UNESCO-IHE and partners offering twenty PhD positions on pro-poor sanitation innovation

Twenty PhD Positions are available in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Funded Project on Pro-poor Sanitation Innovations, named “Stimulating local innovation on sanitation for the urban poor in sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia”.

UNESCO-IHE, The Netherlands, and the following partners: Makerere University in Uganda, KNUST in Ghana, AIT in Thailand, 2iE in Burkina Faso, ITB in Indonesia, UCT in South Africa, UFMG in Brazil, and Univalle in Colombia were awarded a US$8 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The grant will be used to finance a 5-year capacity building and research project to stimulate local innovation on sanitation for the urban poor in sub-Saharan Africa and South-East Asia.

To support the research component of the project 20 PhD positions for junior researchers are funded by the project at 8 host institutions.

The five research themes are:

• Smart sanitation provision for slums & informal settlements
• Emergency sanitation following natural & anthropological disasters
• Resource‐oriented decentralized sanitation
• Low‐cost wastewater collection & treatment
• Faecal sludge management

Deadline for application: 15 December 2011

For more information and application instructions go to the UNESCO-IHE web site

Bangladesh: natural sediment may shield groundwater from arsenic

Contamination of deep groundwater with arsenic from shallower sources may not be as serious as feared — if pumping deep water is limited to domestic use, a study has found.

Exposure to arsenic-contaminated groundwater has been linked to almost one in every five deaths in Bangladesh, and some 100,000 deep wells have been constructed to pump deeper, cleaner water. Recent modelling studies have suggested that these cleaner water sources are also being contaminated — from shallower water seeping down to replenish deeper wells.

But a study published in Nature Geoscience [doi: 10.1038/ngeo1283] found that natural adsorption of arsenic by sediment — sand in the aquifers — reduces contamination risk in most areas.

The study was conducted as part of the Columbia University Superfund Research Program on the “Health Effects and Geochemistry of Arsenic and Manganese“.

Read more [Syful Islam, SciDev.Net, 10 Oct 2011]

New paper on efficacy of alcohol-based hand sanitizers (ABHS) in field conditions

Pickering, A.J., Davis, J. and Boehm, A.B. (2011). Efficacy of alcohol-based hand sanitizer on hands soiled with dirt and cooking oil. Journal of water and health ; vol. 9, no. 3 ; p. 429–433. doi:10.2166/wh.2011.138 (pay per view)

Abstract

Handwashing education and promotion are well established as effective strategies to reduce diarrhea and respiratory illness in countries around the world. However, access to reliable water supplies has been identified as an important barrier to regular handwashing in low-income countries. Alcohol-based hand sanitizer (ABHS) is an effective hand hygiene method that does not require water, but its use is not currently recommended when hands are visibly soiled. This study evaluated the efficacy of ABHS on volunteers’ hands artificially contaminated with Escherichia coli in the presence of dirt (soil from Tanzania) and cooking oil. ABHS reduced levels of E. coli by a mean of 2.33 log colony forming units (CFU) per clean hand, 2.32 log CFU per dirt-covered hand, and 2.13 log CFU per oil-coated hand. No significant difference in efficacy was detected between hands that were clean versus dirty or oily. ABHS may be an appropriate hand hygiene method for hands that are moderately soiled, and an attractive option for field settings in which access to water and soap is limited.

Contact: Amy Janel Pickering, Emmet Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources, School of Earth Sciences, Stanford University, amyjanel@stanford.edu

Related resources:

• Jenna Davis (Stanford University) – Research: Water, sanitation & health
• Health in Your Hands – Global Public-Private Partnership for Handwashing with Soap
• WSP – Global Scaling Up Handwashing Project

US-Ghana team gets Gates Foundation grant to transform human waste into energy

A US-Ghanaian team has been awarded US$ 1.5 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to develop a biorefinery that will convert fecal sludge to biodiesel and methane.

Prof. Kartik Chandran. Photo: Columbia University

Kartik Chandran, an associate professor of Earth and Environmental Engineering at Columbia Engineering is leading the team that includes Ashley Murray, founder and director of Waste Enterprisers, and Moses Mensah, a Chemical Engineering professor at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Chandran may involve the Columbia University Engineers without Borders Ghana team, for whom he acts as faculty advisor, as well.

Chandran and his team aim to develop a bioprocess technology to convert the organic compounds present in fecal sludge to biodiesel and methane, two potent sources of energy, and thus convert a waste-processing facility into a biorefinery. The biorefinery will not only be an economical source of fuel, but, by minimizing discharge of fecal sludge into local water bodies, it will also contribute to improved human health and sanitation. Chandran says that potential outcomes of his work will also include integrating the bioprocess technology component into a social enterprise business model that will further promote widespread implementation of this approach and technology across the globe, especially in developing economies.

