Saidabad-3: Securing and sustainably managing Dhaka’s drinking water supply

DWASA, the Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority, has two drinking water treatment plants in Saidabad which are currently supplied by the Shitalakshya River. Due to the latter’s increasing pollution, the raw water from it may soon become unsuitable for drinking water treatment, thereby calling for an alternative supply for these plants.

To respond to the high demand, DWASA also needs to increase its production and expand its service area by including more informal settlements. DWASA is committed to developing the use of surface water, which is more respectful of the environment than underground water abstraction, at a time when aquifers are shrinking – a matter of considerable concern.

The Saidabad-3 project aims at doubling the current site’s production capacity by commissioning a new unit supplying 450,000 m³ per day, as well as installing a water intake and a pumping station on the Meghna River, 30 km from Dhaka, which will supply raw water to the three Saidabad units. A treated water pipeline will also be built and the primary distribution network strengthened, including in Dhaka’s poor neighbourhoods.

As the Meghna River is one of the last options for supplying Dhaka with surface water (due to the pollution of the rivers around the capital), the project will go hand-in-hand with an environmental management plan to preserve the river’s water quality.

This highly ambitious project is one of the largest water treatment infrastructures in the world funded by European cooperation. AFD is the lead financial partner, in partnership with KfW and EIB.

• Improving and securing the quality of the drinking water supply for nearly 2.5 million inhabitants
• Connecting nearly 2 million inhabitants to the drinking water distribution network thanks to increased production
• Positive impact on the environment: reduction of more than half of unsustainable underground abstractions