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Report 1 (of 5): Return
Of The Drain Gang - Pakistan
In conjunction with this report, you may also wish
to read the case
study on the series 2 programme 'The
Drain Gang'.
Introduction
The Orangi Pilot Project or OPP is one
of the world's best-known non-government projects in
the large-scale provision of sanitation for the urban
poor. The project began in 1980 in the depressed and
overcrowded Orangi settlement, one of Karachi's most
blighted districts and its largest katchi abadi or squatter
settlement. This remarkable initiative has remained
self-sufficient for over two decades. It is still a
self-funded and self-managed grassroots movement that
relies purely on the skills and resources of the urban
poor. Using local materials and labour to build hundreds
of kilometres of low-cost underground sewers, OPP has
significantly improved living conditions for millions
of people.
By 2001 the Orangi project had benefited
more than 60,000 families, and inspired thousands
of others to work independently. Over 400 collector
sewers have been built, and collectively the community
has invested some 82 million Rupees (around US$1.4
million) in their sewage system. Community goods and
traffic can now move more freely, supporting home-based
enterprises and trading; infant deaths have fallen
dramatically and health of the general population
has greatly improved.
The provision of community sanitation
services has been at the heart of the project, but
the unique way in which this was achieved is just
as important. The inspiring demonstration of poor
urban communities' ability to mobilise resources has
been a crucial factor. The OPP's philosophy of community
responsibility for services through indigenous and
self-motivated initiatives has empowered the community
to the point of requiring little or no 'outside' help.
Community-driven Management
Recognition that communities need
to be fully prepared in order to construct and manage
their own infrastructure services is vital. Preparatory
activities include basic education, training for local
leaders, community discussion and the establishing
of and support for local community groups. Through
the provision of guidance that encourages local management
and financial resources to come together, community-driven
self-management is greatly strengthened.
Two key stages can be identified as
essential to project success:
Stage 1: Preparation
- Identifying community needs and
priorities without being influenced by NGOs or local
government
- Identifying the resources that
are available locally and how they might be used
- Nominating leaders who are accountable
to residents and represent the needs of the community
- Training project employees from
the community to provide technical advice and to
motivate residents
- Training communities to develop
skills, particularly those individuals with existing
'traditional knowledge'.
Stage 2: Community Mobilisation
- Approaching influential community
members with good reputations, to contact residents
about the project
- Devising appropriate methods for
explaining important features to residents, such
as a slide show
- Seeking the support of local organisations
with technical knowledge, for example to provide
surveys and cost estimates
- Organising collection of money
from each individual or household and ensuring accounts
are kept
- Purchasing local materials and
hiring labour so that work can begin.
These steps formed the backbone of
the Orangi project and ensured full community involvement
from the beginning. The technical support provided
by the project helped to strengthen trust between
the OPP and the residents or Orangi, based on the
responsibilities and expectations of each.
The Secret of Success
The level of involvement of lane managers,
lane residents and local contractors is a critical
factor in the success of the Orangi project. Local
people have control over their own service provision
and learn by doing most of the work.
Taking responsibility
Residents are responsible for managing
finances and constructing lane sanitation. All decisions
and responsibilities on household sewers rest with
households so that accountability is given to appropriate
people, creating ownership.
Community organisation
Small social organisations are encouraged
to form, with around 20 to 40 households acting as
a practical unit. Formal organisations based on neighbourhood
or area committees are often too large and cumbersome
to respond quickly to local needs.
Funding
Communities are responsible for paying
for sewer lines at the lane level. Self-financing
improves the level of co-operation and motivation
between residents.
Lower costs
The average cost per household is
around 1000 Rupees (US$40) in total. This is between
one quarter and one sixth of the cost to the government
of similar sewers. A simplified design, accepted by
the Local Authority, has helped to cut costs, and
construction is cheaper, partly because the residents
build and supervise the work themselves. This eliminates
the cost of corrupt practices and professional fees
for contractors, and the quality of the work tends
to be better than that of government contractors.
Paying only the cost of labour and
materials makes it affordable and much easier to persuade
poor families to take on the responsibility for self-financing.
The problem of loan recovery is avoided
when people organise themselves and collect money
first.
Lessons Learned
The OPP shows how communities can
provide their own infrastructure where service provision
is missing. Community mobilisation and organisation,
in devoting money, time and hard work, has improved
the lives of the residents of Orangi. The recommended
use of low-cost affordable technologies, although
below national standards, is now accepted by the Sindh
Katchi Abadi Authority. Through learning, adjusting
and adopting OPP principles, many settlements in the
region are benefiting as a result. The success of
OPP has proved that the concept of development through
community participation is the only viable option
for low-income communities.
