South-Central: A group of CSOs advocates for the strengthening of the right of access to water and sanitation

The Regional Coordination Unit of the Permanent Secretariat of Non-Governmental Organizations (SPONG) of the Center-South pleaded, Tuesday, September 17, 2024, in Manga (Center-South) for the strengthening of the right of access to water and the taking of sanitation measures adapted to climate change with the leaders of local authorities and public technical services in charge of Water and sanitation in the region."In the search for adequate answers, we wish to have a meeting with the regional council and the technical services in charge of water and sanitation in order to impact public policies and budgetary priorities in favor of the said domain," declared the coordinator of the Regional Coordination Unit of SPONG (URCS) of the Center-South, Aimée Yaméogo.The coordinator of the URCS of the Centre-South, Aimée Yaméogo notes the existence of several inadequacies in the water and sanitation sector in the Centre-South.She spoke on behalf of the member associations of the URCS of the Centre-South during a n advocacy meeting for the strengthening of the right of access to water and sanitation, an initiative which is part of the "Tirlem" project implemented with the technical and financial support of Diakonia.According to Aimée Yaméogo, in light of the community monitoring for the follow-up of the State's commitments ensured by the member associations of the URCS of the Centre-South, the analysis of the situation of access to water and sanitation at the local level shows numerous inadequacies despite the efforts made.Advocacy facilitator Emile Pengdwendé Ouédraogo cited four main recommendations made to improve the current situation.In the details provided during his communication, the advocacy facilitator, Emile Pengdwendé Ouédraogo, listed, as violations of the rights of access to water, "the insufficient quantity of water available, the poor quality of water, the distance from supply points and the high price of water."As for the main violations of the right to sanitation, he continues, they concern " the failure to guarantee safe sanitation, the unacceptability of sanitation, the high cost of sanitation and the physical inaccessibility of sanitation."SPONG program officer Fatmata Bancé maintains that taking into account the recommendations will facilitate the achievement of SDG 6 in Burkina FasoIn addition to these violations, he noted, there are, among other things, the poor construction and management of water and sanitation works, the inadequacy of water and sanitation infrastructure in public places, the difficulties in managing wastewater and excreta and the low resources allocated to municipalities for the water and sanitation sectors.It is in view of this unflattering situation that four recommendations were mainly formulated for the heads of local authorities and the technical services involved with a view to lasting improvement, indicated Mr. Ouédraogo.Yassia Ouédraogo, member of the special regional delegation of the Centre-South, assures that the recommendations will be taken into accou nt in the actions of the water and sanitation sector.The interpellating CSOs recommend in this sense, first, he says, "the substantial budgetary allocation of the water and sanitation sector by the municipalities of the region in order to accelerate the achievement of the right of universal access to water and sanitation by the end of 2025". They then call for "the construction in each municipality of a collection, sorting and treatment center for household waste and plastic bags". They also call for "the establishment of a system for monitoring the guarantee of services offered to populations by the municipalities".Finally, they support, concludes Mr. Ouédraogo, "the establishment of a system for evaluating the performance of the sector by the communities of public action in terms of drinking water and sanitation on the health and quality of life of the beneficiary populations."For the SPONG program manager, Fatmata Bancé, taking into account these various "strong" recommendations will contribute to re solving the dysfunctions observed and, as a result, sustainably improve access to water and sanitation at the local level.She is also convinced that the effectiveness of these measures, particularly at the national level, will enable the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6, "dear to Burkina Faso", she says, which aims for "universal and equitable access to drinking water, hygiene and sanitation by 2030".Yassia Ouédraogo, president of the environment and local development commission at the level of the regional special delegation of the Centre-South, also stressed the relevance of the recommendations made by the CSOs, recalling that the Regional Council of the Centre-South, for its part, "is already tackling the problem head on"."This was included in our three-year plan, particularly with regard to increasing the number of drinking water points and with regard to the various recommendations, the Regional Council will work to take them into account in order to be able to respond to the nee ds and requests of the population in the water and sanitation sector," he declared.Source: Burkina Information Agency