Self-help initiatives to improve water supplies in Eastern and Central Uganda

This paper sets out the background, approach, findings and conclusions of the first stage of a small study into rural water self-supply (locally initiated improvements to domestic water services) in Uganda. The work reported here consisted of a reconnaissance field trip to 9 districts in eastern and central Uganda. A total of 20 water sources were visited, and interviews held on site; about 20 key informant interviews were also held with Government, NGOs and private sector operators. Stages 2 and 3 of the work are in progress at the time of writing, and will be reported at the conference. The findings to date show that self-supply is alive and well in the Ugandan rural water sector, and that there may be possibilities for greater synergy between Government/NGO interventions in community water supply and self-supply initiatives. We propose a new conceptual framework for assessing existing water services and targeting external support.