national strategy for community participation in ...wsup, water and sanitation for urban poor ......

The Water Directorate of the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing, the Environmental Health Division of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development and CHF International, Ghana, will like to thank the following members of the national technical working group who provided technical input for the development of this strategy. They are: Dr. Sumani Alhassan Director, Water Directorate, MWRWHGeorge Yanore Director, WASH-UP, CHF International, GhanaSylvester Gabianu Institutional Support Manager, CHF

International, Ghana Naa Lenason Demedeme Ag. Director, Environmental Health Division of

MLGRD Suzzy Abaidoo Ministry of Water Resources, Works and

HousingAsomani Nyarko Ghana Water Company LtdEbenezer Kye-Mensah Capacity Building Specialist, CHF Int. Ghana N. O Kotei Director, Water, PURCSamuel Amoako Mensah UNICEFThomas A. Seffah Accra Metropolitan AssemblyNbelayin Pascal Ghana Standards BoardHarold Esseku Rapha ConsultKweku Sarpong Abrefa Community Water and sanitation Agency Rosina Gadzekpo Chairperson, Ayidiki Water & Sanitation

CommitteePatrick Apoya Coordinator, Skyfox Ltd.Ben Authur CONIWAS

We will also like to acknowledge the following institutions and organizations that participated in various ways in the development of this strategy:

National, Regional and District

- Ministry of Water Resources Works and Housing (MWRWH)

- Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD)

- Ghana Water Company Ltd (GWCL)

- Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA)

- Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC)

- Water Resources Commission (WRC)

- Ghana Education Service (GES)

- Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

- Regional Coordinating Councils

- Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs)

Donors and Partners:

USAID

CHF International

United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)

Relief International (RI)

WSUP, Water and Sanitation for Urban Poor

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

MINISTRY OF WATER RESOURCES WORKS AND HOUSING ANDMINISTRY OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION INMANAGEMENT OF URBAN SERVICES

i

Donors and Partners (continued)

Water and Sanitation for Africa (Formerly CREPA)

Non Governmental Organizations (NGOS), CBO's and Private Sector Groups

Coalition of NGOs in Water and Sanitation (CONIWAS),

ProNet (Professional Network Associates)

RudNet (Rural Development Network)

Water and Sanitation Boards of the WASH-UP communities

Water and Sanitation Monitoring Platform (WSMP)

CONIWAS

SkyFox Ltd

Exp Ghana

Rapha Consult

The preparation of this Strategy was funded by the United States Agency for International Development

(USAID) and coordinated by Patrick Apoya, who developed the first draft for further refinement with

technical support from CHF International.



ii

Considering the performance of Ghana towards the realization of the Millennium Development Goals

especially those related to water and sanitation, a strategy that seeks to infuse general participation of

communities in the management of water and sanitation services and facilities could not have been at a

more opportune time.

The government of Ghana alone will not be able to ensure citizens have access to these essential

services owing to the numerous demands and limited resources. However, with the concerted efforts

of all relevant stakeholders and the communities themselves, the provision, operation, maintenance

and general management of water and sanitation services is possible as evidenced by numerous pilots

around the country.

The many years of top down planning and provision of services have not been able to meet

internationally accepted levels of access to water and basic sanitation for many poor urban

communities, thus the need for broadening of the spectrum of stakeholders in this process has

become necessary. Empowering the urban and peri-urban communities and rekindling their self-help

spirit around the nation to tackle their socio-economic problems; such as water and sanitation is a

better way to accelerate the provision and management of such services.

Having accepted the immense role communities can play and their capacities, stakeholders at the

national, regional and community levels including Government Ministries and Agencies, Utility

providers, and Civil society groups met to carve out the roles that will optimally involve communities in

the management of water and sanitation facilities and services based on lessons from pilots around the

country.

In fact, this strategy dovetails into the Ghana Water and Environmental Sanitation policies and the

Ghana shared Growth and Development Agenda that promotes the involvement and participation of

people at the local levels in all forms of governance; of which water and sanitation service provision

and management are not excluded. Therefore the commitment of all stakeholders is required for the

implementation of this strategy to ensure Ghana accelerates in the march towards realizing the

Millennium Development Goals on water and sanitation, not for the sake of achieving the MDGs, but

the ultimate improvement in the lives of the Ghanaian people, especially the urban poor.

Hon. E. T. Mensah

Minister for Water Resources, Works and Housing

PREFACE



iii

AMA Accra Metropolitan AssemblyCBO Community Based OrganisationCWSA Community Water and Sanitation AgencyDA District AssemblyDP Development PartnerECG Electricity Company of GhanaEHSD Environmental Health and Sanitation DirectorateFGD Focus Group DiscussionGoG Government of GhanaGSGDA Ghana Shared Growth and Development AgendaGWCL Ghana Water Company LtdM&E Monitoring and EvaluationMDG Millennium Development GoalMLGRD Ministry of Local Government and Rural DevelopmentMMDA Metropolitan/Municipal and District AssemblyMoU Memorandum of UnderstandingMWRWH Ministry of Water Resources, Works and HousingNGO Non-Governmental OrganisationO&M Operation and MaintenancePURC Public Utilities Regulatory CommissionSCALE-UP Slum Communities Achieving Livable Environments with Urban PartnersSSDP Sector Strategic Development PlanSTMA Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan AssemblyTWG Technical Working GroupUSAID United States Agency for International DevelopmentVRA Volta River AuthorityWASH Water, Sanitation and HygieneWASH-UP Water Access, Sanitation and Hygiene for the Urban PoorWATSAN Water and SanitationWSDB Water and Sanitation Development BoardsWSSDP Water Sector Strategic Development PlanWST Water and Sanitation Team

L IST OF ACRONYMS



iv

With the urban population showing steady growth over the past decade, the Government of Ghana

(GoG) is faced with the challenge of coping with the growing demand for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

(WASH) services, especially in deprived urban settlements. The fortunes of oil and gas presents even

greater urbanization prospects, with a consequent increase in demand for WASH services.

Currently, about 70% of the nation's urban population lives in congested, sub-standard structures with

little incentive to invest in a more permanent solution. Tenancy is insecure despite past and current

efforts to educate the public on the importance of obtaining formal tenancy agreements. Most parts of

the Peri-urban areas fall outside the formal planning framework of the State authorities, and therefore

lack legal standing in terms of utility services.

Poor localities and peri-urban areas are largely without a direct connection to GWCL network, largely

because: · They live in areas that are far from the network; · They lack land titles, which is required to be eligible for a connection; · They cannot afford the high upfront connection fees

The goal of this strategy is to contribute to increased access and use of improved Water, Sanitation and Hygiene services in urban poor communities and peri-urban areas of Ghana. The specific objectives are:

1. To improve water governance in urban WASH services through transparent and clear arrangements for community participation

2. To provide guidance and a framework for GWCL, MMDAs, Development Partners and NGOs for WASH operations in poor and peri-urban areas;

3. Improve infrastructure and increase WASH service levels in poor urban and peri-urban communities by 2015.

4. Increase physical access, affordability, and sustainability of WASH Services in poor and peri-urban communities.

To achieve the vision of the WASH sector as spelt out in the various strategic and policy documents,

government has to take measures to ensure universal access to WASH services by all Ghanaians

sustainably. Achieving this will not only require investments in infrastructure, but bold steps to address

human related problems such as illegal connections, non-payment of bills, substandard quality of

water, excessive resale tariffs by third party suppliers and the problems of sanitation services provision.

Addressing these problems would obviously require that communities take on and play a greater role in

the delivery and management of urban WASH services. Yet the current GWCL delivery approach does

not have any clear role carved out for the community. The Water Sector Strategic Development Plan and

the National Environmental Sanitation Strategy and Action Plan acknowledge the importance of

community participation and management in the urban setting, but provide no framework for such

engagement.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY



v

The current institutional arrangements for urban WASH delivery is difficult to attract medium to small

levels of funding from NGOs and donors who are not able to provide grants up to the scale that big urban

systems often require. Municipalities have no clear role in urban WASH especially water provision

under current arrangements, and often do not contribute significant financial resources towards

improving WASH services in the urban setting.

This strategy is intended to address these gaps, by providing a framework and a box of operational

models necessary to bring local actors together and mobilize the relevant municipal agencies to be

actively involved. The strategy provides the framework for GWCL to work with donors, NGOs,

municipal/metropolitan authorities to improve services in poor and per-urban communities.

Furthermore, the strategy provides an entry point for broader initiatives to improve living conditions in

poor and peri-urban settlements. The inclusive and participatory approaches put forward by the

strategy have the potential to empower communities and build local capacity. They will also strengthen

the official standing of community organizations and hopefully enable them to take on other

development activities. Overall, community participation in the management of urban WASH services

is not only critical in overcoming the numerous challenges outlined above, but will also ensure the

sustainability of WASH interventions in poor and peri-urban communities.

A Strategic Planning Process has been followed in the preparation of this strategy. A Technical Working

Group, comprising representatives from key stakeholders in the WASH sector was constituted to

provide technical direction and oversee the entire process of developing the strategy. The group was

chaired by the Water Directorate of the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing. As part of this

process several reports of similar initiatives in other countries such as Kenya, Philippines, Brazil and

Senegal were reviewed. Local experiences of community participation in the urban WASH services

delivery were also examined, and the lessons incorporated. Consultations were held with Government

staff, NGOs, the Private Sector, MMDAs, Development Partners, CBOs and community groups to draw

on their personal experiences and opinions. After developing the draft strategy, two zonal workshops

were held in Tamale (for the Northern Zone) and in Kumasi (for the Southern Zone) to discuss and

review the draft strategy document, following which the strategy was finalized with comments and

inputs from the workshop. Following this, a National Validation workshop was organized for final

review.

The strategy is laid out in 11 main sections. Section one (1) provides the global and national context

within which this strategy is framed. The chapter also articulates the goal, objectives and rational for the

strategy.

Section two (2) provides a situation Analysis of the Urban sub- sector. This includes an overview of

current service levels, state of infrastructure, the socio-economic context and the policy and regulatory

framework. It also provides an analysis of some challenges to effective community participation in

management of urban WASH services.



vi

Section three (3) looks at possible roles that communities can play in the delivery of WASH services in

the urban setting, as well as the limitations of community participation in management and delivery of

urban WASH services.

Section four (4) outlines strategic issues in urban WASH services. These relate to how a community is

defined, some guiding principles, setting the legal framework and defining standards for access or

benchmarking.

Section five (5) addresses governance issues. Mechanisms have been proposed for effective

participation and transparent and accountable practices of all stakeholders. Issues of sustainability,

equity, inclusion and gender roles have also been discussed.

Section six (6) provides a range of management models from which communities in different localities

may choose to engage. These models may be as simple as managing water points to more complex

arrangements for bulk water supply and distribution.