Gender study links water infrastructure to school attendance in Ghana

Understanding and integrating gender perspectives in water infrastructure projects is central to addressing poverty and gender equality. Men and women have different uses for water, a reflection of their roles in the household and more broadly, the economy. Women face disproportionate challenges in accessing water supply and sanitation services.

Women and girls spend more time than men in water collection, a burden that restricts them from participating in other productive activities. Ensuring equitable access to convenient water sources can reduce women’s work load, and help free up time for agriculture, other economic activities, and improve girls’ school attendance.

A new World Bank study on gender and water access [1], suggests that a 15 minute reduction in water collection time increases the proportion of girls attending school in Ghana by 8-12 percent. The authors (Celine Nauges and Jon Strand) based their analysis on four rounds of the Demographic and Health Surveys from Ghana, in 1993-94, 1998-99, 2003 and 2008. Using GPS coordinates; the authors build an artificial panel of clusters, identifying the closest neighbors within each round. On this basis they estimated the relationship between girls’ school attendance and water hauling activity, correcting for potential endogeneity of communities and household characteristics.

These results serve to document some of the multiple and wide benefits to the population of increased tap water access, in African countries and beyond.

[1] Nauges, C. and Strand, J. (2011). Water hauling and girls’ school attendance : some new evidence from Ghana. Download presentation.

Related web site: World Bank – Gender—Water and Women in Kenya

India – Patterns and determinants of communal latrine usage

Provision of communal facilities reduces but does not end the problem of open defecation in poverty pockets, according to a new study [1, 2] in in Bhopal, India. Women appear to be relatively poorly served by communal facilities and, cost is a barrier to use by poorer households. Results suggest improving facility convenience and access and modifying fee structures could lead to increased rates of usage. Attention to possible barriers to usage at household level associated particularly with having school-age children and with pre-school childcare needs may also be warranted.

Users outside an urban community-run sanitation block with disabled access. Photo: Therese Mahon/WaterAid

Methods.  Six poverty pockets with communal latrine facilities representing two management models (Sulabh and municipal) were selected. Sampling was random and stratified by poverty pocket population size. A seventh, community-managed facility was also included. Data were collected by exit interviews with facility users and by interviews with residents from a randomly selected representative sample of poverty pocket households, on social, economic and demographic characteristics of households, latrine ownership, defecation practices, costs of using the facility and distance from the house to the facility. A tally of facility users was kept for 1 day at each facility. Data were analysed using logistic regression modelling to identify determinants of communal latrine usage.

Results. Communal latrines differed in their facilities, conditions, management and operating characteristics, and rates of usage. Reported usage rates among non-latrine-owning households ranged from 15% to 100%. There was significant variation in wealth, occupation and household structure across the poverty pockets as well as in household latrine ownership. Households in pockets with municipal communal latrine facilities appeared poorer. Households in pockets with Sulabh-managed communal facilities were significantly more likely to own a household latrine. Determinants of communal facility usage among households without a latrine were access and convenience (distance and opening hours), facility age, cleanliness/upkeep and cost. The ratio of male to female users was 2:1 across all facilities for both adults and children.

[1] Biran, A., Jenkins, M. W., Dabrase, P. and Bhagwat, I. (2011), Patterns and determinants of communal latrine usage in urban poverty pockets in Bhopal, India. Tropical Medicine & International Health ; vol. 16, no. p. 854–862. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3156.2011.02764.x (full article pay per view only)

[2] Biran, A. and Jenkins, M. (2010). Communal toilets in urban poverty pockets : use and user satisfaction associated with seven communal toilet facilities in Bhopal, India. London, UK, WaterAid. Download full report. There is also a WaterAid briefing note based on this report (De Souza, 2010).

See also: SHARE – Improving the performance of communal latrines in achieving safe faeces disposal in urban poverty pockets

Handwashing Prior To Cooking May Help Reduce Childhood Burden Of Diarrhea

In 2007, Stephen Luby (SPL), Head of the Program on Infectious Diseases and Vaccine Sciences at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) and colleagues studied hand washing behaviour in 347 households from 50 villages across rural Bangladesh. The researchers compared a non-intervention control group with communities that were part of a large handwashing, hygiene/sanitation, and water quality improvement programme — Sanitation, Hygiene Education and Water Supply in Bangladesh (SHEWA-B), organised and supported by the Bangladesh Government, UNICEF, and the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID). Following the results of their study [1], they concluded that washing of hands with soap, or simply rinsing hands without soap prior to preparation of food can reduce the occurrence of diarrhea in children.

The results of this study suggest that it may not be realistic to promote the washing of hands with soap alone, and that rinsing only with water can be considered to be one of the many stages involved in good hand hygiene practice. The results further state that it is always better to use soap for washing hands compared to rinsing of hands with water alone.

The authors stated that in order to identify more effective strategies to develop and evaluate handwashing messages, it is important to consider the limited time and limited soap supplies available with low income families. They also state that such handwashing messages must be focused on those behaviors where there is strongest evidence of a health benefit.

