Ghana - Community Services - WASH

Ghana Community Services - WASH

Independent Impact Evaluation

ID Number DDI-MCC-GHA-WASH-ND-2010-v5

Topic	Vocabulary	URI
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene	MCC Sector

Name	Abbreviation	Role
Millennium Challenge Corporation	MCC	Review of Metadata

2016-12-02DDI-MCC-GHA-WASH-ND-2010-v5Ghana CompactThe Water Component of the Rural Development Project's Community Services Activity of the Ghana Compact was designed to provide water system upgrades to 137 selected communities in the African Basin Zone, Southern Horticultural Belt, and the Northern Agricultural Zone. Over the course of the compact, a total of 392 water points were constructed, including boreholes, small town water systems and pipe extensions. Three types of projects were implemented in program communities, (1) boreholes fitted with hand pumps in small communities, (2) small town water systems comprised of lift system for water pump and distribution, and (3) the Tamale water extension system in the north that extended the piped-water delivery system to surrounding communities.Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)The theory of change behind the water activity is that by improving water systems in districts participating in the Compact, the households’ economic productivity and income will increase. This increase could reduce unproductive time spent caring for the sick, and/or collecting water. Since the quality of water will be improved by the project, the prevalence of illness, particularly diarrhea, will be reduced and the overall health status will improve. In addition, the water activity could help shift time formerly reserved for collecting water to income producing activities. Rural households in developing countries need substantial amounts of time for water collection as each round trip from home to a water source can be lengthy and can require multiple trips (Meeks 2012). The MCC/MIDA Ghana performance indicator system documents the average distance for collecting water at 1,190 meters in the base period, and the project intervention aimed to reduce this distance by more than half (500 meters), By shortening the distance, time can be saved. The baseline report (p. 62) mentions, "all households’ members together are spending around four hours a day (240 minutes) collecting water." That means water collection work is taking a considerable amount of time which could be utilized for other productive activities. There is little doubt that providing new water sources in the proximity will reduce the total amount of time people spend collecting water. The link between safe drinking water and health outcomes is unquestionable. Water from unsafe sources is the cause of life threatening diseases in rural communities. Sources like unprotected springs, carts with small tank/drum, tanker trucks, and surface water (river, dam, lake, pond, stream, canal, or irrigation) are more likely to cause several types of diseases. The prevalence of these diseases is high in the locations where this project was implemented in Ghana; namely, diarrhea, Guinea worm and Bilharzia. When people get sick due to water borne diseases, it costs time and money. When children get severely sick they need to be rushed to hospitals. That leads to economic costs for adults. WHO estimates that 88 percent of diarrheal disease instances are attributable to unsafe water supply, inadequate sanitation, and inadequate hygiene worldwide. The provision of improved water systems can help to reduce the risk of infection, which can help reduce the prevalence of waterborne diseases, saving time and money. Diarrheal diseases account for 12% of childhood deaths in Ghana, and are the third largest cause of death for children under the age of 5. These diseases are caused by the ingestion of water contaminated by fecal matter, and 20% of Ghana’s population does not use an improved water source (IPA 2008) .All household members in participating communities, with the main focus on children 5 years old and younger.