AfDB approves urban development strategy for African cities

In April 2011, the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group launched its new Urban Development Strategy. The Strategy is anchored on three pillars: infrastructure delivery, governance and private sector development.

The infrastructure development pillar emphasises delivery and expansion of basic infrastructure services, which includes water supply, sanitation, drainage and solid waste management services, and building capacity for maintenance of public infrastructure assets.

The Bank Group has since the 1960s allocated some 15-20% of its total cumulative operations financing directly or indirectly to urban development.

Most of the Bank‘s support for water supply and sanitation projects in major cities is currently in the form of traditional project loans or grants (in eligible countries). The Bank will continue to use all its private sector instruments (loans, guarantees and equity) to support private investments in water supply, sanitation and other urban services.

In water and sanitation schemes, where the ability to pay might be too low to ensure that a purely private scheme is financially viable, the Bank will explore the use of modified build-own-transfer (BOT) models. The Bank can help provide concessional financing to a water/wastewater treatment project and use its guarantee instrument to facilitate the mobilisation of commercial debt.

The AfDB’s target for 2010-2015 is to spend one-half of water and sanitation lending for urban systems.

Read the full strategy document:
The Bank Groups’s urban development strategy : transforming Africa’s cities and towns into engines of economic growth and social development. 22 p.

Source: AfDB, 29 Apr 2011

Zimbabwe: Urgent Water Supply and Sanitation Rehabilitation Project

The African Development Bank (AfDB) will provide US$ 29.65 million to support urgent rehabilitation works – restoration and stabilization of water supply and sanitation services in the Municipalities of Harare, Chitungwiza, Mutare, Chegutu, Masvingo and Kwekwe. The Urgent Water Supply and Sanitation Rehabilitation Project is one of two projects that have been identified for financing from the new Zimbabwe Multi-Donor Trust Fund (Zim-Fund). AfDB launched the Zim-Fund on 7 March 2011, as a successor to the Zimbabwe Programmatic Multi-Donor Trust Fund (Zim-MDTF).

The Urgent Water Supply and Sanitation Rehabilitation Project targets a total population of approximately 4.15 million people. The envisaged outcomes include: increased reliability, quality and availability of water supply in the project areas; restored wastewater treatment capacity; and reduced incidence of cholera and other water related diseases.

Donors’ commitments to the Zim-Fund currently stand at an equivalent of US$ 68.8 million. Donors so far include Australia, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, UK (DfID) and Germany (KfW).

Source: AfDB – Zimbabwe Multi-Donor Trust Fund

East Africa Practitioners Workshop on Pro poor Urban Sanitation and Hygiene, Kigali, Rwanda, 29-31 March 2011

This three-day workshop aims to identify proven good practices in the sanitation and hygiene sector, as well as drawing lessons from failures to enter into the policy dialogue. It focuses on urban sanitation with an emphasis on learning and innovation in the sector.

Organised by: UNICEF, GTZ, WSSCC, WaterAid and IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre, and hosted by the Rwandan Ministry of Health.

Programme: the first two days of the workshop will focus on sharing and discussing proven good practices whilst the last day will be used for the discussion on key lessons learnt and follow up activities such as, the initiation of policy dialogues, advocacy messaging or linking with existing programmes.

Outputs: all papers will be published on the IRC web site. A short, select list of policy messages will be formulated for advocacy opportunities. Possible follow-up activities will be identified.

Deadline for abstracts for either a case study or photoessay: 10 December 2010

No registration fee

For full information go to www.irc.nl/page/39588 or download Second Announcement

Sierra Leone, Freetown: photographer documents extreme sanitation conditions in Kroo Bay slum

He then asked me: you want to know the truth? We’re all suffering here in Kroo Bay. He began talking about the water issues again and showing me his arms with open sores, “you see these, they move at night” – he was talking about the worms in his body.

