WAC News Jan-Feb 2007

8/9/2019 WAC News Jan-Feb 2007

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taken. In case of non-existenceof such association new oneswill be established throughlocal communities, particularlyin the slum areas and otherlow-income localities.

A common governance codewill be established for theirfunctioning in the context of acity-based federation whichwill enable the institutional-ized participation of the civilsociety representatives, supplyside stakeholders like city-based elected representatives,officers of the Gwalior Munici-pal Corporation will be mobi-lized as members of the Plat-form. Similar consolidation ofrepresentation of other con-sumer groups like the industry,commercial establishments,hospitals etc. will be under-taken for their participation inthe Multi Stakeholder Platform.

UN-HABITAT will support se-lected activities related to capac-ity building / public awarenessprogrammes, and publication ofmonthly newsletter in local lan-guage so as to create greater

awareness among the stake-holders. Several activities will beundertaken such as creation ofResidence Welfare Associations,particularly in slums, preparationof IEC materials, orientationprogramme for RWA representa-tives etc. The project will beimplemented over a period of12 months.

UN-HABITAT partners withGwalior Municipal Corporationfor implementing a project toestablish the Multi-StakeholderPlatform (MSP) for water de-mand management through mo-

bilisation, awareness campaignand capacity building of themembers of the community inGwalior under Water for AsianCities Programme.

The project is to be implementedfor the entire Gwalior city inMadhya Pradesh. The mainobjectives of the project are:

to identify and organize thevarious categories of stake-holders of Gwalior city into

Resident Welfare Associationsand a federated structurethrough their respective repre-sentatives for participating inthe Multi Stakeholder Platform.

to mobilise various stake-holders of Gwalior city for agreater articulation and spacefor the collective andinstitutionalized voice of thepoor/slum dwellers of the city,who are typically marginal-

ized from the governance ofcitys water supply and plan-ning decisions.

The demand for safe drinkingwater is more than the supply inwhich the poor are deprived ofthe available services. A multi-stakeholder dialogue processcould contribute significantly tothe emergence of least conten-

tious solutions to the mismatchbetween supply and demandthrough suggestions that entailextensive use of water in urbanconstituencies. However, thisneeds to be encouraged by suit-

able policy framework and insti-tuting measures like graduatedwater pricing for domestic usersin urban areas, securing theessential livelihood water needsof the poor women and men asa priority, use of local rain waterharvesting techniques, wastewater recycling for relievingpressure on demand side etc.

The main stakeholders compriseof domestic consumers of differ-entiated income categories;commercial establishments; in-dustrial establishments; Govern-ment organizations; service or-ganizations; public places, deliv-ery of water service organiza-tions, etc. that are spread overacross the Gwalior city. Theactivities will focus on:

Area and category wise con-solidation of the data onstakeholders and their actualorganization for representa-

tion of their voice at the MSP.This social mobilization willbe implemented through seriesof public meetings separatelyfor homogenous groups ofstakeholders

Consolidation of the existingResident Welfare Associations(RWAs) within the municipallimits of city will be under-

Multi Stakeholder Platform for WDM in Gwalior

January - February 200

Volume III, Issue 1

The Right to Water

The United Nations affirmed the right of water on26 November 2002, noting that such a right isindispensable for leadinga life in human dignity &a prerequisite for the realization of other humanrights. Through its Genera

Comment 15, the Committee on Economic, Social &Cultural Rights of the UnitedNations Economic & SociaCouncil stated: the humanright to water entitles everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable watefor personal & domesticuses. While the right towater has been implicit inthe rights to health, housing, food, life and dignityalready enshrined in othe

international conventionssuch as the International Bilof Human Rights & theConvention on the Rights othe Child, General Comment 15 is the first to focusexplicitly on the right towater and the responsibilities that governments havein delivering clean water &adequate sanitation services to all.