[1]  Luby, S.P., Halder, A.K., Huda, T., Unicomb, L. and Johnston, R.B. (2011) The effect of handwashing at recommended times with water alone and with soap on child diarrhea in rural Bangladesh : an observational study. PLoS medicine, vol. 8, no. 6 ; e1001052 (12 p.). doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001052 (open access)

Source: Alan Oliveira, Medical News Today, 28 Jun 2011

Analysing the governance and political economy of water and sanitation service delivery

This Overseas Development Institute (ODI) research project looks at how best to analyse the governance and political economy of water and sanitation service delivery in developing countries, in order to inform policy, programming and influencing work.

It examines the variety of approaches which exist or are emerging from different stakeholders for analysing the governance and political economy of sectors; draw lessons from case studies of such analysis within the water and sanitation sectors, including recent work by DFID; and develop recommendations and guidance for improved future analysis.

The overall goal is to enable more effective support to water and sanitation service delivery, in order to make faster progress towards reaching the MDG targets.

The purpose of the research is to improve understanding among policy makers and practitioners of how to analyse the governance and political economy of water and sanitation in a given country context, in order to inform policy, programming and influencing work. It should be of interest to donors, multilateral agencies, developing country governments and civil society.

The objectives include advancing knowledge on three levels:

• how governance and political economy can be analysed effectively in the water and sanitation sectors;
• what governance and political economy constraints and opportunities commonly emerge from such analyses; and
• what the implications are for policy, programming, and influencing.

Project duration:  October 2010 – June 2011

Project leader: Michelle Kooy
Project team: Lindsey Jones, Daniel Harris, Roger Calow, Marta Foresti, David Booth, Anu Liisanantti

Funder: UK Department for International Development (DFID),  £100,000

DFID project profile  | ODI project profile

Adaptation H2O: IDRC’s Graduate Research Awards on Climate Change and Water

Call for proposals 2011-2012 – Deadline: 01 September 2011

Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) supports research in developing countries to promote growth and development.

IDRC’s Climate Change and Water Program (CCW) helps developing country researchers understand how climate change affects water resources and find ways to improve the ability of citizens and governments to adapt to the changing environment.

CCW’s Adaptation H2O Graduate Research Awards aim to build research capacity by providing funding to graduate students working on subjects related to climate change and water.

Number, value, and duration of awards

IDRC offers two types of awards:

1) For developing country graduate students: A maximum of seven awards, each with a maximum value of CA$15,000, are available in 2011-2012. The award covers field work expenses for graduate students who are citizens of a developing country and who are enrolled in a master’s or doctoral program at a Canadian or developing-country university.

2) For Canadian doctoral students: Up to two awards, each worth a maximum of CA$15,000, are also available to cover field work expenses of Canadian citizens (or permanent residents of Canada) enrolled in a doctoral program at a Canadian university.

These awards cover the field work period, which must be 3 to 12 months in duration. The awards are only meant to cover research expenses and not university tuition or affiliated fees.

Announcement of results

Only candidates recommended for an award will be contacted. Their names will also be added to the list of Candidates Recommended for an Award at the latest on December 1, 2011.

For more information, visit the competitions page.

Please do not send requests for information or applications to this blog.

SPLASH Sanitation Research Programme approves 5 projects

In November 2010, SPLASH, the European Union Water Initiative Research Area Network (EUWI ERA-net), selected the following 5 projects to be funded under the € 2.2 million SPLASH Sanitation Research Programme:

1. Catalysing self-­‐sustaining sanitation chains in informal settlements
Coordinated by the University of Surrey, the Robens Centre for Public and Environmental Health, United Kingdom, and including partners from France, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda

2. Economic constraints and demand-led solutions for sustainable sanitation services in poor urban settlements
Coordinated by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, the Centre for Development and Cooperation, Switzerland, and including partners from Uganda and Switzerland

3. FaME (Faecal Management Enterprise): Providing sanitation solutions through value chain management of faecal sludge
Coordinated by the Swiss Aquatic Research Institute, the Department of Water and Sanitation in Developing Countries (SANDEC), Switzerland, and including partners from Austria, Ghana, Senegal, and Uganda

4. Maîtrise de la filière assainissement dans un écosystème côtier à Douala et les quartier populaires de Yaoundé au Cameroun
Coordinated by the Ecole Nationale Supérieure Polytechnique de Yaoundé, Cameroon, and including partners from Cameroon and France.

5. Sustainable and resilient sanitation service chains in Maputo province, Mozambique – action research and piloting for benefit of the urban poor
Coordinated by the International Water Association (IWA), the Netherlands, and including partners from France, Mozambique and the United Kingdom.

To see the full information on the composition of the selected consortia go to:
http://www.splash-­‐era.net/news_ssp.php

The Water, Engineering and Development Centre (WEDC), Loughborough University, UK, has been selected to manage the SPLASH Sanitation Research Programme.

Source: SPLASH newletter, no. 12, Dec 2011