Water & Sanitation
Imagine a small business that is , out of the blue , handed a massive order with a huge sum of money to pay for it . It may be a life-changing opportunity for the business owners and the community in which they work ; in fact , the activity may be critical to the community ’ s economic wellbeing , but finding skilled workers , a bigger workspace and the necessary equipment takes time . Add to that a tight deadline and onerous rules for obtaining materials – and no support for future salaries for these employees – and it ’ s clear how that business might struggle to absorb the order .
It ’ s the same in the WASH sector . Decentralizing WASH services can be an effective way to better deliver them . However , if governments decentralize too fast , or if they do not also decentralize the necessary budgets , it substantially adds to the pressure on local staff and their ability to run an efficient and dynamic service .
There is also the question of recurrent budgets for wages , salaries and operational activities . We found significant staff shortages in our studies in Ethiopia and Uganda , particularly in rural areas , because recurrent budgets are too low . In South Africa , the number of engineers per 100,000 people has dropped from twenty in 1994 to three today . If donors and creditors in aid-dependent countries provide their finance almost entirely as capital , without enough thought as to how these projects can be sustained in the long term , they exacerbate the problem .
A woman collects water from a source in Mwamanongu Village , Tanzania . Photo from Wikimedia Commons .
Finally , we found an issue in coordination when national governments are working with multiple donors . Differences in fiscal years or in the process of disbursement and procurement create confusion . In Ethiopia , for example , the World Bank , the Department for International Development , the African Development Bank and UNICEF all used to channel their funds through separate streams , each with their own strict requirements for procurement and reporting .
Relatively recently , though , Ethiopia adopted a sector-wide approach , which has reduced the bureaucratic burden by pooling funds and harmonizing reporting requirements – allowing for accountability while reducing the paperwork . This has led to improved performance in absorbing external funding , making an important contribution to the progress made in increasing access to water and sanitation . Most other countries in the region have not yet been able to follow suit , however , generally as a result of lower capacity or priority .
The Global Goals for Sustainable Development a . k . a The SDGs
The Sanitation and Water for All Partnership , a global partnership of governments , donors and civil society , has identified four ways in which developing countries and donors can improve how they work together , in order to strengthen the effectiveness of aid for WASH programs .
These are : ( i ) enhancing government leadership , which is vital to achieving clear direction and focus ; ( ii ) strengthening and using in-country systems and therefore reducing transaction costs and unnecessary red tape ; ( iii ) creating one platform for information and accountabilities , reducing duplication , improving understanding of the many activities underway and establishing accountability both from donor and recipient governments ; and ( iv ) building sustainable strategies for financing , which allow for recurrent costs as well as capital costs , and support the provision of services that last .
The clock is already ticking on the 2030 Agenda for development . We have 15 years to reach everyone , everywhere , with water , sanitation and hygiene . As a sector , we need to make the most of every penny to ensure that goal is met .
About the Author
John Garrett is Senior Policy Analyst for Development Finance at WaterAid . He has previously contributed to WaterAid ’ s policy blog , and you can follow him on Twitter @ johngarre
20 Africa Water , Sanitation & Hygiene • May - June 2016