“We from the North, we write, in Africa they talk”

“We from the North, we write. In Africa they talk”, says IRC’s Jo Smet on his return to The Netherlands after completing more than four years working for IRC in Uganda. Contributions to getting sector learning on the action agenda, strengthening of local capacities in knowledge and information management and the value of life-cycle costs for sustainable water service delivery are among the most rewarding achievements, Jo says in an interview. He also identified three key achievements and challenges of the WASH Sector in Uganda. At the end he explains his passion for making his house eco-san proof and its benefits that outweigh the costs.

Rene van Lieshout and his family are taking over the IRC post in Uganda and Jo’s house for the next three years.

What were your three most rewarding achievements from your work in Uganda? And why?

JS: IRC’s main achievement in East Africa is its contribution to putting sector learning on the agenda of the WASH sector, particularly in Uganda and Ethiopia, and to some extent in the region as a whole. In Uganda, we started three years ago with district-based learning. With partners such as NETWAS, SNV, the Ministry of Water and Environment and others we want to roll that learning concept out to all 112 districts of Uganda. National sector learning in Uganda got shaped up in the National Learning Fora. These events contribute to stakeholders’ harmonisation and efficiency at national level as in principle there is no need for specific study/research/project results’ workshops anymore. In Ethiopia the RiPPLE programme, in which IRC is a partner, managed to establish regional learning and a national learning & sharing forum called FLOWS. IRC and partners also organised the first East African Learning Forum on Sanitation in March 2010 as part of the Second East African Conference on Sanitation.

IRC also contributed to the strengthening of knowledge and information management, and evidence-based advocacy on WASH in Uganda. The latter was achieved through the promotion of action-research, mainly on sanitation and hygiene, and WASH accountability. The national WASH sector alliance for learning and knowledge management (called SAWA), and NETWAS got strengthened and better positioned. It is a portal to quality sector information and good practices. IRC and partners documented several good practices in these areas.

And last but not least, the starting of Triple-S Uganda, the initiative on sustainable rural water service is a main achievement. We managed to establish a consortium on rural water sustainability with the Ugandan government and many NGOs.

How did IRC support the WASH sector actually? And what were typical problems you encountered?

JS: It is good to see that IRC has many partners in Uganda; however that makes it hard to satisfy their expectations. IRC’s strategy is to support the sector agencies, not to become itself a large entity in Uganda or East Africa. Therefore, it works with the national and local government, partner organisations and development partners. The methodology used is to jointly formulate, apply for funding and implement projects. Over the last four years we had numerous projects, initiatives and small activities at district and sub-county levels following that concept.

Of course, in working with local and international partners you face many challenges. But if you want, you find solutions to effectively collaborate. A common problem is that you may have different expectations than the partners, so be realistic and flexible. Development and change require a longer process than we usually anticipate. Partnerships and collaboration, and development in general, are all about attitudes and agendas of organisations and individuals within these organisations. Understanding and knowing these is important. And, accepting and incorporating these in the modes of working together on a daily basis is a key factor for keeping up the enthusiasm and maintaining the targets.

What are in your view the top three achievements of the WASH sector in Uganda?

JS: The Ugandan WASH sector is quite successful. The Sector-wide approach is a main achievement, with most funders now supporting the water sector along agreed strategic and implementation approaches. At national level, the water sector has well-functioning coordination platforms of major donor organisations an d other development partners, steered by the government. However, except a few, the large international NGOs do not harmonise with the main sector approaches. The annual Sector Performance Report and the Joint Sector Review are exemplary for many countries in the South. The sanitation sector is well coordinated at national level despite, the institutional fragmentation problems and subsequent lack of government leadership on sanitation that are common to many other countries. However, the coordination at district level needs more attention.

The national stakeholders initiate many studies around financial sector issues like value-for-money, unit cost etc. This feeds the discussion and efforts to make the water sector more cost-efficient.

All these efforts, and more, resulted in that - according to reports - some two out of three Ugandans have access to safe water and also to improved sanitation, and that some four out of five water systems are functioning. A good achievement; however, to provide sustainable services to the presently covered and the remaining citizens without water and sanitation is a great challenge requiring unconventional approaches.

What do you consider to be the top three challenges for the WASH sector in Uganda?

JS : We from the North, we write. In Africa they talk. We have to find more effective ways to communicate key sector messages on approaches and techniques to different groups in the sector and the society. ‘Workshops’ or ‘learning sessions’ may be an option, but sector agencies have to work together to minimise the number of and better coordinate these events. Part of the answer lies also in basing external capacity building efforts more on analysed gaps and demands at various levels.

Many new sector approaches are organisation/individual driven. Of course, innovations must have champions, however, their appropriateness and potential need to be studied and critically tested, before advocating them on a large scale. Sector advocacy needs to be more evidence based.

Behaviours are based on attitudes and cultures, also in Africa. For me, the sector challenges are related to these behaviours: on investments, are these for conventional hardware or for sustainability, on sector accountability at all levels, and on communication and education on beliefs and taboos. Most citizens and politicians, and many sector professionals are conventional thinkers not yet open for change. Learning from positive experiences can help to change.

Both in the water and sanitation sector, livelihood approaches are mainly linked to social and health aspects. However, water and sanitation have great potential for income generation for households and for business opportunities. This can be small and private, and also large and company-based. Both sectors need more creativity and stimuli to exploit the opportunities rather than building barriers by applying ‘outdated’ and bureaucratic regulations and procedures.

You made your house in Kampala eco-san proof. What did you install and how much did that cost you?

JS: EcoSan was one of my favourite subjects while in Uganda. My main drive was to counter-attack the myth that EcoSan is an expensive sanitation option; so I built and used my own double alternating composting latrine (Fossa Alterna). I built it at a low cost: €14 for the substructure including the floor, and some €40 for the superstructure but that could have been cheaper. With several visitors from IRC we made concrete slabs at a material cost of €6 each. Even that may be costly for some people in rural areas with a cash income of a few EUROs a month but I assume most households can afford six EUROs. And at the ‘pit-emptying event’ we showed many national sanitation stakeholders how decomposed human faeces look and smell like! Most had never seen the content from a composting latrine. We also had a €2-urinal made of plastic jerry cans, although the male population at our plot used to urinate directly on one of our five compost heaps, enriching the garden compost. African soils are doing great for organic gardening if you give them good garden and latrine compost; we had so many fresh, tasty vegetables from our own garden. On EcoSan we practised what we preached! Perhaps an idea for other sector stakeholders?
Africa has another under-utilised resource, the sun! We used it for heating the water and disinfecting our drinking water (SODIS) for which we used rainwater collected from the roof. I still regret that we did not install solar cells for electricity supply.

What are the biggest adjustments for you being back in The Netherlands?

JS: On a personal note, I miss the many people in the streets and small shops and markets. I also miss the easy communication you have with Ugandans; always ready for a short talk and a joke. We lived some 10 kilometres from the centre of Kampala with much more space around the house than here in Delft where we live now. Our home was in a quite area with lots of beautiful birds; that is how we became bird-watchers. We hope that my successor René van Lieshout and his wife Jeanette and their children will enjoy both the private and professional life as much as we did.

From a professional perspective, I am now again far away from our partners in East Africa, the international, national and local stakeholders. But, having worked there for four years, the actual situation and real conditions got printed in my mind. That real context I will continue to use in my working from The Netherlands. North-based organisations could improve cost-effectiveness if the reality of the South is more taken into account when developing concepts and providing support.

Dick de Jong