EIB Global strengthens its support for the water and sanitation sector in Tunisia with EU backing and launches technical assistance financed by the European Union in support of priority public sector projects

May 2, 2025 by European Investment Bank Leave a Comment

A wind turbine alongside electrical transmission towers in a cloudy sky, illustrating renewable energy infrastructure. — World Bank/Dana Smillie Wind turbine farm in Tunisia.

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.

€30 million to improve drinking water supply in Greater Tunis
A structural project to help meet the expected increase in demand and adapt to the effects of climate change
€5 million of technical assistance financed by the European Union to prepare new generation of investment projects in the public sector
Launch of a study with WWF and ONAS on nature-based solutions for wastewater treatment

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is stepping up its support for the water sector in Tunisia with two new loans totalling €30 million – a €22 million finance contract signed with Société nationale d’exploitation et de distribution des eaux (Sonede) and an €8 million contract signed with the Republic of Tunisia. Both operations are backed by a guarantee from the European Commission and will help finalise a structural project for drinking water supply in Greater Tunis, the most densely populated region of the country which is faced with growing demand for water.

The project includes the construction of a new treatment plant in Bejaoua, laying of water pipelines, installation of pumping stations and construction of reservoirs to serve the entire Greater Tunis region, including future development zones such as Tunis Financial Harbour.

Faced with a projected 50% increase in demand by 2040, this investment meets a strategic need to strengthen water security in Greater Tunis. It will make a real contribution to providing a reliable and sustainable service in a region with high population growth, against the backdrop of increased pressure on water resources. The additional funding is co-financed equally with Agence française de développement (AFD) under the Mutual Reliance Initiative (MRI), a cooperation mechanism between European lenders.

In addition, the EIB is launching a new strategic partnership with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for the benefit of the Office national de l’assainissement (ONAS), the public body responsible for managing sanitation services in Tunisia.

This partnership aims to promote nature-based solutions (NBS) in order to address water and climate change-related challenges. The study conducted in this framework will focus on the possibility of applying nature-based solutions in cities with fewer than 3 000 inhabitants. Its findings will provide the basis for an event in Tunis on 19 May, aimed at identifying a pilot project to be developed with the support of international partners. This study is in line with the EIB’s commitment to strengthening its dialogue with local civil society on projects with major environmental impact.

EIB Vice-President Ioannis Tsakiris said: “Through these two partnerships with the Tunisian government, Sonede and ONAS, the EIB is supporting concrete, innovative solutions focused on people’s needs.By ensuring reliable access to drinking water and strengthening wastewater treatment systems via nature-based solutions, our aim is to support the country’s resilience to climate challenges.This support fully reflects our commitment to sustainable and equitable development, aligned with the priorities of the strategic partnership between the European Union and Tunisia.”

EU Ambassador to Tunisia Giuseppe Perrone said: “The European Union and the EIB are supporting the Tunisian authorities in their efforts to ensure access to the drinking water and sanitation services needed by the people of Tunisia. These new activities are part of Team Europe’s ‘Water’ initiative, which has already mobilised €1.7 billion – or TND 5.7 billion – to ensure access to drinking water and sanitation services in Tunisia, thanks to the combined contributions of the European Union, its Member States and financial institutions such as the EIB.”

A technical assistance contribution of €5 million financed by the European Union and implemented in partnership with the EIB will also help the Ministry of Economy and Planning to prepare a new generation of investment projects in the public sector. This assistance will aim to improve the quality, sustainability and resilience of future projects in key sectors for Tunisia’s long-term development. This perfectly illustrates the commitment of the European Union and the EIB to work closely with the Ministry of Economy and Planning on the implementation of priority investment projects for Tunisia.

These efforts are part of the global approach of EIB World, the EIB Group’s arm dedicated to financing outside the European Union, in keeping with the priorities of the strategic partnership between the European Union and Tunisia and the objectives of Agenda 2030. They are also fully consistent with the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the European Union and Tunisia, which aims to strengthen wide-ranging, sustainable cooperation built around common priorities such as access to water, climate resilience and balanced territorial development.

