Rural Water Supply Network
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Hon. Maria Mutagamba In Memoriam.
26.06.2017
It is with great sadness that we have heard of the passing of the Honorable Maria Mutagamba on 24 June, at the age of 64. Mrs Mutagamba was an economist and politician, who served in various posts in the Government of Uganda, most recently as Minister for Tourism. However, she is best known to RWSN members as the State Minister for Water Resources, from 2000, and then Minister for Water and Environment between 2004 and 2012. During this period she served as President, African ministers’ council on water (AMCOW), (2004–2012).
Under her leadership, the Ministry of Water & Environment became internationally recognised as leading actor in African water management issues, with a capable civil service team and an open attitude to innovation and collaboration with international partners. Annual processes of Joint Sector Reviews and Sector Performance reporting became the gold standard of improving coordination, reporting and accountability across the WASH and water resources sectors.
I had the pleasure of meeting her when she came to open the 6th RWSN Forum in 2011 – of which she was a great supporter – and then again at the 6th World Water Forum in Marseille. I was struck by how humble and thoughtful she was, yet also strong and with a keen intellect. She had a particular passion for rainwater harvesting, which she saw as an opportunity that was being missed.
According to the New Vision and other news sources, she had been suffering poor health for some time and died of liver cancer. Uganda has sadly lost a great water champion.
- Sean Furey, RWSN Secretariat
Photos: Hon. Maria Mutagamba opening the 6th RWSN Forum, Kampala, 2011
RWSN Evaluation & Strategy for 2018-2020: your participation Evaluation et Stratégie RWSN de 2018-2020: votreparticipation / Evaluación y Estrategia RWSN de 2018-2020: su participación
21.06.2017
RWSN is your network and we really want to hear from you. Over the last years, the network has experienced explosive growth in both its membership and its activities. We are currently conducting an evaluation to inform RWSN's strategy for 2018-2020 and would like to hear your thoughts.
What have you got out of RWSN? How can we make it easier for you to use the network to benefit your work in rural water supply?
We will share the RWSN online member survey in early July, and we also want to provide the space for other forms of feedback and suggestions. Please feel free to send us your thoughts as a comment to this blog in English, French or Spanish, or by email (ruralwater[at]skat.ch). We will monitor both of these platforms and will take your feedback into account. Your opinion really matters!
Chers collègues,
RWSN est votre réseau et nous aimerions vraiment vous entendre. Au cours des dernières années, le réseau a vécu une croissance explosive à la fois de ses membres et de ses activités. Nous entreprenons actuellement une évaluation pour renseigner la stratégie RWSN de 2018-2020 et aimerions avoir votre opinion.
Qu'avez-vous retiré du RWSN ? Comment pouvons-nous rendre plus facile l'utilisation du réseau pour vous pour que cela bénéficie à votre travail sur l'approvisionnement en eau potable en milieu rural ?
Nous allons partager une enquête des membres du RWSN début juillet, et nous aimerions également vous donner la place pour d'autres formes de commentaires. Vous pouvez envoyer vos suggestions sous forme de commentaire en dessous de ce blog en anglais, français ou espagnol, ou par email (ruralwater[at]skat.ch). Nous veillerons à ce que les commentaires reçus sur ces deux plateformes soient pris en compte. Vos opinions sont de grande importance pour nous.
Estimados colegas,
RWSN es su red y nos gustaría mucho contar con su apoyo. Como usted sabe, en los últimos años, la red ha experimentado un crecimiento extraordinario tanto en el número de miembroscomo en sus actividades. Actualmente, estamos llevando a cabo una evaluación para informar a la Estrategia RWSN 2018-2020 y nos gustaría saber su opinión.
En el marco de esta evaluación, nos gustaría conocer: Cuáles son los beneficios percibidos por los miembros gracias a su participación en RWSN y cómo podemos hacer que su participación en la red beneficie aún más el trabajo que se está realizando en lo que se refiere al suministro de agua en zonas rurales.
Piers Cross - In Memoriam Former Chair of RWSN (2004-2008)
31.03.2017
We were saddened to learn that Piers Cross passed away peacefully, surrounded by his family, on 29 March. Piers was a central figure in the WASH sector for many decades, in many roles at WSP and advising IRC, and was a driving force behind the Sanitation and Water for All partnership.
He played a critical role in the development of RWSN, when he was Chair of the network between 2004 and 2008, by re-shaping the Handpump Technology Network (HTN) to the Rural Water Supply Network that we have today.
He leaves a great legacy and his words of wisdom and wit will be sorely missed by all who had the pleasure of knowing and working with him.
