End of project report for the Guernsey Overseas Aid Commission

Transcription

1 WaterAid Nepal End of project report for the Guernsey Overseas Aid Commission Project name: Improving community health through access to safe and adequate water, sanitation and hygiene services in two remote locations of Bhimgithe Village Development Committee (VDC) of Baglung District, Western Nepal. Project location: Two villages (Nayagaun Ghwand and Gwachhap Dadagaun) in Bhimgithe, Baglung District, Western Nepal Project period: 1 April March 2013 Project Aim To improve the health status and enhance the quality of life of 1,646 poor people, through access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). Through accessing safe and appropriate WASH, the project ultimately aims to reduce poverty by reducing the incidence of water and sanitation related illnesses, freeing time for women to engage in gainful economic activities and for children to be able to go to school. Project Area GOAC has supported WaterAid between April 2012 March 2013 to work with two villages (Nayagaun Ghwang and Gwachhap) and three schools (Siddhabarah Primary School, Maisthan Primary School and Khadgajayanti Lower Secondary School) in the remote, hilly and rural region of Bhimgithe, Nepal. Bhimgithe is home to 5,791 people in 1,186 rural households. WaterAid targeted these two villages because of their shockingly low access to safe WASH services: none of the targeted households had safe, reliable access to drinking water, and 85% lacked appropriate sanitation facilities, forcing them to defecate in open fields or bushes. WaterAid implemented this project through its local implementing civil society partner, Nepal Water for Health (NEWAH), who have successfully implemented community WASH projects since the 1990s. Planned Project Activities Water component, benefitting 1,646 water users: Increase access to safe and adequate water from 40% to 100% Construct two gravity flow water supply systems, consisting of: o Construct two water source Page 1 of 9

2 intakes (a spring is tapped, dammed & fenced off to prevent contamination) o Construct seven reservoir tanks (which provide a way to store water during dry periods when the flow from the water source may be interrupted) o Construct 39 new tap-stands (where communities access water) o Set up a 17,000 metre long pipeline for the water supply system to tap-down water from a remote spring source to the community o Construct water supply facilities in two schools o Ensure the quality of water at all levels through water quality testing. Establishment and capacity building of Water & Sanitation User Committees (WSUCs), which are critical in ensuring sustainability and community ownership. Capacity building of Water Caretakers, who are responsible for system maintenance and can alert communities to any needs for larger repairs in the future. Capacity building the VDC level WASH Coordination Committee to monitor and support the water systems within the VDC. Sanitation and hygiene component, benefitting 1,364 sanitation users: Increase access to appropriate sanitation and hygiene practice from 15% to 100%. Promote appropriate sanitation and hygiene practice through the CLTS (Community Led Total Sanitation) approach. 1 Follow-up support to the communities to allow them to be declared ODF (Open Defecation Free) Communities. Support to upgrade 190 permanent, hygienic household latrines. Construct two school latrine blocks. Train six local sanitation masons, and community health and sanitation volunteers. Conduct awareness raising trainings on appropriate hygiene practices such as handwashing at critical times, safe child faeces management, personal hygiene management, and environmental health such as water drainage management. Project Achievements April 2012 March 2013 Summary of project beneficiaries Sector Proposed Total number of direct beneficiaries Achieved Comments Water Sanitation 1,646 users 1,364 users 2,021 water users 1,359 sanitation users WaterAid reached 1,559 community water users and 462 schoolchildren and teachers: benefitting 648 more water users in total than expected: Through WaterAid and NEWAH s influencing work, local institutions were convinced to take on their responsibilities for school latrine construction, and therefore WaterAid will not count these as direct beneficiaries but they can be considered as indirect beneficiaries of the CLTS and ODF approach. Note WaterAid s user counting protocol is to count beneficiaries once for each WASH service they benefit from, therefore if a child benefits from safe water in their community and in their 1 CLTS is a participatory process of empowering local communities to improve their sanitation situation, with the aim that communities will be motivated to create a community-wide open-defecation free environment Page 2 of 9

