ESAWAS has advanced with the development of a comprehensive continental framework and strategy for the regulation of rural water supply and sanitation and small water supplies services. This will serve as a guidance document for countries across Africa to professionalise the operations and management of rural water supply and sanitation and small water supplies under formalised governance and regulatory arrangements to improve the management, quality, sustainability, inclusion and resilience of water supply and sanitation service delivery.
Essential progress has been made across Africa in expanding access to rural water supply and sanitation (WSS). However, achieving universal access to safe drinking water by 2030, requires concerted efforts and inclusive approaches that leave no one behind. Statistics show that the population in most sub-Saharan African countries remains predominantly rural. Yet, rural areas are underserved both in terms of access to WSS and the level of services provided. The majority of population in rural areas and peri-urban or low-income communities rely on small water supplies as a source of drinking water, while sanitation focuses on ending open-defecation and constructing improved sanitation facilities.
In comparison to Urban WSS, few African countries have instituted regulation of rural WSS and small water supplies to some extent due to the complexity of service delivery. However, this is now gradually changing in sub-Saharan Africa as sector regulators take up the responsibility for rural WSS. Critically, there is a positive association between establishing a dedicated regulatory authority that performs regulatory functions in urban and rural areas and being ‘on-track’ to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6.1. and 6.2. of universal access to safely managed water supply and sanitation services, respectively (GLAAS, 2022).
ESAWAS has thus undertaken to develop a regulatory framework for Rural water supply and sanitation and small water supplies. To inform a continental approach, about 50 delegates convened in Accra, Ghana from 8th – 10th April to review the draft framework based on a gap analysis of 8 African countries and review of global practices. The consultative meeting deliberated extensively on the proposed recommendations and outlined some key considerations that include:
- Strengthen existing systems –situation analysis, opportunities in current policy and legal framework, learning from similar contexts, mobilising resources
- Meaning of professionalization– requirements for management, accountability, capacity in water supply, sanitation etc
- Stakeholder engagement and awareness – scoping/mapping required voices, securing buy-in for benefit of regulation, multi-sectoral coordination platforms
- Service Provision Arrangements- clustering of schemes, staffing, modalities of delegation, asset management, private tankers, borehole small scheme, advantage and disadvantage of options
- Priority considerations for reorganization e.g. disease outbreak, climate change impacts
- Data collection is paramount – facilities by household, user reporting on status of services – customer satisfaction, data collection options (offline tools)
- Tariff design– lifeline, cost recovery, sustainability of cashflow, recognition of hierarchy of approval, subsidy considerations
- Incorporate climate change and resilience– monitor water availability, develop technical standards
- Self-supply– definition of extent to qualify. Not to be regulated.
- Regulator as Facilitator– ensurecommercially viable basis, training in KPIs, safeguard exit of providers, set frequency of inspection vs size of provider, private sector should be issued certificate of compliance, avoid multiplicity of regulators at many levels.
The draft framework received resounding endorsement from the consultative meeting which comprised the Joint Working Group for the assignment (AfWASA, AfUR, WHO, WSUP, WaterAid, WIN), ten ESAWAS members, plus representatives from Ghana and Ethiopia.
The draft Regulatory Framework for Rural WSS and Small Water Supplies will proceed to completion by May. It covers:
- the Policy and legal framework – enabling provisions for regulation;
- Sector Institutional framework – roles and responsibilities of actors;
- Service Provider and Service Delivery Models – arrangements for effective service provision;
- Regulatory Mechanisms – key tools and instruments; and
- Implementation Strategy – from paper to practice.
