SuSanA - Forum

Re: Up-scaling Basic Sanitation for the Urban Poor in Kenya (UBSUP) (WSTF and GIZ, Kenya) - by: simon

Mon, 20 May 2013 08:38:02 +0000

Dear Elisabeth,

Thanks a lot for your questions and my apologies for the delayed response.

To answer them:

When we say EcoSan facilities, we mean the double vault UDDT. The vaults are to be used alternately one in every 6 months for a standard user population of 10 people per double vault facility. In addition to the UDDTs, we also have other technologies to fit the needs of the beneficiaries such as pour flush/cistern connected to septic tank or sewer.

Social marketing techniques
We have quite a number of innovative social marketing techniques that are currently being tested within the UBSUP programme. We have integrated specific components with different marketing techniques to come up with a solution that fits the Kenyan context. Our guiding principle are the 6 P’s of sanitation marketing i.e. Promotion, Partnership, Policy, Place, Price and Product. In addition, we also have further P’s such as Participation and Positioning (using other marketing entities to inform the beneficiaries about the product).
These are achieved through FGD’s, advertisements, social marketing tools such as posters and general information dissemination

Financial contributions:
The programme has adopted a subsidy approach as an effective plot and household sanitation approach that ensures that decision for the adoption of improved sanitation is taken by the household, the landlords and/or the tenants and the ownership of the facility and sustainability is fostered through contribution from the household, the landlords and/or the tenants.

We are subsidizing to a maximum of 230 US dollars per toilet. The subsidy is payable to the artisan after successful completion of the construction of the toilet. This is because it is the artisan that has a contract with the Water Service Provider (WSP). Water Services Trust Fund will fund the WSPs. The WSPs with the funding from the WSTF will then finance the artisans. The landlords or tenants will not have access to the subsidy but will pay the contribution to the artisan. The subsidy is a one of construction cost. For the landlord, investing in improved sanitation facilities offers the following benefits

• Improved health benefits for the tenants
• Environmental Protection
• Enhanced dignity
• If sanitation is improved, the plot is marketable particularly to women

We are not considering mobile systems which could be independent of the landlord/tenant relationship. What we are offering are solid stationary sanitation infrastructures that meet the criteria of improved sanitation facilities as per the department of public health and sanitation, Water Services Regulatory Board (WASREB), National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA) and Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS).
We have constructed 17 test UDDTs at household level and we are currently up-scaling the test into a full pilot with three WSPs.

Successes and Challenges

Our biggest successes so far is the UBSUP preparatory study which was carried out in 11 towns, the testing of the UDDTs, involvement of the WSPs right from the initial stages, Integration of WSPs and other stakeholders views in the UBSUP concept. Main challenges pertain to developing incentives for the WSPs to fully integrate on-site sanitation within their programmes.

Thanks and best regards,

Simon Okoth

Using Senecio lyratipartitus extract after anal ablution (University of Eastern Africa, Kenya) - by: asafumaradufu

Sun, 19 May 2013 19:05:41 +0000

Senecio lyratipartitus extracts are effective against diarrhea causing organisms. Control of diarrhea pathogens using a natural hand disinfectant will lower cases of diarrhea which is responsible for about 2 million deaths annually among children world wide.

Here is the information about the project that I led from May 2011 until Oct. 2012 under a grant by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation:

Title of grant: Using Senecio lyratipartitus Extract After Anal Ablution

Name of lead organization: University of Eastern Africa, Baraton
Primary contact at lead organization: Asafu Maradufu
Grantee location: Eldoret, Kenya
Developing country where the research is being or will be tested: Kenya

Short description of the project:
In the early stages of this project, it was established that water kept in pans, pots and buckets for anal ablution after defecation was replete with diarrhea causing pathogens. Hands used for anal ablution were definitely contaminated with pathogens through the contaminated water. Individuals taking no measures to disinfect their hands were carrying and spreading the pathogens to members of their households and others through hand shaking and in their various duties such as cooks in hotels and as vendors of food items. The plant S. lyratus (lyratipartitus)could be used to disinfect hands and thus stop or reduce incidences of diarrhea which causes about 2 million deaths worldwide among children below the age of five.
More plant materials are required to test this hypothesis on a wider scale and also mount campaigns to educate people of the findings.