3 schools, then this is counted as two water users. This is to ensure that we recognise the range of WASH services used by individuals. 1. Increased access to safe drinking water This GOAC-funded project has increased access to safe and sustainable drinking water for two communities of Bhimgithhe VDC: 100% of targeted households now have a reliable, safe drinking water supply. This has involved both hardware construction so that communities can physically access safe drinking water for the first time, and software activities to ensure that communities are able to sustainably manage their facilities. Infrastructure achievements include the construction of two gravity flow water supply schemes, consisting of two source intakes, a pipeline to transport this water down to the communities, seven reservoir tanks and six distribution tanks which tap-down water from remote protected spring sources into the community. To enable household access to this water supply, 62 new water tap stands were built and eight existing taps stands were rehabilitated (31 more than originally proposed) to make them safe for use: this has given 1,559 people in two communities a reliable, safe water supply. In addition to community supplies, the project was able to construct three water tap stands in the three targeted schools, which is now benefitting 462 schoolchildren and teachers. To support sustainable operation and maintenance of this infrastructure, WaterAid trained six local water caretakers who are now responsible for regular maintenance of water systems. This ensures that communities have locally available technicians to repair WASH services, and also creates a livelihood for these caretakers. WaterAid was able to complement caretakers work by ensuring the safety of drinking water at all levels through water quality testing and point-of-use messages (purifying water before usage) in the community. The sustainable impacts of these achievements have been to improve access to safe, clean water for 1,559 people and 462 schoolchildren and teachers. These individuals are The CLTS movement and awareness raising resulted in strong community ownership of the project, and community members voluntarily contributed their time and labour to constructing a sedimentation tank (part of water supply system). Strengthening the capacity of communities: Nirmala Khatri training to become a female Water Caretaker. Page 3 of 9

4 now accessing their basic need and human right of access to safe water, which impacts on improved health, reduced waterborne disease burden, safe water for washing and growing kitchen gardens, and increased time for other productive activities. One indication of this is that women and girls (who are primarily involved in collecting water) are now saving time thanks to the water supply schemes being installed closer to their homes: before the project, they spent one to two hours walking to water points, and now the water points are an average walk of 12 minutes away. 2. Declaring the Village Development Committee (VDC) as Open Defecation Free (ODF) Bhimgithe VDC has achieved life-changing improvements in its sanitation status through WaterAid s community-led total sanitation (CLTS) approach. Before the project, the majority of the community defecated in open fields or bushes, which meant that they were unknowingly spreading diarrhoeal diseases to their communities and to other communities further downstream. In addition to the health impacts, open defecation can be humiliating, risky and shameful for women, girls and vulnerable people who often have to wait until it is dark to ensure privacy. Now, 100% of the community are able to defecate in safe, sustainable and healthy latrines. Above left: CLTS mobilisation engages the entire community to raise awareness of sanitation and hygiene. Above right: Chakra Pani Chalise, Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Divisional Office Chief, declares Bhimgithe VDC as Open Defecation Free (ODF). WaterAid s CLTS approach involved sensitising communities on their rights to WASH, the dangers of defecating in the open, and uses a bottom-up participatory prioritisation of the sanitation issues in their community. Communities are then empowered and supported to take direct action in building their own appropriate, safe latrines that are designed to suit the local context. This approach therefore involves minimal subsidies for latrine infrastructure because the communities contribute towards the costs, and this in turn increases ownership of the facilities. WaterAid s approach encourages communities to consider principles of equity and inclusion when building infrastructure, for example disabled access for latrines. Page 4 of 9

5 The CLTS process resulted in the community constructing 225 improved hygienic latrines and rehabilitation of 38 existing latrines: 73 additional toilets than originally proposed. These new and rehabilitated latrines are directly benefitting 1,359 community people. In addition, 301 people in the communities (who already had latrines) have benefitted from hygiene messages and trainings which incorporate the entire community so that no-one is left behind, and the whole community can become open defecation free together. Case Study: Building latrines: A life-changing experience for Kalpana Rajali Kalpana is a resident of Nayagaun in Bhimgithe VDC. She belongs to an ultra-poor household, and used to think that a latrine was an unnecessary luxury that she could not afford. However, the CLTS sanitation movement in her community changed her perspective and demonstrated that even the poorest households can construct a latrine and that everyone have a right to sanitation. Kalpana was planning to build a house but she felt that a toilet was unnecessary. She remembers asking what benefits she would get if she built a toilet. In response WaterAid s partner staff at NEWAH asked, "How much do you think you spend each year to treat diseases like diarrhoea, typhoid and dysentery? Kalpana said, "I thought for a second and recalled spending as much as five thousand rupees a month at one point" NEWAH helped her to understand how unsafe water and poor hygiene and sanitation practices were causing disease. The hygiene and sanitation education sessions run in the community further helped to clarify how waterborne diseases are contracted and how to prevent disease. With this realisation, Kalpana decided to construct a toilet before she even started constructing her house. She initiated the construction of toilet, collecting the required materials herself and mixing the cement and mud. She finished the toilet within 15 days. Kalpana and her family have been using the toilet for the past 10 months. I am very glad now. My toilet has protected us from communicable diseases. My family members hardly fall sick these days. I feel a toilet keeps everyone healthy and safe: the old, young, women, children, the sick and the pregnant. It also helps one to live with dignity and pride, says Kalpana. The project initially proposed to construct a school latrine block, however through influencing and raising awareness, the VDC and School Management Committees have now taken on this responsibility and constructed these services. This is an excellent outcome for sustainability and as an indication of local institutions taking on their roles as duty bearers of community s right to sanitation. WaterAid therefore adapted its approach to respond to a complementary community-led need for additional hygiene education in schools so that the younger generation of schoolchildren are aware of their rights to safe water and sanitation and understand the benefits of key hygiene practices such as washing hands with soap after using the latrine. This will contribute to the sustainability of these facilities and capitalise on community mobilisation sparked by the CLTS approach. WaterAid trained six local sanitation masons, including two female masons, (in addition to six water caretakers) who constructed improved latrines in the communities, which helped to declare the ODF status within one year. These masons will support Page 5 of 9

