Myths of Rural Water Supply Learning from past failures, building on successes

Project start: 2010 • Project finished:
Collaborators: UNICEF, Skat, WaterAid, Water & Sanitation Program, African Development Bank, Swiss Development Cooperation
Funder:

---

Summary

Ensuring that rural dwellers around the world do not have to walk for hours to collect sufficient and safe drinking water is a huge challenge. In 2010, RWSN published "Myths of the Rural Water Supply Sector" which raises issues for those of us who are involved in trying to improve rural water supplies, whether as donor, Government or NGO; program manager or practitioner. It takes a hard look at our limited achievements, points to areas where our approaches need to be radically improved and sets some challenges.

'Smart Handpumps' Handpumps can be better - who is leading the way?

Project start: • Project finished:
Collaborators: Several
Funder: Several

---

Summary

Drilling a borehole and installing a handpump is a common way to improve access to water for rural (and urban) people in many parts of the world. However, the failure of these water points is shockingly high, a third in many African and Asian countries and often much higher.

New communications technology is opening up the possibilities for 'Smart Handpumps' - handpumps that actively record how and when they are used and transmits that data to an organisation who can use that information to (a) mobilise targeted maintenance and repairs; (b) identity priority areas for future improvements and investments; (c) to understand the user needs better, and main other reasons that shift rural water supply away from 'fire-and-forget' projects and towards water services that last and that reach everyone.

Technology Applicability Framework (TAF) & Technology Introduction Process (TIP) WASHtechnologies.net

Project start: 2011 • Project finished:
Collaborators: Skat Foundation, WaterAid, GIZ. The WASHTech consortium consisted of IRC WASH, WaterAid, Cranfield University, Skat Foundation, WSA, TREND, KNUST and NETWAS
Funder: Currently un-funded

---

Summary

The TAF is a tried-and-tested way of helping organisations improve their understanding of whether a technology that is designed to tackle a Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) problem will work in a particular context. This improved understanding can be used to support decisions on:

1. Whether or not to invest or support the introduction of Technology X in Context Y
2. Whether or not to continue to invest, support or approve the introduction of Technology X in Context Y
3. Is Technology X ready to scale-up? And what are context-sensitive factors that may play a major role in the success or failure of widespread promotion and uptake?

Although the TAF was developed for WASH technologies, it can be used for any type of technology or product, and has been adapted by others for renewable energy technologies.

RWSN Publications - now on Practical Answers RWSN Publications - maintenant sur Practical Answers

Project start: 2018 • Project finished:
Collaborators: RWSN, Practical Action
Funder: SDC

---

Summary

To help rural water professionals get access to the inform they need, RWSN has teamed up with Practical Action to make some of our leading publications available on the Practical Answers website and mobile App.

Let is know if there are any particular resources or publications that you would like to have on this platform.

Pour aider les professionnels de l’eau en milieu rural à accéder aux informations dont ils ont besoin, le RWSN s’est associé à Practical Action pour rendre certaines de nos principales publications disponibles sur le site Web de Practical Answers et l’application mobile.

Indiquez s'il existe des ressources ou des publications particulières que vous aimeriez avoir sur cette plate-forme.

Writing Course for WASH Professionals Skat, WaterAid, SHARE, Waterlines Journal

Project start: 2012 • Project finished: -
Collaborators: RWSN, Skat, WaterAid, SHARE, Waterlines Journal
Funder: SHARE

---

Summary

The Challenge

Over 2.5 billion have no access to improved sanitation and 780 million people lack access to improved sources of drinking water, according to the WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (2012). The numbers are staggering. The suffering is real. The challenge to overcome is immense. Success can only come through a combination of action and communication. Both are critical.
We have a vision where Water, Sanitation and Hy-giene (WASH) professionals are regularly sharing and learning – at all levels from districts to global networks. As a sector, we also need to reach out and communicate with wide range of audiences: politicians, policymakers, companies, water users, and the public in all countries.
We often have the content: experiences, data, pro-jects, methodologies and stories of success and failure. What we are often not great at is explaining ourselves to others in a way that leads to positive action.
We want to change that.

