Ramallah – Head of Water Authority, Eng. Mazen Ghunaim, met today, and through the virtual system, the Director of World Bank in Palestine, Kanthan Shankar, to discuss the latest developments in the development programs of the water sector. Shankar praised the Water Authority's efforts in developing this vital sector and affirmed the World Bank's support for the Water Authority and the water sector, and the vital and strategic projects for this sector.

The meeting discussed the World Bank's plans to provide long-term support to the water sector during the coming years through future projects. In this regard, Eng. Ghunaim stressed the importance of the programs currently being implemented by the World Bank and donors, and the need to move forward in developing the water sector in line with the reform process and the decisions of the Council of Ministers in particular and the steps and the needs of the sector's institutionalization and investment priorities, to improve the efficiency of water and sanitation service providers and to raise the quality of service provided to citizens.

Ghunaim also briefed the Director of the World Bank on the most prominent developments in the implementation of the World Bank projects, the challenges, and the Water Authority's efforts to sustain these projects.

The World Bank has supported several vital water sector projects in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, including the project accompanying the Central Desalination Plant program in Gaza, the drainage management development project, and the Hebron treatment plant project, and work is underway to design a new program to support the development and reform of the water sector, which is expected to be launched next year.