Master Plans for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene signed in El Fasher, North Darfur, Sudan

11:14 PM November, 07 2017

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KHARTOUM, 7 November 2017: Master Plans to improve water supply, sanitation and hygiene in the state capital of El Fasher were signed today by His Excellency the Governor of North Darfur, UNICEF, UNOPs and the United Kingdom Department for International Development (UKaid). The vision is for all citizens in El Fasher to have access to a reliable supply of drinking water at an affordable price, to improve their sanitation and hygiene behaviour, and to live in a cleaner environment. This will ensure better health and wellbeing, and will help El Fasher to continue to grow and prosper as an important town in Sudan.

The signing of these plans signals the start of implementation. Over the next two years, over SDG 150 million of investments in infrastructure and capacity will be made.

“The vision for El Fasher is that every household has access to a reliable supply of clean water, every household has a latrine, all citizens practice better hygiene, and all citizens live in a cleaner environment. These changes will not happen overnight, they take time. But we have started with the development of these Master Plans. Today I am signing the Master Plans with our partners. This signals the start of implementation.” says His Excellency the Governor of North Darfur Abdelwahid Yousif.

The Master Plans provide a thorough assessment of the state of water, sanitation and hygiene throughout the town, including the peri-urban areas and the IDP settlements, and they consider the needs of all citizens, especially women, girls, and people with disabilities. The plans identify priorities for the short, medium and longer term. This will guide decision making and ensure the best use of funds. The Master Plans have been developed by North Darfur state government, specifically the State Ministry of Health, State Ministry of Physical Planning and Public Utilities, and the El Fasher Locality, supported by UNICEF and UNOPS.

The implementation of El Fasher’s Master Plans for “water supply” and “sanitation and hygiene” will enable progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 6 which calls for availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. Ensuring equity throughout the town is a priority. Currently the poorest people pay the most for water because they do not have access to the urban water supply system. The poorest people also have the worse sanitation facilities, some do not have a latrine and defecate outside. The state government, with the support of UKaid, UNICEF and UNOPS aims to change this situation, ensuring better access for all citizens.

Ensuring sustainable services is also essential. This means covering the costs of operations and maintenance of the water supply system by the revenue gained from water sales to consumers. Appropriate tariffs will be introduced, raising from the current household tariff of 4 SDG per cubic metre to 7-10 SDGs per cubic metre. Although the tariff will increase, the monthly amount spent on water for all households will reduce because they will gain more water from the urban network, and buy less water from the more expensive water vendors. Over the next two years, the state government will strengthen its capacity for management, operations and maintenance of the water supply system to ensure more reliable and sustainable services.

“Together we are working towards ensuring all residents have a clean and reliable supply of water at an affordable price, and ensuring all residents practice good sanitation and hygiene behaviour to reduce the burden of ill health. Service delivery requires mutual accountability and transparency. It requires the state government to provide reliable services at an affordable price and it requires consumers to pay for those services, and to use them responsibly“ says Dr Christopher Pycroft, Head of the UK Department for International Development in Sudan.

The immediate priorities for sanitation and hygiene are to stop open defecation. A campaign to improve sanitation and hygiene behaviour will be implemented throughout the whole town. In addition, latrines and places for hand washing will be built in schools, health centres, and public places. Improving sanitation will also include the development of affordable latrine models to encourage households to construct or improve their latrines.

“Reaching vulnerable population especially children with efficient and sustainable water supply and sanitation services will not only save lives but also form the important building blocks for development. I urge the people of El Fasher under the leadership of the Wali to further accelerate efforts in the implementation of these improvements and make a difference for the next generation. The flexibility of UKaid is a model of bridging the humanitarian development divide in a protracted crisis environment such as in Sudan”, says UNICEF Representative, Abdullah Fadil.
The immediate priorities for water are to increase the supply to the town from the wellfield, to make services more reliable, and to expand the piped network in areas that are currently not served by constructing water kiosks. About 230,000 people will gain access to water from the government managed urban water supply network for the first time. This will reduce the amount they pay for water by over half and will have a substantial impact on the livelihoods of the poorest people. By the end of 2019, the aim is to increase access to piped water supply in El Fasher town from about 20% to about 80%).

“Now, there is a clear direction towards achieving the vision. The measures recommended in the Master Plan will give many more families access to the piped water supply for the first time, especially those living in the peri urban areas of the town, and in the IDP settlements. This will greatly contribute to improving their quality of life,” says Sergei Pushkarev, UNOPS Head of Office in Sudan.

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