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RuralWaterSupplyNetworkBertranddeSaintMéloirMemberExperiencesNo1January2009InterAideSupporttoOperationandMaintenanceofRuralWaterSuppliesinMalawiin2008MemberExperiencesNo12Contents1Introduction32ShopsSellingHandpumpSpareParts.
32.
1ChipikuStores.
32.
2IndependentShops–AlreadyStockingSpares.
52.
3IndependentShops–NewlyTrained.
52.
4Mchinjiexample53AreaMechanics.
63.
1DescriptionofAreaMechanicSystem.
63.
2ExampleofMchinji.
74ReplicationinDowaandSalima.
85ProjectAchievements.
86ResourceRequirements.
97Challenges98Future.
9Note:Exchangerate:$1=145MWK(MalawiKwacha)MemberExperiencesNo131IntroductionMalawi,locatedinsouthernAfricapridesitselfinbeingtheWarmHeartofAfrica.
FlankedbytheexpanseofLakeMalawialongmuchofitseasternborder,MalawiissurroundedbyTanzania,ZambiaandMozambique.
Malawihasanestimatedpopulationof13.
2millionofwhich80%liveinruralareasandgenerallypracticesubsistence,rain-fedagriculture.
ThemainimprovedruralwatersuppliesinMalawiareboreholesinstalledwithhandpumps,shallowwellsfittedwithhandpumpsandpipedgravityfedschemes(GFS).
Unimprovedsourcescompriseunprotectedsprings,streams,riversandshallowopenwells.
CoverageofimprovedwatersuppliesinruralMalawiisestimatedtobe71%(UNICEF,2006b),whichisreasonablyhighfortheregionieTanzania46%,Mozambique26%,Zambia41%(WHO/UNICEF2006JMPData).
However,itisestimatedthat31%oftheimprovedruralwaterpointsarenotfunctioning,thuseffectivecoverageisreducedto55%1.
TherehasbeenrecognitionbyGovernmentthatsignificanteffortsneedtobemadetoharmonisethewiderangeofap-proachestooperationandmaintenanceofruralwatersupplies,andtosignificantlyimprovetheaccesstosparepartsbywaterusers.
Inaddition,concernshavebeendocumentedregardinguntrainedandwaterpointcommittees;poorqualityofmainte-nanceservicesandspareparts;inadequatefinancingmecha-nisms;lackofcapacitytomanageandundertakerepairswhicharebeyondthecapacityoflocalcommunities(RuralWaterSup-pliesSectorInvestmentProgramme,MoIWD,2008).
TheNGOInterAidehasexperienceofsupportingoperationandmaintenanceofruralwatersupplies.
Initiativesstartedin1999inLilongweandZombadistrictswheretherearenowatotalof59shopssellinghandpumpsparepartsand84privatesectorareamechanicsrepairinghandpumps.
BasedonthesefruitfullexperiencesInterAidestarted(firstwithEuropeanUnionfunds,thenwithProVictimisFundationfunds)anewOperationandMaintenanceprojectin2008inthethreedistrictsofMchinji,DowaandSalimalocatedinthecentralregionofMalawi(Fig-ure1).
Asabout80%ofhandpumpsinstalledinMalawiareAf-ridev,InterAidedecidedtoinitiallyfocusonthishandpump.
Thisreportprovidesadescriptionoftheproject,includingthefinancialandhumanresourceinputs.
Itiswidelyrecognisedthattheavailabilityofhandpumpsparepartsiskeyforwaterpointmaintenanceandthatthereisoftenlackofknowledgeincommitteestomaintainandrepairtheirhandpumps.
Inlightofthesetwoissuestheprojectcomprisedtwocomponents:nEnsurethatsparesareavailablethroughexistinglocalshopsnTrainandequiptechnicalspecialists(calledAreaMechanics)toproviderepairormaintenanceservicestothesecommu-nities.
Thesecomponentsarelinkedtogether.
AreaMechanicscannotworkwithoutsparepartsandshopsdonotsellsparesiftheAreaMechanicsarenotactiveandefficient.
Athirdaspectoftheprojectisfollow-up,inacost-effectivemanner.
Ineachdistrict,oneInterAideMaintenanceAssistantispresentandequippedwithamotorcycle.
