11th Symposium on Hydraulics and Water Resources of Portuguese Language Countries (SILUSBA), 27-30 May 2013, Maputo, Mozambique

Organised by: APRH – Associação Portuguesa dos Recursos Hídricos, ABRH – Associação Brasileira de Recursos Hídricos, ACRH – Associação Cabo-Verdiana de Recursos Hídricos. AQUASHARE – Associação Moçambicana dos Profissionais de Água and DNA - Departamento de Água e Saneamento

The main themes of the SILUSBA (Simpósio de Hidráulica e Recursos Hídricos dos Países de Língua Portuguesa) are:

• Water and sanitation for the poor
• Water and international cooperation
• Water and economic development
• Water and education
• Water governance for a sustainable water business.
• Water resources management, incl. climate change,
• Hydraulics and hydrology research
• Water and the environment

During the symposium, the Netherlands-supported Mozambique Water Platform (PLAMA) and Wetskills Innovation Challenge will be launched.

Website: http://silusba2.wordpress.com/

17th African Water Association Congress, 17-20 February 2014, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire

Organised by: African Water Association (AfWA) and SODECI s.a.

Theme: Mobilizing Resources and Governance of Water and Sanitation in Africa

Sub-Themes:

• Integrated Management of Water Resources and Climate Change
• Capacity Building for improved Water and Sanitation Services
• Advances in Water and Waste Water Treatment Technologies
• Pro Poor Water and Sanitation Services
• Financing Options for Water and Sanitation Services

Call for papers

Abstract deadline: 10 May 2013

Website: www.afwacongress2014.org (under development)

Ethiopia: Multiple Use Water Improvements project launched

Robel Lambisso WASH Director (left) and MWA Chair at World Vision, Greig Jansen (right). Photo: newbusinessethiopia.com

The Coca-Cola Africa Foundation (TCCAF) and its partners have launched the Replenish Africa Initiative’s (RAIN) Multiple Use Water Improvements project in Ethiopia. This one-year project will benefit 73,400 rural citizens, including 22,000 school children living in seven rural woredas (districts) of three Ethiopian regions.  It will support water supply improvements and multiple uses of water (MUS); improve water access, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in schools, institutions, and households; and empower women through water-related entrepreneurship.

TCCAF is providing US$ 4 million to the project, which is being implemented in partnership with the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation (CNHF) and Millennium Water Alliance (MWA), Catholic Relief Services (CRS), WaterAid and World Vision. The project builds on the MWA’s  existing US$ 13 million CNHF programme that is being implemented in 25 woredas in 4 regions.

The TCCAF project can benefit from the related Multiple Use Services through Rainwater Harvesting (MUStRAIN) pilot project (2011-2013) in Dire Dawa. Funded through the Dutch Partners for Water programme, this project focuses on the exploitation of sand rivers for domestic, livestock and small-scale irrigation through integrated approaches that take account of multiple water needs. The Amsterdam-based RAIN Foundation is implementing this pilot project in partnership with the IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre, RiPPLE Ethiopia, the Hararghe Catholic Secretariat (HCS) and other local  stakeholders.

The launch of the TCCAF RAIN Multiple Use Water Improvements project took place on  12 April 2013 in Addis Ababa, on the sidelines of IRC’s Monitoring Sustainable WASH Service Delivery symposium.

The  Coca-Cola Africa Foundation’s 6-year RAIN programme (2010-2015) aims to provide at least 2 million Africans with access to clean water by 2015. The US$ 30 million that Coca-Cola has committed towards RAIN seems generous but amounts to just 0.75%  of  the company’s US$ 4 billion annual budget for marketing in 2013 and less than 7% of its US$ 440 million sponsorship deal with FIFA (2005-2012).

Related news:

• Counting how many Ethiopians lack decent water and sanitation, IRC, 08 Apr 2013
• Ethiopia: rush to achieve water and sanitation for all by 2015, E-Source, 24 Jul 2012

Related web sites:

• The Coca-Cola Foundation - Replenish Africa Initiative (RAIN)
• Multiple Use water Services Group
• Millennium Water Alliance Program – Ethiopia
• IRC – Ethiopia country programme

Source: MWA, 12 Apr 2013 ; New Business Ethiopia, 13 Apr 2013

Counting how many Ethiopians lack decent water and sanitation

Addis Ababa – 8 April 2013. Providing universal access to water and sanitation, the goal of the Ethiopian Government, is a huge effort that is transforming lives and the economy. Behind efforts to improve service delivery – building new communal water systems, repairing broken pumps, encouraging households to improve their family wells and latrines – are monitoring systems, data and statistics. Reliable data are vital for investments to be made in the right places and the correct policy decisions are taken. Should limited public finance be directed to maintaining and repairing existing water supply systems, or to new construction, for example.

