9.Paper Urbanisation Kala Draft

8/22/2019 9.Paper Urbanisation Kala Draft

1/20

CHALLENGES FOR URBAN WATER SUPPLY AND

SANITATION IN THE DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

by

Khatri, K.BVairavamoorthy K.

Discussion Draft Paper

for the session on

Urbanisation

Wednesday, 13 J une 2007

Delft, The Netherlands


2/20

Discussion draft paper

1

Abstract

The available water sources throughout the world are becoming depleted and

this problem is aggravated by the rate at which populations are increasing,

especially in developing countries. This has brought into focus the urgent need

for planned action to manage water resources effectively for sustainable

development. The problem of water scarcity in urban areas is of particular

concern. With increasing global change pressures (urbanisation, climate

change etc.), coupled with existing un-sustainability factors and risks inherent

to conventional urban water management, cities of the future in developing

countries will experience difficulties in efficiently managing scarcer and less

reliable water resources. In order to meet these challenges, there needs to be

a shift in the way we manage urban water systems. This paradigm shift isbased on several key concepts of urban water management including:

interventions over the entire urban water cycle; reconsideration of the way

water is used (and reused); and greater application of natural systems for

water and wastewater treatment. This needs to be coupled with increased

stakeholder involvement, institutional development and capacity building.

Clearly, this will substantially contribute to a reduction in the vulnerability of

cities and an increase in their capacity and preparedness to cope with global

changes.

Keywords: Urban water systems, water scarcity, global change, sustainability,capacity building.


3/20


2

1.0 INTRODUCTION

The available water sources throughout the world are becoming depleted and this problemis aggravated by the rate at which populations are increasing, especially in developing

countries.

Currently, some 30 countries are considered to be water stressed, of which 20 areabsolutely water scarce. It is predicted that by 2020, the number of water scarce countrieswill likely approach 35 (Rosegrant et al., 2002). It has been estimated that, one-third ofthe population of the developing world will face severe water shortages by 2025 (Seckleret al., 1998).

For example: In the Africa, 12 African countries will be considered to be in a Water Stress

situation by next year. A further 10 African countries will be stressed by 2025. A total

of 1.1 billion people or two thirds of Africas population will be affected (Dzikus,2001).

At the current rate of population growth in India, combined with the growing strain onavailable water resources, India could well have the dubious distinction of having thelargest number of water-deprived persons in the world in the next 25 years (Singh,2000).

On the other hand, the total non-irrigation water consumption (domestic, industrial, andlivestock) for the different regions of the developing world is increasing drastically(Figure 1, Rosegrant et al., 2002). It means the problem of water scarcity will be felt more

severely in the developing countries.

Fig. 1: Total non-irrigation water consumption by region (Rosegrant et al., 2002)

In addition to limited water resources, the lack of safe drinking water and sanitation arethe most serious challenges of the twenty-first century. Over 1 billion people lack accessto clean water, nearly all of them live in developing countries. Yet, 2.6 billion people,40% of the world population, half the developing world lack even a simple improvedlatrine (Elimelech, 2006; UNICEF/WHO, 2004). Unsafe water and poor sanitation are the


4/20


3

primary causes for the vast majority of water borne and primarily diarrhoeal diseases.Every year, unsafe water coupled, with a lack of basic sanitation, kills at least 1.6 millionchildren under the age of five years more than eight times the number of peoples whodied in the Asian tsunami of 2004 (WHO/UNESCO, 2006). Waterborne diseases alsoinflict significant economic burden through the loss of productivity in the workforce and

through increasing national health care costs. As consequences of these pit falls, a billionof people locked in a cycle of poverty and disease (UNICEF/ WHO, 2004).

The threat to water resources has brought into focus the urgent need for planned action tomanage water resources effectively as it is widely acknowledged that water is a majorlimiting factor in the socio-economic development. The United Nations (UN) in theirMillennium Declaration draws attention to the importance of water and water relatedactivities in supporting development and eradicating poverty (UN, 2003).

2.0 EXISTING CONDITIONS

2.1 Water Supply

The problem of water scarcity in urban areas of developing countries is a major concern.It is estimated that by 2050, half of Indias population will be living in urban areas andwill face acute water problems (Singh, 2000). It was reported in 2002 that about 1.1

billion people were still using water from unimproved sources, and two thirds of thesepeople live in Asia. The number of people without improved water sources in China aloneis equal to the number of un-served in all of Africa (UNICEF/ WHO, 2004). The qualityof water that people receive is also questionable. In India, eighty-five per cent of urban

population has access to drinking water but only 20 per cent of the available drinking

water meets the health and quality standards set by the world health organisation (WHO)(Singh, 2000).