Goal(s):
The goal of this project is to produce a gel-based disinfectant from plant extracts of Senecio lyratipartitus which can be applied to hands. This disinfectant will reduce contamination associated with the practice of anal ablution among certain communities.

Objectives:

To develop an affordable hand sanitizer from the senecio lyratipartitus which can be applied on hands after anal ablution and thus prevent or reduce cases of diarrhea not only within a given household but also in a wider population.
To sensitize populations practicing anal ablution of the inevitable dangers of spreading diarrhea through undisinfected hands to individuals and a given population.

Start and end date: 1 May, 2011, End date 31 Oct 2012

Grant type: GCE Round 6
Funding for this research currently ongoing (yes/no): No
Research or implementation partners: None
Links, further readings – results to date:

There was a presentation and paper at FSM-2 Conference :
Presentation: www.susana.org/images/documents/07-cap-d...ern-africa-kenya.pdf

Paper: www.susana.org/docs_ccbk/susana_download/2-1624-maradufu.pdf

Video of my presentation:

Current State of Affairs:
Our team applied for phase II grant from the foundation, but we have not received a response. We intend to continue the project with hopes that we will get funding. A sample of our hand sanitizer gel was presented and demonstrated to some participants attending the FSM2 conference in Durban. If resources will be available, we intend to produce a large quantity of S. lyratus disinfectant to be tested in a wide population that practices anal ablution after defecation. Time allowing, we will work on purification and isolation of the active ingredients of Senecio lyratus. Intellectual Property Rights will also be sought.

Biggest Success So Far:
The biggest success so far is that we established that water kept in buckets, pans and pots in the precincts of latrines for anal ablution after defecation is contaminated with diarrhea causing pathogens. This is the main source of food contamination in a household and in a population were some or everyone practices anal ablution after defecation without recourse to hand washing with soap and clean water. Extracts of S. lyratus are effective in reducing or eliminating diarrhea causing pathogens and a gel formulated from S. lyratus extracts can be made and used effectively to tackle diarrhea causing organisms. Application of such a gel to disinfect hands after anal ablution will certainly reduce incidences of diarrhea in populations’ endemic with diarrhea, thus lives will be saved.

Main Challenges:
The challenges that will probably face this project would be to convince users of hand disinfectants to apply hand sanitizers regularly and faithfully. Educating people worldwide, particularly in Asia and Africa on the use of hand sanitizers after defecation may take time and resources may not be easily forthcoming. Government approval for use of such sanitizers in many countries may also take time.

Regards
Asafu Maradufu

Re: Bringing Sanitation Innovations to Market (B-SIM) (WSUP, UK and Ghana, Zambia, Kenya, Bangladesh) - by: ajnarracott

Tue, 14 May 2013 19:06:22 +0000

Hi All

We're hiring for the WSUP Enterprises Lead in Ghana to lead the Ghana leg of this programme. Please visit wsup.com/vacancies/ for details or the attached job description.

Thanks
Andy Narracott

Re: Catalyzing Sanitation Businesses (Water for People, USA, Malawi, Uganda, India) - by: smunyana

Tue, 14 May 2013 06:05:40 +0000

Dear Frederick,
Thanks for sharing and it is exciting to see the interest the article generated and the potential partnerships that we can use to push this further. It would be great explore the journalists' forum further and other avenues to keep the momentum going. I will discuss with the team and we will be in touch.
Thanks again
Sherina

Re: Catalyzing Sanitation Businesses (Water for People, USA, Malawi, Uganda, India) - by: Kiku

Mon, 13 May 2013 14:25:10 +0000

@Sherinah, the New Vision reported the article on the Gulper as the most emailed last week. As WASH practitioners, seeing articles on sanitation well received by the public can only encourage us to keep the momentum going. Perhaps East Africans could ape our West African colleagues and encourage creation of a forum for journalists that cover WASH issues. Water Aid Uganda has already set the pace through creation of a Parliamentary WASH Forum as lobbyists at the highest political level.

Fredrick

Treatment of sanitation volumes in Kampala - by: Kiku

Mon, 13 May 2013 11:07:51 +0000

I put here an e-mail exchange I had with Karsten about the use of The Gulper and the faecal sludge treatment - as it could be interesting for others working in Uganda, too.

