The Akatsi District in the Volta Region collected baseline data on all its water facilities using the Field Level Operations Watch, (FLOWs) technology.
Published on: 26/01/2012
Results of the baseline survey conducted by the district under the leadership of the Community Water and Sanitation Agency (CWSA) have been validated in a District Learning Alliance Platform (DLAP) Meeting in Akatsi. The exercise was to collect information on the state of infrastructure and management of water supply in the district.
Data was collected on the functionality and sustainability of Hand Pump and Piped System water facilities in the district. A total of 239 boreholes in the five Town/Local Areas Councils of the district were sampled. The exercise took six weeks and was carried out in late 2011 through the Triple-S Project.
Under this exercise, data was collected on facilities (stand pipes, piped systems and hand pumps), on service providers (Water and Sanitation Committees (WATSANS), managing hand pumps; Water and Sanitation Development Board -WSDB managing piped systems), and on support to the service providers (District Water and Sanitation Team).
Indicators were developed to assess the functionality of facilities and to determine level of service provided by the facility (in terms of quantity, quality, reliability, accessibility (distance from users and number of people per water point, to indicate crowding).
For each service provider, indicators were developed in order to assess the service providers on the following aspects: governance and management; operations; financial management and received support.
Presenting the baseline data from the Akatsi district to the participants at the DLAP, the Triple-S Regional Learning Facilitator for the Volta Region, Tom Laari Chimbar, explained the data was collected using a set of Functionality and Sustainability Indicators.
Data was then collected by members of the District Water and Sanitation Team using an android cellphone technology. The data was transmitted directly to the FLOWS database and analyzed.
Speaking on the highlight of the analysis, Mr Laari Chimbar said the baseline identified there are a number of orphaned boreholes constructed without recourse to lay down national guidelines in the districts. Thirty-one boreholes fitted with hand pumps for example are without WATSAN Committees as required by the Community Operational Manual (COM). These facilities were constructed by either some NGO’s or provided by politicians and citizens of the communities from those communities.
It was also discovered that water quality analysis has not been performed on any of the boreholes after installation of Hand pumps. The standard period however, was twice a year.
The accounts of all the WATSAN Committees were not audited in the past one year. Fifty six WATSAN Committees also do not keep records of their operations at all. Tariff setting is not done systematically using Life Cycle Cost Approach, as a result the tariffs set are not based on projected cost managing the facility.
Five piped systems were identified in the district. The baseline survey indicates that 40% of the facilities do not have bulk meters .On standpipe functionality ,73 out of 75 counted were functional.
All WSDBs do not have distinct capital or replacement, operational or regular and sanitation accounts as set out in the guidelines for the establishment of WSDB. Again like in the case of the WATSAN Committees, all WSDBs have not been audited in the past one year. Tariffs are therefore not based on projected cost.
Watch the full PowerPoint presentation:
The CWSA Regional Director for the Volta Region, Naa Dogoli pledged to support the Akatsi District Assembly address the challenges they have identified. He urged them to closely monitor all institutions providing water facilities in the district to ensure they are adhering to nationally accepted standards. In addition, he said the district will have to strengthen monitoring of water facilities.
Reacting to the baseline data, the chairman of the meeting, the Presiding Member of the Akatsi District Assembly, Honourable Togbe Samlafo IV, said the survey has brought out some issues on the delivery of water in the district which the assembly did not know. He said “this has served as an eye opener to us and we will institute corrective measures/actions to deal with the situation”.
He requested a report should be submitted to the executive committee of the assembly through the District Chief Executive. This he noted will ensure the findings are captured for discussion during the Assemblies first seating in March.
The district will be supported through the Triple-S project by CWSA to design interventions to address the challenges to sustainable rural water in the district.