The daily water supply rate in the developing countries is very low compared to theindustrial world. In India, it ranges from 16 to 300 litres per day depending on the localityand the economic strata (Singh, 2000), whereas this figure ranges from 100 to 600 litres

per day in the developed countries. The populations that are not served by piped watersupply receive even smaller amount of water. In East Africa, the daily supply rate of un-

piped water was nearly a third less than for piped users of low-income communities(Thompson et al., 2001). Figure 2 shows the mean daily per capita water supplied by

piped and un-piped systems, and Figure 3 shows the mean daily per capita water used for

different purposes in East Africa.


5/20


4

01020

3040506070

RegionUrbanRural

Uganda

TanzaniaKenya

Water

use(litres)

Piped

Unpiped

Fig. 2: Mean daily per capita water use in East Africa (Thompson et al., 2001)

0

10

20

Others

Business

Livestock

Garden

Bathing

Washing

Drinking

Wateruse(litres)

PipedUnpiped

Fig. 3: Mean daily/capita water use by type of use in East Africa (Thompson et al., 2001)

The prevailing water stress in many developing countries is not only due to sourcelimitation but other factors such as poor distribution efficiency through city networks andinequalities in service provision between the rich and the poor (UN-HABITAT, 1999).One of the main reasons is the high rate of water losses form the distribution systems.Many studies revealed that water losses in cities of developing countries are at levels of

between 40-60% of water supplied (Arlosoroff, 1999). The mean unaccounted for water(UFW) in the developing world (Figure 4) and 8 major Asian cities (Figure 5) show the

higher rate of water losses (ADB, 1997; WHO, 2000). The unaccounted for waterreported in these figures are due to water losses (as it excludes unbilled and unauthorizedconsumption). In many cases the water loss indicators shown in these figures reflect theinefficiency of the management of the water supply system. Any reduction in waterlosses, requires coherent action to address not only technical and operational issues butalso institutional, planning, financial and administrative issues (WHO, 2000)


6/20


5

0

20

40

60

80

100

Africa Asia LA&C N.Amer

Perce

ntage

Fig. 4: Mean unaccounted-for water in large cities (WHO, 2000)

0

20

40

60

80

100

Chennai Colombo Delhi Dhaka J akartha Karachi Manila Mumbai

Cities

PercentageUFW

Fig. 5: Mean unaccounted-for water in selected Asian cities (ADB, 1997)

The design of water distribution systems in general has been based on the assumption ofcontinuous supply. However, in most of the developing countries, the water supplysystem is not continuous but intermittent. The Asian Development Bank has reportedthat, in 2001, 10 of the 18 cities studied, supplied water for less than 24 hours a day(ADB, 2004). Figure 6 shows the percentage of population with 24-hour supply for 8

major Asian cities. The situation is similar in other regions of the world, for example inLatin America 10 major cities receives rationed supplies (Choe & Varley, 1997). Only 11

per cent of the consumers with a piped supply in Nigeria, received water once in twodays, in 1995. Furthermore, Hardoy et al. (2001) reported that in Mombasa the averageduration of the service is 2.9 hours a day.


7/20


6

Fig. 6: Percentage of population with 24-hour supply (ADB, 2004)

Intermittent supply leads to many problems including, severe supply pressure losses andgreat inequities in the distribution of water. Another serious problem arising fromintermittent supplies, which is generally ignored, is the associated high levels ofcontamination. This occurs in networks where there are prolonged periods of interruptionof supply due to negligible or zero pressures in the system (Vairavamoorthy & Mansoor,2006).

2.2 Sanitation

The sanitation sector is often worse than water supply. Some 2.6 billion people, half of

the developing world, live without improved sanitation. Sanitation coverage indeveloping countries (49 per cent) is only half that of the developed world (98 per cent).In sub-Saharan Africa the coverage is a mere 36 per cent, and over half of those arewithout improved sanitation. Similarly, nearly 1.5 billion people live in China and Indiawithout access to improved sanitation services (WHO/UNESCO, 2006). The number ofdeaths attributable to poor sanitation and hygiene alone may be as high as 1.6 million ayear. Statistics on wastewater treatment revealed that almost 85% of global wastewater isdischarged without treatment leading to serious impacts on public health and thereceiving water environmental.

In developing countries, rapid population growth and urbanization is creating an added

demand for housing, infrastructure services including sanitation services. Providingsanitation services especially for the poor who are living outside the designatedresidential areas like illegal settlements or slums is a challenge. The World Bankestimates that almost 26% of the global urban population, over 400 million people, lackaccess to the simplest latrines (World Bank, 2000).

