Statement by Dr Peter Salama, UNICEF Representative to Ethiopia,
On the occasion of the Launch of National Design and Construction Guidelines for Water
Supply and Sanitary Facilities in Health Centres and Primary Schools
Hilton Hotel, Addis Ababa
16 April, 2013 – 09:10 – 09:20
· Excellency, Minister of Water and Energy, Ato Alemayew Tegenu
· State Minister of Education, Honourable Fuad Ibrahim
· State Minister of Health, Honourable Dr. Kebede Woreku
· Your Excellency, Mr. Leo Olasvirta - Ambassador of Finland and Permanent Representative to the AU
· Ms. Melanie Robinson – Head of DFID in Ethiopia
· Mr. Fabio Melloni - Italian Development Cooperation
· UNICEF Ethiopia Goodwill Ambassador, Aster Aweke
· Senior Government Officials and UN colleagues
· Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen
I am delighted to join you all, as we launch the National Design and Construction Guidelines for Water Supply and Sanitary Facilities in Health Centres and Primary Schools. These guidelines are essential tools that will inform Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) infrastructure in Ethiopia’s schools and health facilities and which I am sure will translate to improved WASH services for pupils and patients.
Ladies and gentleman: The National WASH Inventory conducted in 2012, revealed that the water supply coverage for primary schools stands at close to 31 per cent, while sanitation coverage is just over 33 per cent in an estimated 27,000 primary schools across Ethiopia. In the country’s 3, 200 health facilities, a mere 32 per cent have a safe water supply, while about 85 per cent have some form of sanitation facility.
These design and construction manuals for schools and health facilities are a vital step towards standardisation of both construction norms and unit costs. Both manuals contain detailed design drawings as well as bills of quantity, enabling immediate and practical application to WASH construction and rehabilitation efforts throughout Ethiopia. In addition, the manuals provide unit costs - US$12 000 for a health facility and US$21 000 for school WASH services. Based on these figures, the Government of Ethiopia already estimates a total financing requirement of US$ 790 million for universal scale up across the country. This includes US$ 130 Million for water supply in all schools and US$ 400 Million for water supply in all health facilities.
But today’s event represents more than the unveiling of national guidelines and standards. It comes at an important moment, when Ethiopia is demonstrating its political commitment to resolving long-standing challenges in the Water and Sanitation Sector. Beyond the roll out of manual, I would like to mention three related developments that are of strategic importance to the sector:
First, the Sector Wide Approach (SWAP), known as the ONE WASH programme, is becoming an important vehicle to ensure national level coordination and coherence in the sector as a whole. UNICEF, along with several partners here today, is one of the lead supporters of this exciting initiative – aligning national strategy, implementation, partnership, monitoring and evaluation behind the Government led sector plan and the GTP and harmonizing our collective inputs including funding to the sector. The ONE WASH programme provides a 5 year plan to ensure 100% access to WASH facilities in schools and clinics and provides a ready financing mechanism for institutional WASH. We appeal to all donors, partners and to the Government to prioritise institutional WASH in terms of their financial allocations under the ONE WASH plan. As we look ahead to the post 2015 agenda, and water security-in both urban and rural areas- being an increasingly prominent development goal, I strongly believe the investments being made in developing the ONE WASH programme are both timely and strategic.
Second, there is a real opportunity at present to ensure that something we talk about a lot in development but that we rarely see, that all of the multi-sectoral components needed to ensure programme success, come together synergistically under government leadership. Indeed, Ethiopia has built real multi-sectoral momentum around WASH and this should be sustained. Already a Memorandum of Understanding between the four key ministries (Ministries of Health, Water, Education and Finance) has been signed and is being operationalized through the One WASH plan. The timing again is excellent. Just as we celebrate the major quantitative targets being reached in health and education and the country being on track to reach the MDGs in some areas, the focus on quality is becoming more and more important as the next generation of priorities and targets. Clearly such a multi-sectoral drive on institutional WASH will support the needed improvements in the quality of both health and education services as well as improving access for women and girls. The effective implementation and overall success of the effort will depend on sustained co-ordination throughout all stages of expansion and roll out. But I have high hopes- as early as tomorrow, the four line ministries will come together to discuss the roll out plan and required investment plans.
Finally, there are increasing linkages being made between the hardware required to deliver WASH programmes successfully and the software- the need to create demand among communities and to change behaviours at individual and household level. It is very significant therefore that today, alongside the launch of guidelines for the construction of WASH facilities, we are also launching a range of communication materials as part of a “SOFTWARE Package” for the Healthy School Initiative in collaboration with FMOH, FMOE and other partners. In addition, clearly the Women’s Development Army with tens of thousands of women leaders across the country being mobilized with support of the Ministry of Health and linked to the Health Extension Programme, represents a massive opportunity to ensure strong national gains in health seeking behaviour, as well as in nutritional and hygiene and sanitation practices at household level.
Let me assure you that UNICEF stands ready to play a catalytic role; mobilizing alliances for WASH through regional stakeholder consultations, and facilitating a coordinated nationwide approach.
Honourable Ministers, this launch is a step towards equipping all of Ethiopia’s schools and health facilities with the necessary Water, Sanitation and Hygiene facilities. Ensuring that all school going children – boys and girls - and people visiting health posts and clinics –all over the country, including in the most remote areas, have access to these services is crucial to Ethiopia’s development. I am certain we will look back in ten years’ time and recognize that the milestone reached today as a turning point for water and sanitation access in Ethiopia.
I thank you
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