Photographer Dominic Chavez spent a week documenting the life of communities in Kroo Bay, one of the worst slums in Freetown, Sierra Leone. He writes about his encounters in the summer 2010 issue of Global Health magazine, a publication of the Global Health Council.

[A]fter meeting a wonderful family who lived underneath a small bridge in Freetown. I was surprised by the amount of raw sewage and the lack of clean water. After visiting this family a couple more times they told me there were communities in Freetown much worse.

This was when I first heard of Kroo Bay, a difficult slum filled with good families and shanty structures overrun with garbage, extreme sanitation issues, and a long list of health conditions due to the lack of clean water. Some of the biggest issues they are facing are polio, ringworm, typhoid fever and malaria, not to forget a high incidence of child malnutrition.

Kroo Bay, Freetown. Photo: Dominic Chavez

In Kroo Bay, Chavez saw some of the worse conditions he had ever seen: homes without with dirt floors, no windows, no doors and roofs that provided no shelter from the heat and rain, and children “digging in heaps of trash and pools of blackened water”.

See the full story and pictures.

Africa: project helps local governments contribute to water and sanitation MDGs

A two-year project launched in March 2010 is helping local governments in 15 African countries contribute to the achievement of the Water and Sanitation Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

United Cities and Local Governments for Africa (UCLGA) and ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability – Africa are partners in the European Commission (EC) funded project ‘Local Initiatives in Promotion of the Attainment of Water and Sanitation Millennium Development Goals’

The project is taking place in 15 countries within Sub-Saharan Africa: Benin, Bostwana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe, which together represent over 383 million citizens.

The main aim of this project is to ensure that the role of local authorities in the delivery of the water and sanitation MDGs is recognized and to enhance the capacity of local authorities to fulfill that role through sharing of knowledge and innovative practices.

It further aims to increase national-local dialogue regarding water and sanitation issues. It is hoped that utilizing the local authorities as an entry point will ensure adoption of improved water and sanitation delivery that will directly benefit local communities.

The national local government associations taking part in the project are members of the UCLGA’s Water and Sanitation Focal Point Network (FPN). UCLGA plans to hold the inaugural FPN Training workshop in August 2010 in Pretoria, South Africa.

The project’s main activities include:

• Preparation of a Baseline study detailing the role of local governments in water and sanitation service provision in the target countries
• Supporting the development of 15 in-country policy position papers articulating the role of municipalities in the delivery of the MDGs
• Knowledge sharing and capacity building workshops and seminars aimed at enhancing the capacity of the Focal Point Network & national associations through the development of in-country Action Plans
• Documentation and sharing of innovative service delivery good practices, particularly relating to the testing of the eWISA Municipal Assistant in 3 pilot sites
• Lobby and advocacy engagements with relevant sector stakeholders as a cross-cutting activity

The project believes that by lobbying that national departments responsible for water and sanitation service delivery and the attainment of the MDGs, based on well-informed and articulate policy positions, greater consideration will given by the water sector in the 15 target countries to the role and issues of local government in the provision of water and sanitation services to communities.

It is also anticipated that through the development and publication of in-country policy position papers, and based on successful lobby and advocacy engagements, the role of local authorities in the delivery of water and sanitation MDGs will be clearly articulated in national policies and strategies to the benefit of local communities.

Another output of significant anticipated impact is the adoption of clear plans towards the attainment of water and sanitation MDGs by 25% of local authorities in the 15 target countries. A key thrust of the project will be towards the decentralisation of service delivery to the local level. As a result, ICLEI Africa, as project partner will be working closely with national associations and their Focal Points to promote the adoption of local plans that spell out the road towards the attainment of the water and sanitation MDGs.

While a key thrust of this project will be on policy development, a second key focus will be on local, on-the-ground impact by adopting knowledge sharing and capacity enhancement approaches. This should lead to the adoption of improved innovative water and sanitation service delivery approaches and practices by local authorities. Key project documentation will include the results from the piloting of the e-Wisa Municipal Assistant and the regular documentation and dissemination of good practice. In addition, the Focal Point Network will provide a learning platform from which to promote good practices.

