$28.3B plan developed to address gaps in water network, housing expansion
The government has developed a $28.3 billion strategic investment plan to further guide the water sector from 2025 to 2028.
The plan aims to address gaps in the water network and support the expansion of the housing programme.
This was announced by the Minister within the Ministry of Housing and Water, Susan Rodrigues, during a recent press briefing at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC).
The initiative will be executed under Phase II of the Coastal Water Treatment Infrastructure Programme (CWTIP).
It will see the drilling of 15 new wells, the construction of four surface water treatment plants and two iron removal plants. Three in-line filters will also be installed.
Some 253,788 persons will benefit from this initiative.
Minister Rodrigues said construction of five large treatment plants totalling $12 billion will also begin this month. The undertaking is another component of the CWTIP Phase II.
It is being funded by the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB).
As part of the CWTIP Phase One that was initiated in 2021, several large water treatment plants are under construction at Onderneeming, La Parfaite Harmonie, Parika, Wales, Bachelor’s Adventure, and Cummings Lodge.
A total of 127,500 residents will receive improved water supply when these projects are completed in March 2025.
Water treatment plants are being upgraded at Pouderoyen, Vergenoegen, Better Hope, Mon Repos, Friendship, Eccles, Covent Garden, Grove, Cotton Tree, New Amsterdam and Port Mourant.
These projects are expected to end by the first quarter of 2025 and will benefit 34,840 residents.
The third installation of over 200 kilometres of new transmission mains, is expected to be completed by June 2025.
Works are ongoing to remove iron content from 18 small treatment plants that will benefit 75,576 residents across Regions Two, Four, Five and Six.
MinisterRodrigues said the government’s promise of delivering 90 per cent treated water coverage is measurable.
“That is why we developed the programme in such a way where we have several components which cater for the existing population and we are catering for the increase in the population as we move forward to 2026 and beyond,” she said.