Wastewater Treatment Plants
Wastewater Treatment Plants
Business Model Description
Invest in the construction, operation, and modernization of wastewater treatment facilities.
Expected Impact
Wastewater treatment investments reduce the deterioriation of surface water quality stemming from insufficient waste management and improve access to quality water for urban and rural communities, also protecting the marine fauna given treated discharge.
How is this information gathered?
Investment opportunities with potential to contribute to sustainable development are based on country-level SDG Investor Maps.
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Country & Regions
- Tunisia: North-East
- Tunisia: South-West
- Tunisia: South East
Sector Classification
Infrastructure
Development need
Although access rates to infrastructure is high, the quality of Tunisia's infrastructure stock has significantly deteriorated in the past decade while rural access to infrastructure remains very basic (1). Economic repercussions from the pandemic also generate a need for advanced, sustainable and resilient infrastructure capable of supporting post-COVID-19 economic recovery (2).
Policy priority
Tunisia has begun to establish a credible environment for public-private partnerships (PPPs) by revising its PPP legislation and establishing PPP agencies or specialized divisions within existing institutions for infrastructure investments (2). Public authorities have also established procedures to expedite the execution of large-scale public projects. (7).
Gender inequalities and marginalization issues
Tunisia's public investment is concentrated in coastal areas to the tune of 77%, creating additional incentives for private investment along the coast (8). Improvements to public and social infrastructure, particularly in impoverished interior regions, are also necessary to address the historical divide (10).
Investment opportunities introduction
Tunisia will need to spend 4.4% of GDP annually on average on infrastructure until 2040 (which will approximate USD 75 billion) to meet the investment gap (2). The COVID-19 crisis has emphasized the need for essential infrastructure investment with a high multiplier effect on growth (12). State-owned enterprises causes reliance on high subsidies. (1)
Key bottlenecks introduction
Infrastructure and its administration are often handled by non-competitive firms. The state retains a disproportionate stake of the businesses responsible for a large number of infrastructure and network services (13).
Waste Management
Development need
Tunisia faces a USD 2.4 billion investment gap to achieve its SDG targets and ensure a strong water infrastructure stock by 2040 (14). Significant water infrastructure has been constructed (catchment areas, aquifer systems, storage or transfer facilities) to meet water demands (4). Nevertheless, environmental deterioration is apparent. (5).
Policy priority
Tunisia has been involved in an extensive and ongoing wastewater treatment program since the mid-1970s, and the government is dedicated to promoting investments in wastewater treatment (3). The National Office of Sanitation of Tunisia (ONAS) has approved plans for further outsourcing wastewater treatment services to private sector under Build-Operate-Transfer arrangements (1).
Gender inequalities and marginalization issues
Rural areas continue to lag behind urban areas in terms of access to basic services. Additionally, regional studies indicate that certain regions, such as the Central West, have insufficient water distribution and wastewater management (10).
Investment opportunities introduction
Tunisia may want to engage the private sector in building wastewater treatment plants in rural regions. Moreover, identifying locations where wastewater may be utilized is critical for advancing private sector investment in these facilities, since treated wastewater supplies for irrigation may represent a significant new revenue flow source (12).
Key bottlenecks introduction
The concerns around use of treated wastewater present a major impediment for investments. Regardless of whether the water is deemed safe, farmers are often concerned about its reuse as reuse of treated water does not exceed 25% of total volume treated (5,12). Other difficulties include the high salinity of treated wastewater, regular maintenance. (15).
Waste Management
Pipeline Opportunity
Wastewater Treatment Plants
Invest in the construction, operation, and modernization of wastewater treatment facilities.
Business Case
Market Size and Environment
USD 100 million - USD 1 billion
The current level of investment into water infrastructure for 2021 is USD 171 million in Tunisia according to G20. The current trends point to a cumulative USD 5 billion investment in water infrastructure by 2040 (14).
Indicative Return
> 25%
The wastewater treatment project carried out in Egypt by African Development Bank generated an economic IRR of 29.9%, which shows that these investments are both socially beneficial and economically viable (18).
Investment Timeframe
Medium Term (5–10 years)
Completion of wastewater treatment projects ranges between 6 and 10 years (21).
Ticket Size
> USD 10 million
Market Risks & Scale Obstacles
Capital - Requires Subsidy
Market - Highly Regulated
Impact Case
Sustainable Development Need
Tunisia suffers the consequences of global warming, particularly with recurrent periods of drought and high variability of precipitation, which can cause a hydraulic stress problem (6).
Tunisia has significant need to improve its treatment capacity and infrastructure for wastewater. An estimated amount of 60,000 tonnes of wastewater is discharged into the major networks of Tunis, which hosts over 10 million people (19).
Tunisia suffers from wastewater discharge due to an obsolete system of water distribution networks with an estimated loss of 20% for dams, 30% for networks and 40% for agricultural irrigation canal (20).
Gender & Marginalisation
Some areas that are more sensitive to climate change pose an increased risk of water stress, making communities that are already in a precarious situation more vulnerable, especially in rural areas.
Access to clean drinking water especially in rural areas can be challenging, which prominently increases the time and labor burden on the women, who are often occupied with providing clean water to the household.