Inside this issue:

WDM Initiatives inNanjing, PR China

2

Central Region SmallTowns Project in Vietnam

3

NCRWSS Project in Laos 4

State LFHD in MP, India 5

Ministers visit to HVWSHEClassrooms in Gwalior

6

Recommendations of MTFon WATSAN

6

A Bi-monthly Newsletter of the Water for Asian Cities (WAC) Programme


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UN-HABITAT under WAC programme isdeveloping Water Conservation andDemand Management (WCDM) strate-

gies and implementation frameworkthrough capacity building of the Munici-pal Government and the water utility ofNanjing city in PR China.

Nanjing, located on the lower reaches ofthe Yangtze River and the capital of Ji-angsu Province, has high per capita wa-ter consumption compared to the na-tional average. The service area isaround 250 sq. km with the piped distri-bution system installed over 70 yearsago causing frequent bursts and leak-ages and need to be replaced. Strength-

ening water demand management is thekey step to address the issue.

UN-HABITAT initiative to strengthen theWater Conservation and Demand Man-agement aims at:

improving the efficiency and equity ofwater supply and use in Nanjing, bothin productive and domestic sectors,through appropriate water conserva-tion and demand management capac-ity building;

improving the knowledge base of im-pact of urbanization on fresh waterand aquatic ecosystem in Nanjing;

and

strengthening the capacity of Nanjingmunicipal government and water utili-ties and other aspects on water conser-

vation and demand management.UN-HABITAT proposes to achieve theseobjectives by undertaking a rapid assess-ment of WCDM and situational analysis;organizing an extensive water audit withGIS based mapping and data-bases andwater balance estimation; developing anaction plan for capacity building; orga-nizing training workshops for building

WDM capacities for the functionaries ofthe municipal government, Nanjing wa-ter utilities, etc; developing WCDM train-

ing manuals in local language.

Water Conservation and Demand Management Initiatives in Nanjing, China

Page 2

Siddhipur, a traditional Newar peri-urban community of 6000 populationnear Kathmandu, Nepal suffer from seri-ous sanitation problem with more thanhalf of the households having no toiletsand depend on four earmarked openareas designated as communal toilets forwomen. The sanitary conditions in theseopen toilets are deplorable as there is nosystem for managing them.

The unheard voices of the women andgirl children in using these toilets high-light their struggles for dignity, humility,security and vulnerability to disease dueto un-safe sanitation. They do not carry abottle of water for cleaning in order toavoid their identity by men folk that theyare going for open defecation. Instead,they wear their trousers below the waste,return home dirty and wash only whenthey are satisfied that they are away

from prying eyes. The faeces piled up inthese open areas breed innumerouswarms which are susceptible for healthhazards. There is an urgent need tomainstreaming gender in WATSAN ini-tiatives.

Seventy five percent of the populationare women and children with 95 percentliteracy rate among young women of theage-group of 15-24 years reflecting the

process of social transformation in thecommunity. Recognizing the need andthe potential strength of social transfor-mation, UN-HABITAT in partnership withEnvironment and Public Health Organi-zation (ENPHO), Water Aid Nepal initi-ated a Community-based Integrated Wa-ter and Sanitation Programme to estab-lish an environmentally sound, effectiveand sustainable water and sanitationsystem in Siddhipur, ensuring gendersensitiveness and positive impacts ongender relations.

This programme is being implemented bythe Siddhipur Water and Sanitation Us-

ers Committee with one third womenmembers. The programme facilitatedincrease in sanitation coverage by em-powering with financial subsidy andcapacity building for raising awarenesson health, hygiene and promoting moti-vation, support for construction of ECO-SAN toilets which collect urine & feacesseparately and recycle as organic fertil-izer for using as manure in the fields. TheGender Mainstreaming in sanitationgenerated a change among householdsfor better beginning with determinationand prudence to investments on construc-tion of toilets and made an impact on theyoung minds amending old views.

Mainstreaming Gender for Improved Sanitation in Siddhipur, Nepal


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Page 3Volume III, Issue 1

UN-HABITAT has a preliminary agree-ment with ADB to provide capacity build-ing assistance to its upcoming Central

Region Water Supply and SanitationProject. This project which is being imple-mented at a total cost of US$ 96 millionshall be covering several provincial capi-tal towns that include Dong Ha, Ha Tinh,Quang Ngai, Tam Ky, Thanh Hoa anddistrict town of Lang Co in Thua ThienHue province. ADB had approved a loanamount of US$ 31.7 million in December2003 and the project is expected to becompleted in June 2009.

