Water supply under pressure

The water supply sector has seen much faster revitalisation thanks in particular to the restarting of projects several years delayed and the opening of new construction sites.

Algeria has currently a serious water shortage crisis. To improve this situation, the Algerian state is investing large amounts of money: it will mobilize at least 1.5 billion dinar (19 billion USD) to upgrade hydro-infrastructures.

Algeria's priorities are mainly the construction of new dams and inter-connections, the reduction of dam silting, used-water treatments, the struggle against water loss and waste and desalination projects.

Abdelmadjid Attar, minister for water resources, adds that: "Foreign investors are invited to come and invest in Algeria. They can start partnerships not only with private companies but also with public ones. There are so many construction sites to open in the water supply sector that our national resources are not sufficient. We are obliged to appeal to foreign companies as much for material needs as for a desire to master new technologies"

At least fifty new projects

The evaluation of the situation in the water supply sector has revealed deficiencies in the water mobilisation and transfer infrastructures, as well as serious dysfunction in the water management of public utilities and in the exploitation of existing networks. In addition to these insufficiencies, the rain deficit suffered by the country over the last few years has caused a significant decrease in water resources, resulting in the reduction of ground water and the exhaustion of the dam reserves intended to supply households with drinking water.

To face this shortage, and in order to meet the population's immediate needs, the construction of additional dams is a necessity. According to the Ministry of Water Resources, only five billion cubic meters of water are collected annually and the country could produce nearly twelve billion. At present, as many as fifty water collection structures are being constructed. In addition, various interconnection projects are listed in the government's action plan; some, like the connection of three dams to the city of Alger, are already nearing completion.

To deal with the amount of work still to be done, Abdelkader Bousahba, president and founder member of the trust and participation group Ergthy, recommends partnership: "There is space for negotiation. The Algerian market offers many opportunities so investors, therefore, will find it beneficial to take part in the future."

Mr. Bousahba adds that: "in the water sector, there are many opportunities in technology, know-how and experience that will be used not only inside Algeria but also outside; we have competitive prices that will allow investors to earn money."

The reduction of silting in several dams is also on the agenda. The authorities would like to de-silt as many as nine installations over a three-year period (2003-2005) and it will be necessary to prevent erosion by judicious basin management and timbering.

30% leakage

Used water treatment constitutes a priority. However, the state of the water purification plants is alarming: of the fifty-three existing installations, forty-two have been shut down and there is no organisation specialised in the management of such equipment. The first step is to evaluate the extent of the problems and define the measures to be taken; it will then be necessary to repair existing facilities and, in the future, adapt the management method in such installations. The current situation is critical, since untreated water is piped into agricultural wadis and valleys, with all the risks of epidemics that implies.

In this sphere, partnership is also a hoped for, as M. Bekkouche, general director of the Office National de l'Assainissement (water treatment office) explains : "We are in a very good position in the Algerian wastewater market, we have a lot of knowledge and potential to carry out further studies.

What we hope to find are long term partners. We want to become part of a global, integrated water management system, learn from our partners and, of course, offer them the chance to operate large parts of the Algerian water treatment market. "

Another crucial point relates to the restoration of the drinking water feeder system in some forty cities. It's also a big priority, for which a budget of 53 billion dinar (67m USD) has been released. The state of the 39,000 km long pipeline network contributes to the worsening of the water supply situation in the cities. The leaks are estimated to reach 30 % of the water piped through the system.

The rehabilitation of the biggest urban distribution networks is also forecast, with the first phase affecting sixteen towns : Constantine, Annaba, Jijel, Béjaia, Setif, Tizi-ouzou, Batna, Sidi Bel Abbès, Mascara, Tlemcen, El Oued, Tiaret, Relizane and Chlef. The Algiers and Oran projects have already started.

The alternative to desalination

Considering the importance of the water supply deficit, efforts have also been centred on alternative resources like the desalination of seawater and the recycling of used water. The construction, in the long term, of about fifty seawater desalination plants to ensure a supply to the cities located on the coast is planned. This project appears today to be necessary, considering the large quantity of water needed.

Mr. Attar reinforces this view: "If we were to paint a picture of the water sector in Algeria, we would see a situation of chronic deficit. If we look at the capacity of both current dams and those which are being built, we can see that this deficit is, at best, going to remain at the same level and will probably increase in the next five years, even at current growth rates. That means we must find alternative, less conventional means and the most well known is desalination."

Apart from this, it will allow the saving of water collected by dams in order to supply the interior of the country, especially in the high-planes and valley zones. The acquisition of eight desalination plants will allow, initially, the mobilisation of 1.5 million cubic metres of water a day, which is enough to meet the needs of nine million inhabitants.

This solution underlines the government's necessity to anticipate the country's needs, as M. Kalli, general director of the ANB (National Agency for Dams), highlights : "I am very optimistic about the next ten years because, compared to the past, we will be in a very good position. This doesn't mean we can become complacent, like in the past ; we must think about the situation in 2020, 2030 and 2040. These projects will only bear fruit in twenty or thirty years time and that's why we've decided to desalinate seawater. "

To deal with the current situation, the Algerian authorities have also proceeded to redistribute and improve the public structures involved in five segments of the hydraulic sector. They are related to the knowledge of water resources, their mobilisation and transfer, drinkable and industrial water distribution, irrigation water distribution and the purification and recycling of used water.

In a first step, two organizations have just been created: Algérienne des Eaux (ADE) and the Office National de l'Assainissement (ONA).

Later on, the sector will see itself implicated in the reinforcement and reallocation of the institutions responsible for water resources evaluation (the ANRH), water mobilisation and transfer (the ANB) and irrigation (the AGID).

Algérienne des Eaux and the Office National de l'Assainissement have the statute of public industrial and commercial companies. Their sphere of activity covers the management of the public utility and the control of AEP and purification projects.

These institutions are engaged in a number of missions: the implementation of annual and multi-annual investment programs, the execution of projects by way of concession or any other form of partnership. The reform of the public drinking water and purification sector is part of a project that aims to reorganise these institutions. A large action plan has been implemented to improve the water resources sector and open it up to other, more effective, forms of management which will open up the sector to national or foreign operators.