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Nzickonan Stéphanie
Benin, USAID MuniWASH's Contribution Facilitates Successful Launch of Benin's First Fecal Sludge Treatment Plant
On Tuesday, April 11, 2023, the Waste and Sanitation Management Company (Société de Gestion des Déchets et de la Salubrité, SGDS) held an official handover ceremony in the municipality of Abomey-Calavi marking the operation of the country’s first viable Fecal Sludge Treatment Plant (FSTP). The ceremony was attended by stakeholders in the sanitation sector, including the leasing SGDS, private operator DELVIC, the Association of Professional Emptying Operators of Benin (Association des Vidangeurs professionnels du Bénin, AVIPRO-Benin), and the USAID/West Africa Municipal Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (USAID MuniWASH) Activity. MuniWASH, funded by USAID, works to increase sustainable public and private investments in the sanitation sector by supporting and facilitating joint activities between local authorities and private sanitation actors. In a bid to drive impactful reforms, USAID MuniWASH has partnered with SGDS to implement essential changes in the water and sanitation sector. As part of this collaboration, USAID MuniWASH closely works with Vacuum Trucks Operators (VTOs), recognizing their significance in effective sanitation service delivery. These collaborations directly influence the operations of DELVIC, a newly established private operator. With DELVIC just beginning its activities, USAID MuniWASH actively coordinates with DELVIC to ensure better synchronization and a unified approach achieving the shared objectives of the Benin government and USAID resulting insignificant advancements in the sanitation sector, ultimately benefiting communities in need.
The handover ceremony of the FSTP in Abomey-Calavi holds particular importance for the Government of Benin and the private sanitation sector, as it represents a crucial step in implementing recent reforms in the wastewater management sector. USAID MuniWASH’s participation represented the diversified and multifaceted support that USAID provides for effective fecal sludge collection, transport, and treatment in Benin. USAID MuniWASH actively supports the implementation of reforms alongside the Government and through SGDS by preparing sanitation operators to adapt to the sub-sector changes. One remarkable achievement is the transformation within the empty-search services sector, which was previously characterized by disorganization and fragmentation. Now, these companies have united, pooling their resources to form well-structured companies capable of meeting the organizational, legal, technical, and business management requirements to obtain the necessary approvals to provide emptying services to the population.
USAID's capacity building initiatives have played a crucial role in making this accomplishment possible, focusing on formalization, understanding different legal statuses, and the associated benefits and drawbacks in terms of credibility and access to financing. Moreover, USAID MuniWASH has enhanced the capacity of these companies by providing training in areas such as bookkeeping, personnel and productivity management, marketing, and costing. By equipping these companies with the necessary skills and knowledge, USAID MuniWASH aims to position them for successful collaboration with DELVIC, thus strengthening the overall sanitation ecosystem. This concerted effort represents a significant step towards establishing well-functioning and sustainable partnerships that will ultimately benefit the population and improve sanitation services.
During the ceremony, the representative from SGDS expressed gratitude to USAID for their support in the reform process of Benin’s on-site sanitation subsector. He also expressed satisfaction in the handing over of the treatment plant to DELVIC. The DELVIC representative reassured participants about the effective measures taken, including recruiting qualified operational staff, facilitating time saving measures during unloading, and the digitizing payment for unloading fees. The President of AVIPRO-BENIN, representing the emptying operators, expressed their hopes for a transparent and productive collaboration between SGDS, DELVIC, and AVIPRO for the benefit of the local population.
The Abomey-Calavi Sludge Treatment Plant, with a capacity of 600 m3 is the first FSTP commissioned by the Benin government under lease to the private sector. It is important to recall that the government of Benin is also constructing three new FSTPs in Abomey Calavi, Sèmè-Podji and Parakou, with the aim of revolutionizing the wastewater management sector in country. The ceremony ended with the official handover of the treatment plant’s keys to DELVIC.
22nd AfWASA Congress: Guinea and AfWASA sign a Memorandum of Understanding
AfWASA and Guinea signed a partnership agreement in the framework of the organization of the 22nd AfWASA International Congress and Exhibition, to be held from February 18 to 22, 2024 in Guinea Conakry. The purpose of the agreement is to specify the terms and conditions of the collaboration between the two parties regarding the organization of this congress. The agreement was signed by Sylvain Usher, Executive Director of AfWASA, and Camara Aboubacar, Managing Director of SEG Guinea.
