Tunisia has launched construction work for the Gargour seawater desalination project (South Sfax) following several years of delay.
Tunisia’s Prime Minister Najla Bouden flagged off the project which had earlier been launched in July last year.
The project is expected to cost $272mn, with funding from a loan by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), to be reimbursed over 25 years.
The government will contribute $44.2mn towards the project from its coffers.
Last year, the Metito, Orascom and Cobra consortium won the call for tenders launched by SONEDE to build the seawater desalination plant. The Prime Minister stressed that “the project will provide good quality drinking water, improve the living conditions of 900,000 inhabitants as well as boost the region’s economy.”