SWITCH in the city: putting urban water management to the test

Butterworth, J. (ed.); McIntyre, P. (ed.); Da Silva Wells, C. (ed.) (2011). SWITCH in the city : putting urban water management to the test. The Hague, The Netherlands, IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre. v, 413 p.; fig.; tab.; boxes.
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With more than half the planet’s population living in urban areas, and rapid growth predicted, cities present a daunting test in water management. Their scale and concentrated populations provide a special challenge in providing water and sanitation services, creating a safe and pleasant environment, and handling wastes. As sustainability concerns have risen up the agenda, the challenge is for cities to do more, with less. To provide better services to all citizens, with less negative and more positive environment impacts on cities and their rural hinterlands. The SWITCH project was a five year experiment focused on some of the key sustainability challenges in urban water management. In a number of cities around the globe, it set out to test what was needed for a transition to more sustainable urban water management through a combination of demand-led research, demonstration activities, multistakeholder learning and associated training and capacity building. The book brings together the experiences of 12 cities involved in the SWITCH project from four continents (Accra, Alexandria, Beijing, Belo Horizonte, Birmingham, Bogotá, Cali, Hamburg, Lima, Lodz, Tel Aviv and Zaragoza) with a set of guidelines focused on promoting stakeholder engagement in such processes. It is targeted at people interested in undertaking demand-led research, promoting multi-stakeholder engagement, and scaling up research impacts, not only in urban water management but also in other areas where we find such complex and ‘wicked’ problems. [authors abstract]

Tales of shit : Community-Led Total Sanitation in Africa

Bongartz, P., Musyoki, S.M., Milligan, A. and Ashley, H. (2010). Tales of shit : Community-Led Total Sanitation in Africa. (Participatory learning and action ; 61). London, UK, International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). 238 p. ISBN: 978-1-84369-782-4
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This special issue of Participatory Learning and Action issue presents case studies on experiences with the Community-Led Total Sanitation (CLTS) approach in East, Southern and West Africa. The overview article by the guest editors provides an introduction to CLTS, key elements for successful CLTS and issues around scaling up CLTS in Africa, and a resources section highlights key publications, websites and online communities for CLTS practitioners.

Sharing experiences: effective hygiene promotion in South-East Asia and the Pacific

Parry, J. Kathy Shordt, K., Cousineau, D. and Wicken, J. (eds) (2010). Sharing experiences : effective hygiene promotion in South-East Asia and the Pacific. Mitcham, Vic,. Australia, Water Aid Austrakia ; Brisbane, Qld, Australia, International WaterCentre (IWC) ; The Hague, The Netherlands, IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre. 74 p. : boxes, fig. photogr., tab. ISBN 978-1-921499-03-6. Download document in full and by chapter.

This publication searches for answers to the question: What makes hygiene promotion work? The search is guided by two keynote papers and 11 project case studies. Each of the case studies examines hygiene promotion from its own perspective, ranging from large national campaigns to remote island communities. The majority of case studies describe experiences in the Pacific and South-East Asia, while a few highlight different approaches and issues from other regions. The case studies are grouped according to the three main
approaches to hygiene promotion: community-based approaches, campaign approaches and a school focus. Key learnings from the 11 case studies are presented using the FOAMS model for behaviour change:
F: Focus practices and focus groups;
O: Opportunities to practice the behaviour
A: Ability to practice
M: Motivation to practice
S: Sustained behaviour change

Listen below to the key lessons from the book

Smart hygiene solutions

Roose, S., Spijksma, E., Van Daalen, T. and Singeling, M. (2010). Smart hygiene solutions : examples of hygiene methods & tools and tips. (Smart solutions series). Amsterdam, The Netherlands, KIT Publishers. 56 p. : 8 fig.. photogr. Includes references. ISBN 978-94-6022-127-9. Download full booklet.

The booklet is written for those who seek to help break the cycle of disease transmission by improving the hygiene conditions of communities and households in developing countries. It aims to assist them in developing smart hygiene promotion interventions by offering an overview of different approaches and tools that intend to improve hygiene behaviours and environmental conditions.

