Sustaining handpumps in Africa: lessons from Zambia and Ghana

Between April and June 2002 field evaluations were conducted by WEDC in Zambia and Ghana as part of the DFID-funded research project ‘Guidelines for Sustainable Handpumps in Africa’. The purpose of these visits was to evaluate ‘successful’ handpump projects and determine what factors contribute to sustainability. The project literature review (Parry-Jones et al., 2001a) identified eight factors critical to sustainability, these were refined during the visits to the following six: Institutional and policy arrangements; Financing and cost recovery; Community and social aspects; Technology and the natural environment; Spare parts supply; Maintenance systems

Water and sanitation for all in low-income countries

In Europe, legislation exists to ensure that infrastructure facilities and services are accessible to all. This may not work perfectly, but there is no longer a need to debate the principle of access for all. In low-income countries it is a different story. Improving accessibility to water and sanitation is technically straightforward and low cost. Greater challenges are posed by institutional and social barriers. However, evidence shows that increased advocacy and information, together with training of engineers about inclusive design, can reduce prejudice and increase understanding of different needs and solutions. Drawing on examples from Africa and Asia, this paper describes water and sanitation in low-income countries, explaining the barriers that prevent access for vulnerable users and gives an overview of inclusive design for latrines and water point

Emerging categories of urban shared sanitation

With 2.6 billion people without access to improved sanitation facilities and with a growing urban population globally, shared sanitation in the form of public or community latrines is a pragmatic way of increasing coverage, but it is currently not deemed 'improved'. This paper explores the variety of facilities that currently exist in order to identify what would enable some of these latrines to be classed as acceptable and to ensure that future shared sanitation facilities meet minimum standards. The categories mostly relate to issues of ownership, management, location and finance rather than technological considerations. An extensive literature review reveals that the users' perspective of acceptability is largely absent from current discussions

Pro-poor concessions for sustainable water services

Most of the billions of people without drinking water or sanitation are very poor. While private-sector companies are becoming increasingly involved with infrastructure provision in developing countries, their contracts for water and sanitation services tend to forget the social aspects of providing services to poor people. As such, public—private partnerships in particularly poor countries are unlikely to be sustainable in the longer term and UN targets for improvements will fail to be met. Based on a four-year research project in Asia, Africa and Latin America, this paper explains how concession contracts need to be more suited to the needs, resources and aspirations of local impoverished communities—in other words, to be more pro-poor

Technical notes on drinking-water, sanitation and hygiene in emergencies

Collection of fact sheets prepared by WEDC and WHO to assist those working immediately or shortly after and emergency to plan appropriate responses to the urgent water, sanitation and hygiene needs of the affected communities. 2nd edition updated to incorporate the results of recent research and reflect current best practice. The fact sheets are: 1 Cleaning hand dug wells 2 Cleaning and rehabilitating boreholes 3 Cleaning and disinfecting water storage tanks and tankers 4 Rehabilitating small-scale piped water distribution systems 5 Emergency treatment of drinking-water at the point of use 6 Rehabilitating water treatment works after an emergency 7 Solid waste management in emergencies 8 Disposal of dead bodies in emergency conditions 9 How much water is needed in emergencies 10 Hygiene promotion in emergencies 11 Measuring chlorine levels in water supplies 12 Delivering safe water by tanker 13 Planning for excreta disposal in emergencies 14 Technical options for excreta disposal in emergencies 15 Cleaning wells after seawater floodin

Choosing an on-site unsewered sanitation system

Choosing an on-site unsewered sanitation syste

Domestic water supply options in Gezira irrigation scheme

The Gezira irrigation scheme in Sudan is one of the largest in Africa and contains over 1,200 unregistered and illegal villages that are home to immigrant agricultural workers. The majority have no source of clean domestic water supply, frequently relying on nearby irrigation water for all their needs. Over 50 per cent of the population are infected with schistosomiasis and other water-borne diseases. This paper examines the problems in one such village, Taweel, and suggests options for improving the supply. After discussing the physical and institutional environment governing water supply, the paper reviews the status of other water supply schemes in the area. It shows that many are in a poor condition because of lack of funding, insufficient staff and poor consideration of operation and maintenance. A review of possible water supply options suggests three possible solutions: a pipeline from a borehole in a nearby village; simple treatment of the irrigation water flowing through the village; and the construction of an infiltration gallery in a nearby main irrigation canal. The paper concludes that there is insufficient information available to make a final decision on the best option but the proposals can form the foundation for further data collection and stakeholder consultation. © Practical Action Publishing, 2010

Emergency sanitation: rapid assessment and priority setting

Emergency sanitation: rapid assessment and priority settin

Sustainable rural water supply in Africa: rhetoric and reality

The terms 'sustainability' and ‘sustainable’ can be found repeatedly throughout Government policy documents and the mission statements of external agencies in the rural water supply sector in Africa. However, how many institutions in the sector are truly committed to the concept of sustainability, or have a firm idea of what it means? This paper is based on research undertaken at the Water, Engineering and Development Centre (WEDC) under DFIDfunded Knowledge and Research project ‘Guidelines for Sustainable Handpump Projects in Africa’ (R7817). The early stages of the research identified a surprising range of definitions of sustainability and perceptions of what the term means. Based on existing literature and definitions, for the purposes of the project a sustainable rural water supply has been defined as one in which: ‘the water sources are not over-exploited but naturally replenished, facilities are maintained in a condition which ensures a reliable and adequate water supply, the benefits of the supply continue to be realised by all users over a prolonged period of time, and the service delivery process demonstrates a cost-effective use of resources that can be replicated’