Assessing national sanitation policy for effectiveness: lessons from Nepal and Ghana

Providing improved sanitation services can contribute directly to a number of the Millennium Development Goals and the alleviation of global poverty. This contribution can be maximized through the development of appropriate national sanitation policies to enable the implementation of national strategies and programmes. Only then can the scale of the sanitation need be effectively addressed. This paper presents the process and findings of research carried out in Nepal and Ghana to test guidelines for assessing national sanitation policies. It explains how the guidelines were applied and where they were modified to suit the context of the case study countries. Findings from the research look to both inform the future application of the guidelines and ongoing development of national sanitation policies. The paper is one of a series of outputs developed on the basis of the research project

Septage treatment in Indonesia: lessons from field investigations in seven cities

More than 80% of urban households in Indonesia have access to sanitation, mostly provided by on-site facilities. This creates a need for septage management systems, including treatment. The Government of Indonesia has provided septage treatment plants in over 100 cities but few of these operate as intended and many no longer function. The paper describes assessments undertaken to establish the reasons for poor performance and to identify appropriate responses. The focus is on design but the paper also identifies concerns about the lack of relevant information and the need to tackle design and management challenges in an integrated way

Assessing on-site systems and sludge accumulation rates to understand pit emptying in Indonesia

Despite 85% urban residents in Indonesia using on-site sanitation, demand for pit emptying is low and there is a lack of empirical data on local conditions. The type of system, sludge accumulation rate and pit emptying frequency was analysed from 190 household surveys, measured content of 107 pits and government interviews in six Indonesian cities. The sludge accumulations rates were on the low end of existing literature, with an average rate of 25l/p.y. 83% of the sample were single pits with an unsealed base receiving only blackwater and 22% had an overflow to a waterway or drain. The majority of systems had never been emptied. First emptying at 45% sludge depth occurred after an average 16 years, however subsequent emptying occurred more frequently at 2-4 year intervals. Planning on the basis of actual sludge accumulation rates could lead to more viable pit emptying business models and appropriately sized treatment plants

Sanitation policy in Ghana - assessing key elements and policy measures

This paper presents a summary of the process, findings and proposals of an assessment of Ghana’s Environmental Sanitation Policy based on the application of EHP’s Guidelines for the Assessment of National Sanitation Policies. The findings show that while all the key elements usually listed as ingredients of a good policy framework are present in the Environmental Sanitation Policy there has been slow implementation of its strategic objectives. An important outcome of the assessment is that proposals addressing gaps in the policy were made for further review and revision of the policy to provide workinglevel application of results of the assessment. An implication of the assessment concerns how work on existing guidelines on assessing sanitation policies can be taken forward. An important dimension is the need for strengthening initiatives for building capacity of staff of technical institutions responsible for developing and implementing policies

Assessing Nepal's national sanitation policy

Many researchers and commentators on sanitation have recognised that relevant and effective policies play an important role in ensuring sanitation is addressed at sufficient scale that progress is made towards national sanitation targets in support of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). With this in mind, the Environmental Health Programme (EHP) of USAID developed a written ‘Guidelines for the Assessment of National Sanitation Policies’ in 2002, to help countries assess the effectiveness of policy in enabling an environment that encourages effective programmes and strategies. Nepal was selected as one of two countries for field-testing the EHP Guidelines as part of DFID-funded research carried out by WEDC in collaboration with Development Network, a national consulting research firm in Nepal. This paper highlights key findings based on the research process, with implications for challenges facing Nepal in effectively implementing sanitation policy

Strategic sanitation in South Asia

Cities in the countries of the South are growing rapidly. In South Asia, the urban population in 1992 was almost 300 million, of which around 110 million lived in cities with populations of over 1 million, and was growing at around 100 million people per year. India alone had an urban population of around 230 million. A high proportion of new development is provided without services in the first instance and the subsequent provision of services puts great strains formal mechanisms for the provision of shelter and services. Sanitation is no exception in this regard. Even where services are provided, their working life is often reduced by poor operation and maintenance, due in part to lack of resources. The consequences for urban sanitation coverage are serious. World Bank figures suggest that in 1990, at the end of the International Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Decade, 453 million urban people, or 33 per cent of the urban population in developing countries had no sanitation services (Wright 1997). This overall figure masks considerable differences between different cities and areas and there is no doubt that coverage rates are much lower for the urban poor. For example, surveys in low income ‘bastis’ in Howrah, Calcutta revealed up to 200 people sharing a single WC

Services for the urban poor: 4. Technical guidelines

Section 4. Technical Guidelines (4a) (4b) (4c) (4d) (4e) (4f) is aimed primarily at urban engineers and planners. It provides a range of different tools for detailed planning and guidelines for design. The tools cover different technical options for service improvements to urban poor areas, including 'handy tips' for construction and maintenance

Services for the urban poor: 3. Action planning guidelines

Section 3. Action Planning Guidelines (3a) (3b) (3c) is aimed primarily at senior local programme managers, including urban engineers and planners. It proposes a framework for action planning to develop local neighbourhood plans and area service plans for networked infrastructure which focuses on the importance of linking these together through a process of consensus building

Services for the urban poor: 2. Working with partners

Section 2. Working with Partners is aimed primarily at policymakers but is also of direct relevance to urban engineers and planners. It reviews the roles of different stakeholders in service provision, including government, civil society and external agencies. A number of common constraints are identified and possible ways of addressing them are outlined

Services for the urban poor: 5. From action plans to implementation

Section 5. From Action Plans to Implementation is aimed primarily at urban engineers. It provides guidance on taking local action plans forward to the stage of implementing service improvements at the field level, including administrative procedures for technical and financial approval and the different options for procurement and contracting