InterAidehasalsotriedtocooperatewiththeGovernment,tosupportittotaketheleadwhentheprojectends.
Inthethreedistricts,theMain-tenanceAssistantofficeislocatedinGovernmentpremises.
TheInterAideheadofficeinLilongweprovidesbackstoppingsup-portandfollow-upoftheMaintenanceAssistanceandtothesparepartsdealers.
2ShopsSellingHandpumpSparePartsInordertobeassustainableaspossible,theprojecttriedtoworkwithexistinghandpumpsparepartsdistributers.
Indeed,challengingexistingshopssellingsparepartscouldmakethemstopthisessentialactivity.
Thus,theChipikustoreschainandsomeindependentshopsinthethreeDistrictswereap-proached.
Areaswhichwerenotpreviouslycoveredbysparepartssupplierswereidentified.
Intheselocations,potentialsparepartsdealerswereidentified,shopkeepersweretrainedandsuppliedwithsparepartsbytheproject.
1Assumingthat19,404outof24,679handpumps(serving250peopleeach)arefunctionaland6,050outof12,456taps(serving120peopleeach)arefunctional.
RuralPopulationis10,174,802.
Figure1ProjectAreaMemberExperiencesNo142.
1ChipikuStoresChipikuStoresisaruralbasedbusiness,with77brancheslocat-edinallofMalawi's29Districts.
Thestoreshavebeenaroundforabout50yearsandwereinitially"runlikeaGovernmentDepartment"undertheDrBandaregime.
SevenyearsaftertheMalawianeconomywasliberalisedin1994,Chipikuwentbank-ruptandwassoldtothecurrentshareholders(ChitsimedrillingandSouthAfricancompanies)ChipikuhasahistoryofstockingAfridevspareparts,whichstartedbackin1988.
Displayboards(Figure2)wereanintegralpartofthewaressoldthroughoutthecountry.
Thesparepartswerereintroducedin2003,seenmoreasacommunityhelp,thanahighlyprofitableinitiative.
TheMalawiGovernmentpro-videdChipikiwitharecommendedlistofspares(40,000items)whichwereprocuredforsalethroughthechainofstores.
However,soonafterwards,UNICEFprovidedfreesparesfordis-tributionthroughDistrictAssemblies.
SomeofthesehavebeendistributedfreelybytheDistrictWaterOffices,withsomeap-parentlyalsosold.
TryingtocompetewithfreeandlowercostspareswasnoteasyforChipiku.
Upto2006,allimportsintoMalawiweresubjecttopre-ship-mentinspection.
Thisguaranteedacertainquality,includinghandpumpsandspareswhichisnolongerthecase.
ThemainchallengefacedbyChipikuhasbeengettingthesparesfromtheshopleveltothevillage.
Today,ChipikumanagersarestillverymotivatedtosellAfridevsparepartsevenifthisisansmallpartoftheirbusinessforthem.
Stockinghandpumpssparepartsisatradition.
Ithelpscommunities,whichalsopromotesthechainofstores.
Inad-dition,asamainshareholderChitsime,asadrillercanreadilyimportsparesstraightfromIndia.
InordernottochallengetheChipikuactivitiessellingAfridevspareparts,theInterAideprojectdecidedtonottocompetewiththem:nGeographicallyi.
e.
Noshopopeningat20kmorlessfromaChipikustore(seeMchinji,DowaandSalimamapsinFig-ures7,10,11).
nPricespolicyi.
e.
InterAideprojectsparepartspriceswillbeequalorhigherthanChipikupricestoavoidpeoplemovingtogetbetterprices.
Inexchangeoffornotchallengingthem,ChipikumanagersagreedtodotheirbestandtoworkwithInterAidetomakethesparepartsavailableforthecommunities.
Theythusagreedonaminimumstockofsparepartstobepresentineachstore.
InordertoimproveChipikuservice,theprojectfocusedonthreeaspectsasfollows:SparepartavailabilitySometimes,Chipikustoreshavesparepartsshortages.
AstheInterAidecentraloffice,includinghandpumpsparesdepot,isinLilongwe(closetotheChipikuwarehouse),theprojecthasweeklycontactwiththeChipikuRegionalmanagertochecksupplies.
