Ferrovial will develop water supply and sewage projects in Colombia and Ethiopia. Through its Social Infrastructure program, Ferrovial will provide technical expertise and financial support for two initiatives to develop water supply and sewage infrastructure in Latin America and Africa.
Ferrovial is to promote water supply and sewage infrastructure projects in Colombia and Ethiopia under its Social Infrastructure program, which is part of the Corporate Responsibility 20.13 Plan. These projects will directly benefit 8,500 people and will be executed over 18 to 24 months. Two NGOs, Ayuda en Acción and Intermón Oxfam, will collaborate on this initiative. Ferrovial will provide technical expertise for both projects through its employee volunteers on the ground, as well as a total of 450,000 euro in funding.
Juan Francisco Polo, Head of Communication and Corporate Responsibility at Ferrovial: "The employees who are involved and contributing their experience on the ground clearly add value to the projects, which reflects the group-wide commitment to social responsibility and to the development of the most disadvantaged communities".
Forty-four projects were presented under the second edition of Ferrovial's annual Social Infrastructure program, which seeks to palliate the lack of water and sewage infrastructure in Latin America and Africa. Access to drinking water, a key factor in the fight against poverty, substantially reduces illnesses associated with unhealthy living conditions in children and adults. "We would like to thank the NGOs that participated in this edition, all of which presented excellent projects", added Mr Polo.
Water and sewage infrastructure in Colombia and Ethiopia
In eastern Colombia, Ferrovial will cooperate with Ayuda en Acción to improve the infrastructure of an existing aqueduct and to build water supply networks in Pacurita, in Quibdó municipality. This project will be executed in 18 months and will guarantee access to drinking water for around 1,300 people.
In southern Ethiopia, Ferrovial will work with Intermón Oxfam to build a water supply and sewage network, which includes the construction of 20 wells in 8 wards in the Boloso Sore and Sodo Zuria districts. This project will be executed in 24 months, and will provide 7,200 people with access to drinking water within 30 minutes' walk.
The two programs also include actions to raise awareness in the communities about better hygiene and health conditions and to strengthen the skills of local workers to ensure the sustainability and proper functioning of the infrastructure.
In the first edition of Social Infrastructure, Ferrovial chose projects from ONGAWA (to build sewage infrastructure in Tanzania) and Plan España (to build water infrastructure in Cajamarca region, Peru, a project which is still ongoing).
Ferrovial has been involved in development aid projects since 2005, primarily through the "Stronger Together" program, in cooperation with its employees, and in water and sewage projects since 2007, with "Maji ni Uhai" (Water is Life, in Swahili) in Tanzania. This project reduced water-borne diseases by 55% in the communities where it was implemented. More than 90,000 people have benefited from these programs either directly or indirectly.
About Ferrovial
Ferrovial, one of the world's largest infrastructure and city operators, is committed to developing sustainable solutions. The company has 70,000 employees and operates in over 15 countries. Its main business areas are: Services, Toll Roads, Construction and Airports. Ferrovial is part of Spain's blue-chip IBEX-35 index and also of the prestigious Dow Jones Sustainability Index, FTSE4Good and Ethibel indices. Ferrovial manages 407 Express Toll Route (Canada), Heathrow Airport (UK), Chicago Skyway (USA) and Ausol toll road (Spain), among others. It also provides municipal services in many cities and towns in Spain and the United Kingdom.