91st AfWASA STC Meeting: Specialists Groups draft their Action plans
AfWASA STC meeting started on July 3 in Johannesburg. The opening ceremony and presentations on the life of the Association were followed by the work of the specialists groups on Tuesday afternoon. This work continued until midday on Wednesday. The aim was for the members of the specialists groups to draft the Terms of Reference for their group, and to propose themes around which they plan to work. They will then submit them to the Strategic Council for approval, after which they will be considered legally constituted.
The specialists groups identified for the moment are: (1) Skills development and management in water and sanitation utilities, (2) Water quality management, (3) Non-revenue water, (4) Inclusive city-wide sanitation, (5) financing and investment management, (6) Young water professionals.
91st AfWASA STC meeting: the Association reports on its 1st half 2023 activities, and outlook
The 91st meeting of AfWASA STC is currently taking place in Johannesburg, South Africa. The second day of the meeting was marked by presentations on AfWASA’s activity report from January to July 2023, the report on the 21st Congress held in Abidjan in February 2023 , current programs and program opportunities, membership strategy, status of preparations of the 22nd Congress to be held in Guinea Conakry in February 2024, gender strategy and young professionals strategy.
The 91st AfWASA STC meeting started in Johannesburg
The 91st AfWASA STC meeting started this Monday, July 03, 2023 in Johannesburg, South Africa, under the presidency of Lindiwe Lusenga, Deputy Director General of the Water Department. The theme of the meeting is: ''From the AfWA to the AfWASA, which government structures are required to boost the performance of the sector performance in Africa''.
The opening ceremony was marked by a number of speeches highlighting the important role played by AfWASA in the sector, and the need for coordinated action to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 6.
Mr. Sipho Mosai, CEO - of Rand Water said ‘’ Through the CST, we are seeking solutions which, if found jointly through a coordinated partnership, will result in realizing the SGD 6 which as Africans, we are doing our best to ensure its achievement . This meeting is therefore a great opportunity for us to ensure that we work towards finding the solutions, which will inform our policy development both in our government and in our ministries’’.
Dr. Jennifer Molwantwa, CEO - WRC (Water research Commission) for her part, was delighted that this STC meeting was being held in South Africa, where access to water and sanitation remains a major challenge. She mentioned WRC's contribution to access to water and sanitation over the past decade, where an effort has been made to innovate in technologies for access, particularly in areas where water availability was limited, because she said ''we believe firmly that where you are from should not determine the quality of water and sanitation that one gets''.
Registration is now open!
The African Water and Sanitation Association is delighted to inform its members as well as the entire water and sanitation sector community that the 91st meeting of its Scientific and Technical Council (STC) will be held from July 3rd to 5th, 2023 in Johannesburg, South Africa, under the theme “From AfWA to AfWASA: What governance and management structures to boost water and sanitation performance in Africa".
Click on the link to register : https://meetings.afwasa.org/
This 91st meeting, which is held in a context of restructuring of the CST, will be marked by the effective establishment of the new Strategic and Technological Council, replacing the Scientific and Technical Council, and by the launch of calls for proposals for specialist committees.
AfWASA hereby invites all stakeholders as well as all those interested in the development of the water and sanitation sector on the continent, to save the date to participate in this meeting of exchanges around the challenges of access to water and sanitation in Africa.
It is important to flag that the 91st AfWASA STC meeting is co-hosted by Rand Water and the Water research Commission and will take place back-to-back with IFAT, the largest German trade fair for the water and wastewater industry.
Click on the link to register: https://meetings.afwasa.org/
Structural Reforms within AfWASA: the Pan-African Association is recruiting members for its new Strategic Council
Indeed since 2019, the African Water Association (AfWA), which became the African Water and Sanitation Association (AfWASA) in February 2023, has embarked on a profound process of reforming its governance and management structures in order to increase its efficiency as part of its mandate to build the capacities of actors in the sector in Africa.