Section seven (7) outlines a simple process to be followed in developing sustainable participation

arrangements that are not only effective, but also responds to the needs of the local people. All the

steps involved would ensure that all stakeholders are effectively mobilized, and the community is

capacitated to lead, negotiate and deliver sustainable services

Section eight (8) discusses operation and maintenance issues, whilst section nine (9) spells out some

modalities for rolling out this strategy.

Section ten (10) sets out a monitoring and evaluation framework, and section eleven (11) concludes the

strategy with a set of recommendations.



vii



viii

TABLE OF CONTENTAcknowledgement ..........................................................................................................i

Preface ..........................................................................................................................iii

List of Acronyms ............................................................................................................iv

Executive Summary.........................................................................................................v

Table of Contents .........................................................................................................viii

Section 1: Introduction and Background .........................................................................1

1.1 Global Context .................................................................................................................1

1.2 Ghana Context .................................................................................................................1

1.3 Goal and Objectives of this Strategy................................................................................2

1.4 Rationale..........................................................................................................................3

1.5 Methodology ...................................................................................................................4

Section 2: Situation Analyses ..........................................................................................5

2.1 Access to WASH Service...................................................................................................5

2.2 Water supply Infrastructure and Sources ........................................................................6

2.3 Socio-Economic Context of Peri Urban and Low Income Urban Communities ...............7

2.4 Regulatory framework .....................................................................................................8

2.5: GoG Social Policy ............................................................................................................9

2.6 Experience of Community Management in the Urban Sub Sector in Ghana.................10

2.7 Analysis of Emerging Challenges to Community Participation in Management

of Urban WASH Services ...............................................................................................11

2.8 The Urban Wash Platform (UWP)..................................................................................12

Section 3: Role of Communities in the Delivery of WASH services in the Urban Setting .14

3.1: Understanding the Limitations of Community Participation

in Management and Delivery of Urban WASH services ...............................................14

3.2 Determining an appropriate role for the Community ...................................................14

Section 4: Strategic Issues in Urban Water and Sanitation Management .......................18

4.1 Defining Poor Communities...........................................................................................18

4.3 Legal framework ............................................................................................................18

4.4 Defining Standards for Access .......................................................................................20

Section 5: Governance Arrangements ...........................................................................21

5.1 Governance and Accountability arrangements .............................................................24

5.2 Equity and Inclusion ......................................................................................................24

5.3 Sustainability Issues:......................................................................................................24

Section 6: Choosing the Appropriate Management Models ...........................................25

Section 7 The Process for Developing Community Management in the urban Setting....27

Section 8: Operation and Maintenance (O & M)............................................................30

Section 9: Operationalizing the Strategy........................................................................31

Section 10. Monitoring and Evaluation..........................................................................32

Section 11. Conclusion/Recommendations ...................................................................35

Appendices. ..................................................................................................................37

1.1 Global ContextIn the last 50 years, the world's urban population has increased fourfold. According to the UN Human Settlements Program, in 1800 only 2% of the global population lived in cities and by 1950 already 30% of the world was urbanized. By 2000, 47% of the world's population was estimated to live in cities, while projections for 2030 suggest this percentage may climb to 60%. Urbanization rates in developing countries outstrip those in industrialized countries, with Africa – still predominantly rural (37.5% of urbanization in 2000) – showing the highest annual growth rates at almost 4.9%. In 1975, five mega-cities had populations in excess of 10 million inhabitants – Tokyo (19.8 million), New York (15.9), Shanghai (11.4), Mexico City (11.2) and Sao Paulo (10). By 2000, their ranks had swelled to 19, a large majority of them in developing countries. In addition, the world today has 370 cities with between 1 and 5 million inhabitants. Many of the inhabitants of these big cities live in slums and have no or inadequate access to running water. (Source: Gabriela Elgegren Vasquez, 2004).

About 50% of the world's population now lives in urbancenters. While urban populations grew rapidly, expansion of water supply and sanitation services did not. Spending on water supply and sanitation has not kept pace with growth, and there are dramatic differences in infrastructure expenditure between cities in low and high income countries. As a result, it is estimated that between 30% and 60% of the urban population in most nations is not being adequately served by water supply and sanitation services.

As the world turned urban in 2010, developing countries face the challenge of coping with the growing demand for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services, especially in informal urban settlements. The high rates of urbanization have resulted in rapid growth of slums and sprawling peri-urban settlements, whose populations have either no access at all, or access to low levels of WASH services. The public health and environmental consequences of the situation threatens not only the populations in these locations, but the entire urban population (McGranahan, 2007; Mulenga et al., 2004). In poor slum areas, water is costly and of poor quality, representing both a significant household expenditure for the urban poor as well as a growing health hazard, characterized by frequent outbreaks of highly communicable diseases such as cholera.

1.2 Ghana ContextGhana is experiencing a rapid pace of urbanization, whilst the government struggles to cope with the ever increasing demand for WASH services. Currently, about 50% of Ghana's population lives in urban areas, 64% of whom has access to improved water supply (GWCL, 2011). The fortunes of oil and gas presents even greater urbanization prospects, with a consequent increase in demand for WASH service especially within the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Area. Poor localities and peri-urban areas are largely without a direct connection to the GWCL network.

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND


SECTION 1


1

Consequently, the main sources of drinking water for the poor are third party suppliers and vendors. The main challenges with these sources are:

— Poor quality — High price – Some residents pay 10-20 times the approved tariff to access water. — Unreliability of access/inconsistent access

Weakness in governance systems is one of the major reasons behind the difficulties encountered in urban WASH services delivery. Hence, getting communities to participate in the management of WASH services in poor and peri-urban areas should be considered a major goal for increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of WASH delivery. There would be definite advantages to such an institutional arrangement if community participation in management is carried out smoothly. Water provision should be seen as a basic service where citizens and their social and economic organizations can play a role in the urban governance together with the government.

A key strategic issue outlined in the Sector Strategic Development Plan (SSDP) for the Water sector is to

engage discussions among key stakeholders regarding the supply and management options for

providing water to peri-urban and low income communities. Municipal/Municipal/District Assemblies

(MMDAs) and communities are expected to play active roles in these discussions. The options

proposed in the SSDP include the following:

· Water and Sanitation Committees (WSC) management of a water facility or distribution of bulk

water supply from GWCL or community owned network;

· Area Council-Unit Committee management of a water facility or bulk water supply from GWCL

or community owned network; and

· Private operator management of a water facility or bulk water supply from GWCL or

community owned network.

Recent international studies and experience from Ghana's own Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA) have shown that community involvement leads to sustainable access to water. (Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) actively promotes the concept of community participation, especially with regard to the provision of water to poor and peri-urban communities. As part of its desire to build knowledge that will inform its regulatory decisions and future policy and bring benefits to the urban poor, PURC has resolved to test interventions in delivering water to low-income communities through the promotion of pilot projects.

1.3 Goal and Objectives of this Strategy The goal of this strategy is to contribute to increased access and use of improved WASH services in poor urban -and peri-urban areas of Ghana. The specific objective are therefore:

1. To improve water governance in urban WASH services through transparent and comprehensive arrangements for community participation

2. To provide guidance and a framework for GWCL, MMDAs, Development Partners and NGOs for WASH operations in poor and peri-urban areas;



2

3. Improve infrastructure and increase WASH service levels in poor and peri-urban communities by 2015.

4. Increase physical access, affordability, and sustainability of WASH Services in poor and peri-urban communities.

1.4 Rationale

The vision of the water sector as stated in the National Water Policy and the draft Sector Strategic Plan is

“sustainable basic water and sanitation services for all by 2025”. The goal of the sector is to improve

access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene and ensuring sustainable management of water resources

as a means to improving living standards of people”. This means government has to take measures to

ensure that “all people living in Ghana have access to adequate, safe, affordable and reliable water

service, practise safe sanitation and hygiene and that water resources are sustainably managed”. In line

with achieving universal coverage for water and sanitation services by 2025, the Sector Strategic

Development Plan (SSDP) aims to among others, increase urban water coverage from 59% in 2009 to

85% in 2015 and 100% in 2025; and to increase national sanitation coverage from 13% in 2008 to 53% in

2015 and 100% by 2025; A key policy objective for urban and peri-urban WASH delivery outlined in the

SSDP is to improve access to water services especially for the poor in urban and peri urban areas.

Efforts to improve services in these areas have been constrained by the following factors:

· Illegal connections, non-payment of bills, substandard quality of water and sanitation services,

and excessive resale tariffs prevail in these areas, and are difficult to control. Utility staff on their

own, are often not effective in dealing with these problems, yet no formal arrangement exists

for utilities to work with communities in dealing with problems

· The National Water Policy (2007) and the Environmental Sanitation Policy (2010) recognize the

importance of community participation in improving governance and effectiveness of WASH

services in urban settings, yet no formal guidelines exist for active involvement of communities

in the management of WASH services in the urban setting.

· The current GWCL delivery approach does not have any clear role carved out for the

community.

· The Water Sector Strategic Development Plan and the National Environmental Sanitation

Strategy and Action Plan acknowledge the role of community ownership and management in

the urban setting, but provide no framework for such engagement.

· The current institutional arrangements for urban WASH delivery makes it difficult to attract

medium to small levels of funding from NGOs and donors.

· Municipalities have no clear role in urban WASH under current arrangements, and often do not

contribute financial resources towards improving WASH services in the urban setting.

This strategy addresses these gaps. An explicit approach such as this, with operational models, is

necessary to bring local actors together and mobilize the relevant municipal agencies towards active

participation. This strategy document provides the framework for GWCL to work with donors, NGOs,

municipal/metropolitan authorities to improve services in poor and peri-urban communities.

Furthermore, the strategy provides an entry point for broader initiatives to improve living conditions in

poor and peri-urban settlements



3

The inclusive and participatory approaches put forward by the strategy have the potential to empower

communities and build local capacity. They will also strengthen the official standing of community

organizations and hopefully enable them to take on other development activities. Overall, community

participation and ownership within the urban setting is critical in overcoming the numerous challenges

outlined above, and to ensure the sustainability of WASH interventions in poor and peri-urban

communities.

1.5 MethodologyThe Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing and the WASH-UP Project of CHF International Ghana, with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), facilitated the process for developing this strategy, through a series of stakeholder consultations. The process adopted for developing this strategy is outlined below:

· Stakeholder meeting to discuss the issue of community management in urban setting. This meeting drew on past and ongoing experiences on the subject, such as those implemented under the CHF's SCALE-UP Project in Accra and Sekondi-Takoradi.

· Formation of Technical Working Group (TWG) to provide strategic guidance for the process of developing strategy

· Desk review of legal and operational aspects of community ownership and management in urban water and sanitation delivery.

