Water insecurity is one of the greatest threats to the Maldives, with a key Government priority being the provision of safe and secure freshwater to dispersed populations on the outer islands of the Maldives in response to climate change induced water shortages.

However, capacity, technical and fiscal constraints hinder the Government from meeting its water and sanitation targets. There is a strong need to build technical knowledge, develop innovative and simple solutions, exchange knowledge to address issues in remote and often sparsely populated areas, and access to finance, in order to provide safe water and sewerage  services to the country’s citizens. To support the Government’s ambitions in the water sector, this Readiness addresses the following barriers and constraints: (i) insufficient technical expertise in planning, programming and implementation of climate finance, (ii) lack of technical expertise in water and sanitation management, (iii) insufficient policy and strategic frameworks to support implementation of water and sewage services, and (iv) a lack of opportunities to exchange knowledge and learnings with peer networks.

The goal of this Readiness is therefore to support the building of community resilience to the impacts of climate change through the provision of water and sewage services, ensuring communities on the outer islands have access to adequate, safe and affordable water in the face of climate change.  In support of this ambition, this Readiness project has the following objectives:

1. To support the NDA’s medium and long-term climate planning goals through the enhancement of expertise in climate finance.
2. To support the water sector in the Maldives through the building of technical capacity within the Water and Sanitation Department and the Utilities in water resource management to better understand the issues and solutions facing remote communities, and to support the planning and implementation of pipeline water-related projects.
3. Utilising regional and international networks to exchange experiences, knowledge and technical expertise for the development of innovative water solutions for remote atoll islands in the Maldives.   

The direct beneficiaries of this Readiness project will be the National Designated Authority (NDA) office, the Water and Sanitation Department (WATSAN) and the State Utility companies (FENAKA Corporation Limited, Maldives Water and Sanitation Company (MWSC) and STELCO).