Khaberni - The World Bank expects to award several tenders within the water efficiency project in Jordan, financed by the bank for 250 million dollars, by the end of this year, amidst a "relative improvement" in the pace of implementation and procurement over recent months.
According to an assessment report translated by "Al-Mamlaka", the project aims to improve water service efficiency in the kingdom by reducing water loss, enhancing energy use efficiency, supporting water security measures, in addition to providing administrative and executory support for managing the project.
The report confirmed that the developmental goal of the project, which is to improve the efficiency of water services in Jordan, has not changed since the project was approved in June 2023.
The report clarified that progress towards achieving the developmental goal of the project is classified as “moderately satisfactory”, while the overall progress in implementation is classified as “moderately unsatisfactory”, with the overall project risks rated at a “medium” level.
It mentioned that the mid-term review held in September 2025 included extensive discussions between the World Bank team and the national authorities involved, including the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation, Ministry of Water and Irrigation, Water Authority, and Jordan Valley Authority, along with water companies, where the World Bank team noted a "moderate improvement" in the pace of implementation and procurement during the recent period.
In terms of results, the report showed that all main impact indicators remain at their baseline levels as of 24 November 2025, without recording actual results to date, indicating that the project is still in its foundation stage.
By the closure period in May 2028, the project targets to improve water services for about 1.6 million beneficiaries, including 752 thousand women, in addition to 80 thousand refugee beneficiaries, half of whom are females, and480 thousand beneficiaries from host communities, including 225 thousand women.
The project also targets reducing water loss by 10 million cubic meters annually through the replacement and rehabilitation of water networks, reducing electricity consumption by 81 gigawatts/hour annually, including savings from improved energy efficiency and renewable energy sources, in addition to operating four components within an integrated drought management system, which includes developing monitoring indicators, improving seasonal forecasting services, preparing vulnerability assessments, and adopting preparedness and emergency plans.
Regarding financial performance, the report pointed out that the disbursement rates are still limited compared to the total funding of the project. The total disbursed from the $200 million World Bank loan was about 7.71 million dollars, with a disbursement rate of 3.85%, while the total disbursed from the $50 million grant was about 1.81 million dollars, with a disbursement rate of 3.61%, up to the report date.
The report explained that the project includes 5 main components related to reducing water loss, improving energy efficiency, enhancing water security measures, and project management support, in addition to the emergency response component.
The project was approved on 15 June 2023 and came into effect on 7 November of the same year, to continue implementation until the closing date set at 31 December 2028 without any changes to the closing date.
The World Bank report concludes that the next phase of project implementation requires accelerating the pace of implementation and procurement and awarding the planned contracts, which will allow the transition from the foundational stage to achieving tangible results in water service efficiency in the kingdom within the approved timeline for the project.
