Year: 2011
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Urbanisation in sub-Saharan Africa is characterised by a proliferation of informal\nsettlements which all too often embody poverty; low access to basic services and lack secure\ntenure. The reality of sanitation infrastructure in low and middle income cities is a spectrum of\nsanitation systems ranging from conventional utility managed systems to basic household\nfacilities. Population growth has outpaced urban planning and provision and, given projected\nurbanisation trends, a prevalence of non-piped self-build sanitation systems is the most likely\nscenario for urban sanitation in the developing world, at least for the immediate to mid-term.\nThis presents different governance challenges especially as informal occupations are often on\nunsuitable land which exacerbates the difficulties in service provision. Sanitation, tenure and\ndevelopment are inextricably linked, not only with respect to these challenges of urbanisation,\nbut also under the strategic objectives of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG). Together\nsanitation and tenure security are primary indicators of the MDG7, targets ten (access to\nimproved sanitation) and eleven (improving the lives of slum dwellers). The link between\nsanitation and tenure is the focus of this research. Both tenure and sanitation are fragmented\ninto their component parts to understand exactly how and where they interact. Tenure is\ndefined in terms of formal land tenure; tenure status (to differentiate between landlord and\ntenant) and tenure security. Sanitation issues are investigated with respect to access,\nhousehold investment and emptying behaviours.\nThe research framework combines the concept of decision making domains to describe the\nurban context with a city-wide systems view of sanitation, where both formal and informal\ninstitutional arrangements are considered. This research concludes on five main points: firstly,\ntenure security is a necessary precondition for household investment but, given that urban\nsanitation development and provision happen largely under the radar of formal city planning\nand urban management, it is de facto rather than de jure tenure rights that provide the\nsecurity for household investment in sanitation. The second finding is that few urban\nsanitation strategies cater for those who are unwilling or unable to invest. This is a\nfundamental oversight in current urban sanitation strategies of the population segments who\ncannot invest, thus failing to provide a sanitation strategy for all. This is of growing concern\ngiven the type of urbanisation being witnessed in developing countries characterised by\nincreasing concentrations low income populations and tenants. The third finding is that those\nwho are unwilling to invest may be willing to pay (and do) for sanitation services. This places a\ngreater emphasis on downstream and operational sanitation activities (i.e. tenure neutral\noptions). The fourth finding is that there are multiple service providers and majority of urban\nsanitation transactions take place outside the formal service provision. Giving meaning to\nthese informal transactions is likely to offer insight into improved governance for urban\nsanitation. The final point is that there is a need to widen the scope of formal sanitation\nservice provision to include tenure neutral sanitation options to reach the needs of tenants\nand those living with poor tenure security.\nxiii\nPractically, this means that by taking a city-wide approach supported by the sanitation\ncityscape tool which is presented in the thesis one can identify which element(s) of the\nsanitation system are most appropriate to target given the tenure situation. Without this\nconsideration, urban sanitation interventions are likely to be targeted inappropriately. These\nconclusions are based upon primary data collected from a household survey (n=363) and a\nseries of key informant interviews collected during 2008 in Greater Dakar, Senegal.
Author: Pippa Scott
Language: English
Subfield: Urban Studies
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W770153412