The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved an additional grant financing of $30.5 million to improve water supply and sanitation in Laos. The additional financing will enable the Laos government to bring six more towns within the ambit of an ongoing water supply and sanitation sector project, which has been supported by a $35 million loan approved by ADB in 2013. The project supports the government’s goal of supplying piped water to 90 per cent of urban areas and sanitation to all urban areas by 2030. Apart from expanding the number of project areas and beneficiaries, the additional financing will also add 150 km of water supply distribution pipelines in the project towns.
The additional financing comprises a $23.14 million grant from the Asian Development Fund (ADF) and a $7.36 million grant focused on climate adaptation efforts from the ADF Disaster Risk Reduction Fund. The expanded project is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2023.