Expected Development Outcome
Wastewater treatment services are expected to reduce the stress on water supplies, especially groundwater systems, which could particularly mitigate the effects stemming from longer drought periods on water resources.
The treatment and use of water allow to guarantee to the Tunisian population improved water availability while mitigating the negative environmental impact especially on the marine ecosystems.
Wastewater treatment investments are expected to benefit citizens by improving the quality of water and sanitation services supplied through distribution networks.
Gender & Marginalisation
Investments in wastewater treatment help address water scarcity and reduce inequality of access in rural and vulnerable areas.
Improving wastewater treatment services help lower the physical and time burden on women by providing easier access to clean water in a more stable way.
Primary SDGs addressed
6.3.1 Proportion of domestic and industrial wastewater flows safely treated
6.3.2 Proportion of bodies of water with good ambient water quality
6.1.1 Proportion of population using safely managed drinking water services
43.04% (22)
84.94% (22)
79% (22) (Rural: 69% Urban: 84%)
100% (22)
N/A
100% (22)
Secondary SDGs addressed
Directly impacted stakeholders
People
Gender inequality and/or marginalization
Planet
Indirectly impacted stakeholders
People
Planet
Corporates
Outcome Risks
If not managed carefully, wastewater treatment plants may cause environmental hazards such as creation of odours, air pollution, and infiltration of sewage into topsoil, aquifer or water supply.
As wastewater treatment technologies are foreign-dependent, expanding such facilities without improving local tech sector might increase dependence on foreign tech supply.
Impact Risks
The heavy involvement of local authorities in wastewater treatment might risk the probability that the impact could have been achieved with fewer resources or at a lower cost.
Due to the investment timeframes being heavily dependent on the municipalities' duty terms, the required activities might not be delivered for a long enough period to result in the desired impact.
The economic instability in Tunisia, whose currency and banking sector are weakened by the COVID-19 pandemic, might risk the execution of activities and thus the delivery of the expected impact (11).
Impact Classification
What
Increased access to clean water and enhanced marine ecosystems
Who
People living in rural areas with limited access to wastewater treatment
Risk
Wastewater treatment model is proven, the heavy involvement of local authorities, investment timeframes' dependence on municipalities, and the country's economic instability require consideration.
Impact Thesis
Wastewater treatment investments reduce the deterioriation of surface water quality stemming from insufficient waste management and improve access to quality water for urban and rural communities, also protecting the marine fauna given treated discharge.
Enabling Environment
Policy Environment
National Strategy for Sustainable Development (2015-2020) Republic of Tunisia aims at a more sustainable management of resources, including water.
National Sanitation Office (ONAS)'s Project 2030 aims to extend and rehabilitate of the wastewater networks and to provide water access to all citizens by 2030 (24).
The revised Water Code (Code des eaux of 1975) shared in 2019 at the Tunisian Assembly offer concessions and facilitate private sector investments. This promotion also focus on the need to recycle water from water intensive industries (11).
Financial Environment
Financial incentives: Investment Law (Loi n° 2016-71 du 30 Septembre 2016) aims to promote investments in Tunisia by liberalizing the legal framework to invest and investors’ protections. It provides investors with greater flexibility and offers more incentives.
Fiscal incentives: Law n°2016-71 includes deduction from the base of income tax of individuals or corporate tax, income or profits reinvested in the subscription to the initial capital, or its increase of enterprises created in the zones of encouragement of regional development.
Regulatory Environment
Law n75-16 of March 31, 1975 is tje promulgation of the water code which sets the rules for water management in the public domain.
Law n93-41 of April 19, 1993 relates to the national office of cleansing supplemented by the law n2004-70 of August 2, 2014 and the Law n2007-35 of June 4, 2007.
Decree n2005-3280 of 19 December 2005 specifies the conditions and procedures for granting the concession of financing as well as private sector engagement.
Decree n2008-2268 June 09, 2008 outlines the list of services falling under the missions of the National Office of Sanitation of Tunisia (ONAS) which can be conceded.
Law n° 49-2015 is related to public-private partnerships that provide legal framework for PPPs.
Marketplace Participants
Private Sector
Société méditeranéenne de l'environnement (Someden)
Government
Ministry of Environment, National Company of Water Exploitation and Distribution (SONEDE), National Environmental Protection Agency (ANPE), Ministry of Health, National Office of Sanitation of Tunisia (ONAS),SECADENORD
Multilaterals
World Bank, JICA, Tunis-Belgium cooperation, EIB, Investment Fund for Northern Countries, Kuwait Development Fund (KDF), Islamic Development Bank (IsDB), Tunisian-European Cooperation, AfD, AfDB, Erste Bank, KfW, USAID, UNDP, UNEP
Non-Profit
International Alert Tunisia, Bemed, Association of Citizenship and Sustainable Development of Gabes, Association for Protection of the Environment and Sustainable Development of Bizerte, Tunisia Ecology Association, WWF, Institut National des Scieences et Technologies de la Mer de Tunis
Target Locations
Tunisia: North-East
Tunisia: South-West
Tunisia: South East
References
- (1) World Bank Group, December 2019. Tunisia Infrastructure Diagnostic. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/35116/Tunisia-Infrastructure-Diagnostic.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
- (2) OECD, 2021. Middle East and North Africa Investment Policy Perspectives. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/49d6211b-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/49d6211b-en
- (3) OECD, 2020. Investment in the MENA region in the time of COVID-19. https://www.oecd.org/coronavirus/policy-responses/investment-in-the-mena-region-in-the-time-of-covid-19-da23e4c9/
- (4) EBRD, 2018. Tunisia Diagnostic: Progress and Challenges in Unlocking the Private Sector’s Potential and Developing a Sustainable Market Economy. https://www.ebrd.com/publications/country-diagnostics#:~:text=Country%20diagnostics%20are%20an%20EBRD,the%20authorities%20in%20the%20country.