It is in this sense that its «operational technical arm» which is the Scientific and Technical Council, has been transformed into a Strategic and Technical Council (STC) with new objectives and mandate in order to better integrate these aspects of its development on a pan-African scale which include: (1) the enhancement of Membership, (ii) the implementation of capacity building programs taking into account the specificities of each region/country, (iii) the best sharing of knowledge, including through the publication of manuals/professional technical sheets and scientific articles in the sector, (iv) The diversification of partnerships and financial resources of the organization.
The new Strategic and Technological Council now comprises two distinct entities: the Strategic Council (SC) on the one hand, and the Specialist Groups on the other.
It is expected that this Strategic Council (brand new SC) will be coordinated by a committee of 25 members which will therefore replace the previous board of the former Scientific and Technical Council (STC). It is therefore to set up this important new body, the new Strategic Council (SC) that this call for applications, for the very first leaders of the new SC, is launched among the members of the AfWASA.
for more information, please download the brochure here.
22nd AfWASA Congress: Conakry, the World Capital of Water and Sanitation in 2024
After the outstanding success of the 21st International Congress and Exhibition of the African Water and Sanitation Association (AfWASA) held from 19 to 22 February 2023 in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, under the auspices of the Société de Distribution d'Eau de Côte d'Ivoire (SODECI), the beautiful country of Guinea Conakry will be hosting this great congress from 18 to 22 February 2024, under the theme: Human development in Africa through investments in the water and sanitation sector.
Fore more details, please visit the information page of the Congress. Click on the link.
Non sewered sanitation: AfWASA teaches good emptying practices to Burkina Faso actors
Non sewered sanitation: AfWASA teaches good emptying practices to Burkina Faso actors
From April 24 to May 6, 2023, AfWASA organized a capacity building workshop for the faecal sludge management actors of Burkina Faso. Approximately 80 mechanical and manual emptying workers and business managers from the cities of Bobo-Dioulasso and Ouagadougou benefited from this training.
The objective was to teach them the best practices of their trade, practices that preserve their health and the environment, the maintenance of the vehicles of emptying, the security measures to be observed, the adequate equipment and the administrative and financial management of their company. The goal is the professionalization of their activity, the delivery of quality services and a better view of the population on their profession.
For Ousseini Ouédraogo, General Secretary of the Association of emptiers of Bobo, the training will change the way emptiers in Burkina Faso do business: "We have learned, among other things, that for our health and the health of the population, we must stop Indiscriminate disposal of feacal sludge. We must discharge them at the treatment plant. We also learned that during the emptying process, we must separate wastewater from fecal sludge. Finally, we
learned that our job will be appreciated by the population only if we value it and this valorisation must be started by wearing clean clothes when we present ourselves in front of a client.
He expressed the wish that all the emptiers of Burkina Faso could benefit from this training. But in the meantime, he plans a restitution to the members of his association.
This training workshop is part of a program funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation through the EDE/TA Hub, of which the National Water and Sanitation Office is the main beneficiary. It was conducted by AfWASA in collaboration with its Regional Implementing Partner (PREMO), the Centre des Métiers de l'Eau (CEMEAU) of Burkina Faso.
AfWASA 91st STC: South Africa about to welcome African water and sanitation experts
The African Water and Sanitation Association is delighted to inform its members as well as the entire water and sanitation sector community that the 91st meeting of its Scientific and Technical Council (STC) will be held from July 3rd to 5th, 2023 in Johannesburg, South Africa, under the theme “From AfWA to AfWASA: What governance and management structures to boost water and sanitation performance in Africa".
This 91st meeting, which is held in a context of restructuring of the CST, will be marked by the effective establishment of the new Strategic and Technological Council, replacing the Scientific and Technical Council, and by the launch of calls for proposals for specialist committees.
AfWASA hereby invites all stakeholders as well as all those interested in the development of the water and sanitation sector on the continent, to save the date to participate in this meeting of exchanges around the challenges of access to water and sanitation in Africa.
It is important to flag that the 91st AfWASA STC meeting is co-hosted by Rand Water and the Water research Commission and will take place back-to-back with IFAT, the largest German trade fair for the water and wastewater industry.
The registration link as well as the agenda will be communicated to you soon.