· Stakeholder consultations with, beneficiary communities, Sub- Metro and Metropolitan authorities, GWCL, Water Directorate, NGOs and others on community management and ownership in urban water delivery

· Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with beneficiary communities and sub Metros to further explore the management, governance, pricing and accountability mechanisms under community management in the urban setting.

· Technical Working Group (TWG) meetings to share results of consultations and FGDs, at specified stages of this assignment

· Draft National Strategy on Community Management in Urban Water services in Ghana and presentation to the TWG.

· Validation workshops in Northern, Middle and Southern zones of the country· Revision of the draft strategy based on inputs collated from zonal workshops, and fine tuning of

the strategy· Final strategy presented to stakeholders in a National Workshop

This consultation processes helped to define community management within the urban

context, and the scope regarding legal issues of ownership, roles and responsibilities of all

relevant stakeholders, as well as accountability arrangements.



4

2.1 Access to WASH ServiceThe urban population using an improved water supply increased from 62% in 2010 to 64% in 2011. Rising population in urban areas has already overstretched water and sanitation services, and could worsen without adequate steps to meet the ever growing demand. Production is about

3 3 3687944.61m /day while demand is 1,076,526m 1,101,032m /day for the year 2008 resulting in a

3shortfall of about 388,581m /day. Service failures are a frequent occurrence.

About 60% of the urban population have no direct access to piped water, but rely on tertiary vendors. According to a Ghana Integrity report, only 15% of the poor have direct access to piped water, 15% have access to water from wells (Boreholes, protected and unprotected wells) while 2.5% have access to natural sources (river/stream, rain water/spring, dugout/pond/lake) and 8.4% have access to other sources (water truck/tanker service (0.9%,), water vendor (3.4%) and sachet/bottled water (4%). 71.1% of medium wealth and 94.8% of high wealth households have indoor pipe connection. Only 28.8% of poor households have indoor pipe connections (Boadi 2004). In urban areas people not having access to improved systems rely to a large extent on water tankers and private vendors, while also using rainwater and shallow wells when available.

The major source of water available to households in the 5 poor urban communities targeted under CHF's project for water, sanitation and hygiene improvements is piped water. About 90% of household heads in these communities reported using water from the public utility (GWCL). Out of this, 38% have piped water connected to their houses whereas 52% access water from either public or private commercial stand pipes. Less than 30% of people with a pipe connection have water supply every day and 35% obtain water for two days each week or less.

Supply of water is intermittent and generally unreliable. The quality of water supplied is questionable as a result of contamination from pipes. In poor urban communities, it is also common to see water pipelines laid running through gutters. According to GWCL, water quality at treatment points is good, but gets contaminated during transmission due to broken pipes that allow intrusion. The use of same tanker trucks to supply drinking water and raw water for construction presents additional quality challenges to those who rely on such services for drinking water. Although the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has issued some guidelines for tankers, practical enforcement is yet to take place on a consistent basis.


SITUATION ANALYSIS

SECTION 2


5

In the majority of urban areas, water is rationed due to high demand and inadequate supply. It should be noted that there is no proper metering system for urban water production and consumption by GWCL. Therefore, the data available are mere estimates by GWCL. GWCL estimates that although demand

3 3 stood at 1,076,526m of water per day as of 20101, only about 687,944.6m was produced per day. GWCL still records significantly high non-revenue water averaging about 50% and has a bill collection ratio of about 90%.

The poor (defined by Living Standards Measurement criteria) make up 47% of the total population in urban piped system areas. PURC's research study in 2003 found that within urban piped system areas only 15% of the poor have access to piped water either directly or via yard taps. This has led to the adoption by PURC of a working definition of the urban poor as those (i) without direct access to regulated piped supplies, (ii) who depend on secondary and tertiary suppliers and (iii) who buy by the bucket.

The poor pay much more for water than the rich (sometimes 10 to 12 times as much) because they get most of their supply from water vendors. The current tariff structure, in which unit cost of water increases with quantity consumed, means that poor people who live in compound housing and use shared connection pay more for unit of water consumed than richer households who have smaller family sizes.

The proportion of non-revenue water is 52%, more than twice the international best practice levels of

20%, and even the benchmark of 33% for the low income country peer group . There are two

explanations for this. One is the ageing distribution infrastructure that is full of leaks. The other is high

non-technical losses due to large- scale theft from the distribution network, sometimes for the

purposes of secondary retailing. Unstable electricity supply, encroachment, illegal small scale mining

activities (“galamsey”), delay in payment of compensation, rationing and its effects on equipment and

mounting customer indebtedness are also other factors that have affected efficiency of operations of

GWCL thus leading to unsustainable urban water service delivery. The bill collection ratio of 90% is also

lower than the benchmark of 96% and 99.2% for low and middle income country peer groups.

2.2 Water supply Infrastructure and Sources2.2.1 GWCL Pipe ConnectionThe urban water supply systems in Ghana includes household connections, yard taps, and public

standpipes (Pay and fetch system). Many of these connections are not metered by the GWCL . The poor

are mostly served under this model through pubic standpipes, tanker services, and local water vendors

with polyethylene surface or concrete ground tanks.

2.2.2 Water Tanker OperatorsDifferent types of water tanker operators exist mainly in large towns where they serve an important part

of the population. This includes small companies with a few



6

tankers as well as individual drivers. Most tankers are secondary providers as they buy water from

unknown sources and sell to consumers. The PURC used to regulate the price at which the tankers

purchase water from GWCL but not how much they sell to consumers. In Accra, water tankers have

formed different tanker associations mainly to provide welfare services for the drivers. The operation

of water tankers have been abolished since 2010, although a few continue to operate illegally.

2.2.3 Water vendors

Water Vendors are a crucial component of the water supply system, serving the poorer sections of the

community. Most water vendors are individuals who store water in tanks and sell it to people within

their neighborhood. They may get the water from the piped system (legally or illegally) or tanker trucks.

Some vendors also construct their own hand dug wells or boreholes with their own resources, (

commonly called self-supply). There are a growing number of “water porters” who make a living by

buying water from water vendors for onward retailing to others on request.

2.2.4 Rainwater Harvesting

This is mainly used in the rainy season as a supplementary water source but the quality may have

problems because of pollution on the roofs and poor storage conditions. Rainwater harvesting systems

channel rainwater that falls on to a roof into household storage reservoirs via simple roof gutters and

pipes.

Rainwater harvesting has been on an individual basis at a low level, but the Government of Ghana

(GoG) is in the process of launching a national strategy to increase the practice and supplement other

sources of water.

2.2.5 Packaged Water

Within a decade, more than a million people in urban areas, representing 12% of the urban population

have shifted from drinking tap water and other more affordable and safe sources to packaged water at

a cost of more than a thousand, six hundred times compared to that of tap water. Just a little over a

decade back (1998), virtually nobody in Ghana relied on packaged water as a first choice of drinking

water. The bulk of the packaged water consumed is sachet water, which is well patronized by people

within the middle and lower classes due to perceptions of poor quality water from public supplies.

Unfortunately, no data is available on the quality improvements of this water over water obtained

directly from the taps. Bottled water is mainly patronized by the high income group and considered

generally safe.

Most parts of Peri-urban areas either fall outside the formal planning zone of the authorities or lack

service network. Neither CWSA nor GWCL plan the provision of services to these areas. Because land is

privately owned, development proceeds without due regard to formal Town and Country plans, or the

service extension plans of utility companies. Hence, development proceeds faster than infrastructure

provision.

2.3 Socio-Economic Context of Peri Urban and Low Income Urban Communities



7

About 70% of Ghana's urban population live in congested, sub-standard structures with little incentive

to invest in a more permanent solution. Tenancy is insecure despite past and current efforts to educate

the public on the importance of obtaining formal tenancy agreements. A study by PURC concluded that

the majority of the poor are un-served directly by GWCL except through informal services or secondary

and tertiary sources. PURC and GWCL are in the process of developing a strategy for improving water

service. In the interim, proposals have been made in the Water Sector Strategic Development Plan

(WSSDP) to improve the delivery of water service in these areas.

People in poor localities are often unable to get connections because:· They live in areas that are far from the network;· They lack land titles, which is required to be eligible for a connection;· They cannot afford the high upfront connection fees

Even when they have connections, the network in low-income areas is often less well maintained than

in non-poor areas, service interruptions are more frequent, and response time to service calls is longer.

Poor consumers lack “voice” and find it difficult to lobby for service improvements. Due to intermittent

water supply, wealthy customers install storage facilities, but poor families cannot afford this. A more

recent practice has been the tendency for wealthier households or individuals to install suction pumps

that tend to forcibly draw water into the owners reservoirs, thereby depriving people downstream who

depend on the same line.

Although GoG is committed to improving water service delivery in peri urban areas and low income

communities, a lot more work needs to be done in defining peri urban areas and supply options and

putting in place a comprehensive strategy for providing water service to these areas.

2.4 Regulatory framework The Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing (MWRWH) is responsible for policy formulation,

planning, management and evaluation of all water programs. The Water Directorate of MWRWH is the

focal point for coordination of the drinking water supply and water-related sanitation, for policy

harmonization, sector-wide monitoring and evaluation of the Ghana Shared Growth and Development

Agenda (GSGDA) outcomes and MDG targets as well as coordination of foreign assistance.

Water and sanitation infrastructure and services delivery has been traditionally undertaken by the

public sector in Ghana, especially in urban areas. The GWCL was established in 1999 and is responsible

for the planning, financing, construction and management of all urban water supply. The company

currently manages 87 urban water supply systems across Ghana. In June 2006, Ghana engaged the

services of Messrs Aqua-Vitens Rand Limited under a Management Contract for the about eighty urban

water supply systems in the country. This contract lapsed in June 2011 after five years of

implementation. The management contract was not



8

renewed, leading to the development of a new framework for the management of urban water

services by government and other stakeholders. Some stakeholders have made calls for reforms that

will allow communities to play a major role in the governance and delivery of urban water services.

The Environmental Health and Sanitation Directorate (EHSD) of the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development (MLGRD) is responsible for implementing the Environmental Sanitation Policy including management and regulation of solid and liquid wastes by MMDAs (Metropolitan Assemblies (MA), Municipal Assemblies and District Assemblies (DAs).

The Building code of Ghana (National Building Regulations 1996, LI 1630) mandates every home owner to provide adequate sanitation facilities. This requirement has however, been grossly flouted upon, with over many land lords converting existing toilet facilities into living accommodation to take advantage of the high demand and good income from rental accommodation.

2.5: GoG Social PolicyThe Government of Ghana (GoG) considers the provision of potable water as a critical element in its policy for the sustainable economic development of the country. This has been clearly stated in its policy statements and the Ghana Shared Growth and Development Agenda document. In line with its commitment to ensure the provision of potable water, the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing (MWRWH) initiated various reforms in the water sector in the 1990s to improve the efficiency of water supply. These reforms created an institutional structure to separate and clarify the various institutional roles within the water sector, and have followed a process to introduce the private sector into urban water delivery.

