Improving water management
Water, water ... nowhere!Photo: AFP
GOOD governance has been recognised as the most important pre-condition in all our strategies pertaining to accelerated poverty reduction and subsequent economic development. It is generally agreed that developing capable and accountable institutions and implementing sound policies are pre-requisites for providing effective public services and combating corruption. In this context, I agree with our development partners that this paradigm should include strengthening the role of the Central Public Service Commission, particularly important for adoption of a modern human resources development approach within the ambit of public service. This will help to reduce patronage, political pressure and nepotism within institutional mechanisms. It will also help public servants to work with clear terms of reference, job descriptions and transparent accountability arrangements. There is also need to introduce a clear mandate of authority and responsibility, particularly, for members of local government institutions. This will not only contribute towards building capacity through training, but also encourage partnerships between such bodies and local non-government organisations and community-based organisations. This will eventually facilitate the introduction of e-governance at the local level. I have referred to the above in the context of our future national water policy and the addressing of some of the core drawbacks regarding improvement of water delivery and sustaining growth. A few factors need to be highlighted in this regard. The first is the necessity for decentralisation, whereby central government agencies progressively withdraw from activities that can be accomplished by local institutions and the private sector. This will induce greater competitiveness. The completion of the first step will induce change in the role of central agencies and their restructuring. This will involve changes in the responsibilities of staff members and their re-training. Providing greater financial autonomy to the institutions at this juncture will facilitate enhanced performance levels. The third step will be capacity strengthening. Local organisations will need to be strengthened to fulfill their agreed mandates. This in turn will assist them to be financially sustainable through direct access to funding. I am raising these issues because most of our municipalities responsible for water services are clearly failing to perform. This has assumed that much more importance given the current government's efforts towards devolution of local governance. I feel that municipalities in our non-urban hinterland, within the district structure, along with urban water and sewerage institutions, should be empowered to regulate the use of water and prevent waste and pollution. They can undertake this function in partnership with community-based organisations and the private sector. This has already been tried out with great success in several countries in Europe and Asia. At the national level, the Local Government Division (LGD) of the Ministry of Local Government Rural Development and Cooperatives has overall responsibility for water supply and sanitation. The Department of Public Health Engineering (DPHE) and the Water and Sewerage Authorities (Wasa) are under the administrative control of the LGD. The responsibility for implementing water supply and sanitation projects in the public sector in rural and urban areas not covered by the Wasa belongs to the DPHE. The Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), also under LGD, implements water and drainage projects in urban areas as part of urban infrastructure development projects. The responsibilities mentioned in the previous paragraph are, however, not always being discharged satisfactorily. This, in most cases, is the result of poor planning, insufficient institutional capacity, limited technical competence and lack of clear division of responsibility. Examples of under-achievement and poor service delivery is evidenced in the case of solid waste management and on-site sanitation by the Dhaka City Corporation, in the ensuring of effective drainage by the Chittagong City Corporation, and in the tasks regarding drainage, solid waste management and maintenance of water supply facilities installed by DPHE or LGED by the Rajshahi, Khulna, Sylhet and Barisal City Corporations. This is affecting sanitary environment within the boundaries of these institutions. It would also be pertinent to refer here to the municipal level where the DPHE plans and implements water and sanitation schemes. Unfortunately, DPHE is focusing more on technical installation than the need to undertake improvement of local capacity and competence for operation of services. I have, in my capacity as vice-president of the Bangladesh Water Partnership, had several in-depth discussions with officials of these bodies. They have revealed some important deficiencies, which need to be addressed. It appears that despite their assigned responsibilities, Wasa and the municipalities lack sufficient autonomy to take important decisions on planning, implementation, tariff, staffing and other aspects of water supply and sanitation service. They have also pointed out that tariffs have to be approved by the central government and do not reflect the cost of water production. This eventually hampers sustainability and maintenance. It is true that the government has introduced some reforms to improve the situation within Dhaka Wasareconstitution and redefining of the role of the Board in several policy areas (related to corporate planning, tariff setting, appointment of staff and remuneration) and making the management accountable for meeting operational and financial targets. However, despite these measures, devolution in the truest sense of the term has not been undertaken. The central government still maintains a firm grip on the affairs of Dhaka Wasa. This retards progress, contributes to politicisation and, eventually, bad governance. It would also be relevant to point out here that though Dhaka Wasa has made advances in revenue management and loss reduction, yet, there is need for them to work with stakeholders to prevent unauthorised land grabbing, closure of natural channels and retention basins ,and improper solid waste disposal. Similarly, Chittagong Wasa has to address institutional problems related not only to landslides that destroy natural drainage channels but also to the question of "systems loss" (corruption), whereby 35% of the total water supply remains unaccounted for. The Union Parishads are beginning to play an important role in the rural areas with regard to water and sanitation, hygiene education and community mobilisation. There is also the welcome growing trend of allocating a minimum number of female representatives in the various parishads and in union water and sanitation committees. This will strengthen women's involvement in this sector and, in the long run, will greatly improve the selection, operation and maintenance of water points put in place in villages through public private partnerships. We have many issues that need attention. Nevertheless, if addressed properly, it will greatly improve water management. Muhammad Zamir is a former Secretary and Ambassador and can be reached at mzamir@dhaka.net
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