THE ROLE OF WATER AND SANITATION COMMITTEES IN SUSTAINABLE WATER SUPPLY IN LAWRA AND JIRAPA DISTRICTS OF THE UPPER WEST REGION, GHANA

Abstract

The formation of water and sanitation management teams through the introduction of community ownership and management have been applauded as a result of the improved access to water. However, the performance and effective management of water facilities by the WATSANs remains a barrier to sustainable water access for rural communities in Ghana. This study sought to assess the extent to which WATSANs contribute to the sustainability of handpump-boreholes in the Lawra and Jirapa Districts in the Upper West Region. The central questions of the study were: what extent has the performance of WATSAN Committees contributed to the sustainability of rural water supply in the study areas? What are the effects of the sustained water delivery on the wellbeing of the people? The mixed methods research design with emphasis on both qualitative and quantitative mean of data collection tools was employed. In all, 210 respondents (water users, WATSAN members, DWST, CWSA) were sampled using both probability and non-probability sampling techniques. The study found that WATSAN Committee members and water users (household heads) conceptualised the roles and responsibilities of the WSMT as "making sure", "ensuring", or "seeing to it" that handpumps function at all times. The study revealed certain characteristics communities with WATSANs in the performance including the ability to devote the necessary time and knowledge of pump maintenance. The performance of WATSANs was generally high, especially on benchmarks like governance and management; financial management and operational indicators. However, the District Assemblies under the service support indicator failed to provide adequate support to WATSANs. The findings of the study also highlighted a number of problems which negatively affect the performance of the WATSAN committees including insufficient funds to carry out operations and maintenance, thefrequent movement of committee members outside the community and the absence of bye-laws. The study revealed that people's wellbeing (education, health, women empowerment and economic empowerment) have been greatly improved due to provision of sustained water supply services. This thesis concludes that for a handpump borehole to be sustainable, all the CWSA benchmark attributes of sustainability have to be adhered to. The study recommends that authorities (DWST and CWSA) should put in place sustainable training programmes to better equip WSMTs with the knowledge and skills to improve their performance, and ultimately outcomes for improved wellbeing of the people.