World Bank Supports Improving Sanitation Services in Gaza to Address Health Issues and Water Pollution

Two projects in the Gaza Strip will respond to health and environmental threats and provide long-term solutions to the treatment of sewage and solid waste. The US$13 million grants by the World Bank are focused on improving sanitation services in the Gaza Strip, a development priority in the densely populated area facing severe publichealth and water pollutionthreats.

"Several residential areas have been recurrently flooded with raw sewage causing property damage, injuries and deaths. Illegal dumping and burning of waste are common practices across rural and urban areas causing soil, air and water pollution as well as health hazard,"saidSteen Jorgensen, World Bank Country Director for West Bank and Gaza."Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are entitled to live in a healthy and clean environment. Proper management of municipal waste is a priority that the World Bank is supporting toavoid negative health and environmental impacts on the well-being of Gaza citizens."

The US$10 million grant for theGaza Solid Waste Management Projectapproved by the Bank on March 31, 2014, aims to improve the solid waste disposal in the Gaza governorates through the provision of an efficient, socially acceptable and environmentally friendly mechanism. It will promote citizen engagement towards more accountability through awareness campaigns and the use of social media including text messaging and interactive website. The new landfill facility will be located in the southern part of the Gaza Strip and will serve about half of the population, in the Middle and Southern Governorates. The grant will compliment about US$25 million in financial contributions from the Palestinian Authority, participating municipalities and several donors including the European Union, the French Development Agency, Sweden, Japan and the Islamic Development Bank.

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Taxonomy

• Water & Sanitation
• Water Security