The PAQPUD settled sewerage project (Dakar, Senegal): Problems arising, lessons learned

Most African cities lack piped sewerage networks; where such networks exist, they typically serve only wealthy districts and are grossly dysfunctional. So can low-cost sewerage systems be appropriate; or would efforts be better directed at non-piped sanitation solutions such as latrines and septic tanks? The recently terminated PAQPUD project was a World Bank-financed sanitation intervention in Dakar (Senegal), including about 14 million US$ for provision of settled sewerage networks in 11 low-income districts of the city; this is the first large-scale implementation of low-cost sewerage in sub-Saharan Africa. This article reports an independent evaluation of project outcome carried out in 2009, including the results of householder surveys in 3 of the 5 districts in which the system became operational. Various aspects of the project are laudable models of development project implementation, including the specific targeting of low-income districts, and the effective involvement of local community organizations in project implementation; furthermore, in the operational districts, reasonably high coverage levels were achieved, and beneficiary householders generally showed high satisfaction. However, overall outcome considering all 11 districts must be considered very poor, with only about 20–30% of targeted coverage achieved; this is largely attributable to deficient adjudication and management of construction contracts. Furthermore, in none of the operational districts has a workable organizational framework for long-term local network maintenance been negotiated; and in several districts system discharges probably constitute a significant health risk. These findings suggest that low-cost sewerage may be an appropriate solution in some African urban contexts, but only if diverse potential problems can be resolved at the planning, construction and management stages. Our findings also highlight the need for rigorous independent monitoring and evaluation of projects of this type.