Policy Note: Policy Responses to Ensure Access to Water and Sanitation Services During COVID-19: Snapshots from the Environment for Development (EfD) Network

2020 ◽  
Vol 06 (04) ◽  
pp. 2071002
Author(s):  
Ebele Amaechina ◽  
Anthony Amoah ◽  
Franklin Amuakwa-Mensah ◽  
Salome Amuakwa-Mensah ◽  
Edward Bbaale ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Costa Rica ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Governance Structures ◽  
Economic Shocks ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Policy Responses ◽  
Access To Water

This policy note provides a snapshot of water and sanitation measures implemented by governments in response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 14 countries in the Global South: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Chile, Colombia, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Panama, South Africa, Uganda and Vietnam. We find that many countries have taken action to stop utility disconnections due to non-payment. With the exception of Ghana and Vietnam, few countries are instituting new water subsidy programs, and are instead choosing to defer customers’ bills for future payment, presumably when the pandemic recedes and households will be able to pay their bills. It is easier for the utilities’ COVID-relief policies to target customers with piped connections who regularly receive bills. However, the situation for unconnected households appears more dire. Some countries (e.g., Ghana, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda) are attempting to provide unconnected households temporary access to water, but these households remain the most vulnerable. This health crisis has accentuated the importance of strong governance structures and resilient water service providers for dealing with external health, environmental and economic shocks.

Water and sanitation policies for improving health in South Africa: overcoming the institutional legacy of apartheid

Water Policy ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 627-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edina Sinanovic ◽  
Sandi Mbatsha ◽  
Stephen Gundry ◽  
Jim Wright ◽  
Clas Rehnberg
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
The South ◽  
Financing System ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Sanitation And Hygiene ◽  
Access To Water ◽  
New Policies

The burden of water-related disease is closely related to both the socio-economic situation and public health issues like access to clean water, sanitation and hygiene services. Poverty eradication, through improved access to water and sanitation, is the South African government's major priority. This is partly achieved through subsidising the cost of water and sanitation provision to the poor in rural areas. Whilst the new policies have made a remarkable impact on improved access to water and sanitation services, a general problem since the new approach in 1994 has been the lack of integration of policies for water and sanitation and health. This paper analyses the policies concerning rural water supply and sanitation in South Africa. It considers the structure of institutions, the division of responsibilities and legislated and financial capacity of the South Africa's water sector. A more integrated approach for the policies aiming at water access, sanitation and health is needed. In addition, as the local government's capacity to implement different programmes is limited, a review of the financing system is necessary.

scholarly journals New Approaches to Monitor Inequalities in Access to Water and Sanitation: The SDGs in Latin America and the Caribbean

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 931 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vitor Carvalho Queiroz ◽  
Rodrigo Coelho de Carvalho ◽  
Léo Heller
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Latin America ◽  
Regional Heterogeneity ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Access To Water ◽  
Assessment And Monitoring ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Normative Content

In the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Targets 6.1 and 6.2 show, in their formulation, some alignment with the normative content of the human rights to water and sanitation (HRWS). However, the principle of equality and non-discrimination, which applies to all human rights, was not clearly incorporated into the indicators adopted to assess and monitor these targets. This paper contributes to bridging this gap by proposing two methodological strategies to address inequalities in analyses of access to water and sanitation services. The first consists in adjusting the indicators of access to these services according to inequality. The second proposes an assessment of intersecting forms of inequality. An application of these methods in Latin America and the Caribbean highlights significant regional heterogeneity and elevated inequality in access to services in the countries of this region. The methods demonstrate their potential in contributing to assessment and monitoring of the SDGs, but outdated or lacking data are obstacles to more in-depth analyses.

Determining Progress on Access to Water and Sanitation: The Case of South Africa

2017 ◽  
pp. 225-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jackie Dugard ◽  
Malcolm Langford ◽  
Edward Anderson
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Access To Water

scholarly journals TRENDS IN ACCESS TO WATER AND SANITATION IN MALAWI: PROGRESS AND INEQUALITIES (1992-2017)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexandra Cassivi ◽  
Elizabeth Tilley ◽  
E.O.D. Waygood ◽  
Caetano Dorea
Keyword(s):  
Drinking Water ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Least Developed Countries ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Emerging Trends ◽  
Access To Water ◽  
Urban And Rural Areas

AbstractBillions of people globally gained access to improved drinking water sources and sanitation in the last decades, following effort towards the Millennium Development Goals. Global progress remains a general indicator as it is unclear if access is equitable across groups of the population. Agenda 2030 calling for “leaving no one behind”, there is a need to focus on the variations of access in different groups of the population, especially in the context of least developed countries including Malawi. We analyzed data from Demographic Health Survey (DHS) and Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS) to describe emerging trends on progress and inequalities in water supply and sanitation services over a 25-year period (1992 - 2017) and to identify the most vulnerable population in Malawi. Data were disaggregated with geographic and socio-economic characteristics including regions, urban and rural areas, wealth and education level. Analysis of available data revealed progress in access to water and sanitation among all groups of the population. The largest progress is generally observed in the groups that were further behind at the baseline year, which likely reflects good targeting in interventions/improvements to reduce the gap in the population. Overall, results demonstrated that some segments of the population - foremost poorest Southern rural populations - still have limited access to water and are forced to practise open defecation. Finally, we suggest to include standardized indicators that address safely managed drinking water and sanitation services in future surveys and studies to increase accuracy of national estimates.