Kelly Ann Naylor, RWSN Chair
P.S. The Cross family will continue to monitor his email account for a few months, so please feel free to send any well wishes to this email address: piers.cross {at} gmail.com
New 2017 RWSN Webinar series (18th April - 13th June 2017) Nouvelle série de webinaires RWSN 2017 (18 avril - 13 juin 2017) / Nueva serie de webinarios RWSN (18 de abril - 13 de junio 2017)
22.03.2017
ENG: RWSN is delighted to announce the first of the 2017 series of webinars (on-line seminars) on rural water supply, running every Tuesday from April 18th, 2017 until June 13th, 2017. This series includes 9 weekly sessions on topics, which were presented and debated during the 2016 RWSN Forum in Abidjan, and related to the RWSN themes. For instance, we will find out about local government superheroes and their role in realising the human right to water and sanitation, but also hear about emerging cross-cutting issues such as improving WASH services in protracted crises. Each session will be bilingual, with one webinar in English as well as another language (French or Spanish) as we are trying to cater for a wide and varied audience. The format includes 1-2 presentations, comments from discussants, and a Question & Answer session where all participants are invited to ask questions or make comments. For more details on the first 2017 series, please refer to the table below.
The webinars in English start at 2.30 pm Paris time/ 1.30 pm London time/ 8.30 am Washington DC time. You can check your local time here. To register for one or all of the webinars, and receive an invitation please click on the following link: http://bit.ly/2movPGM
OSCAR CARLSSON (1928 – 2017) Inventor of the Sholapur Hand Pump dies aged 89 The Sholapur Hand Pump was the basis of the India Mark II Pump.
10.02.2017
Oscar Carlson, famed designer of the Sholapur hand pump on which the India MK II is based, died in Sweden on January 18th aged 89. Ingrid, his wife of some 60 years, a teacher and social worker, died four months earlier.
Oscar and Ingrid worked together in Sholapur, Maharashtra State, western India, for many years, under the auspices of the Mission Covenant Church of Sweden and the Hindustani Covenant Church.
Oscar Carlson was a rare being, blessed with out-of-the-box imagination and clever engineering skills that he translated into practical solutions to every day technical and social problems. The Sholapur hand pump was perhaps his greatest contribution to improving the lives of rural people, his efforts magnified many times over by the mass produced India MKII.
Thank you to everyone for the RWSN Forum - and wish you a great start to 2017
23.12.2016
The 7th RWSN Forum explored the practicalities of reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Human Right to Water in rural areas and small towns.
Discussions in all sessions centred around key issues in rural water supply including:
- Provision of adequate water services for women
- The need for increased funding for purchase of spare parts, continuous monitoring and capacity development
- Empowering communities to engage effectively with government to increase access to water and sanitation
- Sustainable rural and small town water supply and the building blocks necessary to ensure sustainable services
- Ways of strengthening local government capacity
- Supporting citizens and media to hold government accountable and put pressure for better service deliver
(Jane Nabunnya, Country Director – Uganda, IRC)
All the papers, posters, presentations and films are available to download from: https://rwsn7.net/programme/
Countdown to the RWSN Forum: all the submissions now available online - for free 7th RWSN Forum
25.11.2016
The 7th RWSN Forum "Water for All" is a 1-in-5 year experience that is bringing nearly 500 professionals from across the world to share experience and work out how everyone can get access to safe, affordable water by 2030.
More than 100 peer-reviewed papers are now available free and online.
So find out what the latest thinking to emerge from researchers, governments, NGOS, private sector and many more.
Gestion des eaux souterraines pour les Organismes nationaux et de Bassin Un séminaire de formation, lundi 28 Novembre 2016, • Abidjan (Côte d'Ivoire)
14.11.2016
Un séminaire de formation d'une journée, portant sur la gestion des eaux souterraines ; il se tiendra le lundi 28 novembre 2016. L'essentiel du cours sera basé sur le manuel de formation publié récemment, et développé par AGW-Net et ses partenaires, disponible en Français et Anglais.
RWSN Webinar 16.11.2016: A tool for monitoring and scaling up WASH technologies Webinar RWSN 16.11.2016: Una herramienta para monitorear y llevar a escala las tecnologías en Agua y Saneamiento
02.11.2016
From the RWSN secretariat we herewith announce the latest webinar of our mini-series 2016, which will take place on 16.11.2016. The title of the event is “A tool for Monitoring the Scaling up of Water and Sanitation Technologies (TAF – Technology Applicability Framework)”, and the session will be hold in English (2-3 PM Central European Time, please check your local time here) and in Spanish (4-5 PM Central European Time, please check your local time here). We are happy to announce the two presenters and the titles of their presentations:
- Joshua Briemberg, WaterAid, Nicaragua: TAF as a participative planning and monitoring tool
- Younes Hassib, GIZ, Germany: Scaling up sanitation solutions in Afghanistan
After the two presentations, you will have the chance to ask questions and participate in the on-line Q&A session and discussion around this topic.