At the same time, the drainage and solid waste collection services are not adequate inmost of the developing countries. The systems are either poorly planned and designed, oroperated without inadequate maintenance, which means that the existing services areoften of poor quality. Most of the city wastes are dumped and discharged directly to theopen environment. As a result, untreated urban wastes pollute surface as well as ground

water sources. The situation is even worse in the area of low-income settlements. Septictanks and feeder networks regularly discharge effluent into street gutters, open streams or


8/20


7

drainage canals. This creates unpleasant living conditions, public health risks andenvironmental damage (GHK, 2002).

The numbers of urban dwellers are increasing and the urban areas are becomingovercrowded. Efforts to improve basic sanitation have tended to focus on ambitious

master plans which require large investments in trunk sewerage, storm water drainagesystems and equipment for solid waste collection and disposal. These plans either fail to

be implemented due to financial and institutional constraints, or provide an inequitableservice, once implemented. Consequently, the effort to solve the basic sanitation

problems cannot keep-up with the growing population in the developing world.

3.0 FUTURE CHALLENGES

Cities all over the world are facing a range of dynamic global and regional pressures (seeFigure 7, (Kelay et al., 2006; Segrave, 2007; Zuleeg, 2006). They are facing difficulty inefficiently and transparently managing ever scarcer water resources, delivering watersupply and sanitation services. There are equal challenges on disposing of wastewater andminimizing negative impacts to the environment. In order to develop solutions to manageurban water more effectively, these global and regional pressures must be recognised andused to drive the design and management processes of urban water systems.

Fig. 7: Global change drivers in the city of the future

Urban WaterSystems in the

city of the

Future

3) Globalization &

Economic Development

5) Governance

& Privatization6) Changes in the Public

Behaviours

4) Deterioration of

Infrastructure8) Risks on Critical

Infrastructure Systems

9) Increase in

the fuel Costs

7) Emerging

Technology

1) Climate Change

2) Population Growth and Urbanization


9/20


8

Of the pressures presented in Figure 7, the three main ones are:

Climate change is predicted to cause significant changes in precipitation andtemperature patterns, affecting the availability of water.

Population growth and urbanisation are enforcing rapid changes leading to adramatic increase in high-quality water consumption. Frequently, this demand forwater cannot be satisfied by the locally available water resources, while thedischarge of insufficiently treated wastewater increases costs for downstream usersand has detrimental effects on the aquatic systems.

Existing infrastructure is aging and deteriorating. It is a technological and financialchallenge to maintain and upgrade it in such a way that quality water can continueto be delivered to all sectors and wastewater can be adequately collected andtreated.

3.1 Climate Change

There is little dispute that the earth system is undergoing very rapid changes as a result ofincreased human activities. As a result of these changes it is generally accepted that wehave begun to witness changes in the natural cycles at the global scale. Clearly thesechanges will severely impact the urban water cycle and how we manage it. Componentsof the urban water cycle, like water supply, wastewater treatment, and urban drainage etc.are generally planned for life-spans over several decades. Hence there is a need for us to

pay attention to these changes in the context of how these systems will be designed andoperated in the city of the future.

Although the regional distribution is uncertain, precipitation is expected to increase inhigher latitudes, particularly in winter. This conclusion extends to the mid-latitudes inmost of the General Circulation Model (GCM) results. Potential evapotranspiration (ET)rises with air temperature. Consequently, even in areas with increased precipitation,higher ET rates may lead to reduced runoff, implying a possible reduction in renewablewater supplies. More annual runoff caused by increased precipitation is likely in the highlatitudes. In contrast, some lower latitude basins may experience large reductions inrunoff and increased water shortages as a result of a combination of increased evaporationand decreased precipitation.

The frequency and severity of droughts could also increase in some areas as a result of adecrease in total rainfall, more frequent dry spells, and higher ET. Flood frequencies arelikely to increase in many areas, although the amount of increase for any given climatescenario is uncertain and impacts will vary among basins.

Water quality problems may increase where there is less flow to dilute contaminantsintroduced from natural and human sources. The increase in water temperature will alterthe rate of operation of bio-geo-chemical processes (degrading and cleaning) and to lowerthe dissolved oxygen concentration of water. Similarly, increased occurrence of higherrunoff will increases the load of pollutants and overflowing of the sewers. Further,increased flooding frequency with overflow of treated or untreated wastewater sewers

systems will cause serious affect on biotic life cycle, and higher possibility of out-breaksof water borne diseases (such as cryptosporidium presence). The water quality matter


10/20


9

may be more sensitive in the lakes due to higher incidence of Eutrophication process(Hellmuth & Kabat, 2002).