UN-HABITAT will undertake the followingactivities in support of the project whichwill be more focused on capacity build-ing, pro-poor governance, communitydevelopment, gender sensitive initiativesand demonstrate innovative initiatives:

1. Supporting access to sanitation forpoor households,

2. Capacity building for PPMUs, and

3. Fast-track projects for 2 small townsviz. Cam Ranh & Gia Nghia under

ADB loan project.

The proposed ADB loan in the 5 prov-inces of Central Region and eight townswill address water and sanitation issues.

An MoU has been signed between UN-HABITAT and Government of Vietnam. Acollaborative framework prepared inconsultation with ADB and the Govt. of

Vietnam for supporting Central Region

Water Small and Medium Towns Devel-opment Project in Vietnam under the

Water for Asian Cities Programme witha UN-HABITAT commitment to providefinancial assistance of US$ 1 million

towards the mentioned project in Viet-nam. The period would be for threeyears, 2007 to 2009.

A cooperation agreement to implement afast-track demonstration project in CamRanh has been developed in partnershipwith Cam Ranh Joint Stock Urban WorksCompany. Another cooperation agree-ment has also been developed with GiaNghia Water Utility to conduct rapidassessment and situation analysis of thewater and sanitation status in Gia Nghiatown. The project will be implemented inclose association with the nodal Ministryof Construction and Poverty Alleviation atnational level, Central Government, andthe Municipal Corporation of the se-lected towns at the city level. The cost forthe implementation will be provided on acost-sharing basis by UN-HABITAT.

Central Region Small and Medium Towns Development Project in Vietnam

Cambodia is one of the poorest countriesin South-east Asia. It is still recoveringfrom decades of conflict, and all sectors,including the health sector, require recon-struction. The life of most people in Cam-

bodia is still defined by poverty and avery high burden of disease with a gov-ernment health care system that is ill-equipped to deal with a range of healthproblems. Access to improved drinkingwater sources (estimated at 34 per centin 2002) is extremely low, even by de-veloping country standards (WHO/UNICEF, 2004). In the capital, PhnomPenh, the water supply and drainagesystems have deteriorated over the years

due to war, poor management and lackof maintenance. This problem has beenworsened by the rapid growth of theurban population. However, successfulrehabilitation projects have taken place

with foreign aid and technical assis-tance. Since 1993, the Phnom Penh Wa-ter Supply Authority (PPWSA) has in-creased its distribution network fromserving 40 per cent of the Phnom Penhpopulation to over 80 per cent. Non-revenue water - the result of leaks, mis-measurement, illegal connections andillegal sales - has been reduced to 22per cent (from 72 per cent) and collec-tions are at almost 99 per cent with full

cost recovery achieved. By mid-2004, itis predicted that the water supply capac-ity in the city will have increased to235,000 cubic metres per day. This isnow considered a success story for

which the PPWSA was awarded the Water Prize of the Asian DevelopmentBank.

Charging for water and the relative rolesof public versus private management arecontroversial issues. Phnom Penh pro-vides a rare example of an efficient wa-ter delivery system in a large city run bya public body.

Source: www.adb.org/Documents/News/2004/nr2004012.asp

Successful Water Supply in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Beijing has been facing growing waterscarcity, with falling groundwater tablesand problems securing sufficient surfacewater of adequate quality. There areplans to divert large quantities of waterfrom the south to the north, a practicevery much in the tradition of demand-driven water planning. The financial,environmental and social costs of theproject are very high, and some have

argued that it would be more beneficialto invest in demand-side managementand improvements to upstream watersystems rather than investing tens of bil-lions of dollars to divert billions of cubicmetres of water annually over distancesof more than 1,000 km. Partly becauseof the focus on infrastructure. However,the options and costs of upstream invest-ments are not well understood or docu-

mented. Few cities consider negotiatingfor upstream land and water use prac-tices that could help them secure betterwater supplies within their own water-shed, partly because the institutionalbasis is lacking. New York was excep-tional when it invested heavily in moreecologically suitable upstream land usepractices to secure better quality watersupplies. Source: Platt, 2004

