NWSC asks Grundfos to make pumps and spare parts in Uganda
GLASGOW, Scotland: National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC) Managing Director Dr Eng. Silver Mugisha has asked Danish pump maker Grundfos to partner with the National Enterprise Corporation (NEC) to manufacture pumps and spare parts in Uganda.
He also sought low cost financing from the World Bank and support from the Gates Foundation for NWSC’s research and sanitation work. He made the requests in separate meetings on the sidelines of the International Water Association (IWA) World Water Congress and Exhibition in Glasgow. None of the three organisations announced a funding amount. Grundfos pledged to look into the request, the World Bank said it would carry out due diligence, and the Gates Foundation pledged to support preparations for the IWA Water and Development Congress in Uganda.
Grundfos
Dr Mugisha told Grundfos executives that NWSC imports spare parts for most of its pumps and that local production would end long waits for parts shipped from abroad.
“For sustainability, if I work with you, I should be able to get your parts locally and not endure long waits to get parts from abroad,” he said. “With NEC producing these spares, we can have a network supplying Africa.”
He said NEC has the capacity to produce the parts and that other African utilities could also buy from the Ugandan supply line.
He asked Grundfos to set up an in-house manufacturing plant with NEC to assemble pump parts locally, to study NWSC’s hydraulic systems and design energy efficient pumps for the utility and the East African market, and to work with NWSC on technology such as prepaid meters.
He said NWSC is moving towards competence based training and wants to draw on Grundfos’s electromechanical engineering experience to build the skills of Ugandan engineers. He also asked the company to support the African Water and Sanitation Academy, run under the African Water and Sanitation Association (AfWASA).
Grundfos officials said the company has worked with utilities, the IWA and AfWASA on learning initiatives and would look into the request. They outlined a financing model in which the company recovers its investment from savings generated by more efficient pumps, and said it could develop intelligent pumps that detect faults automatically. They pledged to work with NWSC to cut energy use, costs and non-revenue water.
Dr Rose Kaggwa, NWSC Senior Director Business and Scientific Services, asked Grundfos to become principal sponsor of the IWA Water and Development Congress and Exhibition planned for Uganda in November 2027. NWSC Board Chairman Prof. Eng. Dr Henry Alinaitwe pledged the board’s support for management in delivering the initiatives.
World Bank
Dr Mugisha presented NWSC’s performance, including audited financial reports, which he said show the utility is creditworthy. He said NWSC is seeking long term, low cost financing and working with local banks and the Ministry of Finance. The funds, he said, should go to infrastructure expansion, operating and energy efficiency, sanitation promotion and cutting non-revenue water.
“The cost of financing is high, and the Government of Uganda is looking at low-cost financing and is doing away with expensive financing,” he said.
He said any World Bank funding should be flexible enough to let NWSC do its own engineering designs, use community based models and source affordable contractors. He added that the government is also raising funds locally, including through bonds and financing from the National Social Security Fund.
“We want to give people more water, reduce water-borne diseases, reduce the distance for fetching water and reduce the cost of access to clean, safe water,” he said.
World Bank officials described NWSC as a well performing utility and said the bank would assess risk and could support it if it can implement projects on its own. They said the bank works with local banks in Africa and would consider working through Ugandan lenders. They added that it funds government utilities through bonds and grants for climate and water infrastructure projects, and that due diligence on Uganda is the next step.
NWSC Deputy Managing Director Finance and Corporate Strategy Francis Owot said the utility can manage the funds alongside the Ministry of Finance and other stakeholders. He urged the bank to channel financing through local banks to reduce costs.
Gates Foundation
Dr Mugisha asked the foundation to support NWSC’s research and development agenda, its sanitation work, the 50 Towns Water Supply Improvement Project and preparations for the 2027 congress.
He said NWSC now has a strong research and development department and asked the foundation to back it as an incubator for water and sanitation solutions on the continent, including work on sludge management. He said demand for water is outstripping supply in some towns, and urged support for water supply and on-site sanitation there. He also asked the foundation to back the African Water and Sanitation Academy, which he said Uganda hosts.
Prof. Alinaitwe said backing research at NWSC would also benefit engineering students by strengthening links between the utility and universities.
Gates Foundation officials pledged to support preparations for the congress. They said the foundation wants to make an impact in Africa and sees utilities such as NWSC as a good vehicle, and described NWSC as a pace setter in water and sanitation on the continent.