Dear Karsten,

Thanks for the interest in The Gulper. We believe that stimulating private sector participation in sanitation services is the future. Besides GIZ, the other parties in The Gulper venture include Water for People (WFP, NGO), Captiva (Business Development), Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA), and various small scale businesses that have been recruited, trained and equipped with skills to sustain the pit-emptying business. Besides partly funding the project, our role is largely to facilitate the process owing to our long-standing experience in the urban WASH sector in Uganda.

On how the emptied sludge is handled, the current model involves transport and emptying at the NWSC wastewater treatment plant within the City. Moreover, Water for People is working closely with KCCA to set up sludge holding tanks to further reduce transport costs. In future, there will be less transport needs as more wastewater treatment facilities with capacities to handle faecal sludge are being built in various locations within the City. One such facility (Lubigi) is near completion, and its catchment covers the informal settlements where The Gulper is being rolled out.

As we are open to further sludge treatment options, the idea of setting up a Kakiri-type composting facility is welcome. I have visited the site on at least two occasions (www.flickr.com/photos/gtzecosan/68772217...et-72157629320894295), and our interest would largely be in commercial viability of the fertilizers. As with most pilots, piecemeal successes have been demonstrated on reuse of human excreta without much to show for when it comes to scale. Our good friend, Dr. Charles Niwagaba, has also been involved in various research in regard to demand for biosolids in Kampala. Any form of investment would have to be guided by such knowledge.

Since Water for People is a key partner in The Gulper initiative, it would be good to include Ms. Cate Nimanya (Country Director, WFP) in the discussion on the possibility of setting up a treatment unit for sludge volumes being handled by The Gulper.

Best, Fredrick

PS. As the attachment shows, not all pit contents are dumped in the "lake" untreated. A good proportion on pits in Kampala are used and safely abandoned - and as the sheets show, cities with higher sewerage proportions are not fairing that better when it comes to unsafe disposal into the environment.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

From: Karsten Gjefle [mailto:karsten@susan-design.org] Sent: Sunday, May 12, 2013 2:49 PM To: Fredrick Tumusiime

Dear Fredrick Tumusiime, Technical Adviser - GIZ, With great interest did I read the story in New Vision about the pit emptying system that now is being brought to some scale in Kampala.

www.newvision.co.ug/news/642497-kampala-...que.html/t_blank>

As you are aware of SuSan Design has tested a treatment solution that is robust and gives safe natural fertilizer and soil improvement product so the nutrient value of the pits can come back into productive use instead of being dumped into the lagoon or lake. (I assume that is what is taking place)

Our test site was just outside Kampala and GIZ has earlier visited it when it was up and running.

If there is room in your program to revive the site that would be a good investment in a sanitation solution that has proven to produce quality natural fertilzer. We tested the volumes on maize with NARO and we should be very close to get production going on a commercial platform covering basic running cost. Please let me know if you would like more information on our work or a suggestion from our side what it would cost to set up a unit that would cover the volumes now being handled by the gulpers.

Please inform me how the volumes from the gulpers today are deposited. Looking forward to be part of the solution in Kampala.

Best regards,

Karsten Gjefle

Director, Susan Design

www.susan-design.org

Re: Catalyzing Sanitation Businesses (Water for People, USA, Malawi, Uganda, India) - by: smunyana

Thu, 09 May 2013 09:18:35 +0000

Partnership with GIZ for more gulper services in Kampala

www.newvision.co.ug/news/642497-kampala-...posal-technique.html

Re: Overview of all the grants that have been introduced and of the ones that will be introduced soon - by: F H Mughal

Fri, 03 May 2013 05:31:13 +0000

Dear Ms. Elisabeth,

That was an interesting and useful post of yours. While, there would be many organizations, working in the field of sanitation, I wonder if SuSanA has compiled a list of such organizations. A few, that I know of, are (water component is also included in the portfolios of some organizations): Sustainable Sanitation and Water Management (SSWM); Watersanitationhygiene.org; The Operation and Maintenance Network; SamSamWater Foundation; and sustainablesanitation.info

Regards,

F H Mughal

Bill Gates blog post on National Academy of Sciences regarding Toilet ! - by: Roshan

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 20:21:08 +0000

www.thegatesnotes.com/Topics/Development...ntists-About-Toilets

Why I’m Talking To Scientists About Toilets

Melinda and I spoke earlier today at the National Academy of Sciences, a non-profit group that has advised the nation on important scientific matters for 150 years. The NAS has roughly 2,200 members, all scientists at the top of their respective fields. About 200 of them have Nobel prizes.

