Recent USAID post-project evaluations, and other studies, have shown that investments in rural water infrastructure have not resulted in sustained improvements to water services over time. The USAID Sustainable WASH Systems Learning Partnership (SWS) has been examining how a preventive maintenance approach can make these investments more sustainable.
Water Currents is produced biweekly by USAID’s E3 Water Office. Each issue contains recent news and articles on water sector issues, partner and donor updates, latest sector research, and a special focus on one topic. Please provide your feedback and suggestions by contacting the waterteam@usaid.gov.
On May 9th 2018, the Global Handwashing Partnership and IRC hosted a discussion focused on ways to use existing systems to improve scale and sustainability of hygiene promotion efforts. This discussion explores how handwashing behavior change efforts can work within existing systems to achieve behavior change at scale.
The Sustainable WASH Systems Learning Partnership (SWS) team in Ethiopia – led by IRC, working with TetraTech and LINC – employed Organizational Network Analysis (ONA) to assess the relationships among organizations providing WASH services. This analysis will be used to support and evaluate SWS efforts to improve local water and sanitation service sustainability.
This event has passed. You can view the full webinar recording here.
Please join the Sustainable WASH Systems (SWS) Learning Partnership for a webinar that provides an introduction to network analysis and early lessons learned from analyses conducted in Ethiopia, Uganda, and Cambodia.
On February 21, 2018, the Sustainable WASH Systems Learning Partnership (SWS) conducted a webinar that provides an introduction to network analysis and early lessons learned from analyses conducted in Ethiopia, Uganda, and Cambodia. SWS is using such analyses to better understand the complex interactions and interdependencies of actors in a local WASH system, with the ultimate goal of increasing the sustainability of WASH services.
Sustainable services remain a daunting challenge in the water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) sector. Traditionally, national and local governments, WASH service providers, and development partners have focused on the construction of WASH facilities and the expansion of service coverage. Less emphasis has been placed on sustaining and maintaining existing WASH services. As a result, failure rates of water supply and sanitation systems continue to be high.
Ato Mantegabtot Negash, the manager of the Gazer Town Water Utility. Together with three mechanics and two bill collectors, he is responsible for providing water services to more than 5,000 people in Gazer town, the woreda (district) capital of South Ari woreda in Southern Nation, Nationalities and Peoples Regional State of Ethiopia. Meeting him in his office recently, he expressed his frustration with his job.
Asset inventory is essential in Ethiopia to develop more realistic planning to increase functionality as well as coverage.