Ifthereisashortage,InterAideimmediatelysuppliesChipikutofillthegap.
Forexample,inSeptemberandOctober2008,InterAideprovided500AfridevU-sealtocompensateshortagesduetoproblemsattheborderonfiveoccasions.
Somesparepartswhichareimportantforcommunities(suchasdouble-endsocket,solventcement,galvanizedrodsandPVCpipeswerepreviouslynotsoldbyChipikustores.
AftersomedialoguewithChitsimethefollowingwasachieved:nDoubleendsocketandPVCpipesarenowsuppliedbyChit-simetoChipiku.
nInterAidehastemporarilyprovidedsolventcementtotheChipikuwarehouseandinformedChitsimeonwheretopro-cureitsotheycansupplydirectlytoChipiku.
nGalvanizedrodswillnotbesuppliedintheshorttermasChitsimehasplentyofstainlesssteelrodsinstockandwantstosellthem.
DelegatetrainingToimproveChipikupromotiontothecommunities,onedel-egateofeachChipikustoreinInterAide'sworkingareashasbeentrained(ie4inMchinji,6inDowaand3inSalima).
ThesetrainingshaveprovidedguidanceinsellingAfridevsparepartsandcreatedrelationshipsbetweentheChipikustaffandInterAideMaintenanceAssistant,whovisitsthestoreformoni-toringandadviceonsparepartsstockmanagement.
AdvertisingInordertohelpChipikutoconductsparepartssales,adisplayshelfhasbeenprovidedtoeachshop(Figure4).
Figure2ChipikuManagerinKamwendoStandsattheOldAfridevPriceBoardFigure3ChipikuStoreinKamwendoFigure4DisplayShelfforAfridevSparesMemberExperiencesNo15Fliers(500toeachshop)withsparepartspricesononesideandinformationabouttheAreaMechanicssituatedaroundthestoreontheothersidewereprovided.
TheseareessentiallyforAreaMechanics.
TheChipikustoresarealreadywellknownbythecommunitiesforsellingspareparts.
Howeverbecauseoffrequentsparepartsshortages,somecommunitieshavesome-timelostconfidenceinsparepartsavailability.
Thefliersarein-tendedtoboostconfidencethusimprovethesparepartssales.
ThestrengthoftheChipikustoresisthattheyarewellknownbythecommunitiesandarelocatedinlargetradingcentresthroughoutthecountry.
TheirpowerofsaleisconsiderablecomparedwithothersmallshopswhichhavebeenencouragedtostocksparesbytheInterAideproject.
Forexample,InterAidehasdelivered2.
500U-sealstoChipikuinlessthan3monthsfortheCentralregion.
TheMveraChipikustoresold50u-sealsover4months(JulytoNovember2008).
IncomparisonMatutu(notaChipikustore)soldthesamenumberoveran8monthperiod.
2.
2IndependentShops–AlreadyStockingSparesTwoshops(oneinKasunguandtheotherinSalimacity),whichwerealreadysellingAfridevsparepartswerealsoapproachedbytheInterAideproject.
Theirproblemwasthattheyhavetotravelfartocollectsupplies(Lilongwe)andthattheypurchaseathighretailpricesfromhardwareshops.
Asaresult,theirsell-ingpricesaretoohighforthewaterusers.
Forexample,theKasungushopusedtosellstainlessrodsatMWK4,950.
00(US$34).
Incontrast,theChipikustoressoldthematMWK3,348.
00(US$23).
Aspartoftheproject,InterAidehassubsequentlypro-videdtheseshopswiththeopportunitytobuysparesfromitsdepotinLilongweatmuchbetterprices.
2.
3IndependentShops–NewlyTrainedInareaswhichwerenotcoveredbysparepartssupplyfromChipikustoresorotherindependentshops,InterAideidentifiedshopsorgrocerieswhichcouldstarttosellAfridevspareparts.
Shopswerechoseninbigmarketplacesortradingcentres.
Afteridentification,shopkeepersweregiventwodaystraininginCommunityBasedMaintenance(CBMLevel1)andstockmanagement.