Naturally, I took the opportunity to talk about toilets. Of course I also mentioned vaccines and other life-saving scientific advances. Melinda talked about the benefits of contraception and agriculture. But I put special emphasis on our Reinvent the Toilet Challenge, because it’s a great example of one of our biggest priorities: encouraging scientists to focus on the problems of the poor.

Scientific advances like the microprocessor and new medicines have been key in lifting millions of people around the world out of poverty. In my lifetime, extreme poverty has been cut in half. So have the number of people who don’t have safe drinking water, and the number of mothers who die during childbirth.

But we can do even better. There are many life-saving discoveries that don’t reach the developing world. Or they aren’t tailored to meet the needs of the poor to begin with. The toilet for example has been essentially the same technology for 200 years, and it requires infrastructure like sewage systems that are out of reach for much of the world. That leads to open defecation and other problems—and 1.5 million children who die each year from contaminated food and water. So Melinda and I made the case for finding more ways to make sure the poor are among the first, rather than the last, to benefit from scientific progress.

Why the National Academy of Sciences? Because it’s a group that represents one of the greatest resources we have in fighting poverty and disease: brainpower. Material scientists can make big advances on the next-generation toilet. Geneticists can develop new seeds that help farmers grow more nutritious food and raise their incomes. Energy researchers can create cheaper, cleaner forms of energy to meet the growing demand for it in the developing world.

Here are some specific ways we’re trying to use the power of science to benefit the poor:

Reinventing the Toilet

Many of us in the rich world take toilets for granted. But today 40 percent of the world’s population doesn’t have access to them. Instead they resort to open defecation, which contaminates water and food supplies, killing 1.5 million children a year. Unfortunately, today’s toilets require complex sewer infrastructure that won’t work in many of these settings. So we need to design affordable toilets that work in these communities.

Last year eight universities participated in a Reinvent the Toilet Challenge. We held a fair to celebrate the winner, and I got to award prizes to the top three winners (see: www.thegatesnotes.com/Topics/Development...llenge-Photo-Gallery). It probably says something about me that I really had fun handing out prizes for toilet designs. Read more about the Toilet Challenge >> www.thegatesnotes.com/Toilets

SCUBA Rice

In her speech, Melinda talked about the importance of providing farmers with new seeds. One example of this is the effort to develop new varieties of rice that can thrive in areas of Asia and Africa, where rice yields are historically much lower than other parts of the world because of flooding, drought and poor soils. Partners from around the world are working to create rice that can “hold its breath” underwater. Read more about SCUBA Rice >> www.cgiar.org/consortium-news/scuba-rice...naway-success-story/

Grand Challenges

In 1900, the German mathematician David Hilbert sparked a century of innovation in mathematics by identifying the 23 problems in that field that most needed solving. That’s the model for the Grand Challenges in Global Health. A panel of scientists has identified 16 challenges that, if solved, could lead to breakthrough advances for the developing world. They include everything from making vaccines that don’t have to be refrigerated to preventing mosquitos from transmitting malaria. Read more about the Grand Challenges in Global Health >> www.grandchallenges.org/Pages/Default.aspx

Overview of all the grants that have been introduced and of the ones that will be introduced soon - by: muench

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 20:14:15 +0000

Dear all,
For the benefit of those readers who only joined this forum this year, and in case you are wondering what's the deal with all these research grants that are being discussed on the forum:
The thread above this post explains it, and we have now added basic information about all the sanitation grants by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (current count is 77) to the SuSanA website, please see here:
www.susana.org/lang-en/research/funded-b...on/resource-recovery

(they are grouped in 5 categories, select from the menu on the left hand side to access the different categories)

Within each category we have grouped it by continent where the lead organisation is based.

With this information, you can now easily see which grants have already been introduced on the forum and which ones are yet to come in the next months. I hope it's not all too overwhelming but that you are finding this a wonderful opportunity to really find out what top researchers worlwide are twisting their brains around to advance the sanitation sector a little bit! I am finding it fascinating and am learning a lot.

Also interesting, when you look at the categories and continents that a lot of the research is being carried out in the US of course (fair enough, as that's where the BMGF is based and where the money is coming from), but when it comes to Europe, the UK-based organisations have done really well to be part of this. And no German organisation is in the lead for any of the research grants (being German myself, I noticed this of course). I guess there is not so much of a tradition at German universities to do research on sanitation in developing countries. Maybe this will change!? In Switzerland, there is Eawag and Eawag-Sandec who is doing this kind of work.

