Water & Wastewater
in the Sustainable City
Presentation to World Water
Week
Stockholm 20-26 August 2006
Dr. Graham Alabaster, Programme Manager,
Water, Sanitation & Infrastructure Branch,
UN-HABITAT
Structure of the presentation
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Urbanisation: the changing patterns in cities
and towns
Key WATSAN issues in large cities and small
towns and their influence on project design
Examples from UN-HABITAT, 2 case studies:
Lake Victoria (small towns) Kibera (large
cities)
Conclusions
Urbanisation: the changing patterns
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Currently 20 - 50 % of the population in most
low and middle income nations live in small
towns and large villages
Increasing urbanization means over the next
twenty years the major population growth will
be in smaller towns
Three types of settlements: Rural areas; large
urban centres; small towns/large villages need
different approaches
Proportion (%) of Total Population in Urban Areas
(derived from UNDESA statistics, 2004)
Nations and
regions
Rural areas
Urban areas
< 500,000
Urban areas
500,000 –
4.999
million
Urban areas
5 million –
9.999
million
Mega-cities
> 10 million
Africa
62.9
22.3
12.4
1.1
1.3
Asia
62.9
18.4
12.4
2.5
3.9
Europe
27.3
46.1
20.5
4.7
1.4
Latin America &
Caribbean
24.5
37.1
23.4
3.7
11.3
North America
20.9
29.8
35.6
4.3
9.4
Oceana
27.3
31.7
41.0
-
-
World
52.9
24.5
15.7
2.7
4.1
What are the key issues for Water
and sanitation in towns and cities?
Policy Approaches
 Lack of integrated approaches (water sanitation, solid waste,
drainage, housing & other infrastructure, urban planning)
 National policies (sector reforms) don’t cater for urban centres
of all sizes
 The target population: do we know where the poor are and how
they are best served?
 How do we integrate WATSAN planning with urban planning and
Environmental concerns?
Financing Mechanisms
 Larger cities get more ODA, smaller towns have to rely on
market-based approaches
 Low income (MDG target group) populations: how do we ensure
livelihood opportunities are realised ?
What are the key issues for Water
and sanitation in towns and cities?
Technical Options
 How do we manage so called “modern mixes” of technology
 Opportunities for “ecological approaches” to water and sanitation
are different
Capacity to Implement & Sustain Investments
 Available capacity varies: usually available in large cities, not so
much on smaller urban centres
 Conflicts between WATSAN utilities and local authorities
Project/Programme Design
 Time-frame too long, does not fit in the “political window”
 New delivery approaches needed (rehabilitate and extend)
 Avoid duplication and focus on local structures (Paris Declaration)
The UN-HABITAT Lake Victoria Water
and Sanitation Initiative (LVWATSAN)
Supporting Secondary Urban Centres in the Lake
Victoria Region to Achieve the Millennium Development
Goals
Project Objectives
Support pro-poor water and sanitation
investments in the secondary urban
centres in the Lake Victoria Region.
Build institutional and human resource
capacities at local and regional levels for
the sustainability of improved water and
sanitation services
Facilitate the benefits of upstream water
sector reforms to reach the local level in
the participating urban centres
Reduce the environmental impact of
urbanisation in the Lake Victoria Basin
Lake Victoria Region Water and Sanitation Initiative
Challenges addressed in programme design
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Designing country level implementation arrangements that
dovetail into regional/national structures (EAC)
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Promoting national procurement systems, delegated to the local
level, while maintaining oversight
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Ensuring a focus is maintained on serving the poorest and fully
engaging them
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Ensuring sustainability, particularly at the local level
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Designing a capacity-building programme that is responsive and
demand driven
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Maximising the benefits from a true regional programme
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Rapid delivery mechanisms to meet the MDGs
Response
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Customized MOU’s with sustainability clauses
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“Modern mixes” approach to sustainable technology
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Poverty mapping & stakeholder engagement
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Multi-faceted region-wide capacity-building interventions
• Local economic development
• Pro-poor governance approaches
• Gender and marginalised groups (HIV/AIDS)
• Utility management
• Urban catchment management
• Advocacy and communication
LVWATSAN Programme of
Implementation (15 towns)
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Assessment & Project design: baseline survey
undertaken and MDG monitoring framework developed
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Immediate interventions (rehabilitate existing
infrastructure and extend coverage to the poor)
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Capacity-building interventions (region-wide)
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Long-term interventions
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Implementation programme in 3-4 years
Water for African Cities/KENSUP:
Intergrated Slum Upgrading
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KENSUP is a collaborative initiative between the Government
of Kenya and UN-HABITAT whose main objective is to
improve the livelihoods of people living and working in slums
and informal settlements within the urban areas of Kenya
Project activities being implemented in on “village” in Kibera,
Nairobi (population 700,000 cf Nairobi 3 million)
Soweto East population 70,000
Water & Sanitation used as a entry point for slum upgrading
Guiding principles of Project Design
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Reducing the cost of housing by providing infrastructure
(infrastructure represents 40% of the cost of
establishing/rehabilitating settlements)
Integrated physical infrastructure
Focus on labour intensive activities
Improved opportunities for livelihood generation
Partners
Government of Kenya (KENSUP) with the Ministry of Housing
taking the lead
UN-HABITAT
World Bank WSP
Athi River Water Services Board
Kibera- Soweto Community under SEC
Project Components
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Support the community to improve accessibility to water and
sanitation in Soweto East;
Establish and strengthen governance frameworks to regulate
distribution and accessibility to water and for the upgrading of
demonstrations;
Support community organization through the formation of Water
and Sanitation (WATSAN) management committees as a vehicle
for promoting small scale waste management enterprises,
increased access to water and sanitation services and access for
credit to facilitate improvement of housing sector;
Support the community to improve the drainage system in
Soweto East; and
Initiate small-scale door-to-door waste collection and recycling
initiatives based on the cooperative approach.
Conclusions
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Urban areas need different approaches depending on size
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Accurate mapping of target population essential (Use of GIS, remote sensing
to establish baselines, monitoring progress and ultimately utility mapping,
link to urban planning systems)
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First consider rehabilitation (physical infrastructure, WDM) and service
extension
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Use modern mixes of technology, consider the reduced cost of condominial
systems
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Follow ecological principles maximising reuse where possible, particularly
linking to livelihood generation (excreta reuse, fish production), Co-disposal
of waste (excreta & organic fraction of MSW)
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Develop capacity for sustainability (small utilities, environmental
management, clustrering for small towns, marginalised populations)