Thiswasfollowedbysigningatwo-yearcontractwithInterAidedefiningthefollowing:nInterAideprovidesaninitialstockofaboutMWK10,000(US$70)ofspareparts,adisplayshelf(Figure6),advertis-ingposters(Figure5)andfliers.
nInterAideprovidestotheshopwithwaystore-supply.
EithertheshopownercomestoanInterAidedepotinhisdistrict,orsparescanbebroughttotheshop.
Pricesforshopown-ersaredifferentanddependonthedistanceandfuelcostwhenthesparepartsaredelivered.
nTheshopownerhastomaintainhissparepartsstockatanagreedminimallevel(equivalenttothestarterpackvalue).
nTheshopownerhastoselltothecommunitiesatpricesfixedbytheproject(Table1)andindicatedontheshelf(Figure6),andusethetriplicatecashreceiptprovidedbytheproject.
2.
4MchinjiexampleInApril2008,6independentshopownersand4ChipikuweretrainedassetoutinTable2.
Figure5AdvertisingPosterforAfridevTable1AfridevPriceList(forcommunities)Figure6DisplayShelfwithPricesandSparesShopsandgroceriesChipikuStoresLocationNameLocationNameBuaD.
K&SonsshopKamwendoChipikustoreChiosyaTryAgainshopKapiriChipikustoreMatutuR.
KHardwareMkandaChipikustoreMikundM.
ZHardwareMchinjiChipikustoreKaigwazangaAngoniminishopWaliranjiKabowashopTable2SparepartsdealersMemberExperiencesNo16Figure7indicatesthecoverageofeachshop.
Eachcirclerepre-sentsaradiusof10km.
SalesfromthesixindependentshopsfromMaytoOctober2008aresetoutinFigure9.
FromMaytoAugust,thetotalvolumeofthesalesincreasedasthecommunitiesgotaccustomedtothesenewsshops(Figure8).
InSeptember,salesdecreasedslightlyjustbeforetherainyseason.
Insixmonths,661seals(U-sealsandcup-seals)werebeensoldtothecommunity,representingabout75%ofAfridevnumberinthedistrict(about900Afridevintotal).
3AreaMechanics3.
1DescriptionofAreaMechanicSystemAreaMechanicswhoalreadyliveintheruralareasareselectedandtrainedtoprovidemaintenanceandrepairservicestothecommunities.
TheAreaMechanicsworkasprivatesectorartisans.
OneAreaMechanicisresponsibleforabout50hand-pumps,andispaidbythecommunitieswhenherepairsormaintainsapump.
Thesechargesarenotfixedbytheprojectbutrathercomefromanagreementbetweenbothparties.
OncetheAreaMechanicsareidentified,theyaretrainedinCommunityBasedMaintenance(CBMlevel2)tobeabletomakemajorrepairsthatcommunitiesarenotabletomakethemselves,astheywereonlytrainedCBMlevel1.
Theysubse-quentlysignatwo-yearcontractwhichdefines:nInterAideprovidestheAreaMechanicswithabicycle,spe-cialAfridevtoolsandaplasticfilecontainingpens,Afridevdocumentation(includingashortversionofthe"Instal-lationandMaintenanceManualfortheAfridevHandPump2"),acontractbookintriplicate,stickers,acalendarandcontractsamples.
InterAideprovidestechnicalsupportthoughtheMaintenanceAssistants(oneperDistrict)andadvertisesforthemwhenithasanopportunity.
nInterAideprovidestheAreaMechanicswithamapdescrib-ingtheirarea(Figure11),withpositionandthelistofthewaterpointsinsidetheirarea.
nTheMainAreaMechanicduties:–tocovertheirarearegularlytooffertheirservices(atafee)–attendmonthlymeetingswiththeMaintenanceAssist-ant–undertakeaminimumoftwelverepairsormaintenancecontractsperyearAreaMechanicsprovidetwotypesofcontractstothecommu-nities:Repaircontractsinthecaseofbreakdowns;andMainte-nancecontracts,correspondingtofourvisitsayearinordertomakepreventivemaintenanceandanticipateproblems.
ThelistofpumpsintheareatobecoveredbytheAreaMe-chaniccomesfromtheMASEDAdatabase,whichwaspreparedbyWaterAidin2004.
