DWS embraces the sanitation paradigm shift

While the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) receives its mandate regarding sanitation from legislation that was promulgated years ago, there have been significant changes in the management of sanitation. Kirsten Kelly catches up with the team from the DWS’s Chief Directorate: Sanitation Services Support.

Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6.2 calls for a paradigm shift, to safely managed sanitation. Moreover, it seeks to achieve access to adequate and equitable sanitation and hygiene for all, as well as an end to open defecation - paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable situations by the year 2030,” explains Iris Mathye, director: Sanitation, Operational & Capacity Support, DWS.

She adds that the DWS is unpacking the needs of women and children in relation to sanitation with the assistance of WaterAid. There are considerations like the need for a light in toilets, safety as well as menstrual hygiene aspects.

The department now has a holistic approach to sanitation. “It is no longer about simply constructing a toilet, but looking at the entire sanitation service chain. Given the challenges in access to the unserved, there is a need to adopt alternative sanitation solutions or nonsewered sanitation systems (NSSS). Climate-change-resilient solutions for sanitation are also being explored by the DWS,” states Mathye.

A Sanitation Technology Technical Coordinating Committee has been established in the sector to facilitate a standardised process that is fair and transparent for the uptake of new sanitation technologies. The committee creates an enabling environment where new sanitation products are accredited, certified and validated – to be presented for adoption. The committee will help make new sanitation products market-ready and for water services authorities (WSAs) to have assurance that these alternative technologies are validated and ready for uptake.

“We have partnered with the Department of Science and Innovation and the WRC, to develop an evaluation protocol to assess technologies,” she adds.

Value of sanitation

Previously, water was always viewed as far more important than sanitation, and received a greater portion of the budget and resources, but this is starting to change. “We are called the Department of Water and Sanitation; sanitation bares equal weight. Sanitation services have a huge impact on the livelihood, the health of people, as well as the environment in South Africa and the world,” adds Tabita Napakade, director: Sanitation Services Support, DWS.

If the entire sanitation service chain (including the operation and maintenance of the systems) is not safely managed, the environment and health of people ultimately suffer. Furthermore, it can negatively affect water sources like groundwater and rivers. The adoption of alternative sanitation systems can be a driver for water security in South Africa. Unfortunately, huge quantities of potable water (approximately 9-12 ℓ for every flush) is going down the toilet systems. In areas of scarcity, the choice between flushing and domestic use is non-negotiable.

“Any person would rather use those nine litres for cooking, cleaning and drinking than flushing down a toilet. As a country, we must accept the reality that we no longer have the luxury of flushing litres of potable water down the drain while some parts of the country do not have access to drinking water. This is why the DWS is now advocating for alternative solutions and NSSS are so important,” explains Napakade.

According to Napakade, the new leadership within the DWS supports sanitation programmes and has a good understanding of the importance of sanitation. “We now have to strengthen our advocacy and educate stakeholders within the national, provincial and municipal spheres about the link between sanitation and water, as well as alternatives to flushing toilets.

Sanitation is still a low priority at local level and receives minimal funding due to competing priorities.

Leaving no one behind Nearly 2.8 million households in South Africa do not have access to adequate sanitation services. Approximately 1% of households practise open defecation due to a lack of access.

“We are exploring options at ending open defecation. This is an issue, especially in urban areas or cities where people move to find jobs. There is a lot of homelessness and the hi-jacking of abandoned buildings in cities. We are also putting great effort into eradicating the bucket system, but the proliferation of informal settlements provided with a bucket toilet as a solution is a huge challenge,” explains Napakade.

The DWS is driving the movement towards giving everybody access to safe sanitation. “A lot of integrated planning and strategy guidelines have been done at a macro level. We must develop capacity in the sector to not only provide but manage the systems, and then we must monitor and report our improvement,” says Napakade.

Currently, the DWS and the sanitation sector rely on Annual General Households Survey reports from Statistics South Africa regarding progress and the identification of gaps with service delivery.

Now, the DWS has carried out an analysis of the state of readiness for the country to meet the SDG 6.2 and found that, unless service delivery is accelerated, the SDG 6.2 target will not be met. This report led to the development of the National Sanitation Integrated (NSIP), which seeks to understand the status of sanitation per WSA and to also analyse gaps and challenges hindering sanitation service delivery in order to turn around poor performance. The NSIP will provide a 10-year roadmap for eradicating open defaecation and sanitation backlogs per province as well as providing innovative solutions to address challenges in the sanitation sector. It involves developing action plans per province on reaching the SDG 6.2 target by 2030. “We hope that this work will influence the budget allocation to sanitation services from the existing national grants,” adds Napakade.

In order to strengthen governance, support and eventually implement NSIP, Provincial Sanitation Task Teams (PSTTs) are set up to work as a vehicle to drive integrated planning, monitoring, reporting and implementation of sanitation programmes and projects in a coordinated manner. PSTTs will monitor the delivery of sanitation services and ensure compliance to norms and standards, including all the relevant policies and strategies. PSTTs will also share best practice/lessons learnt among sector stakeholders and municipalities. The Western Cape is among the first provinces to establish a PSTT.

The DWS is also revising the norms and standards within the ideology of the National Sanitation Framework, with an emphasis on strengthening compliance.

Faecal Sludge Management Strategy

Another support tool has been the development of the National Faecal Sludge Management Strategy. It has been finalised and is waiting formal approval from the minister. It covers the handling, transport, treatment, reuse and disposal of faecal sludge and has been developed in collaboration with the USAID Resilient Waters Program, which responds to the SDG 6 objective of ‘safely managed sanitation’.

There have been National Faecal Sludge Management Strategy workshops in the different provinces. Partnerships have been forged with various stakeholders in the business sector as well as different government structures like the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE), as well as institutions like the Association