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Background Access to safe water and adequate sanitation is the foundation of health and a key step out of poverty. In recognition of the vital role of safe water provision for development the United Nations Millennium Development Goals include a target to halve the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water by 2015.
A key constraint in realization of this goal in Africa is inadequate financial resources to develop water supply services. Public finance allocated to community water supply development is insufficient, even to sustain the current service levels, let alone to improve these services and expand them to those areas not yet served.
In 2002 Kenya government passed a new Water Act, opening the sector to numerous institutional changes, including decentralized water provision where the responsibilities of water service provision has now been shifted from the government to the communities. This arrangement was necessitated by the fact that the government was finding it increasingly difficult to meet the cost of water provision.
Small-scale water service providers, such as community-based organizations and independent private providers are being increasingly recognized as significant providers of water services in Africa. Collectively, they provide services to over 10% of urban and 30% of rural households in Kenya - accounting for over 30% of sector spending. Access to finance and credit facilities is however severely restricted to such small-scale providers. As they have the potential to save, borrow and invest for better services, sector policies should provide an enabling environment to foster such initiatives.
A recent EU water initiative inquiry found that in several African countries, Kenya included, only a select few outside the international development community were acquainted with innovative finance options and programmes. There is therefore an information gap to be bridged.
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WELL COUNTRY NOTE 16.1 Go BackLocal financing mechanisms for water supply in Kenya This Country Note identifies the key financing mechanisms for supporting water services in Kenya.
Compiled by: Gerald Rukunga, Titus Kioko and Lennah Kanyangi of AMREF Edited by: Frank Odhiambo, WEDC
Local Financing Mechanisms in Kenya
Almost 70% of donor resources allocated to the development of new community-based water schemes are routed through NGOs. The approaches taken by these NGOs vary – some NGOs fully fund water schemes while others operate on a cost-sharing basis with the target communities. Many however appear to operate in isolation to local government agencies. SIDA support to the transfer of RWS schemes to CBOs in Kenya Recently, the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) has begun to fund the transfer of government-implemented schemes to communities. The community must apply through a proposal that is vetted by the government before funds are released The program favours low technology, such as gravity schemes and small systems. SIDA requires that the beneficiaries make a significant contribution towards the capital cost of the rehabilitation of the system. The level of contribution has ranged from 10 to 50 percent. Operation and maintenance of the rehabilitated scheme then become the responsibility of the community. Though at present no effort has been made to link with credit for the community to meet its share, this is a potential opportunity, particularly given the improved outreach of microfinance in Kenya. This will, however, require a clear policy on community share in capital costs and efforts to link with Micro Finance Institutions and the co-operative sector. Private Small-Scale Service Providers (PSSPs) PSSPs include service providers in informal settlements, those catering to special demands of the rich and commercial establishments. They may be water resellers, (kiosk operators), water vendors, water truckers, borehole operators and small water network operators. The Water and Sanitation Program – AF found that 1 in 4 of Kenya’s urban residents depend on small scale service providers for their water needs. They play a very important role especially in informal settlements where the main utility supplies are missing. Most PSSPs meet their running costs through user charges. Limited access to credit facilities for capital investment is one of the main constraints to market entry and the expansion of services provided by these small providers. Kenya’s national water policy promotes community operation and maintenance of water supply systems. The role of community-based organizations has therefore become more significant. Water committees, selected by the communities, are often entrusted with this responsibility. Communities raise maintenance funds by charging for water at the point of delivery (such as 2 KShs. for a 20 litre jerrican)1. In most cases however households pay a fixed monthly contribution, or help raise money as and when required, to carry out repairs or expand the scheme. Some agencies promote using bank accounts to secure maintenance funds, but the resulting bank charges often deter communities from doing this This typically requires committee members (often voluntary) to be trained in financial management, book-keeping and maintenance procedures
A case of Mderu water project
Nderu water project is a community project
operating two boreholes, which provide water for
the Community within the project area. The
project dates back to 1926 when a settler sank
one borehole to obtain water for his personal
use. After independence the county council of
Kiambu took over the operation of the borehole
and extended the distribution network. The
council continued with the operation of the
water facility but with great difficulty. In
1990, mainly due to financial difficulties, the
facility broke down and the power supply was
disconnected. In 1992 the Community members
approached the county council of Kiambu and were
allowed to revive and manage the water
project. Kshs 140,000 (US$4,500) was borrowed
from two institutions in the community.