Demand-Side Water Management: Beijings Water Scarcity


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In July 2006, UN-HABITAT through aletter of intent had expressed its interest

to collaborate with the Government ofLao PDR to collaborate within the frame-work of the Water for Asian Cities Pro-gramme and provide grants over thenext five years, subject to the conclusionof a separate grant agreement for pro-viding capacity building and communitydevelopment as local level support to the

ADB financed Northern and Central Re-gions Water Supply and Sanitation Sec-tor (NCRWSS) Project.

The Government of Lao PDR had subse-

quently accepted this offer of UN-HABITAT and confirmed that the objec-tives of the Water for Asian Cities Pro-gramme are in line with the Governmentof Lao PDRs commitment to achieve sus-tainable access to safe drinking waterand improved sanitation systems as partof its National Growth and Poverty Eradi-cation Strategy (NGPES).

UN-HABITAT has commenced parallelfinancing capacity building activities forthe Northern and Central Region Water

Supply and Sanitation Project in Lao PDRat a total cost of US$ 565,400 under the Water for Asian Cities Programme. AMemorandum of Understanding (MoU)for long-term cooperation between UN-HABITAT and the Govt. of Lao PDR hasbeen signed to support the above men-tioned project.

The activities under WAC Programme inLao PDR will be implemented with a fo-cus on capacity building activities insupport of the proposed NCRWSS Pro-ject to be implemented in 12 small towns

in the Northern and Central Regions ofLao PDR. The overall aim of the Project isto improve the accessibility, quality, reli-ability and sustainability of water andsanitation service delivery in about 12small towns in the Northern and CentralRegions of Lao PDR by promoting pro-poor governance and improved manage-ment practices.

ADB had approvedfunding a US$ 20.7

million project to helpprovide safe and reli-able water suppliesand improve the ur-ban environment forup to 100,000 resi-dents of about 12small towns in the LaoPDRs Northern andCentral Regions bydeveloping new watersources and constructing optimal sizedwater supply systems using appropriatetechnologies in August 2005.

The Project is expected to benefit about89,000 residents by 2010 and 100,000by 2015 of about 12 small towns byproviding safe and reliable piped watersupply and improved urban environmentthat will have a direct impact on thehealth and living conditions of the towncommunities. About 100 core villageswill benefit directly from village environ-ment improvements, providing accessroads, footpaths, and improved drain-

age and sanitation in residential areas.Moreover, an estimated 98,000 ruralresidents in surrounding hinterland willbenefit from improved roads and bridgesallowing better access to urban marketsand social services provided in the Pro-ject towns. The towns' economies willbenefit from enhanced productivity as a

result of health improvement, time sav-ings in collecting water, as well as fromincreased urban efficiency arising fromimproved roads, bridges, drainage, andsanitation. Residents in towns will alsobenefit from lower water costs and fromsavings in health care costs. The projectis being implemented by the Ministry ofCommunication, Transport, Post andConstruction of the Government of LaoPDR.

In support of this project, UN-HABITAThad organised a workshop on WaterQuality Analysis and Flow Measurement

of Small Streams conducted in March2006 and a second workshop onSettlement, Community and Social Map-ping Using Satellites Imageries wasorganized in June 2006 in Lao PDR. Adetailed GIS mapping of 3 towns havealso been conducted.

Northern and Central Regions Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project

(NCRWSSP) in Lao PDR


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UN-HABITAT has taken the lead in closecooperation with UN Country Teammembers for establishing the State Legis-

lators Forum for Human Development(LFHD) in Madhya Pradesh for advocacyand information sharing with the electedrepresentatives involving both the mem-bers of the Legislative Assembly ofMadhya Pradesh and the elected mem-bers of Parliament from both the housesin the state of Madhya Pradesh.

Recognizing the important role of Legisla-tors in the process of human develop-ment, the UN system in India has sup-ported setting up of Legislators Fora forHuman Development in the States.