Anyway, I hope you find this little update on the status useful. It is an amazing level of insight, openness and willigness to share that we are seeing here, don't you agree?

Regards,
Elisabeth

Re: Bringing Sanitation Innovations to Market (B-SIM) (WSUP, UK and Ghana, Zambia, Kenya, Bangladesh) - by: ajnarracott

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 11:06:13 +0000

No website yet.

Re: Up-scaling Basic Sanitation for the Urban Poor in Kenya (UBSUP) (WSTF and GIZ, Kenya) - by: muench

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 09:45:30 +0000

Dear Simon,

Thanks a lot for introducing your grant on the forum. It is a bit different to the other grants that have been introduced so far because it does not deal with research as such, at least not with fundamental research, but rather with implentation and upscaling.

So it will be very interesting to read more about your results to date. I look forward to reading any reports and presentations soon when they become available.

I have some small questions for you today:
You said:

Sanitation technical options (hardware): The Proposed Programme focuses on adaptable technologies and specific solutions developed for areas with high population densities, unfavorable soil conditions, high water tables, etc. This includes adaptable and affordable designs such as EcoSan facilities, etc.

Please explain what you mean with "EcoSan facilities"? Is this UDDTs? Single or double vault?

You said:

Sanitation promotion: The development and use of innovative social marketing techniques aimed at increasing the demand for improved sanitation. The focus of the social marketing program is not entirely on the health advantages of improved toilets but also on improved privacy, dignity and user-friendliness.

Which social marketing techniques have you used so far or are you planning on using?

You said:

Financial contributions: The programme has adopted a subsidy approach as an effective plot and household sanitation approach that ensures that decision for the adoption of improved sanitation is taken by the household, the landlords and/or the tenants and the ownership of the facility and sustainability is fostered through contribution from the household, the landlords and/or the tenants.

What % subsidy are you providing? Only the landlords can access the subsidies or also the tenants? Is the subsidy only for construction cost (once off) or also for ongoing maintenance costs? What incentive does the landlord really have to invest in a toilet? Is the main incentive to increase the rent afterwards? Have you considered mobile systems which could be be independent of the landlord/tenant relationship which is also a power relationship?

If I was in Kenya, is there anything that I could SEE and touch (or smell?) in terms of implementation under this grant or is it only on paper so far?

And could you please tell us something about these 3 points so that we understand your grant or program better?:

Current state of affairs:
Biggest successes so far:
Main challenges / frustration:

Thanks a lot for your time.

Regards,
Elisabeth

Re: Up-scaling Basic Sanitation for the Urban Poor in Kenya (UBSUP) (WSTF and GIZ, Kenya) - by: Doreen

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 13:38:47 +0000

Dear Colleagues,

This is to inform you that we also have an UBSUP flickr account which has quite a number of pictures that the team members have taken since the start of the project.

The link is: www.flickr.com/photos/ubsup/

We currently have the following folders in the UBSUP collections in our flickr account.

1. UBSUP sanitation chain
2. UBSUP data collection
3. UBSUP concept development
4. UBSUP private sector and NGO cooperation

We look forward to your feedback!

Best regards,

Doreen

Up-scaling Basic Sanitation for the Urban Poor in Kenya (UBSUP) (WSTF and GIZ, Kenya) - by: simon

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 13:09:45 +0000

Dear Colleagues,

My name is Simon Okoth. I work for the Water Services Trust Fund as a program officer in charge of sanitation. With this posting I present to you the UBSUP program which is implemented by the Water Services Trust Fund and financed by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, KfW and in kind contributions and technical support from GIZ.

Up- scaling of basic sanitation for the urban poor involves improving the living conditions of the urban poor in Kenya through enhanced access to basic sanitation and safe water.

Name of lead organization
Water Services Trust Fund (GIZ only providing technical support)
Primary contact at lead organization
Eng. Jacqueline Musyoki
Grantee location
Nairobi, Kenya
Developing country where the research is being or will be tested
Kenya

Short description of the project

Rapid urbanization combined with a widening income gap between rich and poor and limited economic opportunities of the poorer strata in the society are the main causes of the increasing growth of the low income urban settlements including slums in Most African countries. Slum dwellers, however, face serious inadequacy in access to safe water and basic sanitation as characterized by deteriorating living conditions.

