Large-scale water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) programs can address WASH issues in an entire country or large region covering several million people. Come hear about the URWP, a high-visibility pilot involving 74 clubs in Uganda working with communities, government, nongovernmental organizations, and international partners. Learn about the team’s challenges and lessons from the first years of the pilot, and find out what opportunities are available for international partner clubs.

1. 2014 ROTARY INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION
Large Scale Water & Sanitation Programs:
The Uganda Rotary Water Plus Program
(URWP) Model
PDG Chris Mutalya (URWP Team Leader) (D9200)
PDG Ron Denham, Chair Emeritus, Wasrag (D7070)
PDG Emmanuel Katangole (D9211)

2. UGANDA

3. • 1.0 Background
• 2.0 URWP Model and progress to-date
• 3.o Achievements and lessons learned
• 4.0 Conclusions
• 5.0 Our appeal
Agenda

4. 1.0 BACKGROUND

5. The Uganda Rotary Water Plus Program
– TRF’s Future Vision Plan called for larger and more
sustainable projects/programs
– WASH initiatives in Uganda were not having a
significant impact on life and livelihood
– Deteriorating water quality/quantity as population
increases
– Need for significant Ugandan Rotary WASH projects
and enhance Rotary’s visibility
1.O Background

6. THE VISION:
• To foster and promote effective service delivery to the
remoter, rural communities of Uganda.
OUR MISSION:
• To promote effective/sustainable systems by
consolidating and increasing clean water supply and
basic sanitation in rural Uganda.
1.O Background

7. • In a unique and broad sweeping program, every Rotary
Club in Uganda (74 of them!) responded by uniting to
establish the URWP Committee.
• The program was launched by the Ugandan Minister for
Water and Environment in August 2011.
• This is a Public-Private-Partnership in which Rotary
Clubs involve ALL stakeholders.
• The ultimate goal: Providing sustainable, safe water and
adequate sanitation for all Ugandans.
1.O Background

8. THERE ARE MANY WASH CHALLENGES:
Some of the most significant are:
• Insufficient infrastructure investment in the WASH
sector.
• 20% of water facilities in rural areas are non-
functional.
• Limited professional and technical capacity.
• Lack of coordination.
• Complexities of budget allocation, release and
utilization.
• Community participation – essential for a successful
program – is ignored.
1.O Background

9. 2.0 The URWP Model

10. 2.O THE URWP Model
Critical Factors:
– Rotary club(s) must build strong relationships with the community(s).
– Develop a Needs Assessment.
– The Rotary club identifies partners:
- Local/international Rotary Clubs
- NGOs/CSOs/CBOs
- Business community and local authorities
- TRF/Other funding agencies
– Project is defined showing technologies, gender issues, facilitation, skills/know-how,
environmental issues.
– All programs/projects should be multi-dimensional to address ALL of six of Future Vision’s
Areas of Focus
– Submit the project to URWP for review.

11. 2.O THE URWP Model
Guidelines:
– Water alone can’t transform a community. That “PLUS” in URWP
includes all areas of focus – Education, Literacy, Health and Peace.
– Sanitation and hygiene interventions are impossible without behaviour
change. A typical program needs 2-5 years of community involvement.
– Feminize hygiene must be addressed to empower the young women
and girls.
– Engage all parties. All the relevant NGOs, CBOs and appropriate levels
of government must be involved from the Needs Assessment up.

12. 2.O THE URWP Model
• Accepted projects are displayed
on the Wasrag, District 9211 and URWP
websites.
• Wasrag helps to market accepted projects
• URWP visits Rotary Clubs country-wide
to help develop WASH projects.
• RI/TRF – PEP was piloted in Uganda
(2012-13)

13. 2.O THE URWP Model
Project Requirements
1. Create project teams
2. Understand community needs
3. Estimate lifecycle costs,
affordability
4. Select technologies
(design/plan project)
5. Prepare capacity building plan
6. Build, construct, implement

14. 2.O THE URWP Model
Project Requirements
7. Establish links to commercial
channels
8. Develop management systems
9. Set up micro-banking
facilities
10. Hire key members/resources
11. Sign agreements with
stakeholders

15. 2.O THE URWP Model
Expected Outputs
• 70-80% functionality of WASH facilities
(quality & performance measures)
• Agreement on tariff structures (no handouts!)
• WASH management structure
• Communications protocols
• Resources flowing
• Core people trained, empowered and accepting
responsibility
• Viable business enterprise for sustainable
WASH facilities

