New strategy in sanitation project

To achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) target in the sanitation sector, the government must change its strategy from target-oriented to demand-driven, a national seminar has concluded.

"One of the obstacles in reaching the MDGs target is ineffective and inefficient investment in the development of drinking water and sanitation facilities," director of housing at the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) Budi Hidayat told a national meeting on "Consolidation for Implementation of the National Policy of Community-Based Drinking Water and Healthy Environment". The meeting was held in Sanur, Bali, on Monday.

He said development of facilities has focused on meeting targets, rather than demand.

"Most of the time, the development of those facilities does not consider people's needs, habits and abilities. This means that many facilities are being abandoned after less than five years," he said.

He said the 2007 Bappenas report on MDGs targets showed the proportion of households with access to proper sanitation had increased to 69.3 percent in 2006 from 30.9 percent in 1990.

"That means we have met the target of 65.5 percent set in the MDGs," he said.

However, he added, only 5 percent of people had piped sanitation facilities, the rest having septic tanks and leaching pits, which are of questionable quality.

Therefore, he said, it is important for drinking water and sanitation facilities to be directed into community-based development.

"People should be involved from the very beginning, from planning to development, so they will maintain facilities voluntarily," Budi said.

He said with assistance from the World Bank through its Water Supply and Sanitation Policy Formulation and Action Planning Project (Waspola), the government had implemented community-based water and sanitation projects in nine provinces: West Sumatra, Bangka Belitung, Banten, Central Java, West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, Southeast Sulawesi, South Sulawesi and Gorontalo.

According to Waspola project coordinator Sofyan Iskandar, the project focused more on building people's abilities than on actual development.

Director of environmental health at the Health Ministry Wan Alkadri said the ministry had implemented pilot projects for community-based total sanitation in six provinces: South Sumatra, East Java, West Java, West Nusa Tenggara, West Kalimantan and Jambi.

"There are now 160 villages that are free from open defecation. Each household has its own toilet. All that was built without any government subsidies," he said.

He said it proved that people could build their own sanitation facilities. "It is only a matter of their priorities." Irawaty Wardany

Post Date : 04 Maret 2008