Whentheyvisitaparticularpump,theAreaMechanicissupposedtoupdatehislistofwaterpoints,andprovideanupdatetotheprojectdatabase.
2DocumentavailablefromRWSNFigure7AreaCoveredbyEachSparePartsDealerinMchinjiFigure10MapofAreaMechanic'sPumpsFigure8Changeinsales(inMWK)fromallindependentshopsinMchinjiFigure9Sales(inMWK)fromeachindependentshopsinMchinjiMemberExperiencesNo173.
2ExampleofMchinjiAtotalof19areamechanicsweretrainedinNovember2007byUNICEF,andweregivenmaterialtoworkinMay2008(FigureFigure11SummaryofAreaMechanicsandStoresinMchinjiDistrictTable3ContractsbetweenAreaMechanicsandCommunitiessignedfromMaytoOctober2008inMchinji(MoneycollectedinMWK)11).
BetweenMayandOctober2008,atotalof182contractsbetweentheAresMechanicsandCommunitiesweresigned(Table3).
MayJuneJulyAugustSeptemberOctoberTotalNumberofcontractsTotalMoneycollectedAreaMechanicNumberofcontractsMoneycollectedNumberofcontractsMoneycollectedNumberofcontractsMoneycollectedNumberofcontractsMoneycollectedNumberofcontractsMoneycollectedNumberofcontractsMoneycollectedFanuelSENGANI42470110002300068200225001517170HardworkMVULA150063000210003175042000168250JailosPHIRI427502750532505320073800316502615400L.
SINGALAWE52500420003150015002100021000178500MerciasMUMBA130014002850170052250NyongoniZULU21000215003225074750SpyYotamuPELETE1500213001100042800EfitoneKHWAMBALA31750220003485088600EdwardiMAWONGA13680021700158500AlexanderKAZINGA2100021000GeorgeMPALUME3160011500110003130032900118300NelsonZIDANA325002200042000150011000118000JosophatiKASALIKA1150011500Edwin.
ACHISIYESIYE120016001150032300C.
BINGU1200321503190074250FedericoJELE3020315002900102400JailosKUMBWEZA260036002800150082500SevelianoJMAYAYA725502100021000114550HardsonMARIKO1500210002100052500GrandTotal17952049226002516950422995029179002016600182113520MemberExperiencesNo183ThechartincludestheMawerushop,whichisactuallyinDowa(attheSalimaborder).
4ReplicationinDowaandSalimaInterAidehasfollowedtheapproachusedinMchinjitostartsupportingoperationandmaintenanceinDowaandSalima.
InDowa,InterAideiscooperatingwiththesixChipikustoresoftheareaandfourindependentstores.
Atotalof21AreaMechanics,trainedbackin2007byUNICEFweresuppliedwithbikesandtoolsinJune2008.
FromJulytoNovember2008,theyundertookmorethan109contractsofrepairormainte-nance.
Notethattheshopcomponentistoorecent(November2008)toprovidesignificantresultsyet.
InSeptember2008,activitiesstartedinSalimadistrict.
Fourindependentshops(existinggroceries)startedsellingsparesattheendofSeptember2008,andadelegatefromtheChipikustoreinSalimawastrainedinDecember2008.
FromSeptembertoNovember,theshopactivityisveryencouraging(Figure12).
Figure13AreasDefinedfortheAreaMechanicsinSalimaDistrictInSalima,29AreaMechanicsweresuppliedwithbikesandtoolsbyUNICEFin2007,butsparepartswerenotavailableandtherewasnofollowup.
Asaresult,therewasnoactivity.
InNovember2008,InterAideassessedthem,definedtheirareasofoperation(Figure13)andsignedcontractsofcollaborationwiththemostmotivatedofthem.
5ProjectAchievementsTable4providesanoverviewofthehandpumpsaswellassparepartsshopsandareamechanicactivitiesforthethreeprojectDistricts.
Inaddition,InterAidehassold338,000(US$2,331)ofsparepartstotheChipikustorestocompensatestockshortag-es,including3,195U-Seals(usedfortheentireMalawicentralregionof25storesin9districts).