Contact: Samuel Kaninda, MDGs Project Coordinator, UCLGA, South Africa, e-mail:  skaninda@uclgafrica.org

Web sites : www.uclgafrica.org and www.iclei.org/africa

Read the project media release (12 March 2010)

Ghana: WASH United appoints country coordinator

WASH United, a global social club based on the common vision of safe drinking Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) for all has appointed Mr. Rudolf Nsorwinne Amenga-Etego, the Executive Director of Foundation for Grassroots Initiatives in Africa (GrassRootsAfrica) as its Coordinator in Ghana.

Mr. Amenga-Etego will plan, coordinate, facilitate, supervise, and monitor WASH United activities in the country in close collaboration with international and local partner organizations. The main objective of the club is to tackle taboos surrounding sanitation, and help create a demand for it.

“It also aims to promote hand-washing with soap, and advocate for political decision-makers in Africa and in the North to promote the right to water and sanitation,” explained Mr Amenga-Etego.

WASH United will soon launch in Ghana, after enlisting the support of global football stars including Ghana’s own Steven Appiah in the fight for clean water, sanitation and hygiene for all.

“WASH United believes that access to safe drinking water and sanitation is a human right, not charity, and wants to sensitize people about it. We will, therefore, in the weeks leading up to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, be using football as a tool and engage African and international football stars as champions to promote safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene for all in Sub-Saharan Africa,” said Mr Amenga-Etego.

Above all, WASH United wants to highlight the importance of adequate sanitation, using toilets when available and helping to keep them safe and clean as well as promote hand-washing with soap (ash, sand or mud) at critical times.

Source: Myjoyonline.com/Ghana, 27 May 2010

Nigeria: Water Scarcity Hits Kaduna Metropolis

Scarcity of portable water has thrown residents of Kaduna metropolis into a fix as most people now spend the better part of a whole day sourcing for water.

Only few areas within the state still have water coming out of their taps, while those houses privileged enough to have boreholes within them are slightly immune from the problem.

It has become a common sight to see women and children every morning with several buckets and jerry cans walking up and down in their area searching for water from tap, while those houses with boreholes have had to daily contend with long queue of people pleading to fetch water from such houses.

Even those with wells in their houses are experiencing the problem as most of the wells have dried up, while the few still having water within them, have been overwhelmed with the high number of people attempting to fetch water that has turn milky in colour.

Areas most affected include Rigachikun, Bakin Ruwa, Kabala, Ungwan Rimi, Badarawa, Sabon Tasha, Narayi, Barnawa, Kakuri, Ungwan Dosa, Ungwan Rimi, Ungwan Pama, Romi, Goningora, among others.

A resident of Romi, Mr. Negedu Martins who spoke to THISDAY said “the last time water came out of our tap is around December when the water suddenly stops and since then we have been sourcing for water from the well close to our house, but the well has even dried up now and anytime a little water gathers in it, it is a struggle to be able to fetch a little.”

He added that when they ask the state water board for explanation they were told that the pressure is not enough to pump water to their area.

But effort to get explanation from the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the State Water Board, Alhaji Dalhatu Zubairu proved futile as he told our reporter that he will get back to him and never did till the time of filling this report.

Source: Reuben Buhari, This Day / allAfrica.com, 7 April 2010

Uganda: Water Costs Higher in Kampala Slums

Water in Kampala’s slums costs three times more than it does in the planned areas such as Kololo and Nakasero, according to a report of Kampala Integrated Environmental Planning Management Project (KIEMP).

KIEMP, which is addressing public health-environmental and housing concerns in Kampala’s unplanned settlements, is funded by the Belgium Technical Cooperation.