Thairira Technical Institute and Mirithu
Secondary School. The loan proceeds were used to
rehabilitate the borehole and pay outstanding
electricity bills. Normal water operations
resumed later in 1992, and after only six months
of operation the community had collected enough
revenue to pay back the loan after meeting its
operation costs. The project serves about 1,200
families and has been running smoothly
since
Self-Help Financing of Rural Water Supplies
About 30% of Kenya’s rural population who have access to safe water are served by community managed schemes, developed by self-help groups. A self-help group typically constructs a water supply system to serve around 500 households. Capital may be raised from the community’s own resources, or with contributed funds from government, NGOs or external support agencies. Self-help groups usually set the household contribution required to receive an in-house supply, while providing water to others through public tap stands. The revenue generated is used to support operation and maintenance of the facility. Constraints of Institutional Financing Many constraints face existing financing arrangements, affecting the effectiveness with which sectoral finances are secured and delivered in Kenya.
An environment should therefore be created to enable these service providers to access credit facilities. The water sector reform framework envisages more streamlined sector financing, with greater emphasis on achieving sustainable revenue. One of the financing avenues outlined in the new Water Act is the Water Services Trust Fund (WSTF). This fund is financed mainly by the government and its development partners. It mobilizes resources to support communities that cannot afford water service because of extreme poverty. In the past two years, the Government of Kenya in partnership with the Swedish and Danish governments have given the trust fund Kshs. 750 million which has already been disbursed to 102 community water and sanitation projects. Again under the new reforms, revenue is going to be generated by Water Service Providers (WSPs) through tariff payments by the consumers. This is seen as a significant source of sector finance that will be increasingly relied on and will be used for extension and improvement of the water provision service. The Kenyan Government has established a special fund which draws its finances from the national budget. The money is distributed equally across all parliamentary constituencies in the country and finances priority projects as identified by the respective communities. Water supply ranks high among priorities in many regions in Kenya and as such the kitty has been used to fund many water projects across the country. Other Potential Financing Mechanisms Microfinance for Community-Managed Rural Water Service Pilot Project in Kenya A new pilot project being designed in Kenya aims to facilitate access to microfinance for community managed rural piped water supply projects on a commercial basis. The performance risks are taken by the water project entity that will be eligible for a partial Output-Based Aid (OBA) subsidy on delivery of outputs to refinance a part of the loan and keep the debt repayment affordable. Water and Sanitation Program - AF is facilitating the K-Rep Bank and the Nairobi Water Services Board to develop this pilot project with assistance from the Global Partnership on Output-Based Aid (GPOBA). This innovative financing arrangement offers two distinct potential benefits to the rural water sector: it leverages resources, and contributes to sustainability and effective use of resources. The approach is also designed for potential scaling up through a special OBA window at the national Water Services Trust Fund and a new business line for the K-Rep Bank, a Kenyan- based microfinance institution.
Varley, R.C.G, (1995). Financial Services and Environmental Health: Household Credit for Water and Sanitation, EHP Applied Study 2, USAID, and Washington, USA. Available at http://pdf.dec.org/pdf_docs/pnabu314.pdf Government of Uganda. (2005). Poverty Eradication Action Plan (2004/5-2007/8), Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Kampala, Uganda. Available at: www.finance.go.ug WSP (2004). Sector Finance and Resource Flows for Water Supply, A Pilot Application for Kenya, Water and Sanitation Program – Africa Region, Nairobi, Kenya. Executive summary available at http://www.wsp.org/publications/af_flows_kenya_execsum.pdf WSP, (2003). Governance and Financing of water supply and sanitation in Ethiopia, Kenya and South Africa: A Cross Country Synthesis, Water and Sanitation Program – Africa Region, Nairobi, Kenya. Available at http://www.wsp.org/publications/af_governance.pdf Colligan B. and Vezina M. Independent Water and Sanitation Providers in African Cities (WSP April 2000)
This Country Note is based on the WELL Global Briefing Note series. These and other Country Notes are available at http://www.Lboro.ac.uk/well/ For further information contact:
Gerald Rukunga African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF) Langata Road, Wilson Airport, PO Box 30125 - 00100 Nairobi Kenya Email: rukunga@amrefke.org Phone: 0(254) 20 6994352 Fax: 0 (254) 20 602531/606340
WELL Water, Engineering and Development Centre (WEDC) Loughborough University Leicestershire LE11 3TU, UK Phone: +44 (0)1509 228304 Fax: +44 (0)1509 211079
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