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World Bank Supports Increased Access To Drinking Water Supply And Sanitation Services In Maharashtra |
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| Project will benefit rural and vulnerable population in central Indian state |
WASHINGTON, August 26, 2003 To increase the access of rural households to improved and sustainable drinking water supply and sanitation services, the World Bank approved today a US$ 181 million to the Indian state of Maharashtra. The Maharashtra Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project will directly benefit approximately seven million people in about 2,800 Village Panchayats, local self government at the village level, with a special focus on women and tribals.
Maharashtra is the first state in India to implement a state-wide decentralized and participatory approach in the rural water supply and sanitation sector. This approach is in line with the Government of India’s sector reform policies and reform agenda, says Michael Carter, Country Director, India, World Bank. “Bank support will assist India in achieving its objectives of ensuring universal access to safe drinking water and halving the proportion of people without access to sanitation as well as meet UN’s Millennium Development Goals. In the coming years, I expect the Bank to extend its support to more such state-wide rural water supply and sanitation projects, in states that are willing to scale up this new approach.
The State of Maharashtra faces a severe problem with regard to ensuring a supply of safe and adequate drinking water to its rural population. The states ground water sources are constrained due to geological factors and variable rainfall with extremes of high monsoon precipitation in some areas, and drought situation in others.
These factors have a dramatic impact on the sustainability of water supply, especially for the rural poor and tribal population, says Meena Munshi, the World Bank Task Leader for the Project. The situation is exacerbated by unregulated groundwater abstraction for purposes of irrigation and industrial uses, and lack of proper operation and maintenance of the water supply facilities. As a result, a large proportion of Maharashtras rural population is still without access to adequate and safe drinking water and sanitation facilities.
In an effort to promote further decentralization of service delivery to rural local governments and communities, the project focuses on ensuring sustainability of water resources, and on good management rather than on the construction of water supply schemes. The project addresses particularly the vulnerable groups and is expected to directly benefit half a million tribals in 1,700 tribal settlements in Maharashtra with increased access to safe drinking water, and sanitation facilities. The project will also empower rural women by giving them greater access, choice and voice in water and sanitation, in particular, and by improving their access to development opportunities, in general. The project will build capacity of local governments, the Village Panchayats and Gram Sabhas, and increase their effectiveness, and promote transparency, and accountability.
The project has four main components:
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Community Development and Infrastructure Building, consisting of support to community building and implementation of schemes to manage service delivery, and support for womens development initiatives.
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Institutional Strengthening, to focus on building the capacity of local institutions to be responsive to community demand, and to promote sanitation and hygiene awareness efforts.
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Sector Development and Strengthening, to finance technical assistance to the Government of Maharashtra to advance reforms and management of the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation (RWSS) sector.
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A pilot component consisting of three sub-components to provide incentives to local government institutions to perform and function effectively, to introduce aquifer-based supply and demand management of water to enhance sustainability of water sources, and to develop and scale-up a model for operation and maintenance of water supply facilities.
The project provides an opportunity to strengthen the Bank Group’s partnership with India, Maharashtra, donors, and NGOs in improving rural water supply and sanitation services, says Munshi. More importantly, the project will build the skills of the rural population to become critical users rather than passive recipients. Focus will be on ensuring local ownership and accountability, and not on construction of facilities. Communities will demand, plan, implement, manage, and maintain their water supply and sanitation facilities while making their villages a healthier place for them to live in.
The Maharashtra Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Project is consistent with the Country Assistance Strategy objectives of strengthening the enabling environment for development and growth and supporting interventions of special benefit to the poor and disadvantaged. The credit, from the International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank’s concessionary lending arm, has a 35-year maturity, with a 10-year grace period, and a 0.75 percent service charge.