Abstract
Over 85% of Uganda’s 34 million people depend on rural water supply systems and the current water and environment sector performance report (2017) reports an 84% functionality of rural water sources such as boreholes and shallow wells with a hand pump. Ensuring the continued operation of water points, and in keeping with participatory theory, the water user’s committees (WUCs) should also be a vehicle for empowering communities while bringing about greater equity of use. However, WUC members do not acquire the knowledge and skills they need by default but require different types of training. This study sought to evaluate community participation and capacity development in WUCs in relation to community-managed water supply systems. A shared dialogue workshop (SDW), as well as 642 randomly selected households across 17 villages in two Parishes in Lwengo district, southern Uganda were considered. Results indicated that 41.7% of surveyed households used an unprotected source while up to 30% had a member in a WUC. Fifty-two percent of households had never made any financial contributions to a WUC, while 34.6% did so on an ad hoc basis. This paper examines the relationship between participation, mobilization, and financial contributions. The chi-square test indicated mobilization has no impact on household financial contributions to a WUC. However, the majority of even those households that were mobilized made a payment only occasionally, and specifically when the source broke down. Additionally, the test result reveals that there is no difference between better off and relatively poor households in their contributions to a WUC, an indication that other factors influence such decisions. Training activities, especially on the operation and maintenance of water points and to undertake minor repairs, were mostly provided by non-governmental organizations (NGOs)/project staff. Abandoned boreholes, lack of rehabilitation activities, and loss of enthusiasm are all indications that the technical, financial, and institutional performance of community-managed water supply systems needs improvement.
Highlights
Community-based management (CBM) has proven to be an enduring strategy for operationalizing mainstream participatory development in rural water supply projects and programmes in sub-SaharanAfrica [1,2]
This study addressed the role of participation and capacity development in community-managed water supply systems in rural Uganda
Household interviews conducted across the 17 case study villages in the Makondo Parish revealed that a majority of the households used an unprotected source of water, such as shallow wells, open ponds, and rivers, that were exposed to a high risk of contamination
Summary
Community-based management (CBM) has proven to be an enduring strategy for operationalizing mainstream participatory development in rural water supply projects and programmes in sub-Saharan. Africa [1,2] This participatory agenda took hold in the 1980s, the first UN “Water Decade”, in the face of general disillusionment with top-down and supply-driven approaches [3,4]. Especially given the potential of this approach for improving participation and water governance in rural vulnerable communities in Africa. The basic principles behind this concept according to Harvey and Reed [7] are that communities benefiting from an improved water supply should have a major role in its development, own the water system or facility, and have overall responsibility for its operation and maintenance (O&M). In order for rural communities to achieve the intended objectives of the community management model, Water
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