Key Amman water supply station to be renovated through USAID-funded project

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AMMAN — Water Minister Mohammad Najjar, in the presence of USAID Mission Director for Jordan Leslie Reed, launched a project to rehabilitate, develop and sustain the Zara Ma'in Water Supply System, one of the main water supply sources for Amman.

Najjar noted that the Zara Ma'in has a capacity of 100,000 cubic metres of drinking water daily, equal to 38 million cubic metres annually, according to a ministry statement.

The minister added that, as a result of the station's “continuous hard work”, the ministry’s project received support of the US government through USAID to finance the replacement of 20 outworn water pumps with sophisticated, energy-efficient pumps.

The Zara Ma'in plant is an important station due to its traditional sedimentation and filtration techniques that produce high-quality drinking water, abiding by Jordan’s high standards, and is supplied by the Wadi Ma'in, Zara and Mujib springs, the minister said.

Najjar praised the continued support of the USAID, stressing that the 60-year-long partnership between the two institutions is still going strong.

For her part, Reed explained that for more than 60 years, the US and Jordanian governments have been involved in building vital water and sanitation infrastructure, increasing access to water for millions of Jordanians, conserving water resources for future generations and helping Jordan build a safe water future.

She added that the plant would maintain the operational capacity and enhanced energy efficiency of five pumping stations serving about 1.7 million people in Amman. The reconstruction of the pumping stations at Zara Ma'in was funded through the US-Jordan memorandum of understanding for economic development.