Background information

About the European Investment Bank (EIB)

In Tunisia, the EIB finances projects with high economic and social impact in strategic sectors such as education, urban development, transport and energy.

EIB Global is the EIB Group’s specialised arm devoted to increasing the impact of international partnerships and development finance. Within Team Europe, it fosters strong, focused partnerships alongside fellow development finance institutions and civil society. EIB Global brings the EIB Group closer to people, companies and institutions through its offices around the world.

About the European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 European countries. It is based on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of people belonging to minorities. It works globally to promote the sustainable development of societies, the environment and economies, so that everyone can benefit from it.

Discover more from The European Sting - Critical News & Insights on European Politics, Economy, Foreign Affairs, Business & Technology - europeansting.com

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

© Agricultural Development Association – PARC A farmer in the West Bank harvest olives in October 2025. (file)

‘Season of fear’: Escalating Israeli attacks on West Bank olive farmers, deadly strikes on Gaza

October 20, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Israeli attacks on war-torn Gaza over the weekend killed at least six Palestinians, including children, despite a year-old ceasefire agreement. Meanwhile, in the occupied West Bank, settler violence continued through the ongoing olive harvest, with UN independent experts on Monday urging Israel to protect Palestinian farmers. […]

COP17: The world has a plan to save nature. Is it working?

October 19, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The UN Secretary-General has called for an end to the “war on nature”. On Monday, governments gathering in Yerevan, Armenia, will have to confront a more practical question: are they doing enough to win the peace and put the world’s biodiversity goals back on track? COP17, […]

© WHO A large-scale combined missile and drone strike hit Kyiv's Solomianskyi district on August 20, 2026.

Ukraine: Critical health supplies destroyed in ongoing Russian attacks

October 16, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Ongoing and deadly Russian attacks across Ukraine are causing serious healthcare disruption, with more than $1.5 million-worth of medicines and supplies destroyed in four separate strikes on warehouses used by the UN there since July. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 21 warehouses have been […]

© UNICEF/Niccolò Corti A child sits alone, praying, at a reception centre for migrants in Lampedusa, Italy.

World News in Brief: West African migrant crossings, Argentina takes UK to maritime tribunal, farming in Gaza, mental health update

October 15, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Fewer people from West Africa are reaching Europe by sea, but the journey has not become safer, the UN migration agency (IOM) said on Tuesday. Arrivals from Mali, Senegal, Guinea and The Gambia fell by 59 per cent in the first half of 2026 compared with […]

© UN Ukraine The aftermath of a drone attack in a residential area in Kyiv on 12 October.

Ukraine: Residents killed and dozens injured in attacks on Kharkiv and Kyiv

October 14, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Russian attacks in recent days on on Ukraine’s two largest cities have again killed and injured civilians, damaged homes and civilian infrastructure, the UN aid coordination office (OCHA) said on Tuesday. Aid workers and rescuers were on the ground in Kyiv and Kharkiv following aerial strikes that […]

© IOM The war in Sudan has created extreme levels of displacement, both internally and across Sudan’s borders.

‘Efficiency has limits’: UNHCR chief warns refugee protection is buckling under cuts

October 13, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The money is running out faster than needs are growing: with 117 million men, women and children now forced from their homes, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) has received just $3 billion of the $8.5 billion it needs this year – and its chief, Barham Salih, warns […]

© UNOCHA/Ramatoulaye Moussa Maz A woman walks through a camp for displaced people in Ituri Province in eastern DR Congo, where decades of violence have impacted millions, creating a humanitarian emergency.

Rise in poverty is ‘a wake-up call for the world’, UN development chief says

October 13, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The number of people living in “multidimensional” poverty has risen for the first time in 15 years, reaching 1.2 billion, as families struggle to meet their basic needs. The finding comes in the 2026 update of the global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) published by the United Nations […]

© UNDP Nidaa with the chickens and ducks she raises in Gaza.