The above impacts are in addition to the obvious impacts of increased risk of damage tostormwater infrastructure and facilities (e.g. underground drains, levee banks, pump

stations etc) due to higher peak flows. There are several other impacts which we can onlyguess at the moment such as increased risk of pipe failure and collapse due to dry soilconditions.

Climate change will affect different cities in different ways with some experiencing morefrequent droughts and water shortage while others will have more intense storm eventswith subsequent flooding issues. Flexible and adaptable solutions are hence required toreduce the vulnerability of cities to these changes.

3.2 Population Growth and Urbanization

Population growth and urbanization will be one of the worlds most important challengesin the next few decades. United Nations population prospects report (2006) illustrates thehigher rate of population growth in urban area in the developing countries. In lessdeveloped countries, urban population will grow from 1.9 billion in 2000 to 3.9 billion in2030, averaging 2.3% per year. On the other hand, in developed countries, the urban

population is expected to increase, from 0.9 billion in 2000 to 1 billion in 2030 overallgrowth rate 1% (Brockerhoff, 2000) (Figure 8).

Fig. 8: Average annual rate of population change, by major area, estimates and medium

variant, 1950-1955 to 2045-2050(United Nations, World Population Prospects: (2005)

Moreover, the numbers and sizes of the cities, mostly in developing countries, areincreasing due to the higher rate of urbanization. In 1950, New York City and Tokyowere only two cities with a population of over 10 million inhabitants. By 2015, it isexpected that there will be 23 cities with a population over 10 million. Of the 23 cities

expected to reach 10 million plus by 2015, 19 of them will be in developing countries. In2000, there were 22 cities with a population of between 5 and 10 million; 402 cities with


11/20


10

a population of 1 to 5 million; and 433 cities in the 0.5 to 1 million categories. Almost180,000 people are added to the urban population each day. It is estimated that there arealmost a billion poor people in the world; of this over 750 million live in urban areaswithout adequate shelters and basic services (Figure 5, UN, 2006).

Fig. 9: Percent of Population Living in Urban Areas in Major World Regions, 1950,

1975, 2000, and 2025 (United Nations, World Urbanization Prospects: The 1999 Revision

(2000)

Population growth and rapid urbanization will create a severe scarcity of water as well astremendous impact on the natural environment. In order to meet the future water demand,cities will need to tap their water supply either from a deep ground or surface sourcessituating a far distance away from the urban area. Moreover, rapid increase in built-upareas disturbs the local hydrological cycle and environment by reducing the naturalinfiltration opportunity and producing the rapid peak storm water flow.

Cities in developing countries are already faced by enormous backlogs in shelter,infrastructure and services and confronted with insufficient water supply, deterioratingsanitation and environmental pollution. The larger populations will demand larger

proportions of water while simultaneously decreasing the ability of ecosystems to providemore regular and cleaner supplies.

Sustaining healthy environments in the urbanized world of the 21st century represents a

major challenge for human settlements, development and management. Again, flexibleand innovative solutions are needed to cope with sudden and substantial changes in waterdemand for people and their associated economic activities.


12/20


11

3.3 Deterioration of Infrastructure Systems

In order for the urban water cycle to function effectively, it needs to be supported byappropriate infrastructure in good working condition. Protecting the infrastructure used to

treat and transport water (including sources, treatment plants, and distribution systems) isan important step in ensuring the safety of drinking water. However, in most citiesworldwide, there has been years of neglected maintenance to water storage, treatment,and distribution systems. Poorly maintained water supply systems can generally be tracedto insufficient financial resources and poor management. This deterioration in the waterinfrastructure threatens the quality and reliability of all water services.

In particular there has been little or no management and maintenance of the undergroundinfrastructure. A large proportion of this infrastructure is over 100 years old, placing it atincreased risk for leaks, blockages and malfunctions due to deterioration. For example,water mains break in hundreds of thousands of locations each year in the United States,

leaving water customers without a supply, or with a supply that is unsafe for consumptionwithout special treatment (e.g., boiling or chlorination).

Escalating deterioration of water and sewer systems threatens our ability to provide safedrinking water and essential sanitation services for the current and future generations. Asthe pipes crumble and leak, many cities are faced with an expensive water and sewer

problem. As this problems go unresolved, the more serious they become, placing vitalpublic assets at risk of further degradation, posing an unacceptable risk to human healthand the environment, damaging public and private property, and impacting state and localeconomies.

