The Triple-S initiative is about taking the best international thinking available, combining it with extensive Ugandan knowledge and expertise, and adapting it to the situation on the ground.
There is a lot that the Ugandan water sector is doing well, and Triple-S is taking these positive examples to other countries. The challenge for Uganda is to identify and address the gaps and the obstacles that are holding the country back from achieving and sustaining 100% coverage. Triple-S is facilitating this process with staff from the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), district water personnel, private operators, NGOs, users, local politicians and opinion leaders.
Published on: 06/06/2013
Triple-S, short for Sustainable Services at Scale, is an initiative to address the growing problem of sustainability of rural water supplies. In Uganda, a consortium of partners is spearheading Triple-S.
Uganda’s water sector faces growing challenges in terms of sustainability of water supplies. According to the 2010 sector performance report, functionality dropped from 83% in 2008/09 to 81% in 2009/10, despite the founding of a national level thematic working group on functionality. This means that around 1 out of 5 water supply systems in the country is not functioning at any given time.
Coverage rates have also stagnated, largely held back by the ability to supply rural citizens with water services – a challenge for all countries. In Uganda, something like 4 out of 10 rural people still lack access a safe source of nearby water (for city dwellers it is only 1 out 10).
The rural water sector has gone as far as it can with standard strategies and solutions; to achieve sustainable water services for all its citizens, Uganda needs new thinking and innovative approaches.
The Triple-S initiative is about taking the best international thinking available, combining it with extensive Ugandan knowledge and expertise, and adapting it to the situation on the ground.
There is a lot that Ugandan water sector is doing well, and Triple-S is taking these positive examples to other countries. The challenge for Uganda is to identify and address the gaps and the obstacles that are holding the country back from achieving and sustaining 100% coverage. Triple-S is facilitating this process with staff from the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), district water personnel, private operators, NGOs, users, local politicians and opinion leaders.
This means looking at everything from financing mechanisms to improved back-up support and spare parts availability. It also means looking at where and how to invest sector resources to achieve sustainable benefits, a particularly important objective in light of declining sector investment.
Please see the links below for more information about partners.