Safe Water: monitoring, data and decisions Une eau potable gérée en toute sécurité: surveillance, données, décisions

Project start: 2019 • Project finished: -
Collaborators: University of North Carolina, RWSN
Funder:

---

Summary

New partnership between RWSN and The Water Institute of UNC
Nouveau partenariat entre RWSN et le Water Institute à UNC Chapel Hill

We are excited to announce a new partnership between RWSN and The Water Institute at UNC Chapel Hill. This partnership will leverage the RWSN platform and The Water Institute’s expertise in water quality and management to bring up-to-date evidence and methods to the members of the network. As a new Topic Leader in Mapping and Monitoring,

The Water Institute aims to bring evidence and practice closer by facilitating lively discussion and producing practical guidance on Safely Managed Water. The new partnership will begin in 2019, so look out for The Water Institute’s new weekly Mapping Monday posts in the RWSN Mapping and Monitoring online community in the New Year!

Nous sommes ravis d'annoncer un nouveau partenariat entre RWSN et le Water Institute à UNC Chapel Hill. Ce partenariat s’appuiera sur la plateforme RWSN et sur l’expertise du Water Institute en matière de qualité et de gestion de l’eau pour apporter des données et des méthodes scientifiques de pointe aux membres du réseau. En tant que nouveau responsable du Thème cartographie et de surveillance, The Water Institute a pour objectif de rapprocher la science et les pratique en facilitant une discussion animée et en produisant des conseils pratiques sur une eau gérée de manière sûre. Le nouveau partenariat débutera en 2019, alors ne manquez pas les nouveaux articles hebdomadaires intitulés Mapping Monday du Water Institute dans la communauté en ligne RWSN dédiée à la cartographie et au suivi !

Professionalising Manual Drilling UNICEF, Skat Foundation

Project start: 2013 • Project finished: 2014
Collaborators: UNICEF, Skat Foundation
Funder: UNICEF, Skat Foundation

---

Summary

Building and supporting local enterprises to develop markets and undertake manual drilling in a professional manner.

Cost-Effective Boreholes Striving for Professionalism

Project start: 2005 • Project finished: 2017
Collaborators: Skat, UNICEF, WaterAid
Funder: Currently: UNICEF, Skat, WaterAid, SDC; In the past: WSP, USAID, Aqua for All

---

Summary

Since 2005, RWSN’s work on Cost-effective boreholes has been supported by WSP-AF, UNICEF, SDC and USAID. Coordination activities have comprised up to two-person months per year by Kerstin Danert (Skat). Additional financial support has been provided for specific case studies, support to the drillers associations, the development of guidelines (published as field notes) and tools and the development of the Code of Practice.

Now, in 2015, we are pushing harder than ever for better, more cost-effectuve boreholes and more professional drillers. We are doing this through work to:

- promote the principles of Cost Effective Boreholes, through films, publications, webinars and events

- researching and documenting realities of manual drilling around the world

Sustainability Assessment of Rural Water Service Delivery Models Findings of a Multi-Country Review

Project start: 2016 • Project finished: 2017
Collaborators: The World Bank, Aguaconsult, IRC
Funder: The World Bank

---

Summary

Failure by governments and development partners to ensure sustained access to basic water supplies in rural areas is, to a large extent, the result of inadequate investment to deliver infrastructure where needed. It is also the result of a failure to ensure that infrastructure, once in place, continues to effectively provide the expected services over time.
Impressive gains from the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) era remain fragile and at risk, with various empirical studies indicating that 30 percent to 40 percent of rural water infrastructure is not functioning or functions below expected service levels (RWSN 2010).