- (5) The Republic of Tunisia, 2019. Voluntary National Review 2019. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/index.php?page=view&type=111&nr=23372&menu=35
- (6) The Republic of Tunisia, 2021. Voluntary National Review 2021. https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/279442021_VNR_Report_Tunisia.pdf
- (7) Republic of Tunisia, 2018. Economic Recovery Plan 2019-2020. http://www.cae.gov.tn/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Plan-de-relance-V-Finale-12-oct.pdf
- (8) Bertelsmann Stiftung, 2020. Tunisia Country Report. https://www.bti-project.org/en/reports/country-report-TUN-2020.html
- (9) The Tunisian Union of Industry, Commerce and Handicrafts, 2012. Vision Tunisia 2020. https://andp.unescwa.org/sites/default/files/2020-10/Vision%20Tunisie%202020.pdf
- (10) IMF, 2021. Tunisia Country Report. https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/CR/Issues/2021/02/26/Tunisia-2020-Article-IV-Consultation-Press-Release-Staff-Report-and-Statement-by-the-50128
- (11) UNDP, 2020. Engaging private sector in NDC implementation - Assessment of private sector investment potential for the water sector in coastal areas. https://www.undp.org/content/dam/LECB/docs/pubs-reports/undp-ndcsp-tunisia-private-sector-exec-sum.pdf?download
- (12) OECD, 2018. Reviving Investment in Tunisia. https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/economics/relancer-l-investissement-en-tunisie_55b4653d-fr
- (13) General Authority for PPP, 2018. Pipeline of PPP Projects in Tunisia. http://www.igppp.tn/sites/default/files/Fiches_descriptives/03-Fiche%20Station%20d%27%C3%A9puration%20%C3%A0%20Tunis%20Nord.pdf
- (14) G20, 2021. Global Outlook Infrastructure. https://outlook.gihub.org/countries/Tunisia
- (15) GEF, 2021. MED: Tunisia Northern Tunis Wastewater Project. https://www.thegef.org/project/med-tunisia-northern-tunis-wastewater-project
- (16) Afrik21, 2020. TUNISIA: 10 wastewater treatment plants to be upgraded soon. https://www.afrik21.africa/en/tunisia-10-wastewater-treatment-plants-to-be-upgraded-soon/
- (17) Afrik21, 2021. TUNISIA: the new Sabikha wastewater treatment plant serves 9,000 people. https://www.afrik21.africa/en/tunisia-the-new-sabikha-wastewater-treatment-plant-serves-9000-people/
- (18) African Development Bank, 2017. Sustainable Development Report of Abu Rawash Wastewater Treatment Plant Appraisal Report. https://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/Project-and-Operations/Egypt_-_Sustainable_Development_of_Abu_Rawash_Wastewater_Treatment_Plant__Abu-Rawash-WWTP_.pdf
- (19) Storymaps, 2021. Protest in Tunisia over Widespread Water Contamination. https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/57dc4030b8dd4ef7a2bf99a02f7a237b
- (20) OrientXXI, 2021. Tunisie. La rareté de l’eau, un débat pour noyer le poisson. https://orientxxi.info/magazine/tunisie-la-rarete-de-l-eau-un-debat-pour-noyer-le-poisson,4860
- (21) ONAS, 2021. Realized Projects. http://www.onas.nat.tn/Fr/page.php?code=42
- (22) Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) and the Bertelsmann Stiftung, 2021. Sustainable Development Report 2021. Tunisia Profile. https://dashboards.sdgindex.org/profiles/tunisia
- (23) UN, 2021. SDG6 Data Tunisia. https://www.sdg6data.org/country-or-area/tunisia#anchor_6.3.1
- (24) PS Eau, 2021. Les Enjeux De L’Eau et L’assainissement. https://www.pseau.org/outils/ouvrages/ps_eau_fiche_pays_tunisie_2021.pdf
- (25) L'Economiste Maghrébin, 2020. MedProgramme: modernisation de dix stations d’épuration en Tunisie. https://www.leconomistemaghrebin.com/2020/07/01/medprogramme-modernisation-de-dix-stations-depuration-en-tunisie/
- (26) Ministry of Agriculture, 2013. L'Alimentation en Eau Potable et L'Assainissement en Tunisie. https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Issues/Water/Handbook/Tunisia.pdf