GoG further established the PURC by Act 538 to regulate and oversee the provision of water and electricity supply 'to consumers'. Among some of its key objectives in ensuring the provision of potable water supplies and in line with the GPRS, GoG is focusing on improving access to water in rural, peri-urban and unreached poor urban areas (Ref. GSGDA 2010-2013 and SSDP). The basic issues to be addressed, with impact on access to water supply, particularly to low-income consumers, include:

· Mobilizing financial resources for investment in refurbishment and extension of coverage of urban water systems;

· Strengthening the Ghana Water Company Ltd. (GWCL) to effectively manage service contracts and extensions;

· Establishing a Unit within the MWRWH to monitor provision of water to the poor;· Bringing tariffs to cost recovery levels to make the operations of urban water systems

sustainable;· Providing direct state interventions in areas where there is a marked gap in service delivery;· Creating partnership programs with NGOs which have a comparative advantage in responding

effectively to the needs of the vulnerable and excluded.



9

2.6 Experience of Community Management in the Urban Sub Sector in GhanaThere has been over a decade's worth of experience of community management in the small and rural water sub-sector. This, however, is not the case in the urban water sub-sector.. The WASH-UP Project constitutes one of the few real community management experiences in the urban water sub-sector and requires careful planning and monitoring of implementation of the innovation. Despite the absence of direct community management within the urban setting in Ghana, there are nonetheless important lessons to draw from isolated cases across the country, including the following:

PURC Pro-Poor Initiatives: PURC is already undertaking pilot arrangements that involve community management under which communities receive 'bulk water from the utility for onward retail to community members. It is expected to generate lessons that will guide replication in other urban communities. It is intended that these pilot studies will provide lessons in increasing accessibility, shortening the supply chain and achieving sustainability through innovative supply and community management arrangements. The initial expectation is that the projects should be completed within two years, though monitoring for lessons learned with a view to engineering better informed and targeted social policy interventions may take longer

Savelugu Model: The Savelugu Water Supply System is based on a partnership agreement forged between the community and the GWCL in 1999. The partnership involves the supply of bulk potable water to the Savelugu Water Board who has the responsibility of retailing the water to members of the Savelugu community, and of paying the full cost of water supplied to the GWCL. Clear roles for both parties, i.e. the community and the GWCL, were defined, and the terms of the partnership were negotiated. The community undertakes to handle the distribution of water and collection of bills from its members (the households in this case) and pays GWCL, whilst the GWCL just delivers the water to the community. The price is also negotiated between the Water Board and the GWCL, taking into account commercial and domestic uses. Savelugu may sometimes be granted a reasonable discount of the total sum to pay to the GWCL. Savelugu is one of the main partners of the GWCL in terms of bulk water sales.

New Energy and Tamale Metropolitan Assembly Models: New Energy, a Ghanaian NGO and a WaterAid Partner, and the Tamale Metropoilitan Assembly initiated efforts in 2004 to redevelop abandoned and poorly maintained hand dug wells within the metropolis. As part of this process, the facilities were mechanized, and equipped with overhead storage reservoirs. Community groups were trained to manage the systems with support from the NGO and the Metropolitan authorities. The results so far have been mixed, with some of the facilities surviving till date whilst others have failed.



10

CHF International Water Kiosks Initiative: In a recent evaluation of the Water Kiosks component of the SCALE-UP Project, four models of community management were documented in the Accra and Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Areas. The SCALE-UP Project actively promoted these models through community management, training and financial support for infrastructure improvements. These models included:

· Private Individual Owned System

· Group Owned System

· Community Owned System

· NGO Managed System

Overall the governance and management arrangements were satisfactory except for lapses in

financial management.

CWSA quasi-urban systems: Some of the small town water supply schemes under the jurisdiction of the CWSA have the semblance of urban schemes. Typical examples are the Oyibi scheme and the three District Water Supply scheme. Despite its apparent independence from GWCL, the Oyibi Scheme services more or less an urban settlement, with a substantial number of household connections.

2.7 Analysis of Emerging Challenges to Community Participation in Management of Urban

WASH Servicesi. The current National Water Policy (MWRWH, 2007), under the Public-Private Partnership

(Focus Area 5), identifies as one its objectives to encourage community ownership and local

private sector participation to address the challenge of creating an enable environment for

public-private participation and ensuring viability of urban systems. Nevertheless, there is no

clear strategy in place to support community management in the urban water sector.

Stakeholder

Private individual owned system; An individual pays for the construction of a water kiosk and is provided with additional business management skills to operate and manage the facility.

Group Owned System; A group of people contribute to pay for the construction of the water kiosk, after which an operator is nominated for training to operate and maintain facility on behalf of the group.

Community owned system; The water point is provided to the community and an operator is nominated for training to operate the system on a daily basis. The community also constitutes a committee that is trained on the management and maintenance of the system

NGO managed system; a variation of the community owned system with an NGO managing the facility on behalf of the community.



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discussions with GWCL and other partners has revealed potential bottlenecks/conflicts that need to be

identified and addressed if sustainable community management system can be put in place to ensure

sustainable service delivery. Key challenges have been listed below:

· Conflict of GWCL norms: the current GWCL delivery approach does not have any clear role

carved out for community participation. Therefore, the concept of community management

does not fit directly into GWCL operation. There is the need to create the environment for

innovative community management that will synergize with the operations of GWCL.

· Proposed community management approach in Ghana largely untested: There are not

enough lessons to draw from Ghana regarding community management in the urban setting.

However, international experiences, as well as lessons from the rural water sub sector on

community management may provide some clues.

· Doubts about community/Sub-metro capacity to manage facilities: one of the main

challenges confronting community management in small towns is the inadequate capacity and

commitment of the community and the local government (District Assemblies) towards

operation and maintenance for sustainable service delivery. The situation with sub-metros

may be more challenging because over the years the sub-metros have not played any role in

water delivery in the urban sub-sector.

· Questions/challenges relating to ownership and debate on role of GWCL: The ownership

arrangement within the community water sector puts the legal ownership of water systems

with the district assemblies on behalf of the community. However, in the urban water sub-

sector, the GWCL is the asset owner of the urban water system and therefore the ownership of

the new system being provided under the WASH-UP program has to be clarified and the role of

GWCL well-defined. The formal linkages between the stakeholders need to be analyzed and

agreed on.

· Pricing of water: Water tariffs in the community water sub-sector (under community

management of operation and maintenance) tend to be higher than tariff in the urban water

sub-sector. In community managed schemes, tariff reviews are proposed by community

management group (Water and Sanitation Development Board) for approval the district

assembly. However, tariffs in the urban water sub-sector are proposed by GWCL for approval

by PURC. The key challenges under the current project include the issue of who will regulate

tariffs and how much to charge individual customers.

2.8 The Urban Wash Platform (UWP)In 2008, the PURC organised the first meeting of the Pro-poor WASH Sector Coordination Group. The group had since held regular meetings to highlight policy issues relating to pro-poor WASH issues. These meetings often focused on on-going initiatives of the PURC and have provided opportunities for urban-focused WASH projects to share their experiences. Recent meetings since 2010 have seen an expanded membership and a more diverse range of discussions around sector pro-poor efforts and ongoing projects. There is a proposal to formally establish the platform as a sector-wide coordinating group.



12

The Platform is conceived as a Consultative body anchored within the key sector ministry – the MWRWH. It is expected to bring together all key agencies, projects, resource centres and other non-state actors who play a key role in pro-poor WASH service delivery. The focus will be on facilitation of sector learning and knowledge sharing on issues relating to pro-poor services delivery. The UWP will also ensure that outcomes of discussions will be used to advise the Sector Ministry on policy issues related to pro-poor services planning and delivery. Some of the key challenges to be addressed by the UWP as a matter of priority could include:

· Need to map out cities in order to clearly delineate needy and poor areas; · Making input into the ongoing efforts toward preparation of Sector Strategic Plans to ensure a

pro-poor focus in the delivery of Water Services delivery; · Ensuring improved coordination of urban WASH issues – including control of operations of

NGOs and Donor partners;· Need to help increase pro-poor focus of GWCL and to change pervasive over-emphasis on

infrastructure;· Highlighting the challenge of grey areas (often referred to as peri-urban that are neither

covered by GWCL nor CWSA).



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3.1: Understanding the Limitations of Community Participation in Management and Delivery

of Urban WASH servicesBefore understanding the appropriate role that communities can play in the management and delivery

of urban WASH services, it is important to understand the limitations of communities in effectively

taking on some roles. This will help to avoid the danger of unrealistic expectations of communities to

solve the urban WASH problems.

Community management can create unnecessary tensions between communities and utility providers

if the latter is not convinced about the value-added that community management can bring to bear

upon sustainable WASH service delivery. For communities to effectively play their role, the training

provided should align properly with the tasks given to them. To avoid these problems, a thorough

analysis of the performance of utilities on a task- by- task basis is important to determine, if community

management is desirable in a given location or situation. Annex1 presents the analytical framework to

guide decision making regarding roles to be assigned to communities.

3.2 Determining an appropriate role for the CommunityA fresh approach to overcoming the challenges of WASH services delivery in poor urban area entails transfer of the management of the drinking water supply and sanitation schemes from state governments to user communities. The aim of involving communities in the management of urban water delivery is to compliment the role of GWCL to improve performance. The roles assigned to communities should therefore be those that build upon the weaknesses of the utility where it is clear that the community has a comparative advantage. It is important to link the peri-urban strategy to the current strategy that is focusing on community management in poor neighborhoods. The peri-urban situation is driven by access and geography, but access should be considered the key driving force.

A detailed analysis of the current performance of urban WASH service providers with regard to their

various tasks is presented below to enable a good understanding of which tasks could be assigned to

communities to realize maximum benefit. For communities to see value in participating in urban water

supply management, any arrangement in place should generate income for the community. In all

communities may play more than ten (11) different types of roles in the delivery and management of

urban water supply and about five (5) roles in urban sanitation services provision. These are as follows:


ROLE OF COMMUNIT IES IN THE DELIVERY OF WASH SERVICES IN THE URBAN SETTINGS

SECTION 3


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A. Water

1. Secondary Distribution – With a simplified organizational structure and capacity building, communities can be a link between GWCL and consumers to distribute water to households within a defined geographical setting. This is possible where the community enters into a contract with the utility for bulk supply. The responsibility of the utility ends at a location where a bulk meter is installed, and the community takes responsibility from that point for onward distribution to households or public stand pipes.