16. 2.O THE URWP Model
Expected Outcomes
• Communities changing for the
better
• Engaging women to create
economic value
• Improved attendance at schools,
especially girls
• New economic/ commercial
activities
• Developing local industry
• Disease declining (e.g. diarrhoea)
• Report to other initiatives
• Platform to advocacy for change

17. 2.O THE URWP Model
URWP Desired Impact
• Entire community is lifted up
• Basis for other programs (education,
health, blood bank, etc.)
• Improved life & livelihood
• Reduction of poverty
• Food security
• Reduced conflict
• Improved health and well being
• Enhanced economic value for the
region.

18. 3.0 Achievements and Lessons Learned

19. 3.O ACHIEVEMENTS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Achievements to-date
• Rotarians with WASH related classifications and PDG Ron
Denham drafted a program proposal.
• Proposal presented to Rotary leadership in Uganda in early
2011, approved setting up URWP and recommended to all clubs.
• All 74 Ugandan clubs endorsed and established the URWP
Committee.
• Launched by the Minister for Water and Environment in August
2011.

20. 3.O ACHIEVEMENTS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Achievements to-date
• Raised awareness of URWP
activities via country-wide
training, developing holistic
projects to embrace all Areas of
Focus.
• Developing URWP’s strategic
and action plans.
• Working with NGOs in the
WASH sector to develop
cooperation in different parts of
Uganda.

21. 3.O ACHIEVEMENTS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Achievements to-date
• 31 large projects
($6-$7 million); 22 now at
grant application stage and
seeking partners
• Facilitated RI/TRF PEP process
for piloting in Uganda.
• Non Rotarians in the WASH
area contributing as Paul
Harris Fellows
• Networking globally with
Wasrag members to promote
URWP

22. 3.O ACHIEVEMENTS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Achievements to-date
• Promoted URWP at RI
conventions in Thailand,
Lisbon and Sydney
• Recruiting WASH professionals
to take part in RI/TRF/PEP
activities targeting 7 countries
globally.
• Developing a national “Hand
Washing With Soap” campaign
to be launched later in 2014.

23. 3.O ACHIEVEMENTS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Lessons Learned
• Need for diverse Needs Assessment expertise for large
integrated projects. Program has benefitted from
TRF/PEP/PPP pilot program, but much more is needed.
• Dealing with the challenges of securing international
partners.
• Large projects don’t fit with some international partners’
tight budgets.
• Some projects are split into smaller packages that can be
implemented in phases.

24. 3.O ACHIEVEMENTS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Lessons Learned
• Behavioural change is a slow process. Community
engagement in sanitation hygiene programs takes time.
• Coordinating WASH sector stakeholders (e.g. WaterAid)
and ensuring the 4-Way Test is met
• The importance of champions! The URWP Team and
back-up from Wasrag (PRIP Bill Boyd, PDG Ron Denham,
etc.)

25. 3.O ACHIEVEMENTS AND LESSONS LEARNED
Lessons Learned
• Understand the needs
• Affordability/cost effectiveness
• Need for public finance in the
WASH sector
• Building capacity for Rotary
clubs in WASH projects/
programs
• Operations and maintenance
are critical
• Ensuring sustainability via the
WASH supply chain

26. 4.0 Conclusions

27. 4.O CONCLUSIONS
• Rotarians initiate, coordinate and often implement the
URWP projects, but some will be offered to other
organizations (e.g. WaterAid) to implement.
• We need international Partner Club who will support
URWP and leverage grants with outside funding. To
make this easier some projects are being split into
smaller “bit-size” chunks.

28. 4.O CONCLUSIONS
• URWP has united some
4000 Ugandan Rotarians,
3000+ Rotaractors and
several Rotary Community
Corps (RCCs) on
countrywide WASH
initiatives
• Meeting the TRF challenge
to create and implement
larger, sustainable projects
and programs for Global
Grants.

29. OUR APPEAL
1. URWP seeks international partnerships with Rotary &
Non-Rotary organizations to support Rotary initiatives to
address the Water, Sanitation and Hygiene challenges in
Uganda.
2. Information is available at: www.urwp.org,
www.district9211.org and www.wasrag.org
3. Contact PDG Chris Mutalya: mutalya@gmail.com or
info@wasrag.org
5.0 Our Appeal