Experiences in the Process of Strengthening AGUASANA Organization for Possible Replication elsewhere in Costa Rica

Abstract

As a result of problems in wastewater management in Costa Rica, and more specifically in the coastal zones of Santa Cruz and Carrillo municipalities, in the province of Guanacaste, various social actors of community water systems, the Asociación Confraternidad Guanacasteca [Guanacaste Fellowship Association], and the Centro de Recursos Hídricos para Centroamérica y el Caribe [Water Resources Center for Central America and the Caribbean] of the National University joined forces to create the Asociación de Desarrollo Específico de Saneamiento y Protección de los Mantos Acuíferos de Guanacaste [Association for the Specific Development of Sanitation and Protection of the Guanacaste Aquifers] or AGUASANA in 2013. The development and strengthening of this organization from 2013 to 2019 have generated infinite lessons learned, experiences, and conclusions. The main idea of producing this document is to synthesize all these processes and provide ideas and recommendations for replicating the project elsewhere in the country. The methodological procedure used was based on Jara’s book titled “La sistematización de experiencias: práctica y teoría para otros mundos posibles” [Systematization of Experiences: Practice and Theory for Other Possible Worlds] (2018). Thus, among the main conclusions and recommendations, the project provided benefits to the social and cultural image and the environmental philosophy of the communities thanks to the different synergies the community social actors had established. It is recommended to work and strengthen the community bases and move away from local political figures that can generate rifts between the different members. Additionally, working with these communities is also an opportunity to conduct business endogenously and replicate it elsewhere in the country.