2. Minor Maintenance: Communities can play a role in minor maintenance of the distribution network in close collaboration with GWCL. This is possible with the following categories of maintenance:

a) Plumbing works on tertiary linesb) Construction works on platform, water kiosks and storage reservoirsc) Tap heads and stand postsd) Any other role that GWCL may assign to the community.

3. Revenue Collection: Communities can enter into a contract to collect revenue on behalf of the utility provider for a commission. If the commission is incentivizing enough, communities could make a significant difference in the recovery rate of bills. In this case the utility provider maintains the responsibility of billing, and then passes the bills to the community group for collection. With the prevalence of electronic payment systems, it is possible to make this cost-effective by implementing a pre-paid system where communities purchase the bills electronically in advance at a discounted rate, and then recover their investment and commission.

4. Public Education on water use – This could be an additional role for communities if they are already involved in other roles that generate income for the community. Partnership with NGOs can make this role a viable stand-alone activity that communities can play. Alternatively GWCL may finance community groups to perform this role as a stand-alone activity.

5. Hygiene Behavior Change Communication – Iindividuals as well as communities will need to be constantly educated on the proper and desirable hygiene practices related to water vending including cleanliness of the surrounding areas of the vending points, public standing pipes and storage tanks of private household vendors, hand-washing with soap at critical times especially before handling water or food etc. This should be an integral part of the management roles of the facilities since the practice of proper hygiene behaviors will enhance the health benefit to be realized from the improved access to water supply.

6. Make new connections within a service Area – Communities may be given the responsibility of receiving applications for new water connections, vetting and approving, then liaising with GWCL to make the actual connection. This can be executed by GWCL staff directly, or via a network of plumbers approved and licensed by GWCL to do so. Communities receive payment from prospective applicants for new metered connections, then pass on payment to GWCL less an agreed-upon commission. The real advantage here is the ease and convenience it brings to households who desire new connections.



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7. Pipe Extensions to un-served areas: Working closely with GWCL, communities can partner with NGOs to source donor support in laying primary distribution pipelines to newly developing areas where service extensions are yet to be made. All applications for new connections are then made to the community, who in turn GWCL an agreed price. The difference here is that, unlike the previous case, the community retains a greater part of the payment received

8. Disconnections and Reconnections – Communities may be given the responsibility and empowered to disconnect customers who have been blacklisted by GWCL for any justifiable reasons. In some areas, disconnecting a consumer often leads to an illegal reconnection. The community has a clear advantage in enforcing disconnections over GWCL as they are better able to check and curtail illegal reconnections. In all cases, however, the list of customers to be disconnected would be provided by GWCL, together with the reasons for the disconnections. In the same way, GWCL will advise communities regarding reconnections when the defaulting customers rectify their problems with GWCL

9. Loss prevention: Communities can work with GWCL to establish a network of plumbers to detect and rectify pipe bursts in communities, control illegal connections, check meter tampering, collusion and consumers who use water in far excess of what they actually pay for. Once communities understand the impact of these unlawful actions on their access to a good service, they would be motivated to play this role with minimum financial input from GWCL.

10. Implement Pro-poor mechanisms – This is clearly an issue of involving communities in the planning and implementation of initiatives that target the poor for improving services. This is already happening in the CHF financed water Kiosks operations in Nima, Ayidiki and Kwesimintsim, where vendors actually exempt those they know to be poor from paying for water from their stand posts.

11. Social Monitoring - Another role that communities can play is social monitoring, using social accountability tools such as community score card. This is best done in collaboration with NGOs and CBOs who often have the capacity and skills for social accountability actions.



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B. Sanitation

Communities can play about five main roles in management and delivery of sanitation services.

They include the following:

1. Equipment for septage conveyance (eg. Cesspit emptier): Communities that are capable of

raising funds from internal and external sources may acquire and manage Sanitation related

equipment, such as Cesspit Emptiers and Solid Waste Collection equipment. In this case,

Metropolitan/Municipal authorities should prioritize the community where they will allocate

the franchises for contractors to collect waste 2. Operation and Maintenance: Community Groups may be supported to form management

units to take over the management of public toilets in their communities. Income generated from the operations may be used to expand the service to cover the entire community. Funds may also be used for general sanitation and hygiene improvements in the community, including public education.

3. Solid Waste Collection: Community based groups may be supported to develop and engage in local enterprises related to solid waste collection and disposal. Door to door collection, sorting and composting are viable enterprises that communities can engage in. The Regional water and Sanitation Center (CREPA) has successfully tested this model in Burkina Faso and now it is in the process of scaling up.

4. Treatment of Septage: Communities may manage compost fields which can use large volumes of septage and other organic matter. Compost can be sold directly to farmers, whilst a service fee may be charged to Environmental service providers for dumping septage in the compost fields.

5. Public Education on use of sanitary facilities: Communities could work with NGOs, CBOs and partner with the Environmental Health and Sanitation Directorate in public education on environmental sanitation and hygiene. All community members especially children should be constantly reminded through different communication channels of the need to keep the facilities clean and the importance of washing hands with soap under running water after using the latrine facilities. This should be seen as a very important part of the service delivery continuum since the practice of proper hygiene and sanitation behaviors is paramount for the realization of the health benefits from improved access to sanitation facilities.



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4.1 Defining Poor CommunitiesIt is important to place pro-poor issues concerning water supply within the context of “Access”, regardless of one's location or economic status, as understood by the GWCL and the PURC. For the purpose of this strategy, the PURC's working definition of "Poor" has been adopted. This refers to those:

(i) without direct access to the utility's supplies, (ii) who depend on secondary suppliers and, (iii) who buy by the bucket or container.

Communities that meet the above criteria regardless of their geographical location in the urban setting

are the primary targets for this strategy.

4.2 Key Guiding PrinciplesThis strategy is guided by 8 key principles, all of which take root from existing sector policies

and strategies. These include the following:a) To bring water to every home, or within 200 meters of every houseb) Every household to own a latrine within their yard, or access a public facility within 100 meters

away from homec) Municipal/Metropolitan authorities to play a key roled) GWCL as key facilitator, in collaboration with NGOs and Community based Organisatione) Multiple financing sources, including Government, Development Partners and NGOsf) Communities and local government authorities to ensure sustainable financing of operations

and maintenance of infrastructureg) Consistency with Sector Policies, strategies and Social Policy of PURCh) Recognizing water as a human right

4.3 Legal frameworkThe legal basis for community participation in urban water service delivery is the National Water Policy

(2007) which provides for community participation in the delivery of Urban Water supply services.

Focus Area 5 (Public-Private Partnership) identifies promotion of community ownership and local

private sector participation to ensure viability of urban systems as one of its objectives.

Notwithstanding this, there are still a number of legal challenges to overcome in order to realize this

important objectives.


STRATEGIC ISSUES IN URBAN AND SANITATION MANAGEMENT

SECTION 4 :


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These are:1) Legal identity of the Community: The Metropolitan and Municipal authorities are the legal

representatives of the communities in dealing with GWCL and other government agencies. The MMDAs in turn delegate the day to day operational issues to beneficiary communities.

2) Delineating Community boundaries: Boundaries delineating communities in urban settings are often blurred and not in any way easily determinable by the common resident. Utility pipe networks are not in accordance with community boundaries. Electoral boundaries do not necessarily represent cohesive units of communities who desire to take unified action to address their WASH problems. Where the community involved fits well within the electoral boundary, the Unit Committee will be the proxy for delineating that community. Where there is no clear cut delineation of the community boundary under consideration, the community, GWCL and the Metropolitan/Municipal authorities should work together to demarcate according to technical and/or social convenience.

3) Asset Ownership: Asset ownership options are important for establishing sustainable management solutions under clear rules, which are stated in contracts. By the law establishing GWCL, it (GWCL) is the sole owner of assets and facilities installed for water supply in urban areas. In cases where assets are installed and financed by GWCL or agents supporting it, the ownership lies with GWCL. In this case, the maintenance of assets is the sole responsibility of GWCL unless otherwise delegated to community partners or other agent duly authorized. Whatever arrangement is in place for maintenance, it is the ultimate responsibility of GWCL to ensure that the assets are in serviceable conditions. Privately funded interventions (individual, CBO, NGO, community, private sector) for forms of infrastructure other than a pipe network are owned by the community partner, unless agreed otherwise.

4) Land title in informal settlements: Utilities are often unable to extend services to areas that are designated as informal and where the residents do not have legal title to the land they are occupying. Where it is considered very necessary to provide a service, the MMDA may intervene in any way possible to allow for temporary relief until title of tenure is formalized



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4.4 Defining Standards for Access

Quantity: In computing coverage, GWCL uses an average per capita daily water demand of between

40L and– 120L, depending on the geographical setting. With the assumption that most of target

localities for this strategy will not have heavy industrial establishments within their catchment areas, a

daily per capita water demand of 40 liters is sufficient for drinking, domestic use and maintenance of

basic hygiene for residents. Water must be of acceptable quality, meeting the Drinking Water standards

established by the Ghana Standards Board. Since it is not practical to control the use of water for only

domestic purposes, a comprehensive assessment of current water demand for the community, and

projected demand over the next 20 years should be undertaken, taking into consideration, all

categories of water users.

Distance: The ideal situation is to target yard connections for all households. However, under current

constraints of unplanned settlement patterns, a distance of 200 meters to a source of water supply is

considered optimum

Quality: The quality of water delivered at drawing/fetching points should meet the National Drinking

Water Quality standards at the minimum. .

Affordability: GWCL supply to communities under Community management should be subject to

PURC regulation. MMDAs should regulate retail prices to consumers. However the role of MMDA

should be to set upper limits to curtail arbitrary pricing of water by management committees, rather

than fixing a specific price for all community managed supplies.

Reliability: Water should be available to communities for 90% of the time in a given year. Anything

below 90% should be considered as unreliability in water access.

Sustainability: The community should be able to charge tariff to cover operations and maintenance of

facilities, with regulation and tariff setting guidelines.



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5.1 Governance and Accountability arrangementsGood governance calls for transparent polices and clear decision making processes that are respected

by all relevant stakeholders Efforts should be in place to promote participation of all community

members on all matters of WASH service delivery. Accountability arrangements must also be clear,

robust and respected to win the confidence of all stakeholders. The following are minimum measures to

guide the process of putting in place effective governance systems for community management in the

urban setting

1. Define Governance Structure: Each community may define its governance structure based on

its particular situation. The structure should spell out the highest decision making body of the

community body and all subordinate structures. It is important to keep this as simple as possible to

avoid confusion and overlap of roles. A typical governance structure should spell out:

a. The General Assembly: The wider community body that has the highest decision making powers for the WASH systems. Since it is not practical to have every community member attend meetings and vote on critical decisions, a system of zoning the community and getting an appropriate number of representatives from each zone to serve on the General Assembly is most feasible option. Depending on the size of the community, the General Assembly may comprise between 50 and– 300 members. The General Assembly would ordinarily meet once a year, or more often in extraordinary cases.

b. The Metropolitan/Municipal/District Assembly: It is important to define the powers and

position of the local government authorities within the governance system, but there shall be a

three member water and sanitation team(WST) comprising a water specialist, health and hygiene

officer who shall provide back-up support to the WSC’s from the sub metro.

