YEREVAN, MARCH 24, NOYAN TAPAN. Since 2004 the quality of drinking water has improved in Armenia thanks to implementation of the 23 million-dollar Community Water Supply and Sewerage credit program financed by the USAID. Director General of Armenia Water and Sewerage Company Patrick Lorin said during the presentation of an annual report on March 24 that as a result of the program's implementation, structural changes were made at the company, its financial indices improved, disinfected water volumes doubled, and the time of water supply was increased from 6 hours daily in 2004 to 12 hours in 2008. Power consumption declined by 30% thanks to the launching of new pumping stations. The number of subscribers grew 3fold from 53,000 to 115,000 in the past 4 years. The subscriber payments grew by 70% in the indicated period. P. Lorin said that the second credit program of 20 million USD additional financing by the World Bank's Board of Directors was submitted by the company to the Armenian government. The program is aimed at expanding the achievements of the first program. Besides, the program envisages extension of the current management agreement by two years. By the new program, the water supply systems of the settlements, which are in Armenia Water and Sewerage Company's servicing territory and were not included in the first program, will be financed. According to the Chairman of the State Water Industry Committee of the RA Ministry of Territorial Administration Andranik Andreasian, they are trying to find new financing sources (in addition to the above mentioned program) for solution of water supply and sewerage problems in about 300 settlements and for increasing the capacities of Armenia Water and Sewerage CJSC.

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