IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre

Bridging the knowledge gap and joint learning with partners for improved, low-cost water supply, sanitation and hygiene in developing countries.

Vacancy: Project officer for the East Africa Region

IRC is currently seeking candidates for the position of Project Officer for the East Africa Region. Our new colleague will work on (in particular) our projects and with our partners in the East Africa region. An important project you will be involved in is the Triple-S (Sustainable Services at Scale) project.

Apply before Friday 19 March 2010

In Focus: How much does it cost to provide decentralised WASH services?

Everyone likes new equipment. However, it is the quality of the service received that counts, rather than the infrastructure. People who use water and sanitation often find that the investment in their services brings only short-term relief. One reason that investments fail is that they do not take into account the actual costs of sustaining a particular quality of service. The result is a ‘graveyard of investments’.

How to use management consultants: McKinsey on the world’s water futures

The recent McKinsey report “Charting our Water Future” should cause the global water community – if such exists – to consider why it was thought necessary to bring self-confessed outsiders in to explain what is going on in our world.

Pumps, Pipes and Promises

This year's IRC Symposium is scheduled to take place from 16- 18 November 2010 in The Hague. Bringing together many of the sectors' foremost international experts, the symposium will address issues around:

the cost of provisioning WASH services
how to finance WASH Services and
how to ensure accountability in provision of WASH services

Add your event to our World Water Day website

Remember the 22nd of March marks the international observance of World Water Day, a date which is approaching quickly. IRC maintains a special site on which you can find background information on issues related to the theme of World Water Day. This year there is a special emphasis on water quality. Many events are organised on this special day around the world. Follow the example of Ghana where the Water Resources Commission is organising a wide range of activities: at schools, in universities and on radio and television and via the newspaper.

Contest: Tell us a story – for pride and a prize

Source Bulletin is looking for stories about communities and interventions that helped (or failed!) to improve the sanitation and hygiene situation. Such stories provide valuable lessons from WASH experiences and practices.

Vietnam: a toilet mason’s business career

Thuy Thanh Ky is a mason in Quang Nam Province, Vietnam. He is 43 years old and has a completed secondary school education. He has a wife and four children. Mr. Ky, from Binh Trieu Commune, Thang Binh District, was a poor farmer until he took up part-time masonry in 1996 to make some extra money. His business went well and after two years he became a full-time mason.

Strengthening Capacities for Planning of Sanitation and Wastewater Use: Experiences from two cities in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

This document provides an overview of the experiences of the Wastewater Agriculture and Sanitation for Poverty Alleviation (WASPA) project in Asia, carried out in the towns of Rajshahi in Bangladesh and Kurunegala in Sri Lanka. It shows that integrated, joint planning is important for addressing complex problems that span sectoral, administrative and social divides and that, ultimately, the high transaction costs are justified.

Read more or download OP44_WASPA_2010.pdf (969 kB)

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About IRC

Since its foundation in 1968, the IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC) has facilitated the sharing, promotion and use of knowledge so that governments, professionals and organisations can better support poor men, women and children in developing countries to obtain water and sanitation services they will use and maintain.