The following can be considered to be the oversight role of the MMDAs:

I. Supervision of the Water and Sanitation Committees: The Sub Metro Director shall supervise

all activities of the Water and Sanitation Committees in their respective sub-metro. This shall

be done either directly by the Sub Metro Director or through his/her appointed

representatives (the Sub-Metro WASH team).

ii. Auditing the accounts of the Water and Sanitation Committees: The Sub-Metro shall also

endeavor to audit the accounts of the Water and Sanitation Committee every quarter.

iii. Assist Water and Sanitation Committees to embark on Developmental projects: The Sub

Metro shall assist the Water and Sanitation Committees to embark on developmental

activities in the community. This will be done through ways in which both the Water and

Sanitation Committees and the Sub Metro's deem appropriate in the interest of the

community.


GOVERNANCE ARRANGEMENTS

SECTION 5 :


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c. The Water and Sanitation committee(WSC): These are the executive bodies with direct

oversight over the assets and operations of the systems. Depending on the management model

selected, they could also be performing roles traditionally performed by management teams.

The mechanism for forming the teams should be spelt out in the constitution of the community.

A general guide is to ensure that all stakeholder and interest groups are represented. Some of

these key stakeholders may include:

- The Local Government Authority

- Different sections of the community

- Organized community based groups, such as Women's groups

- Gender representation

- Minority and vulnerable groups

- Traditional authorities

- Religious groups etc.

The roles and responsibilty of the WSC include:

i. Meet monthly to review general development issues of the community (including the

operation of the water and sanitation facilities). The meeting should also be used to discuss

financial issues.

ii. Put in place effective financial management system and handle appropriately all financial

matters in relation to the management of the water and sanitation facilities.

iii .Open and operate bank accounts and ensure that all sales made from the water and

sanitation facilities are deposited in the agreed accounts on daily basis.

iv. Provide all equipment and materials needed by the Water and Latrine Attendants to perform

their work.

v. Convene regular review meeting with the Water and Latrine Attendants.

2. Prepare a constitution and By-Laws: Each community group would be governed by a constitution

adopted formally by the community as a whole, and a set of by-laws enacted by the community and

approved by the MMDA. They should be published in the National Gazette.

3. Define enforcement mechanism: Whilst official publication in the National Gazette may provide

legal backing for the enforcement of by-laws, social control should be explored as the first option

for enforcing the constitution and bye laws of the community. The role of traditional authorities in

leading communities to exact appropriate sanctions against offenders is critical.



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4. Establish clear operational standards: Each community should establish operational

standards that spell out the entitlement of community members. For instance, if rationing of

water is unavoidable, then the roster for serving different sections must be prepared, and

widely disseminated. Operational targets should be set, with regard to quality, income, etc.

5. Define Accountability Arrangements: This involves issues of financial management and social

accountability. Communities should keep proper books of accounts, operate a bank account,

prepare annual accounts and get the financial statements audited. The community reports to

the Local Government Authority on all financial issues.

6. Put in place a mechanism for regular feedback to the community: There should be a platform

to provide feedback to the wider community on a regular basis. This may include direct

meetings, posting reports on community notice boards, providing updates to community

members during public events and reporting at Assembly meetings.

The institutional arrangement for actors in Water and Sanitation Services to Urban low income

areas to be involved is summarized in the table below.



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Institution/actor Roles Responsibilities

MWRWH Des igning policies and s trategies Policy harmonization and sector wide

monitoring and evaluation

Water Direc torate Coordination of Drinking Water Supply and

related Sanitation Coordinates ac tivi ties of key Sector A gencies .

MLGRD Des igning s trategies and polic ies for

environment and sanitation promotion

Coordinates sanitation services del ivery at the

regional, metropolitan, municipal and district

assemblies

Water Resources Commiss ion Regulate and manage Ghana’s Water

Resources and co-ordinate government policies

in relation to that

Processing of water rights and permits;

monitoring and assessing activi ties and

programmes for the util isation and conservation

of water resources.

PURC Regulation and overseeing the provis ion of the

highest quality of elec trici ty and water services

to consumers .

Provide guidel ines for rates to be charged for

the provision of util ity serv ices, examine and

approve water and electricity rates; protect the interest of consumers and providers of utili ty

services;

GWCL Prov ision of portable water to urban

communities. Sole owner of assets instal led for

water supply in urban areas.

Production and distribution of water, ensuring

operations and maintenance of water supply

equipments, bil ling and revenue collec tion for water consumption in urban areas .

MMDA Prov ision of municipal services and amenities to

res idents in urban communities

Supervision of water and sanitation

committees, auditing the accounts of the water and sanitation committees , assist communities

to develop community action plans preparation

and enforcement of sanitation by-laws and

other regulations.

5.2 Equity and InclusionA conscious effort should be made during the mobilization phase to ensure that all categories of

citizens have equal opportunities to participate in decision making and operations of the systems. In

this regard, lessons from the CWSA on gender participation, identification and inclusion of minority

groups, and people living with disabilities. Furthermore, it is important to adopt designs of

infrastructure that are gender and disability sensitive.

In the actual operation of facilities, women should be given special consideration to play the roles of

caretakers and operators. For tasks that are sedentary in nature such as water vending, consideration

should be given to People with Disabilities (PWDs). .

5.3 Sustainability Issues: A sustainability strategy should be outlined to underpin community management in the urban WASH

sector, similar to the practice in the rural sub sector. Some important considerations for sustainability

include:

· Developing clear guidelines for managing different water supply schemes.

· Defining a clear role for key stakeholders, eg, GWCL, women, children etc

· Build adequate capacity of communities and MMDAs for community management

· Develop easy and clear operational plans for the day-to-day operations and maintenance

· Strengthen financial management capacity of communities

· Strict financial monitoring and oversight by MMDAs

· Avoid politicization of the systems

· Proper technical designs to ensure sufficient water pressure within community management

units



24

Several models are available from which different communities and MMDAs could choose the one

that most suites their needs and local conditions. Some of these models include the following:

1. Direct Utility – Consumer Relationship: This is the existing predominant system in which GWCL

produces water and supplies consumers who are billed for usage. Payments of bills are made directly to

GWCL through their various offices nationwide.

2. Bill Collection on Commission basis. Under this model, GWCL maintains production role. GWCL

will have contract with consumers, supply water to them; bill and then communities will collect bills

from consumers for GWCL on commission basis. This may be tested for 3-4 years before considering

bulk supply. For this to work, there is a need to effectively mobilize communities and build leadership

capacity. The community should also be represented at the decision making level at GWCL. There is

also a need to learn from the rural water sub sector on the operations of WATSANs and WSDBs in small

towns before setting up a similar model for urban areas. In case of contracting, the DA should sign on

behalf of the community. This model should be insulated from politics right from the start.

3. Managing Water Points - If the capacity of a community is built, it is possible for them to play a role

in urban water management, especially in the area of managing water points using a variety of

arrangements. GWCL should continue with its production role, and community will take on day- to -day

management. This could entail constructing and managing water points, billing and connection. This

may require the provision of separate infrastructure from GWCL lines. If it is based on GWCL

infrastructure, community should manage only water Kiosks.

The SCALE-UP Project implemented by CHF International Ghana, supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates

Foundation has documented four models of water kiosks management in the Accra and Sekondi-

Takoradi Metropolitan areas. These included the following:

a) Private Individual Ownership: This is an outright case of an individual owning the facility after

providing his/her personal land and raising the beneficiary contribution to acquire the facility.

There is no ambiguity about who the owner is, and who controls the facility. The use of the

income is at the sole discretion of the individual owner.

b) Group Ownership: This is mostly the case for a group or Association that was already in

existence prior to the intervention. The two clear cases of group ownership in this assessment

were recorded in Ayidiki (The Night Market Traders Group) and Kwesimintsim (Landlords

Association).

c) Community Ownership: Several forms of Community Ownership may be possible, but the two

forms of community owned system established in the report were the cases of Nima

(Community Development Committee) and the Unit Committee facility in Kwesimintsim. The

Unit Committee is the lowest legal structure within the decentralization system of Ghana. Prior

to this project, the Unit Committee in Kwesimintsim also managed the public toilets of the

community, and had a bank account for that purpose. It was part of the income from user fees

of the public latrines that they paid their contribution for the water


CHOOSING THE APPROPRIATE MANAGEMENT MODELS

SECTION 6 :


25

facility. Because the facility was only in its third week of operation, it was not possible to assess

the accountability arrangements between the Unit Committee and the wider community.

d) NGO Management: An NGO may lead a process of investing in water schemes in urban areas,

and taking direct responsibility for management with community involvement. The system

may be a source independent of GWCL supply, or may be connected to GWCL mains. This

model has been operated in the Tamale metropolis by a local NGO, New Energy over the last 9

years.

4. Bulk Water Distribution Option - Despite some apparent challenges with this option, bulk water

distribution remains a viable option for community involvement in urban water management. This

requires a system to store water in large quantities, and a meter for the bulk water delivered to the

community. The community pays for what they receive from GWCL and distributes it to consumers at

an agreed price. If community has its own infrastructure, they need technical staff for billing,

management, and O&M. The main challenge here is how to create effective Looped Networks to serve

communities according to their demarcations. Another challenge is the need for adequate storage

capacity for each service area. Tackling these challenges may be technically feasible, but the financial

implications are high. What is required is to find measures to address financial challenges, and to

ensure proper monitoring with community involvement. A pilot is required, but appears more feasible

in more formal settlements.

Production: Communities may consider engaging in limited production where ground water

conditions are feasible for borehole drilling and available space permits that. Whilst this may be

effective in addressing the chronic problem of insufficient water in several areas, a number of setbacks

may confront this option. Potential contamination of ground water through intrusion of fecal and

chemical pollutants, and extensive extraction of ground water can lead to public health and

environmental problems in the long run. In coastal areas, there is the additional challenge of salinity,

which may add an additional layer of cost for removing the salt to acceptable levels. Ground water

options should be accompanied by rigorous environmental assessments, cost benefit analysis and

strict quality assurance procedures to guarantee public safety and environmental sustainability.

Community Participation in Urban Sanitation ManagementCommunity participation in sanitation management in urban settings begins with the District

Assemblies. Public Toilets are the properties of MMDAs. These need to have sanitation management

committees comprising various interest groups, including community representatives. At the

community level, Assembly persons and Unit Committee members should take direct responsibility for

management of public toilets. This will be a good income generation opportunity for unit committees.