6 sustainability as they will be able to fix repairs as well as developing a livelihood income for themselves. In addition to open defecation and latrines, WaterAid and NEWAH addressed the issue of solid waste management (the storage and disposal of household waste, which is often disposed of in open fields or bushes). This has resulted in the construction of 156 pits which the communities are now using for solid waste management, which compost degradable waste into fertiliser reused in fields to support communities agricultural livelihoods. To support communities environmental hygiene, 226 washing slabs and 236 drying racks were constructed which are used for dish washing with the new safe, clean water supply which ensures that kitchen utensils are clean and no longer risk carrying waterborne diseases. These facilities capitalise on the communities new access to water, which is not only used for drinking but also for household purposes. Thanks to GOAC s support, the CLTS process has resulted in the impact that both communities are now open defecation free and the entire VDC Bhimgithe was declared ODF by the local government s Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation Divisional Office Chief on 16 December This is a significant achievement for the two villages, the wider VDC, the region and the country as it works towards the Millennium Development Goal of increasing access to safe sanitation services. 3. Hygiene awareness raising, behaviour change, and capacity building trainings Hygiene and sanitation behaviour change has been a critical element of this project s sustainability and effectiveness, as infrastructure alone cannot address poor water and sanitation, whereas behaviour change can have a long-term sustainable impact on WASH and health outcomes and increase community ownership. This was achieved through: 16 community educational mobilisation sessions and raising awareness Two gender awareness raising sessions held with 26 women and 40 men 16 school hygiene education sessions Training of 53 community health and sanitation volunteers (46 women and seven men) to raise household-level awareness of hygiene and health 18 girls and 15 boys were trained to establish two Child Health Awareness Committees which conduct community and school sanitation and hygiene promotion activities, and act as change agents within their communities Four community health and sanitation campaigns were launched to further disseminate healthy hygiene messages. Page 6 of 9 Mrs. Moti Lal Gautam now has an appropriate, hygienic dishwashing slab where her family can wash their cooking utensils in clean water that she has stored in a hygienic container.

7 Awareness raising focuses on explaining how diseases can be caused by a lack of safe drinking water, by defecating in the open, and by practising poor hygiene practices such as not washing hands after defecating or before feeding infants. Once communities understand the risks, trainings are then oriented towards helping communities to make positive sustainable changes such as safe and clean storage of drinking water, keeping latrines clean, hygienic disposal of waste, and purification of water before use. By raising awareness of healthy hygiene practices, this project has changed community behaviours. Before the project, 19% of the community reported that they did not wash hands after defecating, which puts them at risk of waterborne diseases (e.g. diarrhoea). Now 100% of households report that they wash hands with soap and water. The health impact of this has been that when the project began, a snapshot survey found that on that day 13 community people were suffering from diarrhoea; by the end of the project this had reduced to just three people, showing a 77 percentage point reduction in diarrhoeal incidence from the baseline to endline survey (see summary graph below). During the project, two water and sanitation users committees (WSUCs) were formed which represent communities and monitor WASH rights and access. A positive impact of these committees establishment has been that they provide a unique opportunity for female leadership in male-dominated communities. In these committees, 42% of members are women who are empowered to participate in decision-making processes. To support broader WASH improvements outside of the targeted communities, the project built the capacity of the VDC-level WASH Coordination Committee to monitor and support community-led initiatives and infrastructure. Coordination Committee meetings were held to share project learning and discuss community WASH issues. Committee representatives fed this learning upwards to the District WASH Coordination Committee for broader influencing. Page 7 of 9

