Your Excellency Ato Abay Weldu, President of the Tigray Regional State,
Distinguished Guests,
My Japanese Colleagues,
Community Members of the Alamata Woreda,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
 
Kemey Wu Ilkum.  Endemen Walachehu.

I am most grateful to all of you for your very warm welcome today.  This is my sixth trip to Tigray during the past one and half years, and I am strongly committed to supporting Tigray in its development.  This is also my second trip to Alamata, and I am very pleased to be able to come back here with your Regional President, Ato Abay, to visit the water project site and see you all again.

Now, it is a great pleasure for me to have this opportunity to attend the inauguration ceremony for the Project for Rural Water Supply in the Tigray Region.  Water, particularly safe water, is indispensible for our daily lives, and water supply is crucial for agricultural development as well.  Therefore, I would like to congratulate the people and the Regional Government of Tigray on this special day, for which you have waited so long.  The completion of this shallow well project in ten woredas in the southern and eastern parts of Tigray represents a great achievement and a great opportunity.

Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen,

This water supply project has been implemented, based upon the Exchange of Notes signed between the Japanese and Ethiopian Governments on 14 May, 2010.  The total funding Japan extended for this project in Tigray was 1,264 million JPY, equivalent to about 284million ETB at the current exchange rate*.  Out of this amount, 327 million yen (about 73 million ETB) was allocated for the installation of 82 hand-pump facilities in ten woredas including Alamata, and 98 million yen (about 22 million ETB) for the procurement of drilling equipment and a cargo truck equipped with a crane, which now belong to the Tigray Regional Government.  In the meantime, 536 million yen (about 120 million ETB) has been allocated for the installation of deep well facilities and water distribution systems in Alamata and Raya Azebo.  This deep well part of the project is still underway but registering good progress.  It is expected to be completed around the end of this year.

Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Improving access to safe water is an important policy objective in Ethiopia.  Indeed, access to potable water substantially improved during the PASDEP period (2005/06-2009/10), increasing from 36% to 68.5% at the national level thanks to the enormous efforts made by the federal and regional governments.  In many local communities, however, access to potable water is still a great challenge, and the southern and eastern parts of Tigray are no exception.

Tigray is a Region with a complex topographical and geological backdrop, which has made it difficult to ensure safe and sustainable water resources.  Your challenges are formidable.  Waterborne diseases caused by dependence on unprotected water resources are serious.  In addition, women and children in rural areas are forced to perform the heavy workload of fetching water, walking long distances every day.  The water supply ratio in Tigray was only 33.3% in 2005/06.  The Region’s access to potable water improved to 54% in 2009/10 but was still lower than the national average.

To help the Region come to grips with these challenges, Japan decided to implement this project by installing water supply facilities in areas where the water supply issue was serious, as well as providing the necessary equipment for the task.  This project, therefore, was aimed at increasing the number of the population that enjoys safe and reliable water supply by improving the water supply coverage in the Tigray Region.  With this water project, when it is fully completed, about 72,000 residents will benefit, and the safe water coverage is expected to increase from 62% to 66% in those ten targeted woredas.

Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Growth and Transformation Plan(GTP) has identified the task of water supply as one of the top national and regional priorities.  Under the GTP, it is planned to raise water supply coverage from 68.5% to 98.5% at the national level in five years.  In its first year of implementation, potable water supply coverage at the national level improved from 68.5% to 73.5%.  Improvement in coverage was also impressive in Tigray where it increased from 54% to 67% during the same period.  However, the task of water supply still requires continued efforts by the Ethiopian Government and its development partners.  In this context, Japan, as a long standing supporter of the water sector in Ethiopia, will remain firm to support the implementation of the GTP program.

Finally, I would like to share my sincere hope that the facilities and equipment, which have been completed and handed over, should be used effectively and efficiently while maintained in good condition.   I am sure that they will make a substantial contribution to improving the livelihoods of the residents in the respective communities.

Yemesgen!  Amesegenalehu!