The proceeds can be used to support community development efforts. This will also solve the recurrent

problem of members of the ruling parties hijacking toilets whenever there is a change in government



26

The following process is recommended in order to adequately prepare all key stakeholders in the

process towards increased community participation in the management of urban WASH services.

1. Identification of target communitiesBased on the criteria defined in section 4.1, the target community for the intervention should be

identified. This may be done during the development of Metropolitan/Municipal WASH Plans, or when

a project has been secured for implementation. Communities may also organize themselves ahead of a

project to seek assistance from government.

2. Initial Meetings with MMDAsThe first step in the process of initiating community management is to hold discussions with the MMDA

if they are not the group initiating the process. Preferably MMDA Development Plans should capture

communities that could be targeted, and set aside resources towards this. Even where the MMDA is

not able to support financially in the process, they are still key in facilitating the process and leveraging

resources from other sources.

3. Initial Community Consultation and Mobilization: Community- wide consultations should be conducted through community development specialists to

explain the concept to community members. This could last between one and six months, depending

on the size of the community and the level of participation in meetings. The mobilization should take

place in three phases, covering i) initial community mobilization, ii) Training of WATSANs and iii)

Technical training on facilities operations and maintenance.

4. Identifying Key stakeholders and roles:All key stakeholders should be identified from the start to ensure that the proposed community

options are thoroughly discussed and examined. Some of the critical stakeholders may include:

· Utility Companies, notably GWCL, and possibly ECG or VRA where water production from

boreholes is concerned.

· Traditional authorities: These are the key entry points to the community, and provide local

leadership throughout the process

· Water users: Different groups of water users should be identified early and consulted. Some

of these include chop bar operators, sachet water producers, car wash bays, agro-

enterprises and others.

· Opinion leaders and other influential groups: Opinion leaders and key influential groups/

and individuals should be identified and listed.

· Regulatory Bodies: The PURC is the primary regulator of Utilities including water supply

services in urban areas. Local authorities may perform regulatory roles on water and

sanitation as currently the mandate of PURC is limited in this aspect at the community level.

In the meantime, local authorities may perform regulatory functions in respect of water and

sanitation.


THE PROCESS FOR DEVELOPING COMMUINTY MANAGEMENT IN THE URBAN SETTING

SECTION 7 :


27

· Local Government Authorities: A focal person within the MMDA should be identified to help

facilitate the process. In addition, the Municipal Works Department should provide backup

support and to liaise between the sub metro Assembly and communities.

· Central Government: The Water Directorate of the Ministry of Water Resources, Works and

Housing and the Environmental Health and Sanitation Directorate should be on board from

the beginning, and not later.

· NGOs and CBOs: NGOs and CBOs are important in the community mobilization process as

they often have the necessary skills and the confidence of community members. In many

cases, they may also be providers of water and sanitation services.

· Donors: It is important to identify which donors are present and may be interested in

supporting the initiative in the given community

· Private Service Providers: It is important to see how private service providers already in the

business can be accommodated in the process to avoid negative reactions from them.

· Press: They can help in education of community members as well as the general public on

issues in water and sanitation.

5. Identifying sources of financingCommunities may solicit funding from MMDAs, NGOs or donors to implement their schemes. GWCL

and PURC may also play a role in resource mobilization once they understand clearly how a particular

scheme is expected to contribute to the attainment of corporate goals.

6. Stakeholder Meetings: These are expected to continue as long as the initiative is in progress. They are however more critical

stages at the time the community will make strategic decisions regarding service.

7. Social and Economic AssessmentThis involves a number of studies and assessments to understand a number of issues that will affect

planning and operations of the proposed scheme. The total water demand should be ascertained for

the current year, and the next 5 years. If possible projections should go as far as 20 years depending on

the type of model selected. For instance, a bulk water supply option will require in-depth

understanding of the categories of users of Water and Sanitation services as compared to simple water

kiosk option. Depending on the complexity of the studies, the MMDA, MWRWH, EHSD, PURC and

GWCL may be directly involved to ensure sound findings.

8. Choosing an appropriate management modelEach community may be suited for one or more management models, but the ultimate decision lies

with the community. The models outlined in section six should be carefully explained to communities

and other stakeholders including implications of selecting each option. The community should be

guided to make a strategic choice from the list of models



28

9. Developing an Action PlanA clear action plan for implementation should be developed for a specified period. The plan should

clearly spell out specific tasks to be accomplished, roles and responsibilities, and timelines.

10. Forming Management Committees and WSTs

Water and Sanitation Teams should be formed to oversee the implementation of the plan, and to

take up the role of governance of the system

11. Capacity buildingCapacity building should address all the capacity needs of the WST to effectively govern and

manage the systems. The wider community may also require some form of capacity building to

engage and participate effectively in the process. Services should be sourced from the private sector

to undertake capacity building activities in accordance with the sector strategy. GWCL could also

play a role in capacity building.

12. Negotiations and ContractingThis can begin much earlier, but no later than when the WST is being set up. At this stage, a decision

should be taken regarding the nature of the contract. Whilst a simple MoU may suffice cases,

exceptional cases may require more elaborately crafted contracts, or other forms of legal agreements.

The signatories on both sides should be people in the highest level of authority. MMDAs should always

endorse all agreements alongside the communities. Since the legal identity of a community is blurred,

it may be necessary for the MMDA to be the main signatory on the agreement, with a witness from the

community.

Beyond signing the contract it is also critical to identify and build in mechanisms to ensure compliance

with the terms of the contract. The terms of the contract should be systematically monitored as a first

step towards enforcing compliance.

13. Signing of MoUA formal MoU should be signed between relevant stakeholders prior to implementation of any

community participation in urban WASH management arrangement. The MoU should clearly spell out

the roles and responsibilities of both parties, and also identify the level at which the MoU will be

enforced and monitored.

14. Implementation

The implementation process should be well planned and facilitated by key stakeholders. There is a

need to put in place systems for transparency and accountability in the operations.

15 Monitoring and evaluationThis should be planned ahead of implementation, and designed to involve both the utility service

provider and the community in the process. Clear operational indicators and benchmarks should be

identified and agreed upon by all stakeholders prior to commencement. In the absence of a

sophisticated M&E plan, community groups should make efforts to develop simple and workable M&E

plans for implementation.



29

Operation and maintenance refers to all of the activities needed to run a water supply and sanitation

scheme, except for the construction of new facilities. (O&M) activities, encompass not only technical

issues, but also managerial, social, financial and institutional issues. It is a crucial element of

sustainability, and a frequent cause of failure of many water supply and sanitation service facilities.

Hence, the overall aim of operation and maintenance is to ensure efficiency, effectiveness and .

sustainability of water supply and sanitation facilities (CASTRO 2009)

Operation refers to the direct access to the system by the user (e.g. operating a motorized pump), to

the activities of any operational staff (e.g. operators of motorized pumps), and to the rules or by-laws,

which may be devised to govern who may access the system, when, and under what conditions.

Maintenance, on the other hand, is related to the technical activities, planned or reactive, which are

needed to keep the system working. Maintenance requires skills, tools and spare parts (CARTER 2009).

A detailed Operations and Maintenance Guide should be developed to guide communities on the

following:

(a) Proper understanding of O & M

(b) Types of O&M

· Direct

· Delegated

· Partnership

(c) Technical O & M Tasks like Pump operation; breakdown maintenance; rehabilitation of

system; expansion of system

(d) Financial and administrative aspects of O & M

· Procurement

· Maintenance of stocks

· Budgeting

· Tariff determination

(e) Operational aspects of O&M:

· Minor repairs of pipelines burst(service lines)

· Reading of meters

· Distribution of water bills

· Record keeping

· Dissemination of information

· Disconnection or reconnection

· Protection of water system at the local level


OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE

SECTION 8 :


30

For community management to be operationalised, the needed policy, legal and technical frameworks

should be in place. The following are key pertinent issues that should be addressed:

(a) Setting the legal framework. Key legal issues to be addressed include:

· Amendment of CWSA establishment laws to enable them play a role in facilitating

community water access in urban areas

· Amendment of the laws of GWCL to explicitly allow for community participation in

urban WASH management

· Amend laws establishing MMDAs to allow for their involvement in Urban community

water management

(b) Engineering. There is a need to:

· Make provision for medium storage facilities, depending on the water demand of the

area

· Proper designs of distribution mains (ensuring adequate size of pipes, and

projections within a 10-15 years horizon)

· Setting standards for pipelines to meet future demand, service connections, kiosks

etc

· Communities should be well delineated

· Setting up district metering areas to coincide with one or more communities

· Design of all facilities to be led by, or in consultation with GWCL

(c) Delineating community boundaries. The boundaries should be delineated according to

the following factors

· Size: the size should be manageable by the community

· Pressure issues within secondary distribution and service lines

· Social factors: To ensure the needed cohesion, solidarity and social control within

community management units

(d) Incorporating Urban WASH Services delivery in Metropolitan/Municipal Development

Plans

(e) Anchorage: A pro-poor unit or department should be established within the GWCL to

facilitate the implementation of this strategy

(f) Budget and Financing: A detailed budget and financing plan should be prepared to

support the rolling out this strategy. Possible financing sources to be considered include

central government, local governments, the private sector and the donor community.


OPERATIONALIS ING THE STRATEGY

SECTION 9 :


31

10.1 Monitoring and EvaluationMonitoring and evaluation is a critical component of sustainable services delivery at the community level. It is therefore important that all stakeholders unite to provide the needed technical assistance to ensure effective monitoring of community managed systems. Appropriate monitoring tools are required to improve communities' abilities to identify problems and to increase community participation in planning and monitoring water, sanitation and hygiene activities.

The benefits of Participatory and practical approaches to monitoring include:

·ensuring financial sustainability

·better service levels, effective O&M

·improving access for groups in greatest need of improved water supply and sanitation

·improved use and hygiene

10.2 Monitoring PlansEach community should prepare a monitoring plan with the support of GWCL, the MMDA, NGOs and other stakeholders with the requisite expertise. The plan should address the indicators that are relevant to the community's context, rather the generic broad indicators provided below. A monitoring plan is used to plan, manage and document the data collection process. It ensures that comparable data will be collected on a regular and timely basis. It identifies the indicators to be tracked, specifies the source, method and schedule of data collection and assigns responsibilities. The plan will help in keeping the monitoring system on track and ensure that data are reported regularly to the community.

10.3 Performance indicators and their definitionsFor monitoring purposes, Twenty (20) indicators in 4 categories have been identified for participatory community monitoring. Different communities can adapt this to suit their needs. The monitoring framework is shown in Table 10.1 below.