To participate, please register here: http://bit.ly/2cy8Uns
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Tragic loss of Ton Schouten, RWSN Chair, mentor, friend
24.05.2016
Ton passed away at the weekend. It is a tragic loss of a great friend and mentor. Our condolences go to his family and all his colleagues at IRC.
7th RWSN Forum "Water for Everyone" // 7ème Forum RWSN "L’eau pour tous" 29 Nov-1 Dec : Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire
15.02.2016
Today we announce the RWSN Forum which is planned for Abidjan, Côte D’Ivoire from the 29th November to 1st December, plus 2nd December for field trips and sponsored seminars. The event will comprise plenary and parallel sessions of presentations and interactive workshops as well as presentation of posters, photographs, cartoons and films. The event will be in English and French (and possibly Spanish, subject to demand).
With the title, Water for Everyone, the Forum will explore how we are going to reach Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in rural areas and small towns? What has worked well in the past? What needs to be done differently in the future? Come and share your experiences of success and failure and learn from others. RWSN Forums have a unique character, with an emphasis on learning and sharing, and a practical rather than political focus. The participants are mainly rural water supply professionals and practitioners. Where political leaders participate, they are encouraged to engage in the sessions and exhibition as equals with the other participants. You can find out more from the Forum Website.
Why attend?
The RWSN Forum is the only global event dedicated to rural water supply and the content and the discussions are driven by you. Come and present your work in a way that suits you – a paper, a poster, a film, a picture or photo, an exhibition stand or sponsored seminar with your own content. The peer-review process also ensures that the best content is presented and that authors with good experiences and ideas are provided the support that they need. We are particularly interested in practical experiences from an operational level. For example, one of the prizes for best paper at the 6th Forum went to Mr Edgar Phiri, a District Water Officer from Malawi.
The success of 7th RWSN Forum depends on you. The Open Call for Submissions deadline is April 30th, 2016. Forum discussions will be based on submissions for long and short papers, posters, illustrations and short films, entered around the following themes:
• Sustainable Rural Water and Small Town Water Supplies;
• Equality, non-discrimination and inclusion;
• Sustainable Groundwater Development;
• Accelerating Self Supply;
• Mapping and Monitoring;
• Rural Water Supplies in the Humanitarian – Development Context;
The event brings together professionals from all types of organisations and at all levels, from entrepreneurs and service providers to government ministers to university professors. We bring the latest in research, practice and policy together to catalyse new partnerships and reinvigorate existing ones. Normally, RWSN’s activities are online and through publications, but we realise that nothing beats face-to-face interactions and networking. You can find the delegate list from last time on the 6th RWSN Forum website.
If you would like to attend, please register on: http://rwsn7.net/participate/register/. The early bird registration fee (for all participants) is €500 (up to June 30th, 2016).
The philosophy of the Forum is to:
• be inclusive of different perspectives;
• build capacity by raising the quality of the submissions and improving communication skills within the rural water sector;
• share knowledge and experience on rural water issues among equals
• bring the realities of the field to the attention of decision-makers and funding agencies
• catalyze vibrant South-South exchanges and networking
• be accessible to French and English speakers. For the first time presentations in Spanish will be accepted, and translation/ interpretation will be offered at the Forum if there is sufficient demand and funding.
The RWSN Forum is the foremost global event on rural water services and takes place every 5 years. We anticipate 650 participants from all over the world at the 2016 event which is in English and French.
We look forward to seeing you there.
Warm wishes,
Kerstin Danert, Sean Furey, Meleesa Naughton and Victor Bas Martinez
on behalf of the RWSN Forum International Task Force comprising representatives from
Skat Foundation, SDC, UNICEF, World Bank, WaterAid, IRC and the African Development Bank
Get writing! Call for papers for the 39th WEDC WASH Conference, Ghana 11-15 July 2016, Co-hosted with KNUST, in Kumasi Ghana
02.11.2015
The WEDC International Conference is a comprehensive and interactive learning event, which provides continued professional development for water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) sector professionals.
Conference Updates - WEDC & Stockholm Actualités de la Semaine Mondiale de l’Eau à Stockholm et de la conference WEDC
06.10.2015
At the 36th WEDC Conference, in Loughborough, UK, the lead from RWSN was taken by Andrew Armstrong (Water Missions International) who organised two side events:
“I want to thank you all for the opportunity to collaborate on these events and for your support (particularly from André Olschewski) during their development. I felt that the solar pumping workshop was especially valuable to the participants and WEDC, and have received much positive feedback. I have even received a request from one of the workshop participants to co-organize a solar pumping workshop in Zimbabwe.”