“Whereas people in better-off neighbourhoods pay sh30 for 20 litres of water, those in poor parishes often pay sh100, three times more than the planned settlements pay,”

“Many people are, therefore, forced to draw water from contaminated, unprotected spring wells, exposing them to health hazards,” the report said.

This was disclosed on Monday at a media workshop entitled “linking urbanisation and health: key emerging challenges” at Hotel Triangle in Kampala.

The workshop was organised ahead of the World Health Day which was celebrated in Kampala on Tuesday.

At the same workshop, Collins Mwesigwa, an expert from the World Health Organisation, said the poor in urban areas were being denied access to safe water because of increased urban planning.

He said more than 60% of the population in Kampala, which lives in unplanned settlements popularly referred to as slums, lacks access to utilities and amenities.

As a result, slum areas are frequently hit by water-bone diseases such as cholera and dysentery, according to the expert.

“The urban areas are growing without planning. The disease burden is growing and outbreaks of cholera in Kampala occur every year,” Mwesigye said.

He, however, added that the issues affecting urban health were beyond the health sector, pointing out public infrastructure, local governance and income inequalities as some of the underlying causes.

“We can’t expect the Ministry of Health to solve the problem. We need to educate the civil society and the community on the problem so that the Government can plan better,” he said.

In the 1960s, Kampala did not have malaria not because there were no mosquitoes, but because the conditions that could cause the vectors to thrive were controlled.

Kampala used to be called the city of seven hills, but urbanisation had expanded to cover more than 30 hills.

“Look at the landscape beyond the seven hills, it unsightly because it is unplanned, with grave health consequences,” Mwesigye added.

Source: Gerald Tenywa,  New Vision /allAfrica.com, 6 April 2010

Uganda: Without Planning, Urban Areas Wallow in Filth and Disease

Urban living can be bad for your health — at least in Uganda. To mark World Health Day tomorrow, whose theme this year is urbanisation and health, the Daily Monitor will run a two-part series, beginning with this story, on the many dire health consequences of the country’s failure to plan its cities, by Evelyn Lirri

On the porch of a tiny mud-and-wattle hut in a slum section of Ggaba, a Kampala suburb, Ms Sarah Namutebi, 29, sits clasping her nine-month-old baby. She looks deeply worried.

Ms Namutebi’s baby, looking frail and dehydrated, has been down with diarrhea for the past three weeks. The baby’s eyes are sunken and the mother is desperately struggling to save its life.

It is easy to see why the child is sick. In front of the one-roomed house runs a drainage ditch carrying a mass of sewage, rotting garbage and plastic materials. The unsightly hodgepodge emits a horrid stench that suffocates the neighbourhood.

This is the reality of life for an estimated 3.3 million of the 5.5 million Ugandans who live in urban areas today.

Effective urban planning and enforcement would improve living conditions and sharply reduce disease. But the population is growing far faster than authorities can plan, hobbled by lack of funding, incompetence and corruption, can keep up.

The result: rapidly-growing mass slums where poor sanitation, dust, lack of proper ventilation, overcrowding and uncollected garbage all pollute and choke the living environment, making urban centres a death trap for dwellers (read a special report on rot of our towns in tomorrow’s Daily Monitor).

The problem promises to get worse before it improves. “Uganda is fast urbanising and if you don’t address urbanisation problems like health, water and infrastructure you will have a catastrophe,” warns Mr Urban Tibamanya, the state minister for Urban Development.

The consequences are already here to see. In Kampala alone, some 40 per cent of the city’s 1.8 million residents live in informal settlements like Katanga, Wabigalo-Namuwongo, Makerere-Kivulu, Ggaba, Kifumbira and Kisenyi.

Records show most communicable and hygiene-related infections break out in these areas, which often are unplanned and lack adequate housing and access to clean water and sanitation.

Intestinal worms, diarrhea and asthma topped the list of the most prevalent diseases in Kampala city between 2006 and 2009. Kampala City Council’s health division says these diseases jointly contribute to more than 80 per cent of the disease burden in the city.