Table 10.1 Simple Monitoring Framework for Communities

Indicator/ Category Frequency Sources of

Information Responsibility

1. Water and Sanitation Infrastructure

Water

1.1 Total population served with water within Community

Biennial Community Census/head count

MMDA/Community

1.2 Total number of domestic connections

Yearly GWCL records GWCL/Community

1.3 Total number of commercial connections

Yearly GWCL records GWCL/Community

1.4 Number of female residents with access to water

biennial Community Census/head count

MMDA/Community

1.5 Average Distance to a Water Point Yearly Community Census/head count

MMDA/Community


MONITORING AND EVALUATION

SECTION 10 :


32

10.4 Baseline dataFor each of the indicators identified above, efforts should be made to establish a baseline prior to full implementation of community management. Baseline may be collected during the initial assessments and consultations. Some indicators, such as the financial indicators however, can only be collected after the process is in operation.

Indicator/ Category Frequency Sources of Information

Responsibility

1.6 # people with or without household connections

Yearly GWCL/ community records

GWCL/ Community

1.7 Total storage capacity of water facilities

Yearly GWCL/community records

GWCL/ Community

Sanitation

1.8 Number of people using household latrines

Yearly Annual assessment

MMDA/ Community

1.9 Number of people using communal and/or shared latrines


MMDA/ Community

1.10 Average Distance to a communal sanitation facility


MMDA/ Community

2. Operational/Service

2.1 Estimated Daily Water demand per capita

Yearly GWCL/community records

GWCL/ Community

2.2 Total volume of water sold/supplied per day/week/month

Weekly GWCL/community records

GWCL/ Community

2.3 Total non-revenue water Monthly GWCL/community records

GWCL/ Community

2.4 Water Quality index in a given period (to be developed)

Monthly GWCL/community records

GWCL/ Community

2.5 Number of days in a week when water flows

Weekly GWCL/community records

GWCL/ Community

2.6 Number of men/women involved in daily operations

Monthly Community records

Community/ MMDA

2.7 Number of community feedback meetings

Quarterly Community records of minutes

Community/ MMDA

3. Financial

3.1 Total income per month from water kiosks/scheme


Community/ MMDA

3.2 Total expenditure per month for water kiosk/scheme


Community/ MMDA

3.3 Net Income per month for water kiosk/scheme


Community/ MMDA

3.4 Total income per month from latrine Monthly Community records

Community/ MMDA

3.5 Total expenditure per month for latrine


Community/ MMDA

3.6 Net Income per month for latrine Monthly Community records

Community/ MMDA



33

10.5 EvaluationEfforts should be made to evaluate each community management initiative within one year of first

implementation and subsequently three years interval after first evaluation by the Ministry of Water

Resources, Works and Housing and/or Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development.

Evaluation shall be based on the overall objectives of this strategy, and also on community specific

indicators and objectives.



34

11.1 RecommendationsConsidering Ghana's average performance towards the realization of the MDGs especially in water and sanitation, there is the need for adopting strategies that seek to involve all stakeholders in the management of WASH services.

Given the fact that many years of top-down planning and provision of water and sanitation services has not yielded acceptable levels of access to water and basic sanitation especially for the urban poor, a bottom-up approach is needed to broaden the spectrum of stakeholders to include poor urban communities. Communities should be encouraged to take on a greater role in the delivery of water and sanitation services.

To ensure the smooth implementation of this strategy, the following recommendations should be considered:

i. The Water Directorate should facilitate and coordinate action among key stakeholders such as GWCL, MMDAs, existing Water and Sanitation Teams, CBOs, NGOs and Traditional Authorities. This among others will secure the support of all stakeholders at all levels in the implementation of the strategy.

ii. To ensure smooth implementation of this strategy, strategic meetings should be organized for GWCL and MMDA staff to enable them to understand the benefits of community participation in what is traditionally their domain of responsibility.

iii. Central government, local government and NGOs should source funding to pilot the strategy over a period to provide opportunity for field testing and refinement of the strategy. In addition, opportunities should be sought within existing incoming projects to provide funding for implementation.

iv. The MWRWH should facilitate the development of needed manuals such as O&M, and Practitioners' Guide to accompany the strategy.

v. The strategy should be disseminated to as many stakeholders as possible through workshops, meeting and other opportunities that present themselves

vi. In the medium term, government should consider consolidating this strategy and other pro-poor WASH strategies into a National Pro-poor WASH Policy

11.2 ConclusionAs government continues efforts to ensure universal access to WASH services for all people living in Ghana, all stakeholders must join hands to contribute in diverse ways to make this dream a reality. Community participation in Urban WASH management clearly has added value, but for this to be realized, there is the need for systematic and tested approaches to be adopted. Such approaches should respond to the cultural and socio-economic context of each community. GWCL has a big role to play, as do the MMDAs. The cooperation of all key stakeholders is very critical, for the success of this strategy.

The successful implementation of this strategy will help Ghana in the march towards accelerating the realization of the Millennium Development Goals on water and sanitation, not for the sake of achieving the MDG's, but the ultimate improvement in the lives of the Ghanaian people, especially the urban poor.


RECOMMENDATION/ CONCLUSION

SECTION 11 :


35

Annex 1: Possible Areas for Community Involvement in Urban WASH Management


APPENDICES


37

Task and Performance Analysis of GWCL – Southern Zone Num Description of Task Assessment

of Current Performance

Possibility of

Community Involvement

Recommended as lead role for

Community

1 Water Production Fair No No 2 Distribution – Primary lines Fair No No 3 Distribution – Secondary lines Fair Yes Yes 4 Billing Fair Yes No 5 Maintenance (Minor & Major) Fair Yes Yes 6 Customer Service Fair Yes No 7 Revenue Collection Fair Yes Yes 8 Public Education on water use Poor Yes Yes 9 Make new connections Poor Yes Yes 10 Disconnections Poor Yes Yes 11 Reconnections Poor Yes Yes 12 Pipe Extensions to un-served

areas – (Service Lines) Poor Yes No

13 Data collection Fair Yes No 14 Debt recovery Poor Yes No 15 Quality Assurance Fair Yes No 16 Loss prevention Poor Yes Yes 17 Staff Recruitment and training Good No No 18 Financing Poor Yes No 19 Investments Planning Poor Yes No 20 Protection of water bodies Poor Yes No 21 Metering Fair Yes No 22 Ensure profitably Poor Yes NA 23 Implement pro-poor mechanisms Poor Yes Yes Task and Performance Analysis of Public and Private Sanitation service Providers Num Description of Task Assessment


Possibility of

Community Involvement

Recommended as lead role for

Community

1 Construction of public Toiltes Fair No No 2 Operation of Toilets Fair No No 3 Equipment for septage conveyance

(eg. Cesspit emptier) Fair Yes Yes

4 Operation and Maintenance Poor Yes No 5 Maintenance (Minor & Major) Fair Yes Yes 6 Solid Waste Collection Fair Yes Yes 7 Treatment of septage Fair Yes Yes 8 Public Education on use of sanitary

facilities Poor Yes Yes

9 Enforce compliance of Sanitation laws

Poor No No

Task and Performance Analysis of GWCL – Northern Sector Num Description of Task Assessment of

Current Performance

Possibility of Community Involvement

Recommended as lead role for Community

1 Water Production Good NO NO 2 Distribution – Primary lines Fair No No 3 Distribution – Secondary lines Fair Yes Yes 4 Billing Fair No No

5 Maintenance (Minor & Major) Fair Yes Yes 6 Customer Service Fair Yes No

7 Revenue Collection Fair Yes Yes 8 Public Education on water use Poor Yes Yes 9 Make new connections Poor Yes Yes 10 Disconnections Poor Yes Yes 11 Reconnections Poor Yes Yes 12 Pipe Extensions to un-served areas

– Service Line Poor Yes Yes

13 Data collection Fair Yes No 14 Debt recovery Poor Yes No 15 Quality Assurance Fair No No 16 Loss prevention Poor Yes Yes 17 Staff Recruitment and training Good No No 18 Financing Poor Yes Yes 19 Investments Planning Poor Yes Yes 20 Protection of water bodies Poor Yes Yes 21 Metering Fair Yes No 22 Ensure profitably Poor Yes NA 23 Implement pro-poor mechanisms poor Yes Yes Task and Performance Analysis of Public and Private Sanitation service Providers Num Description of Task Assessment


Possibility of Community Involvement

Recommended as lead role for Community

1 Construction of public Toiltes Fair No No 2 Operation of Toilets Fair No No 3 Equipment for septage conveyance

(eg. Cesspit emptier) Fair Yes Yes

4 Operation and Maintenance Poor No No 5 Maintenance (Minor & Major) Fair No No 6 Solid Waste Collection Fair Yes Yes 7 Treatment of septage Fair No No 8 Public Education on use of sanitary

facilities Poor Yes Yes

9 Enforce compliance of Sanitation laws

Poor No No



38

CHF International, 2010

BPD, 2004; Local Management Models for Water Supply and Sanitation for the Urban Poor.

Good governance and users' participation in Public water supply management in urban and Peri-urban

zones from developing countries.

UN-HABITAT, Water and Sanitation in the World's Cities: Local Action for Global Goals. Earthscan:

London, 2003.

Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing; Sector Strategic Development Plan, August 2011

2010 WASH Sector Performance Report

GWCL estimate, 2003

WASHealth Solutions, 2010. Behaviour change communication (BCC) formative research for water

access, sanitation & hygiene for the urban poor (wash-up) in 5 slum communities in Accra and Sekondi-

Takoradi, for CHF International in Ghana

Public Utilities regulatory Commission, 2005; Social Policy and Strategy for Water Regulation

Ministry of Water Resources, Works and Housing, 2010. Sector Annual Report, pp 43.

TREND Group, 2010. Report prepared for Ghana Integrity Initiative

Adapted from SSDP, 2011

CHF International, 2010



Apoya, P. 2003; Paper Prepared for the Civil Society Consultation on the 2003 Commonwealth Finance

Ministers Meeting Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, 22 – 24 July 2003

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Points (Kiosks) In Nima and Ayidiki In Accra and Ngyeresia and kwesiminstim In Sekondi-Takoradi; CHF

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CREPA is an intergovernmental organization owned by member country governments. CREPA provides

technical assistance to governments on Water and Sanitation Issues, and also pilots innovative

approaches to solving WASH challenges.


Apoya, P., 2011; Assessing And Comparing The Effectiveness Of Individual And Group Managed Water

Points (Kiosks) In Nima And Ayidiki In Accra and Ngyeresia And kwesiminstim In Sekondi-Takoradi, Final

Report.

http://www.sswm.info/category/planning-process-tools/ensuring-sustainability/tools-ensure-

sustainability/ensure-sustain-4 (Accessed - 27th January 2011)

CASTRO, V.; MSUYA, N.; MAKOYE, C. (Editor) (2009): Sustainable Community Management of Urban

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