1. Meeting the challenges of
sustainability for WASH
investments
Changing the business as
usual approach?
London, 31st January 2012

2. Expectations and reality
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3. Progress - but mind the ‘sustainability gap’
+/- 60 – 70% functionality
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4. Who are we?
• NGOs, charities and consulting firms - the
‘doers’
• Donors and funders of WASH interventions
• Advocacy and networking organizations
• Academic or research institutions
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5. Agenda
Morning sessions
 The challenges of ‘business as usual’
 Sustainability continuum and speed dating
Sensemaker
 From infrastructure focus to service delivery
Afternoon sessions
 Organisational change
 Group work - practices, strategies and obstacles
 Action planning and commitments
@
 Next steps and follow-up
 ...... drinks and discussions
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6. The sustainability challenge and
business as usual
A film - ‘What if’

7. Much effort and progress made
• Tens of billions of dollars invested: 720 million
newly served
• Evolving approaches: VLOM, community
management, DRA, post-construction support,
aid effectiveness, SWAp
• Testing new elements:
gender, supply chains,
water resource protection

8. But many challenges remain
• Unacceptable levels of system failure – 30 to
40% - universal problem
• Wasted development
partner, national and
community financial
investments
• Health, dignity, well-
being and livelihoods
affected @Akvo
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9. The cost of failure – 20 countries in sub-Saharan
Africa
36%
Investment
loss in sub-
Saharan
Africa of
between
US$ 1.2 to
1.3 billion
over 20 years
Information Collated by Peter Harvey, UNICEF Zambia, May 2007
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10. ‘Slippage’ - declining service levels in India
>30%
Information presented at IRC Slippage roundtable Briefing, Delhi, June 2009
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11. World Bank
Percentage of rural water systems requiring rehabilitation
Uganda 10% Cote d'Ivoire 33%
Chad 13% Zambia 35%
Benin 14% Mozambique 40%
Burkina Faso 23% Namibia 40%
Ethiopia 25% Sudan 40%
Lesotho 25% Madagascar 50%
Rwanda 30% DRC 60%
Senegal 30% Malawi 75%
World Bank 2007. Africa Infrastructure Country Diagnostic Water Supply and Sanitation Survey Database.
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12. So what has gone wrong?
• Focus on the level of the community and
community management - inherently ‘un-scalable’
• Lack of investment and support to improve overall
sector capacity - largely infrastructure focus
• Financing focuses on initial
construction, not lifetime costs
• A persistent lack of
coordination and
harmonisation
• Political influence and
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corruption

13. Increasing coverage is not the whole story
Breakdowns, failures, non-
functionality, slippage ........... a
tipping point which is now a threat
to achieving the MDGs?
Build on current progress, but make a shift
from infrastructure to service delivery
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14. From building infrastructure to delivering a
service
Business as usual Service delivery
Implement Implement Implement Implement
Replace
Upgrade Upgrade
Time
Investment Investment
(capital (operational Service
expenditure) expenditure) level

15. What makes a service work?
 Clear sector policies
 Well defined institutional roles
and responsibilities
 Learning and innovation
 Good implementation practices
 Strong planning, coordination and
leadership
 Harmonisation and alignment
 Long-term support and monitoring
 Appropriate technology
 Relevant management models
 Finance for life-cycle costs

16. INSTITUTO COSTARRICENSE DE
ACUEDUCTOS y ALCANTARILLADOS
DIRECCION DE ACUEDUCTOS RURALES

17. The sustainability continuum

18. Sustainability Continuum
Full Service
Delivery Approach.
Service delivery Addresses
approach with sustainable
limited ability to services at scale
scale up. through support to
Scaled up Supports entire sector
infrastructure indefinite ‘system’ in a
approach. Can be services through coordinated and
taken to scale, improving sector comprehensive
Infrastructure but does not systems, but way
focus with limited address long- done in a
ability to scale up. term systemic piecemeal way
Time and spatial change or
dimensions are sustainability
limited

