CHIBOMBO – The United States Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), today launched a Country Plan to expand U.S. support to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) in Zambia.
Each year, the U.S. government selects High-Priority Countries for safe and resilient WASH assistance through USAID in accordance with the Water for the World Act of 2014. According to the World Health Organization, an estimated 36 percent of Zambians lack access to basic water services and 68 percent lack access to basic sanitation services. However, Zambia has the potential to meet these challenges, including through a clear vision for universal WASH access, increased Constituency Development Fund support for WASH infrastructure, and policy and regulatory reforms.
Since designating Zambia a High-Priority Water Country in 2021, the U.S. government has provided clean and safe water to almost 172,000 people and proper sanitation to another over 921,000 people. A total of 829 villages have become open defecation-free.
The U.S. government invests in the water sector in Zambia through the USAID Scaling Up Nutrition Technical Assistance project, which has provided clean and safe water to over 250,000 people across 13 districts in Central, Copperbelt, Northern and Luapula provinces since 2019. The project has primarily accomplished this through the rehabilitation of over 300 boreholes and construction of almost 200 new boreholes.
In Muchinga, Northern, Southern, and Western provinces, the USAID Expanding Water and Sanitation Project works with the private sector to improve access to sustainable and safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene services.
As a water priority country, USAID will continue to partner with the Zambian Government and other stakeholders to strengthen sector governance; address key financing gaps; and increase access to sustainable water and sanitation services in rural areas, where access is lowest.
Through this strategic support, the U.S. government is supporting Zambia’s implementation of its National Water Supply and Sanitation Policy and the Revised National Rural Water Supply and Sanitation which aims to provide universal access to WASH services by 2030.
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