Kenya is one such African country facing these challenges. The country has more than 1,800 low income areas with a total estimated population of 8 million. The lack of access to adequate basic sanitation by the poor population has had devastating infant (under five) mortality effect, insecurity especially to women at night and low dignity among other sanitation burdens.
It is in this context that the WSTF jointly with GIZ are developing a concept for up-scaling sanitation in low income urban households with a focus on household and plot-level sanitation aimed at improving the living conditions of the urban poor in Kenya through enhanced access to basic sanitation and safe water.

Goals
The goals of this project is to improve the living conditions of the urban poor by offering access to sustainable plot level sanitation for up to 800.000 and to safe water for up to 200.000 residents of urban low income areas in Kenya, enabling these residents to practice sound hygiene. The project consists of a “technical component” (advisory services, capacity building, up-scaling concept development, monitoring and reporting system, etc.) and a “financial and up-scaling component” providing subsidies for plot level sanitation facilities.

Objectives of the programme

1. The project is successful when it provides sustainable sanitation for over 800,000 people and safe water for 200,000 in the urban low income-areas in Kenya and will have achieved satisfactory performance if 600,000 are reached with sanitation and 100,000 with safe water.
2. A monitoring system for tracking access to safe water and basic sanitation facilities of urban low income area dwellers is in place and accessible to the public (i.e. an online database).
3. Sector institutions, civil society organizations and small-scale private entrepreneurs have the capacity to actively participate in the provision of basic sanitation to the urban low income areas and cooperation with research institutes results in improved sanitation options.
4. A sanitation up-scaling concept in line with the sector reforms ensures sustainable use of facilities and is used for the further development of the sub-sector.

Start and end date: For GIZ part: Start : 6/30/2011; End 6/30/2017 - and for WSTF part: Start : 6/22/2011; End 5/14/2016
Grant type: Other
Funding for this research currently ongoing (yes/no): Yes
Research or implementation partners: GIZ, Water Service Providers (WSPs) in Kenya,
Links, further readings, results to date: For further information, please www.wstf.go.ke and www.ubsup.go.ke.

Key components:
Sanitation technical options (hardware): The Proposed Programme focuses on adaptable technologies and specific solutions developed for areas with high population densities, unfavorable soil conditions, high water tables, etc. This includes adaptable and affordable designs such as EcoSan facilities, etc.

Stakeholders ensuring a multi-level approach: The implementation approach is to be integrated into the water sector policies, institutions and procedures through a multi-level engagement which builds upon the strengths and weaknesses of all sector stakeholders. This includes capacity building at all levels with emphasis on the local (town and area) level in particular with clear feedback of best practices and lessons learnt mechanisms.

Sanitation promotion: The development and use of innovative social marketing techniques aimed at increasing the demand for improved sanitation. The focus of the social marketing program is not entirely on the health advantages of improved toilets but also on improved privacy, dignity and user-friendliness.

Financial contributions: The programme has adopted a subsidy approach as an effective plot and household sanitation approach that ensures that decision for the adoption of improved sanitation is taken by the household, the landlords and/or the tenants and the ownership of the facility and sustainability is fostered through contribution from the household, the landlords and/or the tenants.

Introduction - by: Roshan

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 22:19:32 +0000

Let me introduce myself, I am Roshan Raj Shrestha, recently joined the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as Program Officer. I am one of the Urban Sanitation Market Team member of the foundation supporting to create enabling environment in introducing new sanitation innovations in developing world. Before joining the foundation I was with UN-Habitat as Regional Technical Advisor for five years and Settlement Improvement Advisor for about two years. I am Nepali citizen working in water and sanitation sector since 1988, establishment of Environment & Public Health Organization (ENPHO) a leading NGO in Nepal during 1990 was my first achievement in water and sanitation sector. After completion of Ph.D in Applied Natural Science from Univ. BOKU Austria in 1999 my interest inclined towards sustainable sanitation. I did several projects on decentralized sanitation options like constructed wetlands for treatment and recycling of wastewater and greywater, ECOSAN and fecal sludge management in South Asia. I believe we still need to do a lot to bring sustainable sanitation system in this world and I am fully committed to work on this venture for my entire life.

Roshan