For further information, please contact:
Perween Rahman,
Orangi Pilot Project Research and Training Institute
(OPP RTI),
Plot No ST 4 Sector 5A,
Qasba Colony,
Manghopir Road,
Karachi 75800,
Pakistan.
Tel: +92 21 6658628/6652297
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For information on micro-finance:
| Eldis Microfinance Gateway
nt1.ids.ac.uk/eldis/fin/micro.htm
The Eldis Microfinance Gateway
lists many organisations involved with micro-credit.
It also has many country profiles, where papers
from different countries can be viewed, and
organisations working in those countries can
be found. |
| MicroFinance Network
www.bellanet.org/partners/mfn
The MicroFinance Network is
a global association of leading microfinance
practitioners. The members of the MicroFinance
Network are committed to improving the lives
of low-income people through the provision
of credit, savings and other financial services.
|
| The Microfinance Gateway
http://www.microfinancegateway.org/
The Microfinance Gateway is
a public forum for the microfinance industry
at large that offers a wealth of tailored
services for microfinance professionals, including
resource centres on specific topics in microfinance,
a searchable library of electronic documents,
a consultant database, a jobs listing service,
and specialised discussion groups. |
Further Reading
The following paper can be downloaded
by clicking on the title:
From
the Lane to the City: The impact of the Orangi Pilot
Project's Low Cost Sanitation Model
Akbar Zaidi, WaterAid
The following books are available
to buy from Earthprint or
you can download them as pdf files from IIED's
website.
Community-driven Water and Sanitation:
The Work of the Anjuman Samaji Behbood and the Larger
Faisalabad Context
Salim Alimuddin, Arif Hasan and Asiya Sadiq
US$ 9.00, IIED, 2000, ISBN: 1843690195
The Water, Engineering and Development
Centre (WEDC) at the University of Loughborough has
many publications on sanitation and urban services.
Some of the publications below can be downloaded for
free in full in pdf format from the WEDC website.
Others are only partially available, but all can be
bought by contacting them.
A Guide to the Development of On-Site
Sanitation
Richard Franceys, John Pickford and Bob Reed
Part I deals with the background to sanitation - health,
sociological, financial and institutional issues,
and the technologies available for excretia disposal.
Part II provides in depth technical information about
the design, construction, operation and maintenance
of the major types of on-site sanitation facility,
while Part III describes the planning and development
processes involved in projects and programmes.
£29.95, 1992, ISBN: 92 4 154443 0
Low-cost Sanitation: A survey of
practical experience
John Pickford
This practical manual describes and compares a range
of low-cost systems - what they are, where they are
appropriate, and how they can be planned, built, operated
and maintained.
£9.95, 1995, ISBN: 1 85339 233 2
Sustainable Sewerage: Guidelines
for community schemes
R.A.Reed
This handbook describes these schemes and suggests
objective methods of prioritising communities needs
for sewerage. It surveys the planning, selection,
design, management and maintenance of community schemes,
and provides technical and financial suggestions on
cost-effective practice and procedures.
£6.95, 1995, ISBN: 1 85339 305 3
On-plot Sanitation for Low-income
Urban Communities: Guidelines for selection
Andrew Cotton and Darren Saywell
This document presents the findings from Phase 2 (August
1994 - March 1997) of a Department for International
Development (DFID) project (R4857) covering On-Plot
Sanitation in Low Income Urban Communities. The project
concerns the performance of on-plot sanitation systems
in urban India, Ghana and Mozambique. It aims to investigate
how satisfactory on-plot sanitation is in the urban
context, and to develop guidance on its use for policy
makers and professional staff of urban governments,
development agencies and non-government organisations
£9.95, 1998, ISBN: 0 906055 55 5
Community Initiatives in Urban
Infrastructure
A.P.Cotton, M.Sohail and W.K. Tayler
This manual investigates the extent and nature of
the involvement of low-income urban communities in
the provision of their local infrastructure. It also
provides guidance for policy-makers and professional
staff of urban government, development agencies, non-government
organisations, and small to medium enterprises for
promoting increased involvement of communities in
the procurement of neighbourhood (tertiary level)
infrastructure.
£9.95, 1998, ISBN: 0 906055 56
This document is an output from
a project funded by the UK Department for International
Development (DFID) and the European Commission (EC)
for the benefit of developing countries. The views
expressed are not necessarily those of DFID or the
EC.
Acknowledgements
ITDG would like to thank Arif Hasan
and Virginia Roaf at WaterAid, for providing assistance
in the making of this document.
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