Different stakeholders will on November 18, 2016 meet in Murehwa, Mashonaland East province, to explore ways of how Zimbabwe can create a sustainable sanitation service delivery structure.
By Edgar Gweshe
The meeting, which is part of a Sanitation Festival being hosted by the Catholic Agency for overseas Development (CAFOD) will be attended by delegates from local and regional municipalities, the donor community, residents associations as well as private sector representatives.
CAFOD is hosting the Sanitation Festival from November 18-19 in Murehwa in partnership with Murehwa Rural District Council, Caritas Mutare and Caritas Harare. This year’s event marks the second edition of the festival following last year’s commemoration held in Nyanga.
According to CAFOD, this year’s festival, which coincides with the World Toilet Day commemorations, will also look at water availability challenges as well as sanitation and hygiene problems across the country.
“The Sanitation Festival comes at a time when provision of adequate water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) services is a challenge that many urban areas in developing countries such as Zimbabwe are facing.
“One of the highlights of the festival will be the panel discussion that will take place on the evening of 18 November 2016 from 1800-1930hrs. Panelists and delegates drawn from private sector, donors, local and regional municipalities and resident association representatives will deliberate on the #Leave no one behind commitment as it relates to WASH service delivery in urban and peri-urban areas of Zimbabwe, with a view to informing the roadmap for the delivery of Sustainable Development Goal 6 in Zimbabwe. The key question for discussion is what we need to do as a country to put in place a sustainable sanitation service delivery structure, with a view to ensuring universal access, preventing slippage and leaving no one behind,” said CAFOD.
According to CAFOD, the Sanitation Festival will open with a Junior Sanitation Summit where schools mainly drawn from Murehwa and Nyanga will spend the day engaged in discussion forums, displays and sanitation-related games while the major event, the Sanitation Festival celebrations, will take place on 19 November.
“This will be a showcase of the achievements and innovations made by council, community groups and private sector in improving sanitation service delivery,” read the statement.
CAFOD has since 2014 been running the Sanitation for success programme, which is a three year programme being implemented in partnership with Caritas Harare and Caritas Mutare in Murehwa and Nyanga towns.
“The programme started in January 2014 and runs until March 2017 and will benefit 19,212 people living in poor urban and peri-urban areas of Nyanga (6538) and Murehwa (12674). Major partners include Nyanga Rural District Council, Murehwa Rural District Council, Ministry of Health and Child Care, Ministry of Education, Environmental Management Agency (EMA) and the Department of Public Works. The programme aims to sustainably improve the living conditions, health, human dignity, economic productivity and the environment in poor urban and peri-urban areas of Nyanga and Murehwa, through an integrated approach to sanitation,” said CAFOD.