Orissa and Sikkim are the first two Statesto set up the Legislators Fora or HumanDevelopment and MDGs. The Fora in

these States has been set up under theaegis of the Honble Speakers office.The objective of the Forum is to facilitateLegislators to discuss the concerned is-sues in a more structured manner andenable them to adopt a more result ori-ented approach towards developmentissues.

UN-HABITAT will forge a knowledgepartnership with the Madhya PradeshLegislative Assembly. Some mechanismsthrough which this partnership could beexecuted are as follows:

Research support needs of Legislatorsas per their request to support develop-ment issues such as health, education,

water and sanitation, livelihoods etc. Creation of solution exchange forum to

access information and deliberate ondevelopment issues.

Focus Group Discussions, bringing innational experts and practitioners tointeract with the Honble Legislators.

Constituency level support for the Leg-islators to analyse and assess constitu-ency level achievements and gaps.

Round Table discussions around the-

matic areas etc.

State Legislators Forum for Human Development in Madhya Pradesh

Page 5

Over the last decade, sales of bottledwater have increased dramatically tobecome what is estimated to be a US$100 billion industry. From 1999 to2004, global bottled water consumptiongrew from approximately 26 billion gal-lons to over 40 billion gallons. In severalcities of the developing world, demandfor bottled water often stems from the fact

that the municipal water supplies - ifavailable at all - fail tomeet basic criteria fordrinking water quality. Butcompanies manufacturingbottled water are also gen-erating large revenues indeveloped countries. Bottled water salesin the United States in 2004 - higherthan in any other country - totalled overUS$ 9 billion for 6.8 billion gallons ofwater, that is, enough water to meet theannual physiological needs of a popula-tion the size of Cambodia. Countries inthe top ten list of bottled water consumersinclude Mexico, China, Brazil, Italy,Germany, France, Indonesia, Spain andIndia.

When asked why they are willing to payso much for bottled water when theyhave access to tap water, consumersoften list concerns about the safety of tapwater as a major reason for most compa-

nies market this product on the basis thatit is safer than tap water, various studiesindicate that bottled water regulationsare in fact inadequate to ensure purity orsafety. The World Health Organization(WHO, 2000) warns that bottled watercan actually have a greater bacterialcount than municipal water. In manycountries, the manufacturers themselves

are responsible for product sampling and

safety testing. In the United States, forexample, the standards by which bottledwater is graded ([regulated by the Foodand Drug Administration) are actuallylower than those for tap water (regulatedby the Environmental Protection Agency).

The explosive increase in bottled watersales raises important questions relatednot only to health, but also to the socialand environmental implications of thephenomenon. It remains to be seen, forexample, how the growth of this industrywill affect the extension and upkeep ofmunicipal water services upon which thepoor depend. In fact, those most likely toneed alternative, clean water sources are

also those least likely to be able to affordthe high cost of bottled water. In China,where roughly 70 largest demands forbottled water comes from city dwellers,for in rural areas people are too poor topay for this alternative.

Most water bottles are meant to be recy-clable. However, only 20 percent of

polyethylene terephthalate (PET), thesubstance used for water bot-tles, is actually recycled. InGreece, it is estimated that 1billion plastic drinking waterbottles are thrown away eachyear. In addition, the PETmanufacturing process re-

leases harmful chemical emissions thatcompromise air quality.

Where safe tap water is temporarilyunavailable, bottled water can providean effective short-term solution for meet-ing a population's needs. But as notedabove, the massive growth in sales ofbottled water worldwide comes at a cost,

A better appreciation of how peoplevalue water may help us understand howthe bottled water phenomenon is impact-ing society's health, economic and envi-ronmental goals.

Sources: BBC, 2005: Gleick et al., 2004; IBWA. 2005;NRDC. WW: WHO, 2000; Yardley. 2005

Access to Safe Drinking Bottled Water - The High Cost of Water


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In most of the developing countries, col-lecting water for the family is womenswork. While water for drinking and

cooking must be carried home, dishes,clothes and often children may be car-ried to the water source for washing.