The cost of rehabilitation of water infrastructure system is increasing substantially due totheir deterioration over the world. European cities are spending in the order of 5-billionEuros per year for waste water network rehabilitation. The UK has over 700,000 km ofmains and sewers pipes, and going with over 35,000 maintenance works per month onthese pipes. A 5% saving in costs would save over 20 million for the UK (Vahala,2004). In the same way, many of the infrastructure systems in Canada and the UnitedStates, worth trillions of dollars, are failing prematurely and are in a need of costlyrepairs. Further, estimated capital needed for the rehabilitation of main urban water andsewer pipes, older than 50 years and in 50 largest cities of the USA, is more than $700

billion (Yan & Vairavamoothy, 2003). It will be increased significantly over the comingdecades due to the combined effect of infrastructure ageing, urbanisation and climatechange.

These deteriorationprocesses are more severe for the developing countries, due to ageingof the systems, poor construction practices, little or no maintenance and rehabilitationactivities due to the limited financial resource, operation at higher capacities than design,etc. Similarly, there is a little knowledge about specific classes of assets deterioration, thetechnical service life and insufficient database to know the extent and/or the value of theirinfrastructure assets. Further, there are not efficient decision support tools available toinfrastructure managers and decision makers (Misiunas, 2005).

Infrastructure deterioration will impact to the public health, environment and institutions.

Higher rate of the water leakage means higher water losses and higher chances of in-filtration and ex-filtration of water. This will create the higher chances of drinking water


13/20


12

contamination and outbreak of water-borne diseases. Frequent break down of services,and therefore reduced water service quality and standards will affect the willingness to

pay of consumers.

4.0 NEW APPROACHS TO URBAN WATER MANAGEMENT

With increasing global change pressures coupled with existing un-sustainability factorsand risks inherent to conventional urban water management, cities of the future willexperience difficulties in efficiently managing scarcer and less reliable water resources.

The current model for western urban water management schemes and correspondinginfrastructure originates from the 19th century and was mainly driven by the aim toimprove water services and public health. Sustainability criteria were not of relevance atthat time, and the robustness of urban water management (UWM) systems, in terms ofglobal change pressures such as climate change, urbanisation, industrial growth, and

population growth were not considered. The conventional system has seriousinefficiencies, such as high quality drinking water for all domestic purposes, largequantities of drinking water to transport human excreta, loss of useful chemicals.

There are also compelling environmental considerations which plead for a redesign of thecycle. The ever increasing costs for drinking water treatment and end-of-pipewastewater management, and the limitations of existing high-technology wastewatertreatment systems, means that receiving environments are often not able anymore tonaturally compensate for the huge abstractions and pollution loads, resulting sometimesin severe ecological damage. (SWITCH, 2006).

In order to meet the future challenges, there needs to be a shift in the way we manageurban water systems. This paradigm shift must be based on several key concepts of urbanwater management, namely that: water is a cycle and hence we must considerinterventions over the entire urban water cycle; we must reconsider the way water is used(and reused); and we must promote greater application of natural systems for water andwastewater treatment.

4.1 Interventions over entire Urban Water Cycle

An important aspect of urban water systems is the interactions that take place betweendifferent components of the system (e.g. foul water from leaky sewers entering into a

drinking water distribution network). It widely recognised that it is important to considerthese interactions in order to maintain an effective, efficient and safe service of water andsanitation. Hence an integrated approach to urban water management (IUWM) isnecessary.

An IUWM approach involves managing freshwater, wastewater, and storm water as linkswithin the resource management structure, using an urban area as the unit ofmanagement. The approach encompasses various aspects of water management, includingenvironmental, economic, technical, political, as well as social impacts and implications.Urban areas are appropriate as units of management, as specific problems and needs faced

by cities may transcend the physical and scientific boundary embodied by more

traditional units of management of catchments and watersheds. Hence, this unit ofmanagement offers a relevant framework for decision-making and concrete action.


14/20


13

By applying an IUWM approach it is possible to satisfy the water related needs of acommunity at the lowest cost to society whilst minimising environmental and socialimpacts.

4.2 Reconsider Water Use

The challenge of servicing more people with same quantity of natural water, whilemaintaining a tight control over the adverse environmental impacts is a profound one.Hence it is important to critically look into water use practices and to develop strategiesthat maximize the benefits of water services while minimizing the usage as far as

practically possible. In water stressed areas, balancing the demands for water between thevarious sectors will need to be accompanied by the use of new and alternative resources,

by increased recycling of wastewater that will ensure better access to safe water, reducedvulnerability to extremes and increased adaptive capacity. This will make a significantcontribution towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Demand management and water reuse opportunities are real and increasing. Acombination of end-use efficiency, system efficiency, storage innovations (using differentmanaged aquifer recharge options), and reuse strategies would reduce water demand.Water can be used multiple times, by cascading it from higher to lower-quality needs (e.g.using household grey water for irrigation), and by reclamation treatment for return to thesupply side of the infrastructure. In most of the developing countries, effective waterdemand management and reuse of the supplied water may be a sustainable ways to reducewater stress.

