Aquaya’s Post

📣 New blog! Rural water operators often lack the resources and expertise to regularly access and monitor water quality compared to their urban counterparts. To bridge this urban-rural divide and, in turn, improve community health, USAID is experimenting with Aquaya to support informal water suppliers through a Water Quality Assurance Fund. The Water Quality Assurance Fund incentivizes established urban laboratories to provide water quality testing services to rural water systems by guaranteeing consistent and reliable payments for testing services. USAID’s REAL-Water (Rural Evidence and Learning for Water) program is evaluating this financial innovation in Ghana and Kenya with plans to also pilot it in Uganda and Tanzania. USAID found the biggest motivations for informal water suppliers to join the Assurance Fund program were: 1. Bridging knowledge gaps 2. Financial impact 3. Government incentives Read the full blog on #USAIDGlobalWaters here: https://lnkd.in/gU3XYCbW

This article highlights the impact of the REAL-Water Water Quality and Assurance Fund in Ghana. As a consortium member, Water Mission is supporting this initiative in Kenya and implementing it in Tanzania. #wash #ruralwater #safewater

📢 INTEGRITY AND REGULATION IN SANITATION Improving integrity and regulation in Citywide Inclusive Sanitation (CWIS) is key to promoting delivery of better services that leave no one behind. This positively contributes to Zambia's efforts in attaining objectives of SDG no. 6. In this regard, the Water Integrity Network (WIN) held a two (2) day workshop in Kigali, Rwanda (31st July, 1st Aug 2024), focused on addressing aspects of integrity and regulation in sanitation. I was privileged to make a presentation at the workshop in which I highlighted some of the integrity challenges Zambia is facing and how we are addressing them. #To improved service provision and regulation.

💡 New Resource Alert. The Water Quality Assurance Fund is an innovative program with a financial mechanism developed to encourage water quality monitoring in rural areas of #Ghana, #Kenya, and similar countries. This report, produced by USAID/REAL-Water, summarizes baseline data collected in Kenya and identifies several areas for improvement in water safety management such as water quality knowledge, water treatment, communications and consumer perceptions. Find out more in the report! 🔗 https://lnkd.in/dN2y6uwz

We just birthed a new project A new project launched by Waterstone as a means to end water poverty in underserved communities in Nigeria. A community-driven initiative to sustainably manage and protect groundwater through the creation of a work flow model to eradicate water challenges in most rural regions. As time has gone on, we have come to understand how important community engagement and involvement are - especially when it comes to carrying out a project in a community. Enough has been done; awareness has increased, but in the majority of those programmes, sustainability, assessment, and monitoring have continued to lag behind. This project addresses all gaps in the water, sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) sector in impoverished areas and offers solutions for the future. Come along as we launch this programme to address the problem associated with epileptic water in different communities in Nigeria. Community Water Initiative Scheme (CWIS)- a means to end water poverty in various rural communities in Nigeria and protect our groundwater. #ruraldevelopment #ruraleducation #rural #wash #groundwater #waterconservation #watereducation #capacitybuilding USAID Global Waters WaterAid Groundwater Hydrology Group Groundwater Youth Network (GWYN)

#WaterPolicy #EquityandInclusion In this Sector Note we published last year, we undertook a Strategic Scenarios analysis exploring the different combinations of Sector reforms and Investment pathways to achieve universal access to water supply and sanitation in Kenya. This Sector Note provided the foundational analysis that informed the Government of Kenya's initiation of the National Water and Sanitation Investment Program (NAWASIP) and the Kenya WASH Program for Results. My key governance insight from this analytical work was the need to drive Policy engagements that advocates for increased funding for Basic access in rural areas while focusing on service delivery reforms in urban utilities to unlock resources lost in sector inefficiencies, as opposed to the traditional approach of allocating the majority of funds to safely managed services in urban areas. https://lnkd.in/dYfjEUqJ

Any idea of achievements/initiatives in the WASH sector in #Kenya? Kenya's WASH sector has made significant progress in recent years, with initiatives aimed at improving access to WASH. Dive with us as we brief you on 3 initiatives done by Kenya to improve on its WASH sector. _ The Kenya Water and Sanitation Program, funded by the World Bank, improved water infrastructure in urban and rural areas. _ The Kenya Environmental Sanitation and Hygiene Program, supported by UNICEF, aimed to reduce waterborne diseases and improve health outcomes. _ The Kenya Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Program, supported by the Kenyan government and development partners, provided sustainable water supply and sanitation services to rural communities. Despite these achievements, there is still work to ensure universal access to clean water and sanitation for all Kenyan citizens. Talk to us today and gain insights about how to invest in Africa (https://bit.ly/3uGv93p) #kenya #kenyabusiness #investments #investmentopportunity #wash #sdgs2030 #development #sustainability #sustainabledevelopmentgoals

DEVELOPMENT FINANCE: New initiative to leverage $7bn for urban sanitation in Africa The African Water Facility (AWF) has launched a new financing window for urban sanitation in Africa that hopes to address the persistent lack of access to sanitation in Africa’s fast-growing cities. The Africa Urban Sanitation Investment Initiative hopes to demonstrate new business models for urban sanitation in Africa and inspire funders. Over the next 10 years, the Africa Urban Sanitation Investment Initiative (AUSII) aims to spend €320 million across 50 projects and provide 15 million people with safely-managed sanitation services. Dr Debjyoty Mukherjee, principal public-private partnership expert at AWF, indicated at Stockholm Water Week that the initiative would use the next 18 months to focus on mobilising €30 million of initial capital and build up a pipeline of projects. “Africa has the lowest sanitation rates in the world, [but] AUSII can turn this around,” Beth Dunford, vice president for agriculture, human and social development at the African Development Bank Group, commented at the event. “It will be accelerator and innovator to African sanitation.” Read the full story: https://lnkd.in/eCBpdtfC #DevelopmentFinance #Sanitation #Wastewater

As our world is striving to achieve SDG 6, Kenya allocated 5.8 billion towards environmental water and sanitation facilities in the finance bill 2022/2023 budget, with no specific funds directed towards improving public toilets. This lack of a budget allocation in the 2024/2025 finance bill budget, coupled with the limited accessibility of existing facilities for the physically challenged, presents a significant hurdle. But, we can all be a part of the solution by prioritizing accessible sanitation facilities in our communities and homes. We can collectively move the needle towards a more equitable and healthy future. What are your thoughts on the importance of public sanitation? #SDG6 #SanitationForAll #AccessibleToilets #Kenya

Excited to share my latest publication: “Decentralisation and Water Governance in Africa: A Zimbabwean Case Study.” The piece explores the complexities of water governance in Zimbabwe and contributes to the broader understanding of decentralisation’s impact across Africa. #Decentralisation #WaterGovernance https://lnkd.in/dWMrSNKi