The volume of water piped from Idini to Nouakchott now exceeds 100,000 cubic metres per day, up from a maximum of 45,000 previously, Prime Minister El Moctar Ould Diay announced on Sunday 18 October. He declared the extension of the scheme complete during a visit to the capital's facilities.
Difficulties in distribution persist in some neighbourhoods, the head of government acknowledged, according to the report by the Mauritanian News Agency. Residents still have to buy water by tanker at high prices, because of a lack of network or because their area, located on higher ground, receives insufficient quantities.
The Prime Minister puts the cost of the Idini project at 65 million euros. The work included twenty new boreholes, the rehabilitation of existing wells and the laying of around sixty kilometres of pipes to Ksar. An independent power line was also built to power the pumping.
Work on the project began on 3 December 2024 with a contractual duration of twenty-four months. The Prime Minister says it was completed two months before the deadline of 3 December 2026.
The separate sanitation project for Nouakchott, however, is behind schedule. Its progress stands at 14%, while half of the contractual period has elapsed, El Moctar Ould Diay said. Completion is still scheduled for the end of 2028 or the beginning of 2029.