4.3 Application of Natural Systems

Besides pipes and treatment plants (Gray infrastructure), use of natural capacities of soiland vegetation (green infrastructure) should be applied to absorb and treat water. Greeninfrastructure refers to techniques and systems that use the natural capacities of soil andvegetation to absorb and retain water, and to take-up, transform, or otherwise treat

pollutants in water. Natural systems are found to be more cost-effective and require lowbuilding, labour and maintenance costs. They are much more convenient than theconventional (biological) wastewater plants during the operational phase, because theyrequire less energy than conventional systems. Limited mechanical devices are used inthese systems thus reducing the maintenance costs. In addition it has been found thatnatural systems are generally efficient for the removal of most of pollutants. Finally and

most importantly these systems are found to be very reliable even in extreme operatingconditions. They can better absorb a variety of both hydraulic and contaminant shocks,hence making them more robust and resilient systems. It should be noted that naturalsystems are not only more robust but are also capable of removing multiple contaminantsin a single system. Such engineered natural systems include constructed wetlands, soilaquifer treatment (for polishing wastewater for reuse) and bank filtration systems (river orlake) for treating drinking water.

5.0 INSTITUTIONS, STAKEHOLDERS AND CAPACITY BUILDING

Historically the performance of urban water systems in developing countries remainsbelow expectation and this has not only been due to inappropriate technology. It should


15/20


14

be recognised that urban water management poses extraordinary complex problems thatcannot be solved by individual stakeholders. The failing of systems particularly indeveloping countries has been partly the result of a top-down approach with limitedinvolvement of stakeholders. Finding consensus on what the problems are and how tosolve them remains a big challenge.

Another reason for failure has been the lack of understanding of the institutionallandscape in which the urban water system will be managed and operated. The methodsand techniques developed were not appropriate for the local circumstances. The lessonslearnt from these experiences, has emphasized the need to recognise institutionallandscapes and provide appropriate institutional development and capacity building

programmes.

5.1 Learning Alliances

Learning alliances (SWITCH, 2006), is a relatively new concept that aims to link up

stakeholders at city level to interact productively and to create win-win solutions alongthe water chain. They typically consist of a series of structured platforms, at differentinstitutional levels (national, river basin, city, community etc), designed to break down

barriers to both horizontal and vertical information sharing, and thus to speed up theprocess of identification, adaptation, and uptake of new innovation. These platforms bringtogether a wide range of partners (including public and private sectors, academia, andcommunity based organizations), with capabilities in: implementation. Clearly, theinvolvement of these multi-stakeholder alliances will substantially contribute to areduction in the vulnerability of cities and their capacity and preparedness to cope withglobal changes. In addition innovations developed through these alliances will lead togreater impact and more potential for taking innovations to scale through the development

of locally appropriate innovations, of ownership of the concepts and process; and ofcapacity of learning alliance members. Nesting learning alliances at different levels will

both shorten the time between developing new knowledge and scaling it up; and, ensurethat local solutions are nationally relevant and applicable.

5.2 Institutional Development

Clearly, improved IUWM will require engagement with a complex array ofadministrative, political, institutional, social, economic challenges in cities. There is aneed, therefore to stimulate changes in policy and practice in urban water managementwithin institutions, other levels of government and civil society. An underlying

hypothesis is that without institutional change it will not be possible to achieve aparadigm shift towards more integrated management. The new paradigm is likely torequire:

Changes in holistic environmental thinking,

Changes in institutional structures and frameworks,

Change in use of means and resources,

Changes in managerial methodologies and approaches &

Changes in approaches to financial planning and management to include explicitattention to pro-poor and gender-specific strategies.

Developing and managing institutional improvements is a difficult process. Edwards


16/20


15

(1988) has developed manual that provides practical and immediately useful informationabout developing and managing institutional change projects in the water supply andsanitation sector.He points out that institutional development projects should focus onthe development of comprehensive organisational systems and the people within the

system which make them work. He goes on to say that the overall purpose of these

projects is to achieve institutional learning or sustainability More recently there hasbeen interest in the development of the Change Management Forum (CMF) in India(www.cmfindia.org). The mission of this forum is to

Promote institutional and organisational development and support reform of theurban water and sanitation sector through capacity building, knowledge sharing

and promotion of partnerships.

