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The European Union has donated 20 million euros to Somaliland to improve water service and alleviate shortages in four towns.

Vice President of Somaliland Abdirahman Abdullahi Ismail and high-ranking officials from the European Union attended the ceremony to launch the project in Hargeisa on March 6th.

Somaliland Minister for Minerals, Water and Resources Hussein Abdi Duale spoke at the ceremony, explaining that the project aimed to expand water distribution services in Hargeisa, Burao, Erigavo and Tog Wajaale.

"There was a huge need for this water distribution improvement project," Duale said. "Specifically, we needed to address the problem immediately in Hargeisa and Wajaale."

Duale said Somaliland is rich with resources. "We invited the European Union to make an investment in the country," he said.

The vice president described the 20-million-euro grant as the biggest project of its kind to be implemented in Somaliland.

"This project proves that Somaliland has transcended simple aid donations to development of infrastructure and economic resources such as water and roads," Ismail said.

"This project will benefit Hargeisa, which has a population of one million, and will enable its residents to access clean water, as well as benefitting three other towns that hold a considerable population," Ismail said. "We want to express our appreciation to the European Union."

"We estimate that 60% of the population does not have access to enough water and we expect that with this project we can stop the problem in the short term," he added.

The project is expected to begin in 2013 and should be completed by 2015, Ibrahim Siad Younis, head of the Water Authority Agency in Hargeisa, told Sabahi.

According to Younis, when the water distribution plan was established for the city, it was designed for a population of 160,000 people.

"The stability in Somaliland has led to a high population in Hargeisa, more than was expected when the Chinese government constructed the pipes in the 1970s," he said. "This has led to difficulties in meeting the city's water demand."

Younis said 16.5 million euros have been earmarked from the donation to improve services in Hargeisa.

"When you look at the water demand in Hargeisa, the population needs 27,000 cubic metres daily. At the moment, as an agency, we can only provide 10,000 cubic meters which is equivalent to 50,000 barrels," Younis said. "We, as an agency, cannot address the water shortage in the city. A large segment of the population gets its water supply from sources outside Hargeisa and use the water sparingly due to the shortage."

Younis said a number of wells will be added to existing wells in Geed-Deeble, 25 kilometres north of Hargeisa, as well as renovation of the existing wells. It also includes the laying of a 24-inch-diameter pipe to increase the water volume, as well as the installation of modern pumps and water reservoirs.

"We are trying our best to implement this project and finish it very fast due to the huge demand for it," Younis added.

Hargeisa Mayor Hussein Mohamoud Jiir said there have been many complaints from citizens about the water shortage and that most of the complaints have been directed at the local administrators. He said he believes this project will solve this problem.

Sahra Osman, a mother of six in the Jaamia neighbourhood, told Sabahi that she has not received water since 2004 through the water pipes installed by the Water Authority Agency. "When the water volume decreased, it could not reach us. For nearly eight years, we have not received a bill from the Water Authority Agency because we do not get any water," she said.

She said water tankers normally supply their water from sources outside the city and that each barrel costs them 8,000 Somaliland shillings ($1.33). "Sometimes my children fall ill because the water is not clean. This forces me to buy mineral water for drinking," she said.

Abshir Askar Mohamed, an economist in Hargeisa, said the project will insulate the government from instability that could arise from demonstrations by people experiencing water shortages. "In addition, it will also ease the burden on the economy and facilitate development," he told Sabahi.