The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented event in the present age that has raised questions about the national emergency Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) response in Africa. In February 2020, the USAID tasked the Water for Africa Through Leadership and Institutional Support (WALIS) program to understand how coordination, finance, monitoring, and organizational capacity influenced the WASH response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This study is meant to provide valuable information on the critical WASH responses that African country leaders have undertaken during the COVID-19 pandemic up to July 2021; how those decisions were reached; the degree to which evidence informed those decisions – or not; and what lessons can be drawn to inform a better response to future crises and to build back better. In addition to this case study, further case studies are available for Malawi and Madagascar.
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