scholarly journals Rapid Climate Adaption Assessment (RCAA) of water supply and sanitation services in two coastal urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 1645-1660 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nikolaus Clemenz ◽  
Richard Boakye ◽  
Alison Parker
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Urban Poor ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Solid Waste Management ◽  
Management Practice ◽  
Change Scenario ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Poor Communities

Abstract This study assessed the impact of different hydrological scenarios on existing vulnerabilities of water and sanitation services in Chorkor and Shiabu, two coastal urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana. The hydrological scenarios were developed from the literature on climate change projections. This paper recommends adaptations for community members, service providers, and the municipality based on the impact assessment. Chorkor and Shiabu are vulnerable to an increase in rainfall because of the lack of adequate solid waste management and hydrological sound drains. Shiabu's topography and the indiscriminate sand mining along its beach make it vulnerable to an increase in sea level. Looking beyond Chorkor and Shiabu's community boundaries, the urban water utility which supplies water vendors in both communities may be severely impacted by a decrease in rainfall, which would lead to water scarcity and a shortage in hydroelectricity. Regardless of which climate change scenario emerges, many of the recommended adaptations are good water management practice, for example, increasing the number of household connections and reducing non-revenue water. Putting climate change high on the agenda has the potential to generate additional funding to help address Chorkor and Shiabu's water and sanitation problems, and climate-proof services for the future. However, the study method does not address the governance of these adaptations.

scholarly journals Geo-spatial modeling of access to water and sanitation in Nigeria

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 258-280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benson Ajisegiri ◽  
Luis A. Andres ◽  
Samir Bhatt ◽  
Basab Dasgupta ◽  
Juan A. Echenique ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Global Network ◽  
High Concentration ◽  
Open Defecation ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Piped Water ◽  
Urban Rural ◽  
Improved Sanitation ◽  
Access To Water ◽  
Basic Services

Abstract The paper presents the development and implementation of a geo-spatial model for mapping populations’ access to specified types of water and sanitation services in Nigeria. The analysis uses geo-referenced, population-representative data from the National Water and Sanitation Survey 2015, along with relevant geo-spatial covariates. The model generates predictions for levels of access to seven indicators of water and sanitation services across Nigeria at a resolution of 1 × 1 km2. Overall, the findings suggest a sharp urban–rural divide in terms of access to improved water, basic water, and improved water on premises, a low availability of piped water on premises and of sewerage systems throughout the country, a high concentration of improved sanitation in select states, and low rates of nationwide open defecation, with a few pockets of high rates of open defecation in the central and southern non-coastal regions. Predictions promise to hone the targeting of policies meant to improve access to basic services in various regions of the country. This article has been made Open Access thanks to the generous support of a global network of libraries as part of the Knowledge Unlatched Select initiative.

scholarly journals Determinants in implementing a public policy for an essential volume of free water in Bogotá and Medellín, Colombia

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 719-730 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Vargas ◽  
Léo Heller
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Free Water ◽  
National Guidelines ◽  
Human Right ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Access To Water ◽  
User Groups

Abstract Within the framework for the realization of the human right to water and sanitation, States have the obligation to implement programs and public policies that satisfy the basic needs of their population, especially its most vulnerable demographics. In Colombia, this challenge has been addressed through policies that provide a determined essential amount of free water to people whose access to water and sanitation services are limited due to low income. Through a review of legal and technical documents as well as relevant literature, this article presents an analysis of the particular determinants involved in implementing this program in Bogotá and Medellín, as well as some related concerns. Among such factors, we discuss the evolution and changes of the tariff model used in service provision, estimates of basic consumption, the role of social movements and collective action, and user disconnection due to non-payment. The main particularities and differences of each case highlighted the inconveniences related to the method of identifying eligible users and applying assistance to beneficiary user groups, and the need for national guidelines in implementing this policy.

Business partners for development-KwaZulu-Natal pilot project, South Africa: a new approach to the delivery of sustainable water and sanitation services in poor peri-urban areas

2002 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 197-202
Author(s):  
P. Rousseau ◽  
E. Tranchant
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Community Involvement ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Pilot Project ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Business Partners ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
The World

An innovative tri-sector partnership has been formed in two peri-urban areas in Durban and Pietermaritzburg, in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, which aims to provide sustainable water and sanitation services to these previously disadvantaged communities. This forms part of the world-wide Business Partners for Development (BPD) programme initiated by the World Bank to bring together the diverse resources, expertise and perspectives of three distinct sectors: business sector, public sector and civil society, in particular Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO's). The project focus includes infrastructure upgrading, water loss management, community involvement and capacity building, education and awareness on water conservation, health and hygiene, and customer management. The establishment of a common research framework examining impacts and outcomes and an international sharing and learning programme will, it is hoped, lead ultimately to better and replicable practices.

scholarly journals Impact of access to water and sanitation services on educational attainment

2016 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 31-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier Santiago Ortiz-Correa ◽  
Moises Resende Filho ◽  
Ariel Dinar
Keyword(s):  
Educational Attainment ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Sanitation Services ◽  
Access To Water
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