Like the previous booklets – Smart Water, Sanitation, Water Harvesting, Finance and Disinfection Solutions – it is not written to serve as a manual, but aims to provide the reader with useful links for further reading. The first part of the booklet provides an introduction on the importance of hygiene and the concept of hygiene promotion. The next part describes several hygiene promotion methods, including participatory methods, social marketing strategies and community (and school) based strategies, and highlights cases in which these methods have been used. The final section of the booklet describes some smart tools and tips that facilitate good hygiene behaviour, such as handwashing, safe excreta disposal and menstrual hygiene.

This publication is the result of a collaborative effort by: Netherlands Water Partnership, Aqua for All, Plan Nederland and IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre with contributions from Simavi, AMREF Flying Doctors, UNICEF and Unilever.

Collaborative learning in practice: examples from natural resource management in Asia

Vernooy, R. (ed). (2010). Collaborative learning in practice : examples from natural resource management in Asia. Ottawa, ON, Canada, Foundation Books/IDRC. 194 p.
ISBN 978-81-7596-712-0. e-ISBN 978-1-55250-472-7
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Drawing on research and practical experiences from China, South Asia, and Southeast Asia, this book presents and analyzes novel approaches to collaborative learning and communities of practice. Case studies show how, through joint efforts with researchers and other actors, local communities address and learn from challenges in managing natural resources. They demonstrate the merits of learning strategies that use a variety of methods, that are grounded in the local context, that involve facilitators, that are monitored from the outset, and where there is a strong environment of collaboration and dynamic process management. The book shows that learning strategies that are both innovative and collaborative can lead to sounder rural development.

Collaborative Learning in Practice will be of interest to academics, researchers, and postgraduate students in development studies; practitioners and development professionals, particularly in the fields of capacity building and participatory action methodologies; as well as program managers and decision-makers in donor organizations and development agencies worldwide.

Contents

• Foreword – Niels Röling; Acknowledgements and Preface – Ronnie Vernooy
• Chapter 1: Toward Centres of Excellence for CBNRM (Community-Based Natural Resource Management) – Ronnie Vernooy and Guy Bessette, with Dindo Campilan and Kevin Kelpin
• Chapter 2: Participatory Research and Development in South Asia – Dindo Campilan and Rajindra Ariyabandu with Pratap Shrestha, Raghav Raj Regmi, Carlos Basilio, and Julian Gonsalves
• Chapter 3: Adaptive Learning: From Isang Bagsak to the ALL in CBNRM Programme – Maria Celeste H. Cadiz and Winifredo B. Dagli
• Chapter 4: Mainstreaming CBNRM in Chinese Higher Education – Zhang Li, Qi Gubo, and Ronnie Vernooy, with Long Zhipu and Jingsong Li
• Chapter 5: Comparing the Case Studies – Ronnie Vernooy, Maria Celeste H. Cadiz, Dindo Campilan, Qi Gubo, and Zhang Li
• References; Notes on Contributors

Water policy entrepreneurs: a research companion to water transitions around the globe

Huitema, D. and Meijerink. S. (eds) (2010). Water policy entrepreneurs : a research companion to water transitions around the globe. London, UK, IWA Publishing. 480 p. ISBN: 9781843393153

Price: £ 120.00 / US$ 216.00 / € 162.00
IWA members price: £ 90.00 / US$ 162.00 / € 121.50

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This volume focuses on the role of policy entrepreneurs in revolutionizing water management worldwide. Adopting an international comparative perspective, the authors explore the changes taking place in water policy across fifteen countries (table 1), at both the global level and within the European Union. Their analysis highlights the importance of groups and individuals in stimulating progress and reveals the crucial part played by policy entrepreneurs.

Successful entrepreneurs use various strategies to initiate and implement change, including the framing and reframing of issues, the assembly of coalitions, venue shopping and the exploitation of windows of opportunity. This book showcases the role of entrepreneurs in achieving transitions and explains their approach.

The book targets students and scholars of water resources and environmental management and governance, as well as practitioners in the fields of water and climate policy.

Table 1. Case studies analyzed in “Water policy entrepreneurs”.

