Meeting with NUDIPU and ADDI
NUDIPU is an umbrella organisation that brings together associations and individuals with different disabilities in Uganda to advocate for the mainstreaming of disability in service delivery. Currently NUDIPU operates in 61 districts country wide, including districts where WAU is working.
The network is advocating for the mainstreaming of disability in policy formulation and service delivery. NUDIPU spearhead and supports the formation of organisations for disabled people at district and lower local government levels, this provides opportunity for engagement with WAU and her partners.
ADDI is an international organisation and a major supporter and partner of the disability movement in Uganda since 1987. ADDI advocates for the inclusion and mainstreaming of disability in policies and service delivery.
Working with these organisations is in line with WaterAid’s values and principles of Equity and Inclusion which looks at who the excluded categories of people are and ensures that these have access to safe water, hygiene and sanitation services. Some of the challenges identified include latrines with no windows, small entrances and limited compliance with recommended inclusive standards.
Disability is diverse and many people do not know how to deal with it. Integration of disability in WASH is not all about having inclusive designs but should mean more participation of the disabled people in WASH service delivery.
Barbara sharing with NUDIPU Board Chair person Francis Kinubi
Lessons from the visit
There are many forms of disability ranging from the physical, visual, and hearing amongst others. Talking about WASH services that reach the disabled community members therefore means having in place both inclusive designs and the ability to target resources to different categories of disabled people. It was noted that, at times, focus is often put on the physical disability at the expense of other forms. This challenges us to rethink how we deliver water, sanitation and hygiene services in a specialised way to meet the needs of the different categories of disability; say in schools. WASH practitioners should be sensitised not to look at disability as a medical problem but rather from a social perspective. For example, the need to sensitise disabled women about personal hygiene and beauty in order to raise their confidence.
There is need to widen our understanding and planning for disability beyond the physical disability.
Areas of collaboration identified
The meeting was very positive, yielding possible areas of collaboration including: Community empowerment targeting people with disabilities to appreciate and demand for their WASH rights, strengthening capacity of district local governments and civil society organisations to advocate for people with disability and to understand how WASH links with their work, strengthening district unions of PWDs in understanding WASH beyond access, ensuring participation and representation of PWDs in the planning, budgeting, monitoring and management of WASH facilities.
There is need to focus on targeting and working with disabled peoples groups as well as having appropriate communication channels with them. Other critical areas included joint advocacy, especially at the national level to ensure that the policy commitments are translated into practice to address challenges affecting PWDs in different sectors of education, health, WASH, and livelihoods.
With an established advocacy agenda focusing on specific areas of concern affecting the various member categories, synergies with WAU are apparent with value adding results.
WaterAid pledged to mainstream disability in WASH planning, establishment of structures to ensure representation of PWDs on WASH Committees, capacity building of partners on disability issues as well as linking NUDIPU with Uganda Water and Sanitation NGO network (UWASNET) for greater outreach.
WAU is in the process of supporting the formation of a parliamentary committee on WASH. This should include representatives from members of parliament with disability. The key challenge that remains is how to reach out to the different categories of disability with these messages because disability is as diverse as the challenges are.
Appropriate technology does not necessarily mean cheap technology
Barbara Frost visit Appropriate Technology Centre for water and sanitation
Barbara Frost, accompanied by a team of seven WaterAid staff, visited the Appropriate Technology Centre (ATC), an initiative established in 2010 by the Ministry of Water and Environment to promote action research and development of appropriate technologies for water and sanitation.
Trying out a different type of hand washing facility developed by ATC
The goal of the visit was to identify areas of collaboration in research and capacity building. It as well offered an opportunity for discussion of mainstreaming different categories of disability in technological designs.
In the discussions with ATC it was noted that “appropriate technology does not necessarily mean cheap” as many people tend to think. It should be that type of technology that suits the environment, acceptable and manageable by the people. The challenge faced is how to make good technology cheaper and affordable to the poor communities.
Appreciating a toilet facility constructed using plastic water bottles picked from garbage dumps
WaterAid in Uganda sits on different sector working groups. This is an additional opportunity to take up technological issues for discussion and influence inclusion of inclusive designs.
WaterAid recommended that learning centres like this should be playing a bigger role at regional levels piloting new technologies, organising technology exhibitions and setting up technology model villages to monitor the technologies for improvement.
Barbara Frost, “My final word”
“It has been a fantastic week in Uganda, visiting country programmes really connects me with what we are here for. It has recharged my battery and gives me stories to tell other people about real like experiences of the impact of WaterAid work.”
The Urban Challenge
“Kawempe (urban poor settlement) was a shock but I saw vibrant economic activity showing what people can do with so little to change their living conditions. Urban area challenges are great, worsened with the high rural urban migration and population increase that out pace WASH service delivery.”
Rural
“We felt challenged, humbled and inspired. We have really seen some fantastic work both in rural and urban programmes supported by WaterAid. It was inspiring to see rain water harvesting being promoted by women, something which can easily be replicated. What I can’t forget of the trip are the many community members we met working hard to improve their lives, sharing with us how easy access to clean water has changed their lives.
“We have been to schools and heard children sing and dancing, talking about water, sanitation and hygiene, washing their bodies and general smartness. It is always inspiring to see these young stars determined not only to clean them selves but to go home and talk about these issue with their families.
“We have met many people who have inspired us by taking action to change the water and sanitation situation in their villages. They have kept the villages clean, constructed and utilized latrines and make sure that the investments in place are sustained. We went to one village and met a woman using rain water harvesting to feed her animals for income generation which is a good example of integration of WASH in other sectors.”
Barbara giving her reflections of the visit being interviewed by Alice Anukur, WAU Country Representative and James Kiyimba on camera
Exemplary leadership for better sanitation
“Improvement in WASH in most cases goes hand in hand with good leadership. Where we saw good leadership things get to be done the right way, and where leadership is not exemplary, WASH services are also poor. The WaterAid in Uganda team has demonstrated our values (always learning, collaborative, accountable, courageous, and inspiring) and also has good leadership.
“The Uganda Minister of Water and Environment Hon. Maria Mutagamba is also very inspiring, determined to make a change, pushing other people to work with her and provide more money at all levels to finance sanitation.”
This is the WaterAid in Uganda team that is contributing to the realisation to water and sanitation for all
Hope for the future
“I hope all communities visited continue putting up the good works they have started and bringing it to scale in other villages. WaterAid is continuing to work with local NGOs, District Local Governments to make sure that all good practices are replicated. We need to have a stronger focus on equity and inclusion, research on appropriate technology, strengthen school’s WASH (including menstrual management) and above all continue to advocate for the prioritisation of WASH budgeting and resource allocation.
“Water is life and sanitation is dignity. With out these means that many people will continue to live unhealthy lives, children dying of preventable diseases and the vicious cycle of poverty will continue. This is unacceptable, water and sanitation is a fundamental human right for all.”
Barbara, Peter and Lydia your visit to Uganda has been inspiring, we appreciate the advice you have given us and partnerships linkages you have initiated identified.
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