Lessons learned from NGO experiences in the water and sanitation sector

This book, prepared by the WELL Resource Centre, comprises 31 summaries of NGO projects in the water sector, and the lessons learned from them, together with the edited proceedings of a workshop held in London in January 1998. The project summaries were prepared by NGOs and cover a wide geographical range, with a variety of lessons identified from the projects. Three overview papers were presented at the workshop and are also included in the book

Infrastructure for all: Meeting the needs of both men and women in development projects - a practical guide for engineers, technicians and project managers

This book has been produced to help engineers, technicians and project managers ensure that the facilities they design and build are beneficial to all members of society. Using many examples, especially examples related to water and sanitation, the book demonstrates that "one size does not fit all". It shows how women, men and children frequently have different needs and different priorities because they use infrastructure in different ways. It explains how the community that will use the infrastructure is generally structured by inequalities of various kinds. The engineer may intend that the facility should serve the needs of all; but if there is no analysis of social issues then this intention is not likely to be realized. The book seeks to make gender analysis intelligible to engineers working at the project level; to enable them to co-operate with social scientists, and to increase their awareness of the need to work with women and men in the user community. The book emphasizes the practical ways in which taking account of gender relations will improve the design, implementation and use of infrastructure. With this in mind, it is focused on what civil engineers actually need to know to improve their projects, to give the 'civil' aspects of their work equal weight with the 'engineering' aspects. This book will be of great interest to all engineers, technicians and project managers concerned with infrastructure development in low- and middle-income countries

Global strategic partnerships to share international and local expertise between private sector and NGOs

The term ‘partnership’ can cover a wide range of relationships between different types of organisations. However, genuine partnerships between the private and NGO sectors are still relatively uncommon. The global consultancy firm Arup has developed a number of partnerships with NGOs in the water sector to bring international expertise to help solve local problems. This paper briefly reviews the partnership context and describes two water projects – one in Bangladesh and one in Ghana - where Arup staff have worked with local NGOs to develop locally appropriate solutions to technical problems. The paper explores the mutual benefits that both organisations can enjoy from this type of partnership

Developing a practical guide to mainstreaming gender

Developing a practical guide to mainstreaming gende