Sustaining livelihoods amid crisis in Gaza

October 12, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Nidaa, Hanaa and Hanin have different stories, but share a common thread: the determination to build something of their own and keep it going despite extraordinary challenges facing them in war-ravaged Gaza. Following the devastation of the past three years, productive capacity in Gaza has been severely […]

© UNICEF/Oleksii Filippov A firefighter works on the balcony of a wrecked building in Kyiv, Ukraine.

World News in Brief: Russian attacks continue in Ukraine, Gazans shelter in flood-prone areas, keeping sight of eye health

October 9, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Thursday he was appalled by a wave of attacks that have killed civilians across Ukraine over the past four days. They include a strike on two public buses in Kramatorsk on Thursday, that left at least 30 civilians dead, […]

Ukraine: UN condemns latest attacks and calls for civilian protection

October 8, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine on Wednesday called for an end to attacks against civilians following further overnight strikes by Russian forces that reportedly killed at least 19 in the Chernihiv Region. Among the dead in Pryluky were five children, three of them babies, according to the […]

© UNICEF-SoP/Crickx People walk down a dusty road in the West Bank carrying belongings.

Israeli demolition in East Jerusalem displaces 69 Palestinians

October 7, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Sixty-nine Palestinians – more than half of them children – were displaced on Tuesday after Israeli authorities green lit the demolition of their residential building in the At Tur area of East Jerusalem, the UN aid coordination office (OCHA) has reported. This is the highest number of […]

‘The clock on AI regulation is ticking’, warns UN rights chief

October 6, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The world is running out of time to put guardrails on artificial intelligence, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk warned Monday, as a “ruthless race” between companies and countries raises concerns about human safety and even humanity’s survival. Speaking in the UK at an AI […]

© UNOCHA/Alina Basiuk A school in Ukraine lies in ruins after being hit by a missile.

Ukraine war ‘a human rights catastrophe’ that must end, says Türk

October 5, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Human Rights The war in Ukraine is a human rights catastrophe that is “growing and intensifying by the week” and threatening an even greater disaster across the region, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said on Friday. Addressing the Human Rights Council in Geneva, Mr. […]

UN News Massive tent settlement of displaced residents extends along the damaged Gaza coastline.

Palestinians yearn for ‘a return to normal life’, says top Middle East peace envoy

October 2, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The UN is continuing efforts to support Palestinians in Gaza amid major challenges to humanitarian access, reconstruction and the restoration of essential services, according to Ramiz Alakbarov, Acting UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. Speaking to UN News on the margins of the UN […]

©UNIFIL/Tilak Pokharel UNIFIL personnel distribute food kits to displaced families in Saida, Lebanon (file).

Lebanon: One in five children goes to bed hungry, says UNICEF

October 1, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Four in five households in Lebanon struggle to afford basic necessities today, with children increasingly going without food, missing school and being pushed into work as conflict compounds years of economic crisis. “I wanted to buy clothes for my children, but I could not. I also wanted […]

World News in Brief: Deadly Myanmar strikes as Malaysia begins deportations, new emergency funding released, Gaza and West Bank update

September 30, 2026

The UN chief on Tuesday strongly condemned an airstrike that reportedly killed at least 50 people at a market in Myanmar’s Rakhine state and called for those responsible to be held to account. Forces from the military junta reportedly hit Kyauktaw township around midday on Monday, when the market’s more than 200 shops were busy […]

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.

EU provides €61 million in humanitarian aid amidst rapidly deteriorating situation in Ethiopia

September 29, 2026

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Amid fears of renewed conflict in Northern Ethiopia, the European Union is providing €61 million in humanitarian funding to help the most vulnerable people in Ethiopia affected by conflict, displacement, disease outbreaks and climate-related hazards, including the impact of El Niño. The European Union […]

© UNDP A worker installs solar panels in Lanao del Sur in the Philippines.