Country	Transition
China	River restoration Ecosystem-based water river management
India	Decentralization, participatory governance (water user associations)
Indonesia	Decentralization, participatory governance (water user associations)
Thailand	Wet to dry (all year around irrigation) Farm to city (secure supplies to urban users) Good to service (manage multiple services)
Australia	Environmental water allocation, sustainable groundwater management
United States	Integrated water management
Mexico	Marketization (water markets, water pricing), decentralization, participatory governance (water user associations)
South Africa	Sustainable management of mining water
Tanzania	Privatization, decentralization, participatory governance (water user associations)
Germany	Space for the river Flood risk management
Hungary	River restoration Ecosystem-based water management
Spain	Sustainable alternatives to supply- based management
Turkey	Privatization of water services Decentralization, participatory water governance (water user associations)
Sweden	Adaptive management, introduction of the European Water Framework Directive
The Netherlands	Greening of water policies, river restoration, space for the river
European Union	Marketization (full cost recovery, water pricing), public and stakeholder participation

Contributors include: S. Alp, A. Baskan, G. Becker, A. Bhat, D. te Boekhorst, Z. Chen, Z. Flachner, N. Font, V. Galaz, P. Garden, J. Goldin, J. Gupta, S. Hughes, H. Ingram, A. Kibaroglu, D. Kibassa, L. Lebel, G. Lei, R. Lejano, L. Li, P. Matczak, J. McKay, P. Mollinga, S. Na Nan, V. Narain, P. Olsson, L. Partzsch, T. Smits, J. Subirats, N. Subsin, A. Turton, S. Werners, M. Wilder, X. Yu

For more information about the findings of the book read an article by the author Dr. Dave Huitema in the June 2010 newsletter of the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM), VU University, The Netherlands.

Contact information: Dr. D. Huitema

Access of the poor to water supply and sanitation in India

Jha, N. (2010). Access of the poor to water supply and sanitation in India : salient concepts, issues and cases. (IPC working paper ; no. 62). Brasilia, Brazil, International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). 40 p. : 8 boxes, 3 fig., 1 tab. 58 ref.
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Access to safe water is necessary for lives and livelihoods. In India, a mid-term assessment reveals that the country has already met its MDG (Millennium Development Goal) in terms of expanding access to water infrastructure although in the parallel subsector of sanitation progress is falling far short of the mark. In reality, most basic observations indicate that water supply coverage is not as good as the figures show while national sanitation continues to be poor even after almost six decades of efforts to eradicate open defecation.

It argues that economic, technical, institutional as well as social factors constrain access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation in India for both the urban and rural poor, and that coverage figures do not reflect this restricted access. It finds that, increasingly, communities are being required to manage their own water and sanitation schemes, not just in rural areas but in urban ones as well. There are definite advantages to such an institutional arrangement if the transition to community management is carried out smoothly. Often, however, the chances of success of community management are vitiated because policy makers misunderstand and misapply three interlinked concepts that are crucial to the success of community-managed water and sanitation schemes—participation; water and sanitation burden; and project ownership. The paper concludes by clarifying these concepts and the implications they have for policy implementation in this sector.

Deep wells and prudence: towards pragmatic action for addressing groundwater overexploitation in India

Pahuja, S. … [et al.] (2010). Deep wells and prudence : towards pragmatic action for addressing groundwater overexploitation in India. (Report / World Bank ; 51676). Washington, DC, USA, World Bank. xviii, 97 p. : 9 boxes, 29 fig., 13 tab. Includes glossary. 53 ref.  Download full report [PDF file, 1.91 MB]

This report is the outcome of the World Bank’s Study and Technical Assistance Initiative on Groundwater management in India. This initiative included analytical work, policy assessments, and field surveys, as well as focused technical assistance to groundwater management interventions in a number of World Bank-supported projects in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, and an assessment in Punjab.

The report begins with a review of the groundwater crisis in India, the characteristics of groundwater overxplotation groundwater, and the institutional framework of groundwater management in India.

It then provides a menu of practical and non-controversial interventions which can be implemented in the current environment. Amongst its several suggestions, the report calls for community management of ground water, based on positive experiences in the Andhra Pradesh Farmer-Managed Groundwater Systems Project (APFAMGS). Other interventions proposed are grouped under the headings of targeted regulation, and sectoral policy interventions and coordination.

Together, the proposed set of interventions sets the basis for changing the game on groundwater
management in India, from one that presently consists of either inaction or waiting for champions who can
push through unpopular reform interventions, to one where diligent implementation of interventions within the current framework can start producing immediate management results on the ground.