Andrew has prepared a synthesis report on both sessions, which you can download the from the RWSN website:
- Elements of Sustainable Solar Water Pumping System Design
- Managing Cash Reserves for Capital Maintenance Expenses
Thanks to Andrew, André, Richard Carter for organising and facilitating these workshops, and to the speakers: Kwabena Nyarko (KNUST), Paul Hutchings, (Cranfield University) and Jim Gibson (Maluti GSM Consulting)
Your can find many useful papers and abstracts from this year’s WEDC conference on their website
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World Water Week in Stockholm update
This year, we decided to take the plunge and have a stand at the World Water Week in Stockholm. This was made possible thanks to funding and support from the UPGro (Unlocking the Potential of Groundwater for the Poor) programme and from UNICEF, through the RWSN collaboration on professionalising water well drilling. Unsurprisingly then, the dominant theme for the stand was groundwater. However, we designed the stand in such a way as to be a networking and presentation space.
Throughout the week we hosted a number of mini-presentations from Prof. Richard Carter (Richard Carter & Associates), Dr Jenny Grönwall (SIWI), Susan Davis (Improve International) [watch her film], Fabio Fussi (University of Milano Biococca), Maria Bestemann (Basic Water Needs), André Mergenthaler and Craig Williams (Water Missions International) [watch their film] ,Virgina Roaf and Hannah Neumeyer (WASH United). Sadly, we couldn’t always guarantee the audience as there was a lot going on, but the people that came were really engaged and there is a lot of potential for interesting collaborations in the future.
Over the course of the week we met several hundred RWSN members – and recruited many new ones (welcome!). We learned so much from colleagues from Zambia, Jordan, Argentina, Cambodia, Lebanon, India, Nigeria, Ghana and many other diverse places and organisations – a huge thanks to everyone!
2015 Member Survey – thank you! Sondage des membres 2015 – merci!
06.10.2015
Thank you to everyone that took part in the 2015 RWSN Member Survey. Responses were received in three languages, from 70 countries and from across government, NGOs, academia, the private sector and development partners. From it, we have a much better idea of who you are, what problems you are facing and how well (or not) we are doing. There were many great examples of how information, publications, films and webinars have been used to improve the quality of rural water supply training, consulting and implementation.
The number one challenge being faced by members is the sustainability of rural water services, in all its diverse forms, from maintaining the physical quality and quantity of water supplied to the challenges around financing, management and regulation.
We got 279 ideas! We can’t respond to all them individually, but we are taking them seriously and generally the feedback focused on extending what the network already does – Expanding member engagement and outreach to others; Advice & support for funding / fundraising; More training; Expanding thematic content & scope; Expanding Geographic Scope; Provide information in more languages; More publications and to Update manuals.
Sustainable Development Goal 6: Ensure access to water and sanitation for all
06.10.2015
The Millennium Development Goals are yesterday’s news – for better or worse. At the Sustainable Development Summit at the end of September, the new Sustainable Development Goals were agreed. For Goal 6 on water sanitation there are the following targets:
- By 2030, achieve universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all
- By 2030, achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all and end open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations
- By 2030, improve water quality by reducing pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, halving the proportion of untreated wastewater and substantially increasing recycling and safe reuse globally
- By 2030, substantially increase water-use efficiency across all sectors and ensure sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity and substantially reduce the number of people suffering from water scarcity
- By 2030, implement integrated water resources management at all levels, including through transboundary cooperation as appropriate
- By 2020, protect and restore water-related ecosystems, including mountains, forests, wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes
- By 2030, expand international cooperation and capacity-building support to developing countries in water- and sanitation-related activities and programmes, including water harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse technologies
- Support and strengthen the participation of local communities in improving water and sanitation management
Details on all the goals can be found at: www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment
RWSN at Stockholm World Water Week
20.08.2015
RWSN and UPGro will have stand and networking area at this year's Stockholm World Water Week (23-29 August). If you are there, please come along and join in the conversation as we ask the question - what do the Sustainable Development Goals mean for groundwater use and management in Africa?
You can meet a number of the UPGro researchers and also find out how their research can benefit your work. Also on the stand we will have a number of facilitated discussions and resources on a range of rural water supply and groundwater topics - not least the Cost Effective Boreholes collaboration between Unicef, WaterAid and Skat to professionalise water well drilling.
You can find us at stand B9 , which we also highlights the activities of other RWSN and UPGro partners.
