Financing water for growth in Africa Rusumo Falls: water for power generation and multi- purpose use, Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania Summary project: The Regional Rusumo Falls Hydroelectric and The Project includes the following main elements: Multipurpose Project is a multi-purpose hydropower A hydroelectric power station over the Rusumo Falls project under joint development by Burundi, Rwanda of ca. 60-75 MW (optimisation is being done by the and Tanzania. The Rusumo Falls are approximately consultant) to be shared between the three countries, 30 metres high, located on the Kagera River that and the multi-purpose Project area development; forms the border between Tanzania and Rwanda, and are around 2 kilometres downstream of the Burundi. Transmission facilities connecting the hydroelectric The main road connecting Rwanda and Tanzania power plant of Rusumo Falls to the national grids of passes over the Project site. The Kagera river basin, Burundi and Rwanda and supply electricity to the which covers an area of about 58,000 km 2, is a sub- western provinces of Tanzania, which are currently basin of the Nile river system. The catchment at the not connected to the country’s national grid. Rural falls drains from the territories of Tanzania, Rwanda electrification for selected centres along the and Burundi. transmission lines corridors will be implemented. The Regional Rusumo Falls Hydroelectric Project is A Project institutional mechanism for the co- being developed within the overall Kagera Basin management of power generation and distribution to Integrated Development Framework, which is part of national utilities. the Nile Basin Initiative (“NBI”) and its Nile The Power Utilities Companies in the 3 countries are Equatorial Lakes investment program, NELSAP. facing a generation capacity power shortage which The project Description and opportunity of the BURUNDI, RWANDA, TANZANIA Water for multipurposepowergeneration and use 1 not only causes immediate concerns but also household chores, the benefits of good lighting for presents a risk for the region’s future growth. students, allowing them to achieve better results as well as the safety and security aspects of electrical The project also presents a major opportunity to lighting in both public and private spaces. develop irrigation projects in the vicinity. Several socioeconomic aspects will be affected: the Technical features demographic and social structure, land tenure, Preliminary characteristics for the power plant are as infrastructure and utilities, agriculture, fishing and follows: logging, health and security, and quality of life among other things. Most of the impacts have now Full Supply Level: 1325 m been identified, but they will be more thoroughly analyzed in the subsequent stage of the Study, for the Installed Capacity: 60 – 75 MW selected alternative and within the final affected (three Kaplan turbine sets) territory. Average Annual Production: 443.8 – 475.4 The results of the stakeholder opinion survey, GWh confirmed both the desire for local development in Reservoir capacity at FSL: 495.9 hm 3 the Study area, as well as the complexities and challenges which, without doubt, will be faced in the Reservoir area at FSL: 313 km 2 resettlement process. Stakeholders revealed Power for the Rusumo Falls will be transmitted to the important challenges encountered in past National grids via three 220 kV transmission lines: resettlement programs including lack of Rusumo Falls – Gitega (Burundi), 158 km; Rusumo infrastructure, poor sanitary conditions, proliferation Falls – Birembo/Kigali (Rwanda); 115 km and of disease and land tenure conflicts, which will have Rusumo Falls – Nyakanazi (Tanzania), 95 km. to be adequately accounted for in a future resettlement plan. It has been observed that both A joint utility/institutional mechanism for the co- Rwanda and Burundi have considerable experience management of power generation and distribution to with resettlement in a variety of contexts; however national utilities will be defined. appropriate institutional strengthening and careful implementation and monitoring will be required to Social impact assessment overcome the considerable challenges encountered in With regards to social impacts, the socio economic the past. baseline description confirmed that the population in the Study zone is very young and has a very high To enhance project area development, and to mitigate population density. There are also a very large or compensate for negative impacts, measures to be number of female-headed households, as well as included in the PADP (Project Area Development orphan headed households. The presence of these Programme) include: vulnerable groups will be taken into consideration in Public infrastructure – upgrading of main roads subsequent phases of the Project, particularly when and existing school buildings, improving access to designing the Resettlement Action Plan. clean water, rural electrification to selected villages The vast majority of the population in the Study zone in the project neighbourhood, recreational/tourism practices subsistence agriculture, and this activity is facilities, refurbishing health dispensaries, sometimes supplemented by fishing in the area. The construction of pit latrines in villages and at market entire region also suffers from an acute lack of places and establishment of demonstration electricity, with no electrical production facilities reforestation and programs for the promotion of soil found in the region. These results were reconfirmed and water conservation measures. by surveys carried out and the main conclusion that Public health services – STD/HIV control, can be drawn is that there is a strong need for improvement of environmental sanitation, improve- development in the Study area, and electricity is ment of reproductive health, social work and highly desired. substance abuse, prevention, enhancement of The impact of electrical services on poverty occupational health and traffic safety and water reduction is well known. It includes the productivity borne diseases control such as malaria and bilharzias. increases which the use of electrical machinery and Socio-economic interventions – development of a lighting bring, the reduction in time required for broad network of various stakeholders on the local 2 level, maintenance of close liaison with the residents The increase in fish biomass will likely be positively of the RRFP direct impact zone, outlining mitigation correlated to the increase of the water level in the effort proposals related to indirect impacts of the reservoir. Several species with conservation concern RRFP for donor funding and for implementation by are found in the Study area and the impact of habitat local government, non-government organizations, change on each of these species will be assessed in communities and other agencies through for example the final study. micro-credit facilities; programs and activities for The surface area for the projected reservoir was enhancing livelihoods through training and capacity delimited, and the land use was identified based on building; agricultural intensification through irriga- the results of field surveys and Ikonos satellite tion, and support to SMEs and agro-processing. images. This analysis allowed the establishment of the flooded areas for each class of land use. It can be Environmental impact assessment concluded that the classes that would be mostly Each element of the Project was examined in terms affected by the impoundment of the reservoir are the of its potential direct and indirect impacts, whether marshland and cultivated food crops in the marshes. positive or negative, on each component of the environment during construction and operation To enhance project area development, and to mitigate phases. The analysis revealed that the most important or compensate for negative impacts, measures to be impacts on the physical environment will be related included in the PADP include the management of to raising the water level upstream the dam and watershed and fishery resources. This includes drastically reducing the water flow in the falls and developing a procedure which adequately monitors, downstream rapids for about one kilometre (between describes and quantifies the impact of climatic dam site and outlet of discharge channel). However, variations, water resources uses, agricultural prac- the preliminary results of the evolution of the water tices and land use on sediment load and water balance in the catchment, identify institutional struc- tures and functions, and decision- making procedures pertinent to land use, agricultural irrigation, fish farming, natural resources exploitation, development of procedures for the evaluation of socio-economic, cultural and environmental consequences of alternative land use and agricultural practices in the Kagera catchment. The site Right: plan of the dam quality, following the impoundment of the reservoir, show that the overall water quality will not be greatly affected by the Project compared to the current situation. With the reservoir at 1325 masl, the level of Lake Rweru is increased by 0.5 m in comparison to the natural conditions for a flood of centenary frequency.. Plan of the Dam The major impacts on the components of the biological environment are related to the habitat loss for flora and fauna. In addition, following the creation of a reservoir, slower speeds could lead to proliferation of pests such as water hyacinth and these impacts will increase with the