New 2018 RWSN webinar series on rural water services (April 3rd - June 5th, 2018) Announcement from 20.03.2018 New 2018 RWSN webinar series on rural water services (April 3rd - June 5th, 2018) Nouvelles série en français de wébinaires en 2018 sur les services d'eau en milieu rural (3 avril - 5 juin 2018) / Nueva serie de webinarios RWS

Project start: 2018 • Project finished: 2018
Collaborators: RWSN
Funder: SDC, Skat Consulting, UPGro, REACH and contributions from Theme Leaders and presenters

---

Summary

Greetings /Bonjour/ Buenos días (message en français plus bas / mensaje en español abajo),

Mark your calendars! RWSN is delighted to announce its 2018 series of 10 webinars (on-line seminars) dedicated to rural water services, running every week from April 3rd until June 5th, in English, French, Spanish and/or Portuguese.
To attend any of the webinars, please register here by April 2nd: http://bit.ly/2prrVf3
We will hear from more than 20 organisations on a range of topics, including:
• A special double session with the WHO/ UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme to find out how you can make the most of the JMP data, and how countries nationalise SDG6 targets and indicators (May 2nd and May 29th);
• The challenges specific to sustainable and safe water supply in peri-urban areas and small towns, with a focus on the urban poor (April 17th and 24th);
• Practical ways of financing to reduce corruption in the sector (April 3rd), and to improve social accountability for better rural water services (May 8th);
• A discussion on community-based water point management (April 10th), and a radio show-style session showcasing experiences with capacity strengthening for professional drilling (June 5th);
• A debate on water kiosks (May 15th), and the role of self-supply and local operator models for universal access in rural areas (May 22nd).

The times of the webinars in English is advertised in the table below. Check out other sections below for sessions in Spanish, French and Portuguese. Feel free to share this with colleagues or partner organisations that may be interested!

Online Course – Professional Management of Water Well Drilling Projects and Programmes

Project start: 2018 • Project finished: 2018
Collaborators: Skat Foundation, UNICEF, RWSN, AGW-Net and UPGro
Funder: UNICEF

---

A Review of Rural Water and Sanitation Services in Seven Countries of the Danube Region Beyond Utility Reach? How to Close the Urban - Rural Access Gap.

Project start: 2017 • Project finished: 2018
Collaborators: The World Bank, Danube Water Programme + inputs from Skat-Apasan (Moldova)
Funder: The World Bank Group

---

Summary

Governments of countries of the Danube region face the double challenge of meeting their citizens’ demand for quality and sustainable water services, while catching up with the environmental requirements of the European Union (EU). In general, the bulk of public investments have targeted urban areas, resulting in the improvement of drinking water systems and the development of wastewater collection and treatment infrastructure. This process is largely driven by EU accession and compliance targets and in several countries involves the regionalization of service providers.

However, rural areas are lagging and significant service access gaps exist in comparison with urban areas. Approximately 28.5 million people remain without access to piped water supply and 22 million remain without flush toilet access in the region (World Bank 2015), of which at least eight out of 10 reside in rural areas. Goal 6 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) underlines the countries’ commitment to achieving universal access to safe and affordable drinking water and safe sanitation and hygiene for all by 2030 (WHO/UNICEF 2017). Understanding how to effectively reach the rural population with “safely managed services” is paramount from the social inclusion as well as the human rights perspective.

RWSN webinar series 2018 Late (9 Oct - 29 Nov) Register now!

Project start: 2018 • Project finished: 2018
Collaborators: In-kind support: UNICEF, WaterAid, Water Mission, World Bank, Simavi, Skat, IRC
Funder: Financial Support: Swiss Agency for Development & Cooperation; REACH: improving water security for the poor

---

Summary

Follow the link below to sign up for any or all of the weekly RWSN webinars below

[9 Oct] Taking stock of solar pumping for domestic water supply – O&M in five countries

[16 Oct] Mapping social inclusive approaches in WASH

[23 Oct] Reaching the poor through market-based interventions: Point-of-use water treatment

** no webinar on 30 October due to UNC Water & Health Conference and Africa Water Week **

[6 Nov] Data for Sustainable Rural Water Supply - Lessons from Asset monitoring & management

[13 Nov] Public Utility Service Delivery in Rural Areas: Opportunities and Challenges

