Clean drinking water and better sanitation increase the quality of life for 900,000 people in Zambia

Krüger has been the general contractor for a large Danida Sustainable Infrastructure Finance project in Zambia, where we have provided clean drinking water and better sanitation to 900,000 people. The project has now been formally completed with a happy customer and significantly improved living conditions as a result.

Ndola, Luanshya and Masaiti are located in northern Zambia. Here, the residents have had major challenges with their supply facilities, as they experienced huge water losses of 80-85% and sewer overflow. As a consequence, residents lived with flooded roads and sewage seeping into their homes, resulting in both property damage and a significant health risk.
 

Danida Sustainable Infrastructure Finance (DSIF) loan-financed a project to renovate the facilities for drinking water and wastewater supply. The goal was to purify the water far better and to ensure a solid supply of clean drinking water to the three urban areas. Another important goal was to ensure knowledge sharing so that the locals themselves could continue the operation when the project was completed.
 

In the extensive task, Krüger renovated and constructed groundwater wells and raw water intakes from the local Kafubu River. In addition, we renovated and constructed new waterworks, pipelines and booster stations, just as we renovated and established new wastewater treatment plants.

Last signature put to paper

In October 2021, the last warranty obligations were released from the customer Kafubu Water and Sanitation Company (KWSC) and the final verification report approved by DSIF, which means that the project is completed.
 

“Access to clean water and good sanitation are important prerequisites in order for people in developing countries to have proper living conditions. Therefore, this type of project is also completely in line with DSIF’s strategy, where we combine specific needs in developing countries with the expertise of Danish companies. In this case, we have both created a better water supply for 900,000 people, ensured a good knowledge sharing and established a long-term sustainable quality solution, which is very satisfactory ", says Tina Kollerup Hansen, Vice President, DSIF.
 

“From Krüger's side, we welcome the fact that these vulnerable areas now have access to clean water and sanitation, which for us is absolutely crucial to achieving sustainable local development. At the same time, it will mean significant savings as a result of more appropriate resource consumption. Therefore, we are really proud to have once again contributed to a more sustainable development by means of our core competencies: clean water and access to sanitation. The good cooperation with the customer and DSIF has been crucial for the success of the project, "says Leif Bentsen, CEO of Krüger.

Sustainable Development

The project contributes positively to several of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) and will thus help provide an increased quality of life to the residents in northern Zambia. This is in line with both DSIF's vision and work on a targeted effort for the UN's SDG’s and Krüger's ambition to contribute to sustainable development in the world, which is in line with Krüger being certified in the SDG’s by Bureau Veritas earlier this year.
 

Now that the last car has driven away, the focus is on getting the project to run in the future as well. Throughout the process, there was a great deal of knowledge sharing with local subcontractors, as many of them had never participated in such a large project before. Krüger therefore gave them training in laying wires, welding, working with concrete and installation of electrical equipment.
 

In addition, the local people’s competencies were upgraded to match the new facilities. As subcontractors to Krüger, 3Vand (VandCenter Syd, Aarhus Vand and HOFOR) provided teachers for the project in Zambia. The training also included maintenance planning and spare parts management, just as preventive maintenance was in focus. In this way, it is ensured that the facilities in the local area are operated correctly and continue to function now that the project has been completed.

Participants in the project

The developer was Kafubu Water and Sewerage Company supported with a loan from DSIF. During the project, up to 100 Zambians were employed in Krüger Zambia and more than 1,000 local people were also employed through local subcontractors. The project was carried out in collaboration with, among others, Krüger's sister company Veolia in South Africa.