ADB provides $160m to establish modern sewerage system in Khulna

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of Bangladesh today signed loan agreements worth $160 million to establish a modern and sustainable sewerage system in Khulna.

Fatima Yasmin, secretary, Economic Relations Division (ERD), and Manmohan Parkash, country director, ADB, signed the loan agreement virtually on behalf of Bangladesh and ADB respectively.

Md Abdullah, managing director at Khulna Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (KWASA) signed the project agreement.

"This project will support the government's efforts to contain outbreaks of diseases, including Covid-19, in future by establishing a climate-resilient and environment-friendly sewerage system for safe sanitation and hygiene," said Country Director Manmohan Parkash.

"The project will help meet people's basic needs amid rapid urbanisation and growth through effective sewage management," he said.

"Latest technologies including supervisory control and data acquisitions, and online data systems for automatic data logging, as well as energy-efficient pumps and equipment and corrosion-resistant pipes with a low carbon footprint will be used to deliver a state-of-the-art sewerage system," he added.

The Khulna Sewerage System Development Project will develop a centralised sewerage system that will benefit 880,000 residents in the city. It will include a 269-kilometer sewer network, eight pumping stations, two sewage treatment plants, and about 27,000 property-level sewer connections.