Institutional arrangements for supply of water and sanitation services in Chinsali urban, Zambia

Abstract

The study is an investigation of institutional arrangements for supply of water and sanitation services in Chinsali Urban, Zambia. The study aimed at assessing the institutional arrangements for supply of water and sanitation services in Chinsali Urban in Muchinga Province. The objectives of the study were to identify the institutional arrangements for water supply and sanitation services in Chinsali Urban, to assess how the institutional arrangements affect water supply and sanitation services in Chinsali Urban and to assess the challenges and opportunities of service delivery for water supply and sanitation services in Chinsali Urban. The significance of the study was to gather information on how institutional arrangements affect the supply of water and sanitation services in urban areas. It will add to the body of knowledge on challenges and opportunities of institutions and Commercial Utilities (CUs). Furthermore, policy makers in the water supply and sanitation services sector will be able to make periodic assessments on how institutional arrangements can further improve service delivery. The study used a mixed method approach of qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data in the field. From 557 households connected to the CU reticulation system, 139 households were stratified and proportionally sampled using probability simple random sampling according to residential density cluster, while purposive sampling was used on two key informants from the CU and one from Chinsali Municipal Council and probability simple random sampling was used for communities with water Kiosks. The instruments for collecting data included questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, field observations and documents review. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Percentage Analysis Technique (PAT), while qualitative data were analysed using content analysis. The study findings showed that the institutions that are responsible for supply of water and sanitation services in Chinsali Urban are the Community Based Organisations (CBOs), Chambeshi Water and Sewerage Company (ChWSC) as the CU, Chinsali Municipal Council (CMC) Water Supply and Sanitation Unit responsible for urban water supply and sanitation services and the Ministry of Local Government and Housing (MLGH) through the Department of Housing and Infrastructure Development (DHID). The study revealed that the current water supply does not meet the current water demand of the population of Chinsali Urban. From the 139 households, (61 percent) received water between one hour and four hours per day. Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) also showed that water supply was insufficient in communities that use water Kiosks. Only ten percent of the households are connected to the sewerage system of the CU. Respondents were satisfied with the billing and affordability of the water supplied by the CU. Challenges that ChWSC faces are dilapidated infrastructure; power outages and administrative bureaucracy due to provincial separation. Water supply interruptions and limited sanitation services due to population increase were the challenges faced by households. Findings from the study showed that Chinsali Urban has the necessary institutional arrangements for supply of water and sanitation services like other urban areas in Zambia. Four institutions were identified (CBO), (ChWSC), (CMC) and (MLGH).The institutional arrangements in Chinsali Urban have affected the delivery of water supply and sanitation services in the negative and positive way as evident from the findings in the study. The major challenges to WSS services are dilapidated infrastructure and power outages which reduces the CU’s capacity from performing at the expected level as service provision is compromised. Chinsali Urban has good opportunities to increase and improve WSS services due to the current project for WSS services funded by the MLGH. The project is expected to increase water supply from the current 2,600m3/day to 7,400m3/day if and when the project is finished. Key Words: Institutional Arrangements, Commercial Utility (CU), Water Supply, Sanitation