Investment in rural water supply delivers results Briefing on key findings from the Joint Monitoring Programme 2015 report1 relating to rural water supply
03.07.2015
New figures from the Joint Monitoring Program (JMP) of UNICEF and the World Health Organisation (WHO) show that most countries have achieved substantial progress towards achieving universal access to water for their citizens.
“The number of people without access in rural areas has decreased by over half a billion” (1990-2015)
17 Countries achieved 100% improved access (1990 - 2015) in rural areas: American Samoa, Argentina, Barbados, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Malta, Mauritius, Portugal, Romania, Tokelau, Tonga and Turkey.
Good progress in most regions but Oceania lags behind and Sub-Saharan Africa has little piped-on-premises improvement
Collecting Water With Roads – ground-breaking research wins Global Environment Award Collecte de l'eau avec des routes - la recherche avant-gardiste remporte le Prix mondial pour l'environnement
02.07.2015
Water is short in many places but roads are everywhere – and when it rains it is often along these roads that most water runs, as roads unknowingly either serve as dike or a drain. By harvesting the water with these roads, water shortage can be overcome and impacts of climate change can be mitigated.
This was the idea behind the UPGro Catalyst Grant research , project undertaken in 2013-2014 in Tigray Regional State in Ethiopia. The research looked at ways and means of collecting water with the roads – from culverts, drains, borrow pits, road surface, river crossings, as these have massive impact on how rain run-off moves across a landscape. The idea then scaled up quickly – in 2014 the Tigray Government implemented road water harvesting activities in all its districts. The results have been spectacular in increased water tables, better soil moisture, reduced erosion from roads, less local flooding and moreover much better crop yields.
It is for this project that MetaMeta of the Netherlands, together with its partners Mekelle University and Tigray Government have been awarded this week the prestigious Global Road Achievement Award for Environmental Mitigation by the International Roads Federation. Among the other award winners are the people who are constructing one of the world‘s largest bridges in China.
The potential to scale up the use of water with roads is enormous - with every area having its own solutions. There is also a compelling economic case: harvesting water with roads if done well greatly reduces water damage to roads. The scaling up of the concept is now being undertaken with support of the Global Resilience Partnership (supported by USAID, Rockefeller Foundation and SIDA), where MetaMeta with its partners are a Stage 2 winner.
Programmes to collect the water from the roads are being undertaken in more areas now – such as in Amhara Regional State, where it is part of the massive programme to prepare for the expected El Niño climate event. More than two million people are being mobilised for water harvesting activities, including from the roads.
Launch of REACH A global research programme to improve water security for millions of poor people in Asia and Africa
22.06.2015
REACH is a seven-year, global programme of research (2015-2022) led by Oxford University and funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) that aims to improve water security for over 2.5 million poor people by 2022.
As a Research into Action partner, the Rural Water Supply Network will support the design and implementation of the programme’s communications strategy, supporting the uptake of the research findings and ensuring that they translate into positive policy and practice outcomes.
It all starts with knowing! Tout commence avec le savoir!
05.06.2015
Dear Members,
There is a lot of attention for monitoring, and rightfully so. New Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have opened great possibilities to collect data, store data and visualise data on mobile phones. Maybe some of you already have used mobile phones for data collection. New ICT has brought national scale sector monitoring within reach. It has been done in Liberia, countries in Central America, Ghana, Nigeria, Mali, Ethiopia and many others.
Has it resulted in improved water services? Time is too short to say something meaningful about that, but from experience in the above countries you could already say something. First of all how powerful the collection of water supply data is in particular for local government staff. Going around and knowing the actual status of water supply is a great incentive for taking action.
However, taking action is not always easy; financial and human resources at local government level often are constrained to address the problems revealed by the data. However, data needs to be updated as the situation on the ground changes. In some of the above countries nothing happened for four or five years after the first national scale data collection. That is a pity because up to date data helps to better plan, to prioritise investments better and to systematically address the problems revealed by the data.
And that is what monitoring is about! Regularly collecting and analysing data and then using them to fulfill responsibilities and mandates …. and improve water service delivery.
There is still work to be done to turn one-off data collection into monitoring systems that support planning and decision making. Maybe before starting an initiative to collect national scale data one should consider whether the one-off data collection will be repeated, how and by whom, whether the data really addresses the issues that in particular local government staff needs to address, who will pay for the second round. It would also be a good habit to build such an initiative on past initiatives and the monitoring lessons learned in the country. So there is work to do to turn one-off data collection into a monitoring system. But it is crucial work because how can you improve water services if you do not know the status of the services? It all starts with knowing!
Ton Schouten, Chair
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