 1(KD1) which is financed by EIB.

Projects on International Waterways OP/BP 7.50 - This safeguard is triggered because the project will involve additional abstraction of water (50MLD) from Lilongwe River which flows into Lake Malawi – an international water body

EWS RISK ASSESSMENT

According to available Bank documents, the following human and environmental rights may be impacted by the project:

• Right to Property - According to the bank documents, the project is likely to cause permanent and in some cases temporary loss in business properties and structures. Even though the project will not result to resettlement of affected populations, it will nonetheless affect people's business structures with a total of 152 structures and businesses identified to either be permanently or temporarily affected.

• Right to Livelihood- The Project will impact on land use and business activities. The project activities will cutting down of trees and crops, and therefore disturb agricultural activities. There will also be permanent, and in some cases temporary loss of business with a total of 363 people identified to be compensated for loss of property, structures and businesses.

• Right to a Healthy Environment- During the operation phase when major earthworks are being undertaken, there is potential for significant dust and noise generation that may likely pose health risks to surrounding communities. In addition the influx of workers significantly increases potential for the spread of communicable diseases in the area with in-migration of people seeking construction work and commercial sex work.

IDA Grant 25,000,000.00
IDA Loan 75,000,000.00
Borrower 2,000,000.00

Lilongwe Water Board
Alfonso Chikuni
Chief Executive Officer
achikuni@lwb.mw 

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF WORLD BANK

The World Bank Inspection Panel is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by a World Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Inspection Panel, they may investigate to assess whether the World Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can contact the Inspection Panel or submit a complaint by emailing ipanel@worldbank.org. You can learn more about the Inspection Panel and how to file a complaint at: http://ewebapps.worldbank.org/apps/ip/Pages/Home.aspx.