[20 Nov] Addressing land vulnerability and water insecurity in fragile environments: Perspectives from Ethiopia and Kenya (REACH Programme): Starts

[29 Nov] Climate research uptake into policy and practice: Exploring challenges and opportunities with scientists and practitioners (REACH Programme) [Starts: 10:30 Central European Time, 12:30 Ethiopian Time]

Further details on speakers will provided to RWSN members registered on Dgroups (below)

Start time for all webinars - apart from the last REACH webinars are:
14:30 Central Europe
08:30 New York
12:30 Dakar (13:30 in November)
15: 30 Nairobi (16:30 in November)
18:00 New Dehli (19:00 in November)
19:30 Jakarta (20:30 in November)

UPGro - Unlocking the Potential for Groundwater for the Poor

Project start: 2013 • Project finished: 2019
Collaborators: Skat Foundation, Richard Carter & Associates + research teams from across Africa and Europe.
Funder: UK's Department for International Development (DFID), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and in principle the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)

---

Summary

A social and natural science approach to enabling sustainable use of groundwater for the benefit of the poor.

Une approche par les sciences sociales et naturelles pour une utilisation durable des eaux souterraines en faveur des populations pauvres

Unlocking the Potential of Groundwater for the Poor (UPGro), is a new seven-year international research programme which is jointly funded by UK’s Department for International Development (DFID), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC). It focuses on improving the evidence base around groundwater availability and management in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to enable developing countries and partners in SSA to use groundwater in a sustainable way in order to benefit the poor.

REACH: Improving water security for the poor A global research programme to improve water security for millions of poor people in Asia and Africa.

Project start: 2015 • Project finished: 2022
Collaborators: Oxford University, UNICEF, Water and Land Resource Centre, Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, icddr,b, University of Dhaka, University of Nairobi, IFPRI, IWA, RWSN, IRC.
Funder: DFID

---

Summary

REACH is a seven-year, global programme of research (2015-2022) led by Oxford University and funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) that aims to improve water security for over 5 million poor people by 2022.

As a Research into Action partner, the Rural Water Supply Network will support the design and implementation of the programme’s communications strategy, supporting the uptake of the research findings and ensuring that they translate into positive policy and practice outcomes.

RWSN Strategy 2018-2023 La stratégie RWSN 2018-2023

Project start: 2018 • Project finished: 2023
Collaborators: RWSN
Funder: RWSN Executive Committee partners (with special thanks to SDC) + projects + in-kind contributions

---

Summary

The 2015-2017 RWSN strategy came to an end last year, and the RWSN Theme Leads and Secretariat have been busy consulting members and partners to develop a new strategy for the period 2018-2023. We have received valuable ideas for the network through consultations with working groups, the 2017 RWSN member survey and evaluation of the network, and the 6-week open consultation to which we invited all RWSN members. We also hosted a webinar in November 2017 during which the RWSN Secretariat and Chair outlined the proposed changes to the existing strategy. Ideas and comments received from the network members and partners through the open consultation were incorporated into the RWSN Strategy in early 2018. The final version of the Strategy was approved by the RWSN Executive Steering Committee in March 2018.
****
La stratégie RWSN 2015-2017 a pris fin l'an dernier. Les responsables thématiques et le secrétariat de RWSN ont pris l'initiative de consulter les membres et les partenaires du réseau afin de développer une nouvelle stratégie pour la période 2018-2023. Nous avons reçu des bonnes idées pour le réseau à travers des consultations avec les groupes de travail, l'enquête des membres RWSN 2017 et l'évaluation du réseau, et la consultation ouverte de 6 semaines à laquelle nous avons invité tous les membres de RWSN. Nous avons également organisé un wébinaire en novembre 2017 qui a permis au Secrétariat et à la Présidente de RWSN d'expliquer les changements proposés par rapport à la stratégie existante. Les idées et commentaires reçus des membres et des partenaires du réseau à travers cette consultation ont été incorporés dans la nouvelle stratégie RWSN début 2018. La version finale de la stratégie a été approuvée par le Comité de Pilotage Exécutif de RWSN en mars 2018.