A major wastewater treatment and agricultural reuse initiative has been formally launched in the West Bank following the signing of two financing agreements in Ramallah. The TAJDID project (Treatment of Wastewater and Agricultural Reuse in Jenin West for Development, Investment and Decentralization) brings together the European Union, France through the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), and Germany through the development bank KfW, alongside Palestinian authorities.
Jenin West is a district within the Jenin Governorate, located in the northern West Bank. The area faces significant environmental and public health pressures, compounded by repeated damage to civilian infrastructure including water and wastewater systems.
The total budget stands at approximately €31.7 million. A first financing agreement worth €11.2 million between KfW, the Palestinian Ministry of Finance and Planning, and the Jenin West Water Utility (JWWU), was signed by the Palestinian Water Authority. A separate contribution agreement of €5.5 million was concluded between the EU and AFD, also acknowledged by the Palestinian Water Authority.
The project forms part of the Team Europe Initiative for Wastewater Management in Palestine, a coordinated framework launched in 2023 by the EU alongside France, Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and Spain to advance sector reform and infrastructure investment.
On the ground, TAJDID will deliver more than 100 kilometres of wastewater collection networks, a treatment plant with an initial daily capacity of around 3,700 cubic metres, and infrastructure to enable the safe use of treated water in agriculture. Around 36,000 residents across five towns in the Jenin Governorate will be directly served in the first phase, with wider populations expected to benefit from improved environmental conditions.
The project also incorporates an emergency-response component to allow rapid repairs to water and wastewater infrastructure in a region that has experienced repeated damage to essential services.
EU Representative Alexandre Stutzmann described the initiative as a demonstration of what coordinated European action can deliver: "Through TAJDID, we are turning wastewater from a source of pollution into a valuable resource, applying the principles of the circular economy to support resilience, public health, and sustainable development."
Germany's Head of Representative Office in Ramallah, Anke Schlimm, was direct: "Water is life. Palestine has the right to make effective use and to manage its water resources according to the needs of its population."