The CMF works through policy and decision makers from municipalities, water utilitiesand Pubic Health Departments to develop critical mass of change champions. Activitiesof the CMF include dissemination of information on best practices, knowledge resource

products, introduction of performance indicators, and the development of a benchmarking

database.

5.3 Capacity Building

The critical links in the chain of sustainable water management are the institutions and theknowledge base skills and attitudes (the capacity) of individuals and organisations, whichneed to be strengthened. The capacities are the knowledge and experience incorporated inthe organization - in its structure and in its staff (Alaerts, 1999). The capacities allow theorganization to adequately resolve problems, and to respond to opportunities. Theincentives influence the decisions of the staff and the management to take certain actions.If the incentives for the staff as individuals and as an organization point in the wrong

direction, the possession of other capacities is of little value.

Capacities, thus, are an essential component of institutions and actually determine theinstitutions. That is obvious for organizations, as discuses above, but this also holds forthe non-organizational institutions, such as legal and regulatory frameworks, or theframework to devolve decision- making power to local government levels, as well as theeconomic and other incentive systems (Alaerts, 1999).

Capacity building (for the water sector) draws from three distinct sets of disciplines:water management principles; business, behavioural and administration sciences; and

pedagogic sciences. UNU-INWH (2007) defined 4-pillars for capacity building that the

identify capacities required at the community, state and federal levels of responsibility.

1. Educate and train, including community awareness building, adult training andformal education, so as to provide sufficient numbers of competent humanresources to develop and apply enabling systems,

2. Measure and understand aquatic systems, through monitoring, applied research,technology development and forecasting, so that reliable data is used for analysisand decision-making,

3. Legislate, regulate and achieve compliance through effective governmental, non-governmental and private sector institutions and through efficient enforcement andcommunity acceptance, &


17/20


16

4. Provide appropriate, affordable water infrastructure, services and products throughsustained investment and management by both private enterprises and publicagencies.

This framework can be used to identify gaps in existing capacities, which can then beorganized into a coherent and integrated development plan for implementation. Thecapacities are in fact the tools that can be used to develop and apply the enabling systemswhich, when fully in place and functioning, result in supply and demand balance.

6.0 CONCLUSIONS

There is an urgent need for planned action to manage water resources effectively. Theproblems in urban areas of developing countries are of particular concern as still largesections of the community are living without safe water supply and basic sanitationservices. It has been widely acknowledged that in the past several urban water

interventions (particularly in developing countries), have failed and this has been in partdue to little or no attention given to the institutional landscape within which theseinterventions are applied and the lack of stakeholder involvement in the development andimplementation of these interventions.

Adequate provision of urban water supply and sanitation is likely to become moredifficult in the future due to several change pressures such as urbanisation, climate-change and infrastructure deterioration. The challenge is to develop appropriate technicaland institutional responses to these pressures that radically change the way in whichurban water systems are managed. Interventions must be considered over the entire urbanwater cycle, recognising interactions between the various components of the urban water

system. There must also be a rethink of the way water is used and reused and greater useof natural systems for treatment (that are likely to be more effective against emergingcontaminants). The objective must be to develop urban water systems that are morerobust and resilient against these uncertain future pressures.

To achieve this appropriate scientific and technological innovations and solutions willneed to be developed. However, to ensure maximum impact of these innovations andsolutions, they must be coupled with components of institutional development (throughcapacity building activities), and greater stakeholder involvement. Clearly, it is only ifthese components are included in the solution process can substantially contribute to thereduction in the vulnerability of cities and their capacity and preparedness to cope withglobal changes.

REFERENCES

ADB (1997). Water Utilities Data Book - 2nd Edition, Asian and Pacific Region, AsianDevelopment Bank, Philippines

Alarerts,G. J. (1999).Capacity Building as Knowledge Management: Purpose, definitionand instruments: in Alarerts,G.J., Hartvelt, F.J.A., & Patorni, F.M. (Ed.), Water SectorCapacity Building : Concepts and Instruments, Proceeding the 2nd UNDP Symposium onWater Sector Capacity Building, Delft, 1996, pp.49-84.


18/20


17

Arlosoroff, S. (1999).Water Demand Management. International Symposium onEfficient Water Use in Urban Areas, IECT-WHO, Kobe, Japan.

Brockerhoff, M. P. (2000). An Urbanizing World. Population Bulletin, A Publication ofPopulation Reference Bureau, 55(3), pp. 1-45.

