• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

Case Study Energising Development: Rusumo Falls Hydroelectric Project Photo: Jakob Granit Photo: Jakob Is investment in hydraulic infrastructure lake. About 14 million people live in the “We believe that people coming together necessary for economic growth? This Kagera basin, which spans 60,000 square in this way to share resources can be cata- question was debated by a distinguished kilometres. lyst for peace and regional cooperation,” group of researchers, policymakers, water Currently the region’s social develop- says Mr. Albert Butare, Minister of State managers and donors at the 2005 World ment and economic growth are stymied for Energy and Communication, Rwanda, Water Week in Stockholm. Based on by lack of reliable power. Businesses must during the World Water Week Seminar en- presentations by a number of experts invest in their own generators or suffer titled “Hydraulic Infrastructure as a Plat- and case studies from the USA, China, through the frequent black outs and brown form for Economic Growth.” Brazil, Australia, and the Nile Basin, the outs. Most households still rely on wood for Specifi cally, the objective of the project conclusion was a resounding yes. their cooking and heating needs, leading to is to supply new energy and capacity to the deforestation and soil erosion. existing power grid based on renewable The centrepiece of the discussion was the With a price tag of an estimated usd 150 hydropower energy, to foster international planned Rusumo Falls hydroelectric project million, the project is considered a good buy cooperation in hydropower project devel- on the Kagera River – a cooperative effort by the energy-strapped countries that will opment, and to electrify new areas and im- by Burundi, Rwanda, and Tanzania. Once share its benefi ts. Financing of the project is prove regional power supply reliability by operational, the hydrostation at Rusumo a challenge and the countries are currently interconnecting the power networks of the Falls would bring 60 megawatts of renew- exploring different options including pub- eastern part of the Democratic Republic of able, low-cost power the national grids of lic and private partnerships. The World the Congo, Burundi, Rwanda and the na- the three countries and to the local commu- Bank has committed to jointly support the tional network of Tanzania. nities in the project area in a region where preparation phase of the project and mobi- The Rusumo Falls case study, and the only around 2% of households have access lize fi nancing through partnerships. seminar in general, encapsulated in many to electricity. The Rusumo Falls project is part of the ways the discussions taking place during The project was selected following a care- basin-wide, multipurpose Kagera River Basin the water week on the viability of different ful strategic assessment of regional power Management and Development Project, “hard” and “soft” solutions for development generation and transmission interconnec- which includes Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania in river basins. For Africa, the call for more tion options in the Nile Equatorial Lakes and Uganda. The multipurpose approach infrastructure was evident during the week, region to meet the region’s urgent energy looks at hydraulic infrastructure develop- and the discussions in Stockholm revealed demands. Undertaken with the input of ment within the broader environmental the potential economic benefi ts in places regional stakeholders, the assessment cov- challenges and social development needs of such as the Kagera River basin. The key, ered economic and engineering feasibility the region-rural electrifi cation, irrigation as was often emphasised, is that infrastruc- and environmental and social impacts. The and agricultural development, rural roads, ture needs to be designed and built with an project was assessed as one of best evaluated transboundary parks and catchment man- active process of stakeholder involvement, regional projects. The continued project agement activities. Sweden, Norway, and and countries and regions need to make preparation phase will entail a full project the EU have pledged support for the project decisions for themselves, and in dialogue environmental and social assessment en- which will begin in 2005. with one another. Opportunities for such suring best practise in project design and One of the fi rst infrastructure projects dialogue will continue in the future. Ac- sharing of benefi ts to affected people. planned under the Nile Basin Initiative, the cording to the World Bank, hydropower The Kagera River is shared by Burundi, Rusumo project has already been approved provides about 19% of the world’s electric- Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda and is the by the eight Nile countries that could po- ity supply, and the remaining exploitable most remote headstream of the Nile River, tentially be affected as well as the ministers potential is 5,400 TWh a year – 90% of as well as the largest tributary to Lake Vic- in charge of electricity for the three coun- which is in developing countries. toria, the world’s third largest freshwater tries that share the basin. ■ 16.

Load more

  1

Copy Link