Programme Eau Potable pour la Population des Grands Lacs (PEPP)
Location
Great Lakes region - Republic of Burundi, Republic of Rwanda and Democratic Republic of the Congo
project period
20.12.2012 – 30.11.2018
client
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC)
Services provided
Project implementation
Partner organisation
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)
The purpose of the Programme Eau Potable pour la Population des Grands Lacs (PEPP) is to contribute to improved health status and living conditions of the populations in the Great Lakes region by enhancing sustainably their access to safe drinking water and the adoption of good hygiene and sanitation practices. The PEPP operates in the province of Ngozi (Burundi) and in the districts of Nyamasheke and Rusizi (Rwanda), as well as in the South Kivu province (DRC).The programme is a continuation of the regional cooperation work carried out over the past years by Swiss Cooperation on health, rural development and decentralization, and contributes to the achievement of the objectives in the field of “basic services” (health, drinking water and sanitation) of the Swiss cooperation strategy for the Great Lakes Region 2013 - 2016.
Skat Consulting Ltd., in partnership with Swiss TPH, is implementing for SDC a drinking water supply programme in the Great Lakes region with the main objectives of improving the access to sustainable drinking water supply systems and respecting equal access to water of good quality of about 400,000 people in Rwanda, Burundi and the DR of Congo. The programme consist of the participatory planning and investment into new and extended water supply systems including the improvement of environmental sanitation and hygiene practices in the three countries. Additionally, the programme provides support for the establishment of sustainable management structures and exchange of knowledge and best practices among water and sanitation specialists. To achieve this, 4 outcomes are triggered: one with regard to physical access to water (water schemes rehabilitating & building), one focusing on capacity building in order to guarantee sustainable water services for all, a third one on awareness raising towards hygiene promotion and a last one aiming at capitalizing the best practices and lessons learnt with link to SDC’s policy dialogue.
PEPP's intervention strategy consists of strengthening the decentralized services of the Ministries of Water and the local public authorities on the themes of planning, monitoring and management of water resources. At the same time, PEPP assists the operators in technical and cost-effective aspects of drinking water supply, and supports the districts/municipalities in terms of project management (planning and delegated management). The diagnosis of water infrastructure and services (leading to sectoral programs) and PEPP investments in the realization/rehabilitation of drinking water supply systems are the vehicle for this local capacity building. In the DRC (South Kivu), the approach focuses on the water supply of a peripheral district of Bukavu (Panzi) in partnership with Mercy Corps (IMAGINE project).
Regarding hygiene promotion, the PEPP pilots the approach of hygiene clubs in Burundi to share experiences with other actors, while in Rwanda, it supports the districts in the implementation of the national strategy in this area, while strengthening local partners. In the DRC, hygiene promotion complements the Mercy Corps activities in targeted schools in the Panzi district by implementing the government approach of "Ecoles Assainies".
National level steering committees provide overall supervision, the strategic orientation, a consultation framework and the link to the countries’ policy dialogue for the PEPP. These steering committees are made up of representatives from the districts/province of intervention, deconcentrated services, national authorities and Swiss cooperation offices, with the PEPP serving as secretariat.