ISLAMABAD: Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan Wada Mitsuhiro said that the government of Japan would continue to cooperate with Pakistan in the supply of safe water to citizens and the improvement of the sewage treatment system.
He was addressing the inaugural ceremony of the project of replacement of pumping machinery at the inline booster pumping station and terminal reservoir in Faisalabad and the groundbreaking ceremony of the project, the improvement of the water treatment plant and water distribution system in Faisalabad.
The ambassador said, “With these efforts, I hope the people of Pakistan will remember Japan as the source of clean water.”
Importance of water supply services
He emphasized the importance of water supply services for Pakistan. He said that the government of Japan and JICA will continue to assist with water supply services conducted by the Government of Punjab and the Federal Government.
Chief Representative of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Pakistan Office, Kinoshita Yasumitsu said “JICA is expecting WASA Faisalabad to take the leading role in sharing tips and lessons learned from our projects to be utilized for reforming water supply management not only in Faisalabad and Punjab province but throughout the country.”
He said, “I hope this grant aid project will be successful not only as a single project but as a significant milestone for having a positive impact on the improvement of water supply services in Pakistan in the future.” He added JICA will keep contributing to the sustainable development of the water supply sector in Pakistan.
First successful water utility
JICA assisted WASA-F to formulate the master plan in 2019, targeting the next 20 years of future water supplies, sewerage, and drainage in Faisalabad, to become the first successful water utility in Pakistan as a role model for other water utilities.
The project of improvement of the water treatment plant and water distribution system in Faisalabad has been formulated as a priority project under the master plan, aiming not only to increase the water supply capacity for the currently unserved 50,000 inhabitants but also to expand the output of the pilot projects in the grant project’s target area.
The objective of this project is to renew the old Jhal Khanuana Water treatment plant and rehabilitation of water transmission and distribution facilities thereby contributing to the improvement of the water supply system in Faisalabad city with a 4.094 billion Japanese Yen grant aid project.
JICA is also planning to assist WASA-F through a new technical cooperation project for improving its management capacity. Through this continuous assistance, WASA-F is expected to enhance the water supply service level, improve customer satisfaction, improve tariff revenue, and improve the financial condition of WASA-F for future investment leading further to better services. This Faisalabad model would become a replicable model for other cities in the future. – APP