Choe, K., Varley, R., and Bilani, H. (1996). Coping with Intermittent Water Supply;Problems and Prospects, Environmental Health Project. Activity Report No. 26, USAID,USA

Dzikus, A. (2001).Managing Water for African Cities: An Introduction to Urban WaterDemand, Regional Conference on the Reform of the Water Supply and Sanitation Sectorin Africa Enhancing Public-Private Partnership in the Context of the Africa Vision forWater (2025), Kampala, Uganda

Edwards, D. (1988). Managing Institutional Development Projects: Water and SanitationSector, WASH Technical Report, No.49, Water and Sanitation for Health Project, USA.

Elimelech, M. (2006). The global challenge for adequate and safe water. Journal of WaterSupply: Research and TechnologyAQUA, 55(1), pp. 3-8.

GHK, (2002).Effective Strategic Planning for Urban Sanitation Service, Fundamentals ofgood Practice, pp. 23. http://www.ghkint.com/

Hardoy, J.E., Mitlin, D. and Satterhwaite, D. (2001). Environmental Problems in anUrbanizing World: Finding Solutions for Cities in Africa, Asia and Latin America.Earthscan, London.

Hellmuth, M. & Kabat, P. (2002). Impacts. In: Appleton, B. (Ed.), Climate changes thewater rules: How water managers can cope with todays climate variability and

tomorrows climate change. Dialogue on Water and Climate, Delft.

Kelay, T., Chenoweth, J. & Fife-Schwa, C. (2006). Trend Report Trend Report onConsumer Trends, Cross-cutting issues across Europe TECHNEAU, pp. 46.

http://www.techneau.org/fileadmin/files/Publications/Publications/Deliverables/D1.1.12.pd.[8/3/2007]

Misiunas, D. (2005). Failure Monitoring and Asset condition assessment in water supplysystems. PhD Thesis, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.

Rosegrant, M.W., Cai, X., Cline, S.A. (2002). Averting an Impending Crisis, GlobalWater Outlook to 2025, Food Policy Report, International Water Management Institute(IWMI), Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Segrave, A. J. (2007).Report on trends in the Netherlands: TECHNEAU, pp. 113

Singh, N. (2000).Tapping Traditional Systems of Resource Management, HabitatDebate, UNCHS, Vol.6, No.3.

SWITCH. (2006). http://www.switchurbanwater.eu

Thompson, J., Porras, I. T., Tumwine, J. K., Mujwahuzi, M. R., Katui-Katua, M.,Johnstone, N. and Wood, L. (2001). Drawers of Water II. International Institute forEnvironment and Development, London, UK.

UNICEF/ WHO. (2004).Meeting the MDG drinking water and sanitation target - A midterm assessment of progress: United Nations Children's Fund and World Health

Organisation, pp. 36


19/20


18

UN-INWEH (2007). United Nations University, International Netwroks on Water,Environment and Health (UN-INWEH),

http://www.inweh.unu.edu/inweh/4pillars.htm

UN (2003) Millennium Development Goals. United Nations, New York, USA

http://www.developmentgoals.org/Education.htmUN-HABITAT (1999). Managing Water for African cities - Developing a Strategy forUrban Water Demand Management, Background Paper No. 1, Expert Group MeetingUNEP & UN-HABITAT.

WHO/UNICEF. (2006). Meeting the MDG drinking water and sanitation target , Theurban and rural challenge of the decade. World Health Organisation and United NationsChildren's Fund, pp. 41.

http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/monitoring/jmp2006/en/index.html

WHO (2000). Global Water Supply and Sanitation Assessment Report, World Health

Organisation-United Nations Children Fund, Geneva, Switzerland.Vahala, R. (2004). European Vision for Water Supply and Sanitation in 2030WaterSupply and Sanitation Technology Platform.

http://www.wsstp.org/Shared%20Documents/WSSTP%20presentation%20by%20Riku%20Vahala%20(Bratislava).pdf [13/03/2007]

Vairavamoorthy, K. and Mansoor, M.A.M. (2006). Demand management in developingcountries. In: Butler, D. and Memon F. A. (Eds.) Water Demand Management. IWAPublishing, London, UK. pp. 180-214.

Yan, J. M. & Vairavamoothy, K. (2003). Fuzzy Approach for the Pipe Condition

Assessment. Paper presented at the Proceeding of ASCE international conference onpipeline engineering and construction. Baltimore, Maryland, USA, 2 pp. 1817. July 13-16, 2003

Zuleeg, S. (2006). Trends in Central Europe (GERMANY / SWITZERLAND):TECHNEAU, pp. 83


20/20