On July 25, 2019, Burundi government officially launched the Lake Tanganyika Water Management (LATAWAMA) project financed by the European Union. The aim of the project is to protect the environment, enhance biodiversity and combat the effects of climate change.
Lake Tanganyika
“EU has given € 6.9 million to finance Lake Tanganyika Water Management “LATAWAMA regional project that will be carried out in four years,” said Wolfram Vetter, EU Ambassador to Burundi during the ceremonies of launching the project on 25July.
Mr Vetter said that the project aims to sustainably improve the management and quality control of cross-border waters in the lake basin.
This project will focus on five cities of five countries bordering Lake Tanganyika Basin which are namely Bujumbura (Burundi), Mpulungu (Zambia), Kigoma (Tanzania), Uvira (DRC) and Cyangugu (Rwanda).
The Ambassador of the European Union to Burundi said that three concrete actions will be conducted. “The project will first focus on the harmonization of water rules and standards between the concerned countries. One laboratory per country will be equipped and technicians in charge of control will also be trained,” said Wolfram.
In Burundi, the project will finance the rehabilitation of the only sewage treatment plant located in Buterere neighborhood in the north of Bujumbura, the optimization of its water treatment sector and the extension of the water sanitation network,’ adds the EU Ambassador to Burundi.
The trans-boundary management of Lake Tanganyika water will solve challenges such as the pollution of the lake and will enable the population to rationally exploit the lake and its tributaries, said Jean Marie Nibirantije, Secretary General of Lake Tanganyika Authority.
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