From energy crisis to energy transition: How renewables are reshaping energy security

September 29, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. The continuing conflict in the Middle East is disrupting global energy markets and pushing up fuel prices, with knock-on effects far beyond the region. For Francesco La Camera, Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the crisis is also reshaping how the world understands the phrase […]

Countries adopted on Saturday a new global blueprint for tackling rapidly evolving forms of crime, as the UN’s largest gathering on crime prevention and criminal justice opened in Abu Dhabi with a call for stronger international cooperation. The Abu Dhabi Declaration was adopted by acclamation at the opening of the 15th United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, bringing governments together around challenges ranging from cybercrime and fraud to the growing criminal exploitation of digital technology. The Declaration highlights an increasingly complex landscape in which services, infrastructure and technology can be exploited by criminals, including emerging trends described as “crime as a service” and “violence as a service”. At the same time, countries committed to making greater use of technology themselves, including by digitalizing justice systems and harnessing artificial intelligence in criminal justice responses. The Declaration stresses that safeguards must accompany those changes, including human oversight, transparency, due process and data protection. ‘Justice cannot be a privilege’ In a video message to the Congress, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said the meeting was taking place at a time of profound change. “Justice cannot be a privilege. It must protect every person, uphold every person’s rights and leave no one behind,” said Ms. Mohamed. “This Congress is an opportunity to renew our shared commitment to justice and the rule of law, and to translate that commitment into action.” Countries are already being encouraged to put the Declaration into practice through the voluntary Pledge4Justice initiative, under which participating governments are announcing concrete, time-bound actions on crime prevention and criminal justice through 2031. The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre with its curved glass tower and surrounding buildings reflected in calm water at dusk. UNODC The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre where the 15th UN Crime Congress is set to take place. From Kyoto to Abu Dhabi Opening the Congress, UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Executive Director Monica Juma framed the gathering as both a response to a changing criminal landscape and a test of international cooperation. “Today, the world convenes in Abu Dhabi to reaffirm that the rule of law and criminal justice are essential to the safety and security of people and the planet,” said Ms. Juma. “At a time when confidence in multilateralism is faltering, let Abu Dhabi be a testament to international cooperation.” Five years after the previous Congress in Kyoto, Japan, Ms. Juma said the world had reached another “inflection point”, with technology and artificial intelligence advancing at extraordinary speed. The same platforms connecting billions of people can also connect criminals, she warned, while digital currencies can conceal illicit profits and digital tools can be used to deceive, manipulate and exploit. Technology, she argued, is not simply accelerating crime but changing its character, while organized criminal networks increasingly exploit weaknesses across borders and institutions. Tweet URL Protecting people as the ‘north star’ Behind those broad trends, Ms. Juma urged delegates to focus on the people most exposed to harm, including children recruited by gangs, women facing violence at home or online, people unable to obtain legal assistance and young people lured into scam networks with promises of a better future. “Protecting these people must be the measure against which we judge our efforts over the coming week,” she said. “It must be our north star.” She called for laws and institutions capable of keeping pace with changing threats, greater access to justice and legal aid, and technology that serves as “a force for good” rather than an accelerator of harm. And while welcoming the Abu Dhabi Declaration as a starting point, Ms. Juma stressed that its impact would ultimately depend on implementation. A week focused on justice Hosted by the United Arab Emirates, the Congress runs through 1 October under the theme Protecting People and Planet in the Digital Age. Some 119 countries are represented, alongside more than 40 justice ministers and other senior officials, with over 5,100 participants from governments, civil society, academia and the private sector. Plenary meetings, workshops, side events and exhibitions will run throughout the session. Organizers are also billing this as the most youth-inclusive Crime Congress yet. Young people are participating in workshops, contributing to follow-up efforts and taking part in a dedicated Youth Lab and art exhibition, following a Youth Forum held ahead of the Congress on 24 and 25 September. UNODC serves as secretariat of the Congress and will support implementation of the Abu Dhabi Declaration.

Countries adopt global blueprint to tackle fast-evolving crime in digital age

September 28, 2026

This article is published in association with United Nations. Countries adopted on Saturday a new global blueprint for tackling rapidly evolving forms of crime, as the UN’s largest gathering on crime prevention and criminal justice opened in Abu Dhabi with a call for stronger international cooperation. The Abu Dhabi Declaration was adopted by acclamation at the […]