AHJASA - ongoing management and maintenance support for Honduras' community water systems

Trevett, Andrew and Nunez, Omar (1998)
In: Waterlines, vol. 16, no. 3, p. 24-26

In the last 10 years, Hondurans' access to potable water has risen by over 13%. As agencies were building these new community water supply systems, they established water committees to be responsible for the maintenance and management of each new system. Now, however, it is becoming evident that water committees have failed to maintain water systems adequately to ensure that they function at full capacity if at all. It is essential for the longevity of community water systems to establish who is responsible for maintenance and to equip them with the knowledge and resources to carry it out. Although education programmes were run during the construction of water systems, this stopped once operation was underway.

The Honduran Association of Water System Committees (AHJASA) was formed to fill this vacuum. In 1990, a pilot project revealed that community members lacked the technical skills needed to maintain their water systems and the ability to maintain a local organization for that purpose. AHJASA, with 17 members representing 17 communities from the Department of Valle, provides educational workshops to community water committees, gives technical and administrative advice and facilitates mutual assistance between members. The education component provides water committees with the specific skills necessary for day-to-day maintenance of their water systems such as basic repairs like changing valves or replacing damaged pipes for technicians, and basic book-keeping for administrators and treasurers. In addition, the Circuit Rider programme provides technical and administrative advice to solve more complicated problems, to fulfil a mediation role to resolve internal disputes and to explain legal statutes or regulations. Through the promotion of mutual assistance between members, committee members have grown in confidence enabling them to manage their systems more effectively. To encourage new members, AHJASA offers a set of education modules and visits by a circuit rider to ensure that both the water system and its committee are functioning properly. Other benefits provided by AHJASA include access to low-cost replacement parts, water analysis, and new types of handpumps. To finance AHJASA, the International Rural Water Association (IRWA) provides 80% of funding, Agua para el Pueblo contributes 15%, and membership fees, collected as a proportion of monthly water tariffs, make up the final 5%. AHJASA has grown from 17 members in one Department of Honduras to 200 members across five departments, and now employs 5 full-time circuit riders. The main difference between AHJASA and other organizations providing ongoing support to community water systems is that members are encouraged to think of AHJASA as their organization, working for their benefit, and this belief in ownership and accepting responsibility is essential in conveying to people the idea that it is their water system. This article is gender neutral and does not discuss the different roles played by men and women in the water supply system.