Women and gins are often seen queuingwith their water pots at all-too-scarcetaps, then walking long distances homebalancing them on their heads or hips. Ifthe water is contaminated and a familymember falls ill, it is often the womanwho must care for them. Children in par-ticular are vulnerable.

In different parts of the world whereAIDS is rampant, individuals with weak-ened immune systems also easily fallprey to pathogens in the water supply.

The low status of women in many socie-ties means that their contribution - interms of the time and energy spent, for

example, in fetchingwater - is considered tobe of little value. In eco-

nomic terms, the oppor-tunity cost of their labouris perceived as nearzero. Where womenhave been given accessto education and tomoney-making work,such as handicrafts pro-duction, and are permit-ted to sell their products and to earnincome for the family, their social as wellas financial position improved dramati-cally. Attitudes toward water-collecting

can also shift. The time women spendcollecting water, especially when simpleand readily available technological alter-natives exist, looks very different and farmore costly to the family and society as awhole, when women have income-

earning opportunities. Thus, investmentsmade to improve access to safe drinkingwater are both a reflection of the valueplaced on water for human well-being

and the value accorded women. Provid-ing regular and dependable access tosafe drinking water is one way of im-proving the position of women as well associety as a whole.

Source: UNICEF/WHO, 2004.

Valuing Water, Valuing Women

Page 6

Mr. Narayan Singh Kushwa,Minister for Social Justiceand Welfare Department,Government of Madhya

Pradesh and Dr. NarottamMishra, Minister for SchoolEducation, Government ofMadhya Pradesh visited

WATSAN Classroom estab-lished in Gwalior in PadmaRaja Vidhyalaya.

The HVWSHE classroom hasbeen developed by UN-HABITAT in collaborationwith Government of Madhya Pradesh(GoMP). Basic objective of these class-

rooms are to educate the students aboutthe values of water and sanitation in ourday to day life.

The Ministers inspected the panels andmodels on water and sanitation issuesdisplayed in the Classroom and inter-acted with the Principal and the Resourceteachers of the School. He enquiredabout the activities being conducted in-volving students and advised the Princi-

pal and the Resource Teachers to organ-ise programmes for the students in asso-ciation with other schools for populariz-ing the HVWSHE classroom and its ac-tivities at the city level. The Ministersstated that the WATSAN classrooms willhelp the children to grasp the valuesrelated with Water and Sanitation andthe School will fill the gap in the curricu-lum and the practices. He also expressedwillingness to upscale these activities inother schools.

Ministers Visit to HVWSHE Classrooms in Gwalior Benefits of ImprovedSanitation

The best way to prevent faecal-orallytransmitted diseases such as diarrhea is

the sanitary disposal of human faeces inpit latrines or other improved sanitationfacilities. Improved sanitation is also theonly long-term sustainable option forcontrolling intestinal worms and schisto-somiasis.Improved sanitation has important addi-tional benefits, especially to women. Inmany cultures, the only time whenwomen or girls can defecate, if theyhave no latrine, is after dark. The walk tothe defecation field, often in the dark, iswhen women run the greatest risk of

sexual harassment and assault.The lack of adequate, separate sanitaryfacilities in schools is one of the mainfactors preventing girls from attendingschool, particularly when menstruating.In Bangladesh, a gender-sensitive schoolsanitation programme increased girlsenrolment by 11 per cent.

Source: www.lboro.ac.uk/well/resources/fact-sheets-htm/wps.htm


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At the end of a three-year project, theUN Millennium Project Task Force on

Water and Sanitation identified five

guiding principles and ten critical actionsessential to reaching the water and sani-tation MDGs.

Five Guiding PrinciplesThese are as follows:1. There must be a deliberate commit-

ment by donors to increase and refo-cus their development assistance andto target aid to the poorest countries.

2. There has to be delib-erate commitment bymiddle-income country

governments that donot depend on aid, toreallocate their re-sources so as to focusfunding on their un-served poor.

3. There have to be de-liberate activities tocreate support andownership for watersupply and sanitationinitiatives among both women andmen in poor communities.

4. There must be deliberate recognitionthat basic sanitation in particular re-quires community mobilization andactions that support and encouragesuch mobilization.

