posted on 2018-02-12, 15:08authored byCyril H. Ratnam
Madutle village has a population of 842 people. Few live through subsistence farming, some are women whose men work
in neighboring towns, others are elderly dependent on pensions. The people and their livestock shared water from a single
source. The villagers, mostly children, had to walk 1.2 km to fetch water. The water was exposed to pollution creating an
unhealthy situation aggravated by poor sanitation. The objective was the provision of easily accessible water and acceptable
sanitation. There was a need to overcome the culture of non-payment for services adopted during the apartheid era
which attitude is continuing. It was imperative that the community took ownership of the asset, pay for the operation and
maintenance of the water system and maintain the VIPs provided.
History
School
Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering
Research Unit
Water, Engineering and Development Centre (WEDC)
Published in
WEDC Conference
Citation
RATNAM, C.H., 2004. Madutle village water and sanitation project. IN: Godfrey, S. (ed). People-centred approaches to water and environmental sanitation: Proceedings of the 30th WEDC International Conference, Vientiane, Laos, 25-29 October 2004, pp. 622-624.
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