What factors determine the technical performance of community-managed rural water systems in the middle hills of Nepal?

Abstract

Gravity-fed water systems are widely used in the rural hills of Nepal. This study identifies the systematic factors that contribute to rural households not obtaining water due to system breakdowns. The study makes use of data from a 2017 to 2018 study of 202 households served by 10 community-based water systems from three localities within the western middle hills of Nepal. A hierarchical regression model is used to capture both household- and system-level variables. The analysis identifies three household-level and three system-level predictors of the duration of water system breakdowns. The significant household-level predictors include (1) a sense of ownership toward the water system, (2) user involvement in decision making during the planning and implementation of the water system, and (3) income earned from water-based productive activities. The significant system-level predictors include (1) distance from the village to the water source, (2) the performance of the water user committee, and (3) the water system operator's level of activity. In addition, the interactions between household- and system-level variables are captured. The empirical relationship between household productive income and the duration of breakdowns is a novel finding. These findings will be valuable to the Nepalese government and other actors working to implement sustainable water systems.

Gender equality and social inclusion in community-led multiple use water services in Nepal

“…Out of the range of social or institutional and technical parameters studied, one of the factors supporting functionality was the productive use of water (Pant 2013). GC et al (2021b) also confirmed statistically that water-based productive income is significantly and negatively related to the duration of system breakdowns. Similarly, RVWRMP found a high functionality rate of 98% across all its systems (White et al 2017).…”

Optimizing access to drinking water in remote areas. Application to Nepal

“…They also require a source of energy as well as maintenance, which entail extra expenditures and expertise. Indeed, pump-operated systems often make use of foreign equipment that is unfamiliar to the local populations (Oxfam, 2019;GC et al, 2021;Ambuehl et al, 2021). Moreover, due to the terrain which is usually rough and mountainous in Nepal, people are often required to walk over large distances in a steep landscape to reach a WT.…”

Thinking beyond domestic water supply: approaches to advance multiple-use water systems (MUS) in the rural hills of Nepal

“…By combining the views of the key informants with the findings from the focus groups and household surveys (GC et al, 2019(GC et al, , 2021, we identify a range of strategies that, if widely adopted, could encourage the wider acceptance and use of MUS in the hills of Nepal. We have organized our discussion of these concerns into six categories of mediating factors, which we discuss in turn in the sections that follow: nascent local governments as the principal agents of governance responsible for MUS; government official, user and private supplier capacity-building; palika multi-use water systems registration; improved coordination and collaboration among different sectoral actors and across levels of governance involved in water provision and management; more effective policy advocacy by MUS proponents and changes in national policy that formally recognize these systems and coordinate to support them among relevant departments; and sustained international donor support for MUS.…”