5. There must be deliberate planningand investment in sound water re-sources management and infrastruc-ture.

Ten Critical ActionsThese actions are needed not only tomeet the water and sanitation targets but

also to facilitate the sound managementof water resources for all MDGs:1. Governments and other stakeholders

must move the sanitation crisis to thetop of the agenda.

2. Countries must ensure that both poli-cies and institutions for water supplyand sanitation, and for water re-sources management and develop-

ment, respond equally tothe different roles, needsand priorities of womenand men.

3. Governments anddonor agencies must adtogether to reform invest-ments for improved watersupply, sanitation andwater management.4. Actions to meet thewater and sanitation tar-gets must focus on sustain-able service delivery andnot just on the construc-

tion of facilities.5. Governments and donor agencies

must ensure that local authorities andcommunities have the authority, re-sources and professional capacityrequired to manage water supply andsanitation service delivery.

6. Governments and utilities must ensurethat those who can pay for servicesdo pay, so that the revenues to fundoperation, maintenance and service

expansion are available, while at thesame time ensuring that the needs ofthe poorest households are met.

7. Within the context of national povertyreduction strategies based on theMDGs, countries must produce coher-ent water resources development andmanagement plans that will supportthe achievement of the MDGs.

8. Governments and their civil societyand private sector partners must sup-port a wide range of water and sani-tation technologies and service levelstechnically, socially, environmentallyand financially appropriate.

9. Institutional, financial and technologi-

cal innovation must be provided instrategic areas.

10.UN agencies and Member Statesmust ensure that the UN system andits international partners providestrong and effective support for theachievement of the water supply andsanitation targets and for water re-sources development and manage-ment.

In addition to these guiding principlesand critical actions, the Task Force report

sets out an Operational Plan specifyingthe steps that the key players - nationaland sub-national governments, donors,civil and community organizations andresearch institutions - need to follow insupport of achieving the MDGs.

Source: Health, Dignity and Development - What Will itTake? - a summary of the key recommendations of the UNMillennium Task Force on Water and Sanitations Final Report

Recommendations of the Millennium Task Force on Water and Sanitation

GIS has been applied innovatively inTamil Nadu for improving the schoolsanitation programme. With UNICEFassistance, GIS was used for the firsttime in India in the village of Panchayatto create water and sanitation facilitymapping for schools focusing on fiveindicators: availability of drinking water,toilets, water for toilets, washing andschool sanitation and hygiene education

(SSHE). This triggered significantchanges in planning for SSHE, especiallythe use of spatial data. When the firstGIS maps were displayed during a re-gional workshop, they shocked the dis-trict officials, as they did not have anyidea about the coverage of water andsanitation facilities in schools. They weredrawn towards the GIS maps and startedcomparing coverage levels between dif-

ferent districts and decided to take upjoint planning and use pooled resources.The data has been used to prepare dis-trict action plans for SSHE, jointly ownedby the local governments. Higher offi-cials in offices far away also becamesensitized to local problems after lookingat the GIS data.

Source: DDWS, 2004

GIS for School Sanitation and Hygiene Education: Tamil Nadu, India


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(halving by 2015 the propor-tion of those without access toadequate sanitation).

3. Increasing access to im-

proved water and sanitationfor everyone.

4. Providing disinfectant atpoint-of-use over and aboveincreasing access to im-proved water supply andsanitation.

5. Providing regulated pipedwater supply in house andsewerage connection withpartial sewerage connectionfor everyone.

Adoption of the MillenniumDevelopment Goals (MDGs)that deal with extending theavailability of water and sanita-tion services has prompted in-terest in assessing the net eco-nomic benefits of such pro-grammes. Hutton and Hallerevaluated five different scenar-ios with different levels of inter-vention for seventeen WorldHealth Organization sub-regions. The five levels of inter-vention were:

1. Water improvements requiredmeeting the MDG for watersupply (halving by 2015 the

proportion ofthose withoutsafe drinkingwater).