Figure12Sales(inMWK)fromeachindependentshopsinDowa3Table4SummaryDatafortheProjectDistrictsofMchinji,DowaandSalimaMchinjiDowaSalimaPopulation440,162511,448342,979Area(Km2)3,356km23,041km22,196km2Numberofpumps-Afridev8651101850-Malda5224125-Graivityfedpipes137088Total104614531236HandpumpSparePartSuppliersStartsellingsparesMay2008November2008October2008-Numberofindependentshops644-NumberofChipikuStores461Salesofsparepartsbyindependentshops(MWK)27,000MWKNotapplicable86,000MWKSalesofsparepartsbyindependentshops(US$)US$186NotapplicableUS$593NumberofU-Seals327Notapplicable45NumberofAreaMechanics192127NumberofcontractsbetweenAreaMechanicsandCommunitiesSinceMay2008191SinceAugust200884NotapplicableMemberExperiencesNo196ResourceRequirementsIntheperiodDecember2007(whentheprojectcommenced)toNovember2008,atotalofMWK7.
95million(US$54,828)hadbeenspentonthisproject(Table5).
7ChallengesOnechallengeofthisprojectisitsgeographicalorganization.
ItsheadquarterisinLilongwe,andthedifferentbranchesareallatabout100km,whichmakefollow-updifficult.
Thesustainabilitygoalisalsofartobereached.
Thefirststepistomakethisinitiativeascosteffectiveaspossible.
Table5BreakdownofOperationandMaintenanceProjectCosts(coveringallthreeDistricts)8FutureOnceanO&MprojectissetinaDistrict,theideaistoreducefollow-uptotheminimumtoenableittocontinue.
TheMainte-nanceAssistantinplaceinadistrictwillmovetoanotherplacebutwillstillhavearemotelookonthearea.
ByextendingtheprojecttoKasungu,andcooperatingwithotherNGOinDedza,alltheCentralregioncouldbethencoveredbythisO&Mproject,andmaybemore…Oncethe2yearscontractswithAreaMechanicfinished,itisenvisagedthatashortmonthlymeetingshouldbeenoughwiththemostmotivatedofthem.
Howeverfollow-upisstillcrucialtoassesstheO&Mprojectevolutionandefficiency,andmaintainit.
Fortheshops,wehopethataftertwoyearsoffollow-up,theshopownerswillbeaccustomedtore-supplyandstillinter-estedinthebenefitstheycangetfromthisbusiness.
However,astheInterAidedepositorywillnotbeintheareaanymore,onebigchallengewillbetoorganizeamorecentralizedsupplysystemfortheshopsforeitherdeliveryorcollectionofspares.
ItemExpenditure(MWK)Expenditure(US$)ProportionSalaryofProjectofficerandHeadquartermanagement2,650,00018,2761/3Sparepartstoberevolved2,650,00018,2761/3Runningcost1/3Fuel600,0004,1382motorbikepurchased900,0006,207Localsalaries200,0001,379Training100,000690Administrationcostandmiscellaneousequipment200,0001,379Maintenancevehicle(oldcarfromapreviousproject)300,0002,069Othersupplies200,0001,379Officerent(Lilongwe)150,0001,034Total7,950,00054,8287monthsactivityinMchinji,5monthsinDowaand2monthsinSalima.
ContactInteraideArea47/3/213POBox31405Lilongwe3MalawiEmail:maintenance.
interaide@gmail.
comAbouttheauthorBertranddeSaintMéloirisa36year-oldFrenchengineerwithtenyearsofexperienceasaconsultantinpaymentsystemsforGalittGroup.
HeisonatwoyearsabbaticalandhasbeeninMalawisinceNovember2007.
TheRuralWatersupplyNetwork(RWSN)isaglobalknowledgenetworkforpromotingsoundpracticesinruralwatersupply.
RWSNSecretariatSKATFoundationVadianstrasse42CH-9000St.
GallenSwitzerlandPhone:+41712885454Fax:+41712885455Email:rwsn@skat.
chWeb:www.
rwsn.
chInterAideisaFrenchfield-orientedNGO,whichiscurrentlyimplementingdevelopmentprojectsineightcountries.
InterAidehasbeenworkinginMalawisince1991,intheareasofagriculture,communityhealth,water-supply&hygieneandAIDSprevention.