In 2009, 43,434 intestinal infections were registered in Kampala district from common parasitic worms like ascaris, tapeworms and pinworms found in unfiltered water. Acute diarrhea cases totaled 27,694 cases, while persistent diarrhea cases reached 9,717.

In Ggaba mission slum, diarrhea is so common that few there consider it a disease anymore. Rather, it is seen as a normal part of life.

Cholera, another deadly disease usually associated with poor hygiene, had been dropping, from 1,104 cases in the 2006/7 financial year, to just 40 the year after, but the number of cases increased to 74 in 2009. Dr. John Lule, the KCC chief health inspector, said increased public education and awareness on hygiene and sanitation have contributed to this decline over the years.

Respiratory illnesses also are on the rise. According to the State of the World Cities report 2010/2011 published by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), acute respiratory infection cases in Uganda are high in slum and rural areas- with slums and rural areas. Twenty-three per cent of their residents suffer acute respiratory infections, compared to only 14 per cent of residents in urban non-slum areas.

Many of the hygiene-related illnesses arise from poor sanitation. Although latrine coverage in Kampala district stands at 85 per cent, health experts say the access is not even geographically because many slum dwellers cannot afford the Shs100 they are charged to use them. As a result, many end up using polythene bags — commonly referred to in slum parlance as “flying toilets” – to dispose of their waste.

The indiscriminate disposal of human waste, officials say, is the reason underlying perennial cholera outbreak in the city.

Organised developments

Most of these diseases can be prevented by making the environment healthier through proper planning, health experts say.

Source: Evelyn Lirri,  Monitor / allAfrica.com, 6 April 2010

Senegal: World Bank approves US$55 million loan for Water and Sanitation Millennium Project (PEPAM)

The World Bank’ has approved a US$55 million credit to contribute to increased access to sustainable water and sanitation services in selected rural and urban areas of Senegal within the next five years.

This new financing for the Water and Sanitation Millennium Project (PEPAM) will improve access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation services for more than half a million people in rural areas and peri-urban poor fringe areas, according to World Bank Country Director Habib Fetini.

He also noted, “Senegal’s water and sanitation sector is one of the most developed in sub-Saharan Africa, as the country has already reached the MDG on urban water and has made decisive steps to reach the MDG on rural water.”

Regarding the institutional context in which the project will be implemented, Habib Fetini noted that “Senegal has a proven record in designing innovative reforms and policies in the water and sanitation sector.” He recalled that the reform of the urban water sector, with the establishment of an effective public-private partnership (PPP) “is considered a world-class model and has been replicated with success in several sub-Saharan countries.” This PPP is between the Government, a public asset holding (National Water Company of Senegal, or SONES) in charge of investments, and a private utility (Senegalese Water Utility or SDE) in charge of delivering services.

In order to maintain the “pace of success” in the sector, the Country Director hoped that “the preparation of the second generation reforms in view of end of the current lease contract by April 2011, should be conducted in a transparent manner and based on a shared analysis of all available options for the sustainable development of the sector, based on the principle of financial autonomy with socially acceptable tariffs.”

“This World Bank support will help facilitate access to services through programs for improving and extending water production and distribution systems and urban sanitation networks, by constructing social water and sanitation household connections, public standpipes and on-site sanitation facilities,” indicated Matar Fall, the Bank’s Task Team Leader.

The project will also consolidate the achievements of urban water reform, support reform of the rural water subsector, and strengthen capacities to deliver and manage water and sanitation services.

The credit, which includes a US$5 million contribution under the Crisis Response Window (CRW), will also promote the emergence of local Water Users Associations (ASUFOR) and of small private operators in rural areas, Fall said.

The World Bank has supported the preparation and implementation of the PEPAM since 2005 under the Long Term Water Sector Project, which closed in June 2009.

For more information, visit the Projects website and the PEPAM web site (in French).

Source: World Bank, 19 Feb 2010