With the recent dismantling of USAID and cuts in aid budgets elsewhere, what is the future for water and sanitation provision in urban slums, and why does it matter?
Migration and climate change pressures mean that extending water and sanitation services to low-income communities in urban areas in the Global South is getting harder, just as governments are reducing their aid spending.
The number of people living in cities in sub-Saharan Africa has grown from around 210 million in 2000 to over 500 million today and will double again by 2050. Both water scarcity and flooding are increasing, and for most new urban residents, the only available space to set up home is in climate-vulnerable areas such as flood plains, marshland and river valleys.
So what is the answer? In densely packed slums, the only sustainable solution is for existing utilities to extend services into these new settlements. This is a win-win; residents get reliable, affordable and higher quality water, and the utility becomes more financially sustainable. Likewise, in most cities in the Global South, only a small proportion of residents are connected to a functioning sewer system. So households are having to make alternative arrangements. Thankfully, examples of the “flying toilet” (a plastic bag filled and then tossed over the fence for those not familiar with this euphemism) are reducing, but there are still far too many rudimentary pit latrines operating on a “dilute and disperse” basis, with serious implications for public health. Again, the utility is key, often not as the direct service provider but by having a clear mandate to ensure that pit design is good and that emptying and disposal services are available and affordable.
Utilities need support with reducing water losses, developing customer service models and accessible tariffs, contracting and procurement
Water and Sanitation for Urban Populations (WSUP) has helped more than 43 million people over the past 20 years by helping utilities better serve their low-income customers. In Madagascar, through a combination of “smart” pressure management and tackling leaks and commercial losses, we have helped the national utility JIRAMA save 5.9 billion litres of water, recovering US$ 850,000 and allowing them to extend services to over 750,000 new customers for the first time. In Bangladesh, we have supported local businesses, utilities, and city authorities set up viable latrine-emptying businesses that serve low-income communities alongside richer customers, which, between them, now have over 2.5 million customers — creating economic development as well as protecting public health and the environment.
The enabling environment matters too. Stronger regulation leads to better service provision for the poor, which is why, for instance, WSUP has been supporting Kenya’s Water Services Regulatory Board (WASREB) to introduce a measure of service provision to low-income communities in their assessment of all 95 Kenyan utilities, and why we have worked with the World Health Organisation on their recently-published Roadmap for Advancing Sanitation Regulation, which we now want to roll out across Africa.
The challenge is that utilities need support in making this transition. They need help with reducing water losses, developing customer service models and tariffs that are accessible to low-income residents, contracting and procurement — in fact, all the things that a utility anywhere needs to do well to thrive. This won’t be paid for by loans, but without it, the loans won’t be effective, which is why grant funding remains vital. Thankfully, as governments step back, many corporate foundations and philanthropic donors are stepping forward — as evidenced by the recent announcements from Bill Gates, Jeff Skoll and others.
At WSUP, our mission is to drive inclusive and resilient urban water and sanitation systems and services through pioneering practices, partnerships, and policies. We do this because low-income urban communities and the utilities that serve them really do matter.