8 4. Challenges and lessons learnt Some of the key challenges faced during the project implementation were: The initial project plan was based on a pre-feasibility study. However during the detailed survey and design process, WaterAid and NEWAH discovered that some communities had subsequently merged and some households migrated, therefore the total population of the villages which was originally estimated at approximately 7,000 was found to be 5,791 people in 1,186 rural households. The initial study also believed that 40% of people had access to safe water, however WaterAid s detailed survey found that 0% of targeted households had access to safe water because they were all using unsafe temporary water pipes, therefore the construction of water supply systems costs were increased to meet the community s needs. WaterAid was able to secure additional donor co-funding to increase the scale and impact of this project and meet increased material costs and overheads. Therefore the initial plan to benefit 1,646 people has been increased, and a total of 2,012 people have benefitted from safe water and 1,359 users of safe sanitation. This has not affected the GOAC contribution, but has increased WaterAid s co-funding contribution from 9,190 to 17,370. As mentioned above (section 2), WaterAid originally planned to construct school latrine blocks. However, we are pleased to report that local institutions were able to take on this responsibility and carried out the construction themselves which is a success in terms of sustainability and local ownership. This meant that WaterAid utilised these funds to construct additional water facilities in the community and was able to conduct awareness raising activities in three schools - see section 2 above. The project also faced challenges due to the political situation of Nepal, as Nepal s new constitution was expected to be announced during the implementation period but this was repeatedly postponed. In response, during May and June 2012, political parties called nationwide strikes, which delayed the timely delivery of materials to the project site. WaterAid, NEWAH and the communities were able to work together to minimize delays and achieve successful implementation on time. 5. Financial report (1 April March 2013) The total project costs between 1 April March 2013 were 57,370, which consists of 39,998 GOAC contribution and 17,370 WaterAid contribution from other donors. As highlighted in the six month report, WaterAid was able to leverage additional donor funds to increase its contribution from the original budget of 9,190 to a total of 17,370, which absorbed software and overhead costs and allowed WaterAid to direct GOAC s contribution towards increased hardware costs. GOAC s contribution remained unchanged at 40,000 and the detailed expenditure breakdown of this is shown below. The original proposal budget was based on official district profile data on population size and water, sanitation and hygiene needs. However as noted above, WaterAid s baseline survey and further participatory consultation with communities found that population sizes had changed and WASH needs were in fact greater than anticipated: for example, official data claimed that 40% of households had safe water access, whereas WaterAid found that Page 8 of 9

9 0% of targeted households had safe water access. These factors contribute to the increased hardware material costs for latrine and water supply construction shown below. A - HARDWARE Water Activities Material cost for 2 Gravity Flow water Supply systems construction (pipes, tools and fitting items, fabricating items) Total GOAC Budget Total GOAC Spend Variance (budget spend) GBP GBP GBP % 12,899 24,813-11,914-92% Labour cost for construction work (skilled and unskilled) 3,377 2,016 1,361 40% Water Quality Assessment/Water Tariff Mechanism Transportation cost for materials (transportation by vehicle) % Paid porterage cost for materials (transportation by human) % Sanitation & Hygiene Promotion Community Sanitation Fund for latrine upgrading 2,421 1, % School latrine construction 3, , % IEC and teaching materials for health, hygiene and sanitation % HARDWARE TOTAL 23,834 29,158-5,324-22% B - SOFTWARE Water Programme Support Costs (campaign, travel cost of project field staffs, meetings and workshops costs with stakeholders) 1, % Staff costs (Field staff, Water Technician) 6,503 4,044 2,459 38% Sanitation & Hygiene Promotion Programme Support cost (campaign, travel cost of project field staff, health & sanitation related meetings/workshops at project location, VDC & DDC level stakeholders awareness) Trainings Community Level capacity building activities (WSUC training, Caretaker training, Mason training, VDC level training, Community health & sanitation volunteers) 2,418 1,171 1,247 52% 2,096 3,545-1,449-69% SOFTWARE TOTAL 12,166 9,037 3,129 26% C - WaterAid Country Programme and Partner Cost Office running costs (transport, audit, communication) % Total Partner Overhead Costs % WaterAid Nepal country programme overhead cost 4,000 1,805 2,195 55% Nepal Country Programme and Partner cost total 4,000 1,805 2,195 55% TOTAL (A+B+C) 40,000 40, % Budget notes 1. Exchange rate of 1 : Nepalese rupee 2. 0 was reported as spent on transport and porterage of materials budget lines, however these costs were incurred but invoiced as part of the larger material cost budget lines and therefore reported within this line. Page 9 of 9