The recently completed National WASH Inventory has been a major initiative to better monitor the performance of the water and sanitation sector in Ethiopia. This involved survey of over 92,000 rural water supply schemes, over 1,600 small town systems, 50,000 schools and clinics and interviews with 12 million households. The costs amounted to more than 200 million Birr (about 12 million USD). For the first time, the National WASH Inventory provides a national baseline of all water and sanitation facilities using standard methods across all regions.

Liberia: extra US$ 450 million needed to rebuild water and sanitation sector

Liberia will need to bridge a US$ 450 million funding gap to achieve the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) targets that it set for itself in 2017.

Liberia unveiled a five-year US$ 600 million investment plan to rebuild its WASH sector on 7 February 2013. The sector is still recovering from decades of civil war. However, only US$ 150 million of the required amount is covered by existing support from development partners. A large part of remaining US$ 450 million will need to come from user payments for urban WASH services.

Burkina Faso: costing rural water service levels

Based on national standards, the 7 boreholes and 3 standpipes in the village of Komsilga, Burkina Faso, are sufficient to supply water to 3,600 people. Since only 1,500 people live in the village, you might think that they had water in abundance.

In reality, only half of the villagers receive a basic level of service and half a limited if any service at all. The provision of a basic water service by a small network costs 9 times more in investment and 54 times more in operation and maintenance than a similar level of service provided by a handpump.

These are some of the findings in a new working paper by Dr Christelle Pezon from IRC’s WASHCost project, which describes the analytical framework and the methodological tools developed to cost rural water service levels.

Pezon, C., 2012. Evaluer le coût d’un service pérenne d’eau potable au Burkina Faso: méthodes et outils. (WASHCost document de travail ; n°5). The Hague, The Netherlands, IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre. Available at: www.washcost.info/page/2663

For more on WASHCost Burkina Faso see: www.washcost.info/page/475

Visit the WASHCost campaign page: campaign.washcost.info

Africa: EU-funded water and sanitation projects not sustainable say auditors

The majority of the water and sanitation projects funded by the European Union (EU) in six African countries are not sustainable says the EU’s spending watchdog. The European Commission (EC) maintains that most of the audited projects were approved before it had implemented quality control reforms.

ECA Member David Bostock presenting Special Report no 13/2012. Photo: European Union

The European Court of Auditors (ECA) reviewed 23 projects in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Nigeria and Tanzania. The projects represent an investment of over 400 million euro of which the EU provided 219 million euro. Total EU spending on water and sanitation in sub-Saharan Africa between 2001 and 2010 amounts to over 1 billion euro.

In their report [1], the auditors warn that the majority of projects will not be sustainable unless non-tariff revenue is ensured and institutional weaknesses are addressed. Less than half of the projects examined delivered results meeting the beneficiaries’ needs.

Sudan, Darfur: Chinese peacekeepers’ well drilling team

Chinese Water Supply Regiment in Darfur. Photo: PLA Daily.

Chinese peacekeepers have their own well drilling team to provide water for personnel and campsites of the African Union/UN Hybrid operation in Darfur (UNAMID). It is the only such team employed by the peacekeeping forces dispatched by China.

The water supply detachment is formed by a water supply regiment under the Beijing Military Area Command (MAC) of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

Working conditions for the water team are tough. They need to wear bullet-proof clothes at temperatures over 40 degrees centigrade.

Related web sited:

• China – Ministry of National Defence – Peacekeeping
• African Union/UN Hybrid operation in Darfur (UNAMID)

Source: Li Yun, China Military Online / People’s Daily Online, 25 Jul 2012

Policy review of the Dutch contribution to drinking water and sanitation (1990-2011) includes Benin, Mozambique and Tanzania

A policy review [1] of Dutch aid during 1990 to 2011 to improve drinking water and sanitation services in developing countries found that while millions of peole have gained access, the impact on health and sustainability was limited.

The main focus of the review is on the period from 2004 when aid was directed at supporting the Millennium Development Goal of halving the world’s population without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation by 2015.

The review is primarily based on:

• a study of Dutch policy and its execution;
• impact evaluation studies of drinking water and sanitation programmes in Benin [2], Egypt, Yemen, Mozambique [3] and Tanzania [4].

The policy review was supported by a reference group which included Dr. Christine Sijbesma of IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre.

Ethiopia: rush to achieve to water and sanitation for all by 2015

The Ethiopian government has set itself an ambitious target of achieving 98.5% water coverage and 100 per cent sanitation coverage by 2015. But how realistic is this target?

Currently only 54% of Ethiopia’s 83 million people has access to an improved water source and 60 per cent to sanitation, while there is a big disparity between rural and urban coverage [1]. Some 14% of under-5 childhood deaths in 2010 was caused by diarrhoea [2].

Ethiopia estimates it will need US$ 3 billion to reach universal water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) coverage, of which US$ 1.5 billion has been pledged by the government and donors [3]. Recent commitments include a US$ 150 million World Bank loan for the Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Project (UWSSP) [4] and a US$ 100 Chinese loan for water supply in Addis Ababa, announced in November 2011 [5].