So this week, I’m lucky enough to have been invited to present at the International Indonesia Water Week in Jakarta. RWSN is a global network, but many of you will have noticed the strong Africa-bias. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the challenges of delivering good quality rural water services are to be found everywhere – indeed the Pacific region is the where the biggest disparities between urban and rural are to be found [JMP].
Continue reading “RWSN in Indonesia”
Global Framework for Sharing Water Point Data Launched with Largest Ever Public Data Set
New Approach to Sharing Water Data Promises Improved Water Access around the World
Press Release by Brian Banks, Global Water Challenge
WASHINGTON | May 14, 2015 – Around the world, one in nine people lack access to safe water. While progress is being made, efforts have been limited by challenges in establishing a clear picture of water point access. Despite a growing trend of collecting data on water projects, there has previously been no consistent way to share this information among parties, making it difficult to fully understand the water challenges faced around the world.
Water taps and information gaps
An interesting blog post that has kicked off some interesting responses
If you’ve donated money to a water charity, congratulations. You’ve stepped up to try to solve one of the world’s most pressing problems–the fact that roughly 750 million people do not have access to clean water.
Has your donation made a lasting difference? That’s hard to know.
Big water charities point to numbers that, they say, demonstrate their impact. Since its founding in 2006, charity: water says it has funded 16,138 water projects. Water.org, in its latest annual report, says that in 2013 it completed 174 community-based water projects, constructed 73,081 toilets, established 66,632 household water connections and served 606,012 people with water and sanitation. In 2013-2014, Water Aid says it reached 2 million people with water and 3 million with sanitation.
But the charities, as a rule, do not report on how many of those projects are providing clean water a year, two or five years after…
View original post 2,496 more words
E-DISCUSSION ANNOUNCEMENT: Local government and rural water services
Les autorités locales et la pérennisation des services d’eau en zones rurales
El gobierno local y los servicios sostenibles de agua en zonas rurales
Sign up now: dgroups.org/RWSN/sustainable_services_rwsn
The Rural Water Supply Network would like to invite you to participate in the E-discussion (27 April – 22 May 2015)
• What are the roles and responsibilities of local government in rural water supply?
• How are these roles and responsibilities fulfilled?
• What are the challenges that local government faces in order to undertake these roles and responsibilities?
• What ideas, tools and experiences are there to ensure that local government can take up its roles and responsibilities?
Continue reading “E-DISCUSSION ANNOUNCEMENT: Local government and rural water services”
Summary of RWSN D-groups discussion on resolution
Sometimes fairy tales lead to nightmares
Roll out of technology applicability tool in Tanzania to assure sustainable WASH services
Lack of proper operation and maintenance (O&M), lack of participatory planning procedures, lack of flexibility to apply different management models for water supplies and inappropriate technology choices are among key issues identified which hindered sustainable WASH services during the Water Sanitation Development Plan (WSDP) Tanzania. The results of the national water point mapping clearly highlights the fact that more than 30% of all water points are not working.
To overcome these issues the leading Ministry of Water (MoW) in Tanzania included various measures in the design of the 2nd phase of the WSDP.
How to make Self–supply more tangible?
As part of the celebration of the World Water Day 2015 the rural water sector in Ethiopia organized a 3-day event on Self-supply (19th – 21st March) including a trade fair for producers of Self-supply technology and a 2-day seminar with inputs from international and national speakers. The fair hosted more than 20 local suppliers and producers which allowed potential clients to check technologies in detail, to speak to suppliers and compare products for e.g. water lifting, drilling, water treatment.
Suppliers were invited to to market themselves by giving a 3-minutes pitch to the public. A panel of experts gave feedback so that the brave pitchers could improve on their promotion in the future.
In the international seminar on 20th March, experiences from other countries on accelerating Self-supply were shared as well as the information on steps taken so far to roll out Self-supply in Ethiopia including linkages to small scale agriculture and the multiple use concept.
WHO presented results from various studies on water quality analysis of samples from improved and unimproved sources.It became obvious that the concept of improved/unimproved sources is not good for indicator of safe water supply. This perception was so far one of the key challenges addressed to accept Self-supply.
In the future WHO recommends enforcing its concept of Water Safety Plans and clearly promoted household water treatment for any water used for drinking water in rural areas. The Ethiopian water sector will develop ideas on how to establish and follow up water safety plans in Ethiopia which fit to the Self-supply context.
To attract more people similar fairs are planned for other towns in Ethiopia in the near future.
All slides of the international seminar on Self–supply (20th March) and some photos of the fair will be uploaded on the RWSN website.
My Water, My Business
activities as part of World Water Day 2015 events, 19-20 March 2015, Addis Ababa
Sustainable development of water requires fresh thinking and new innovation. Ethiopia is pioneering new approaches in water, sanitation and hygiene (WasH) that draw upon the resources of local people, communities and entrepreneurs to further improve water security, food security and wealth. ‘My Water, My Business’ is a series of linked events organised as part of the 2015 World Water Day celebrations to bring attention to these household-level efforts. The events will connect sector policy-makers, development partners, professionals and engaged local governments and communities. The overall message is that to complement the efforts of utilities, woredas and other traditional service providers, households can do a lot themselves to improve their water and sanitation facilities and related hygiene practices. You can improve your own water supply, sanitation and hygiene.
Rural Water Supply Network - blog 