Today, the Government of Ukraine and the Government of the French Republic have signed the Framework Agreement on official support for the Mariupol Drinking Water Supply Project. He will solve the issue of safe and high-quality water supply of the half-millionth city. The project was made possible due to the support of the Government of Ukraine – the Prime Minister Vladimir Groisman. The state acted as the guarantor of the project implementation.

‘This is a new stage in the development of our city. The agreement allows Mariupol to solve one of the key problems - to provide residents with quality drinking water. This became possible thanks to the major reform - decentralization. It opened new opportunities for Ukrainian cities. And Mariupol took advantage of this opportunity. This is an example of the coherent work of all parties. I am sure that future of Ukraine will have such kind of examples,’

City Mayor Vadim Boichenko said.

The agreement provides EUR 64 mln that are given by the Government of France to support the investment project with the participation of Mariupol City Council. This project is a pilot for the whole of Ukraine.

‘The local community was active, the city head and his team visited France in order to take the experience of the best cities. This is the success of decentralization and the success of communities that can plan. Not all communities have planned their priorities for the coming years’,

Minister for Temporary Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine Vadim Chernysh noted.

According to the document, France will provide funds that will "cover" 100% of the water supply project in Mariupol. Thus, 70% of the goods and services are purchased from the French side, and 30% - Ukrainian or foreign goods. The loan includes 1,200,000 euros for project management assistance.

Vadim Chernysh stressed that such lending conditions are special. The interest rate is only 0.08% per annum, and the grace period is 10 years.

‘You will not find such a city in Ukraine, where the implementation of such a project would begin,’ the Minister noted.

He also emphasized that support for the ability of local community management in communities depends not only on the level of the Cabinet of Ministers, but also on international organizations.

Water supply is one of the key problems of Mariupol. This project is intended to solve the problem of using an alternative water supply source, minimizing water losses and improving its quality. They are planning to build filter stations, water intakes and upgrade the outdated network.

‘This project is ambitious at the same time, because it is aimed at serving half a million people in the city of Mariupol as well as modest as the need arises at the regional level,’

Isabel Dumont noted.

The existing water supply scheme of Mariupol is obsolete and requires significant financial resources for repair and modernization. As a result of hostilities in the region, the main water supply channel of the city was damaged. Currently, Mariupol water supply is carried out from the reserve of the Staryi Krym reservoir, whose water quality does not meet the standards. For more than 3 years, the residents of the city receive poor water, the price of which significantly exceeds the average Ukrainian indicators.

‘Today we have the opportunity to solve this problem in 3-4 years to its 100 anniversary ‘, the Mayor of Mariupol said.

News

Popular News

France helps Ukraine to solve the problem of water supply of Mariupol