Strengthening capacities for planning of sanitation and wastewater use

Smits, S., Da Silva Wells, C. and Evans, A. (2009). Strengthening capacities for planning of sanitation and wastewater use : experiences from two cities in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The Hague, the Netherlands, IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre (Occasional Paper Series 44). 56 p. ; 5 fig., 6 tab. 37 ref.
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Executive Summary

It is well-known that many peri-urban communities use wastewater (often untreated) in agriculture. Although wastewater-dependent agriculture provides livelihoods to farmers, there are associated health and environmental risks. The roots of this situation lie in the poor sanitation in cities where part of the population doesn’t have access to basic sanitation services at all, where domestic wastewater is not properly collected or is discharged into open water bodies without any treatment, and where industrial discharges and dumping of solid waste often add to the pollution problem.

The basic premise of the Wastewater Agriculture and Sanitation for Poverty Alleviation (WASPA) in Asia project is that by integrated planning both the lack of sanitation services and the health and environmental risks associated with wastewater use in agriculture can be addressed simultaneously. The idea is to improve conditions along the entire sanitation chain (from household latrines to collection, treatment and reuse of wastewater), while maintaining the characteristics of wastewater valued by farmers, such as nutrient content.

This concept was tested in two towns: Rajshahi in Bangladesh and Kurunegala in Sri Lanka. The project worked through Learning Alliances, composed of local stakeholders, including farmers, residents, small industries and local authorities. With these Learning Alliances, the current situation was analysed, and integrated plans for improvement were formulated and executed in a collaborative manner with a range of stakeholders. This document provides an overview of the experiences of the project and provides a critical reflection on the WASPA concept and its applicability.

The project found that the sanitation situation in both cities was less severe than originally hypothesised. Lack of access to basic sanitation only contributed in a minor way to wastewater flows. Instead, other sources of pollution were identified, such as discharges from small industries and leakage from poorly maintained or inadequate septic tanks. At the same time, the impacts of wastewater agriculture on crop yields and health risks were less than expected.

The situation also proved to be more complex than originally thought, necessitating that a broader range of stakeholders be involved in the identification and implementation of solutions. The multi-stakeholder approach of Learning Alliances and participatory planning cycle provided a useful framework for addressing this complex problem. It allowed examination of the entire sanitation chain and identification of potential strategies for
improvements along the entire chain. In addition, it provided a way of gradually building up relations between stakeholders in a context characterised by institutional fragmentation, conflict and poor accountability. Over time, relations improved and more integrated planning emerged.

A potential drawback to the approach is that stakeholders tend to identify isolated and conventional actions to address the situation, and thus need strong facilitation and increased knowledge to arrive at appropriate solutions. Also, transaction costs of the approach are high, in terms of getting the teams in place, starting up the multi-stakeholder process, and getting stakeholders to carry out a joint planning exercise and subsequently implement their plans. However, the project demonstrated that integrated, joint planning is important for addressing complex problems that span sectoral, administrative and social divides and that, ultimately, the high transaction costs are justified.

Community-based development in water and sanitation projects

Hill, D. (2009). Community-based development in water and sanitation projects. Manila, Philippines, Asian Development Bank. ix, 94 p. ISBN 978-971-561-858-8

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This study is presents a comparative analysis of community-driven development (CDD) projects and non-CDD projects in rural water supply and sanitation. It is based on a sample of nine projects funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank in Indonesia, Nepal, and the Philippines.

The study found that CDD:
(i) is a more cost-effective mode of delivery of international donor funding for rural infrastructure projects; (ii) presents a more responsive approach to local community infrastructure demands, generating increased benefits;
(iii) instills a sense of ownership that translates to better O&M and increased sustainability;
(iv) provides a fund disbursement mechanism that promotes transparency and limits leakages; and
(v) results in projects with higher rates of return than ADB sector projects.

Based on the sample projects, five interesting results were generated:
(i) CDD projects do not take significantly more time from appraisal through implementation to closure than non-CDD projects.
(ii) CDD projects do not result in more time or cost overruns than non-CDD projects.
(iii) Projects with more CDD elements tended to be more successful (as per Operations Evaluation Department criteria) than projects exhibiting fewer CDD elements.
(iv) CDD projects in the sample showed a lower per-capita cost for the water supply infrastructure intervention as compared with ADB projects with similar designs and scopes.
(v) CDD projects were more likely to realize a per-capita cost savings (as compared to appraisal-based estimates) than non-CDD projects.

Based on the findings, the study formulates recommendations for the design, implementation and promotion of CDD projects funded by ADB.