LUSAKA, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- The African Development Bank (AfDB) has given Zambia a loan of 150 million U.S. dollars to help the country improve its water and sanitation services, the finance ministry said Tuesday.
The funds will go towards improving water and sanitation services in four of the country's 10 provinces which will benefit about 1 million residents.
Minister of Finance Felix Mutati said the program will be implemented during a period of 48 months, with the loans from the AfDB covering 80 percent of the total program costs.
The Africa Growth Together Fund will contribute 15 million dollars in co-financing, with the Zambian government expected to provide counterpart funding as well, he added.
About 5,000 new jobs will be created during and after the implementation of the program in the four provinces, he said.
"The aim is to increase sustainable access to quality water supply and sanitation services in the four provinces by efficiently managing and operating the utilities on a commercial basis," Mutati said.
The program involves the construction and rehabilitation of climate resilience water and sanitation infrastructure.