2. Water improve-ments to meetthe MDG forwater supplyplus the MDGfor sanitation

Costs were determined to bethe annualized equivalent of thefull capital cost of the interven-tion. Benefits were measured interms of several variables: thetime saving associated withestimated benefit-cost ratios forselected regions. Economicbenefits were found to greatlyexceed the costs for all interven-tions, particularly level (4), aresult that was robust for allregions and under alternativeintervention scenarios.

Source: Hut ton and Haller. 2004www.who. in t/water_sani ta t ion_hea l th/wsh0404.pdf

Benefits Vs. Costs of Improved Water and Sanitation Services

Water is Life

Sanitation is Dignity

Page 8

UN-HABITATWater for Asian Cities

Programme Regional Office

EP-16/17, Chandragupta Marg,Chanakyapuri, New Delhi -110021

Tel: +91-11-42225019 / 22

Fax: +91-11-24104961

Email: [email protected]

Web: www.unhabitat.org/water

Editorial Board

Hazari Lal, Director,Government of India

Sewaram, Secretary,UADD, State Govt. of M.P

Krishna Prasad Acharya,

Joint Secretary, MPPW,Govt. of Nepal

Somphone Dethoudom,Director General, MCTPC,Govt. of Lao PDR

Nguyen Sinh Hy, DirectorGeneral, Ministry of Con-struction, Govt. of Vietnam

Zheng Guangda, DeputyDirector General, Ministryof Construction, PR China

K.E. Seetharam, SeniorWater and Sanitation Spe-

cialist, ADB Manila Ravi Narayanan, Consult-

ant, Bangalore, India

Avi Sarkar, Chief TechnicalAdvisor, MEK-WATSAN,UN-HABITAT, Lao PDR

Chief Editor

Andre Dzikus, ProgrammeManager, UN-HABITATNairobi

Managing Editor Kulwant Singh, CTA, WAC

Programme, UN-HABITAT,New Delhi, India

tion, improved practices in eco-system rehabilitation as well asremediation techniques to re-store aquifer systems andgroundwater storage capacityare being developed. In particu-lar, these techniques are beingused in the Hong Phong sub-district (Bac Binh district), lo-cated about 25 km northeast ofPhan Tiet, with an area of ap-proximately 300 km2 encom-passing three villages.

The geo-hydrological assess-ment of the area, consisting ofa semi-permeable bedrock andporous material (sand dunes)with a thickness of up to 150m, allows for the use of SAR(storage and aquifer recovery)techniques by redirecting rain-

The Binh Thuan province is lo-cated along the coastal plain inthe lower part of central eastern

Viet Nam; its principal city isPhan Tiet, 200 km East of HoChi Minh City. The area of theprovince is approximately8,000 km2, with a total popula-tion of 1 million. Before 1975,the area was covered by adense tropical forest, whichwas cleared to make room forrice fields and resulted in mas-sive desertification. Due to anuneven rainfall distribution anda four-month period (from De-cember to March) of very littleprecipitation, the area suffersfrom considerable water short-age during the dry season.

In order to combat desertifica-

fall during the rainy season andmaking use of the resource dur-ing the dry period (December-March).

The project's implementation byUNESCO is ongoing and theresults achieved thus far haveallowed for the selection of thesite for the Aquifer RechargeProject in the morphologicaldepression of Nuoc Noi, where

the aquifer water table is veryclose to the ground level. Theuse of the bank filtration tech-nique is already producingsatisfactory results as waterquality increases. Groundwatercan be abstracted and used,after natural filtration, for differ-ent purposes (human and agri-cultural).

Management of Aquifer Recharge -An Example from Vietnam

WHO Sub-region Population(Million)

Benefit-cost ratio by intervention level

Sub-Saharan Africa 481 11.50 12.54 11.71 15.02 4.84

Americas 93 10.01 10.21 10.59 13.77 3.88

Europe 223 6.03 3.40 6.55 5.82 1.27

South East Asia 1689 7.81 3.16 7.88 9.41 2.90

Western Pacific 1488 5.24 3.36 6.63 7.89 1.93

Note: The parenthetical letters WHO Sub-regions as classified by epidemiological (health risk) indicators.