# Somaliland Secures $1m World Bank Grant for Water Supply

> Somaliland Sun reported on 16 September 2015 that the World Bank signed a grant agreement for a rural water supply enhancement pilot.

- By: Editorial Team, Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com/about)
- Published: 1 October 2026
- Format: News story (reported from one named public source)
- Publication: Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com)
- Subject: Business and Costs
- Tags: procurement, cost-control
- Web version: https://somaliconstructionreview.com/blog/somaliland-world-bank-water-grant-2015

## Key points

- On 16 September 2015, Somaliland Sun reported that the World Bank and Somaliland's government signed a memorandum of understanding for a $1m grant to fund a rural water supply enhancement pilot project.
- The grant was to be channelled via the ministry of finance to the ministry of environment and rural development, which would lead implementation with agriculture and water development ministries as co-implementers.
- The report did not establish whether the grant was ever disbursed, whether the pilot was implemented, or whether the anticipated scale-up occurred.

On 16 September 2015, Somaliland Sun reported that the World Bank had signed a grant agreement with the government of Somaliland to fund a water supply enhancement program. The report, dated that day, said the bank availed a $1m grant to the ministry of environment and rural development. The signing ceremony took place at the Ambassador hotel in Hargeisa.

The grant was described as funding an initial pilot project, with a scale-up contingent on its success. According to the report, signatories were World Bank country representative Hugh Riddell, minister of Finance Zamzam Abdi Aden, and minister of Environment and Rural Development Shukri Haji Bandare. Chantal Richey, the World Bank's resident senior Water & Sanitation specialist, witnessed the signing, along with presidency minister Hirsi Haji Ali, Agriculture minister Dr Mohamed Aw Dahir, and state minister for finance Osman Abdilahi Sahardiid.

Somaliland Sun quoted Riddell as saying the bank was pleased to sign the memorandum of understanding, which would enable implementation of the rural water supply enhancement program by Somaliland's government. Riddell said the $1m grant was earmarked for a pilot project whose success would scale up the bank's support. The grant would be channelled through the ministry of finance to the program's lead implementation agency, which the report identified as the ministry of environment and rural development.

Riddell stressed the need for speedy ratification of Public Finance Management (PFM) policies to make it legal for the grant to be passed directly to the finance ministry. Minister of Finance Zamzam Abdi Aden said the council of ministers had already approved the PFM, which was pending presidential approval and subsequent dispatch to the House of Representatives for endorsement. She pledged her ministry's diligence as grant conduit between the bank and the lead implementer.

Minister Bandare said the ministries of Agriculture and Water Development would be main co-implementers. The pilot would establish a number of water catchment facilities within valleys where rainwater flows untapped. The program targeted livestock and agricultural farmers and residents in implementation areas, according to the report. Bandare said negotiations took almost a year and originated after the World Bank observed financial challenges facing the state's water sector development.

The Somaliland Sun report did not establish what has happened since the signing. It gave no disbursement status, no implementation start date, no specific sites, and no later record of the pilot or any scale-up. The report was published on 16 September 2015, and the facts it contains remain the only documented evidence in this pack.

## Questions

### How much was the World Bank grant to Somaliland for water supply?

Somaliland Sun reported on 16 September 2015 that the World Bank availed a $1m grant to the ministry of environment and rural development for a water supply enhancement program.

### What projects would the $1m World Bank grant fund in Somaliland?

According to the report, the grant was earmarked for an initial pilot project that would establish water catchment facilities in valleys where rainwater flows untapped. A successful pilot would lead to a scale-up of support.

### What conditions were attached to the World Bank water grant for Somaliland?

World Bank country representative Hugh Riddell, as quoted by Somaliland Sun, stressed the need for speedy ratification of Public Finance Management policies so the grant could be passed directly to the finance ministry. At the time, the policy had council of ministers approval but was pending presidential approval and parliamentary endorsement.

## Sources

- [Somaliland: Government Secures a Water Sector Development Grant from the World Bank](https://somalilandsun.com/somaliland-government-secures-a-water-sector-development-grant-from-the-world-bank/) — Somaliland Sun, 2015-09-16