19. Infrastructure focus with limited Scaled up infrastructure Service delivery approach with Full Service Delivery Approach
ability to scale up approach limited ability to scale up
 Focus on interventions through  Interventions planned and  Interventions carried out on  Interventions planned and
projects at community level implemented at scale through project or piecemeal basis with implemented at scale through
 Different management models coordinated programmes significant gaps provision of commonly agreed
supported without common  Involvement of decentralised  Efforts go into both construction service levels and models for delivery
agreement authorities in implementation of new systems and (public, private etc.)
 Implementation of parallel and largely  Efforts nearly exclusively go into rehabilitation and to address full  Efforts address full life-cycle of a
uncoordinated programmes with little the construction of new systems life-cycle of a service delivery service delivery from construction to
involvement of decentralised or rehabilitation  Involvement of decentralised post-construction, asset
government  Support to skills and capacity authorities in implementation management and replacement
 Efforts nearly exclusively go into the building, but limited to and post-construction  Involvement of decentralised
construction of new systems or construction only and not to full  Support to skills and capacity in authorities in planning,
rehabilitation life-cycle. functions such as planning, implementation and post-
 Little or no recognition of full life-cycle  Monitoring focuses on outputs regulation, post-construction construction and oversight
functions such as asset planning, , (systems built and beneficiaries) support start to address full life-  Support to skills and capacity in
regulation, post-construction support  No explicit targets for cycle requirements. functions such as planning,
 Monitoring focuses on outputs sustainability of services  Monitoring addresses not only regulation, post-construction support
(systems built and beneficiaries)  Financing mechanisms limited to outputs, but includes service start to address full life-cycle
 No explicit targets for sustainability of construction and initial provided and performance of requirements.
services implementation phase service providers  Monitoring addresses not only
 Financing mechanisms limited to  No systematic support to  Sector targets explicitly include outputs, but includes service
construction and initial professionalise service providers sustainability provided and performance of service
implementation phase  Financing mechanisms in place providers
 No systematic support to to support capital maintenance  Sector targets explicitly include
professionalise service providers and asset management and sustainability
 Promotes inappropriate technology or replacement  Financing mechanisms in place to
technology-focused solutions  Systematic support provided to support capital maintenance and
professionalise service providers asset management and replacement
 Enabling environment functions  Systematic support provided to
strengthened – policy and professionalise service providers
legislation  Enabling environment supports
 Includes space for technological common definitions and frameworks
innovation for WASH services; sector learning,
policy development and innovation is
recognised and promoted

20. Sustainability continuum exercise
• Read the sustainability continuum handout
• Identify where you think you are on the
continuum and post the name of your
organization – remember that you may be in
more than one place!
• Spend a few minutes to observe where others
are

21. Speed Dating

22. Speed Dating: a how to guide
• At the sound of the bell ……
• Pair off with someone you don’t already
know
• Introduce yourselves to one another
• Spend a couple of minutes each in turn
asking the questions or topics for discussion
• When the bell sounds find a new partner and
do it again

23. Speed Dating: topics for discussion
• Where are you on the continuum and why?
• What type of organisations are where and
why?
• Areas of disagreement: another point of view?
• What do you think contributed to
organisations getting to stage three or four?
• Obstacles and challenges to sustainability- and
how to surmount them?

24. Moving from infrastructure focus
to service delivery
Nick Burn, Water for People

25. Supporting service delivery in practice
• Financing and life cycle costs - Dr. Patrick Moriarty,
IRC, International Water and Sanitation Centre
• Sustainable water resources - Dr. Alan MacDonald,
British Geological Survey
• Direct support for service delivery - Harold
Lockwood, Aguaconsult
• Monitoring for service delivery - Nick Burn, Water for
People

26. Sensemaker@ - learning about
change through stories
Anna Le Gouais, Aguaconsult

27. Organisational change for
improved programming
A film - ‘Everyone’

28. Small group exercise
1. Practical approaches – what would you do?
• Planning and design of WASH interventions
• Post-construction support and O&M
• Financing
• Monitoring
2. Strategies – how would you put this into practice?
• Training of staff and partners
• New policies or procedures
• Improved coordination
3. Obstacles – what are the barriers to change and
how could you overcome them?
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29. Feedback in Plenary
Share outcomes of practical change, strategies and
surmounting obstacles from five different groups:
• Funders - bi-lateral donors and foundations
• Large NGOs
• Small NGOs
• Private companies, contractors and
independent consultants
• Network, advocacy and research groups
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30. Perspectives on change in WASH
Duncan Goose, Founder - The One Foundation
Maurie Carr, Director of Programs, and
Brian Banks, Director of Sustainability - Global
Water Challenge

31. A personal commitment to
change

32. One step to promote sustainability in your
organisation?
• Sponsor a presentation for your colleagues on service
delivery concepts and approaches
• Exchange information and ideas with other organisations
• Integrate aspects of service delivery in your work,
document and share your experiences
• Promote, discuss and debate service delivery at
international or regional fora e.g. WWW 2012, SWWW
• Join a community-of-practice around sustainable WASH
service delivery – www.sustainableWASH.org
• Set up a follow-up meeting next year .............. other?
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33. Follow-up
Sources of information and documentation
• IRC Triple-S project www.waterservicesthatlast.org
• IRC WASHCost project www.washcost.info/page/107
• Water for People www.waterforpeople.org
• Wateraid www.wateraid.org/uk
• SustainableWASH www.sustainableWASH.org
• Global Water Challenge www.globalwaterchallenge.org
• Rural Water Supply Network www.rwsn.ch
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34. Thank you – drinks from
5:00 to 7:00 pm
....... and please fill out a feedback form