Water supply and sanitation in Honduras
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Water supply and sanitation in Honduras is characterized by poor service quality, poor efficiency and a fragmentation of sector responsibility and financing despite major sector reforms undertaken in 2003 through a new framework law. Somewhat paradoxically access has improved substantially despite these shortcomings. However, coverage gaps still remain, in particular in rural areas.
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[edit] Access
| Urban (46% of the population) | Rural (54% of the population) | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | Broad definition | 95% | 81% | 87% |
| House connections | 91% | 62% | 75% | |
| Sanitation | Broad definition | 87% | 54% | 69% |
| Sewerage | 66% | 11% | 36% |
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Program (2004) [1]
According to the 2001 National Health Survey access to improved water supply was 94% in urban areas and 80% in rural areas. [2]. According to the same source access to improved sanitation was 85% in urban areas and 50% in rural areas. [3]
[edit] Water use
Per capita water use in Honduras varies greatly from one locality to another. In Tegucigalpa - which suffers from chronic problems of water supply - it is 172 liter/capita/day, while it is 545 liter/capita/day in small municipal systems. [4] In small towns water use thus is much higher than it is for example in Central Europe, where it stands at 135-200 liter/capita/day.
[edit] Service quality
According to the WHO in 2000 98% of water systems in Honduras provided water on an intermittent basis for an average duration of 6 hours per day. In only 51% of urban water systems drinking water was being disinfected, and only 3% of the collected wastewater was being treated. [5] Service quality thus is poor compared to other Latin American countries.
[edit] Responsibility for water supply and sanitation
[edit] Service provision
Water and sanitation service provision in Honduras is the responsibility of municipalities in urban areas, and of about 2,000 community organizations (Juntas) in rural areas. The National Water and Sewerage Service (SANAA) historically operated about half the urban water and sewer systems. The Honduran Social Fund (FHIS) also plays an important role in the sector, since a large share of donor funding to the sector is channeled through it. All urban water systems are public, except for San Pedro Sula where the city has granted a concession contract to a private concessionnaire and Puerto Cortés where the city has created a mixed company.
The rural Juntas in Honduras have created a national association to represent their interests, as well as numerous associations at the level of municipalities. In addition, most rural municipalities are associated in Mancomunidades (intermunicipal associations), many of which have established inter-municipal technical units (UTIs) that administrate investment projects.
[edit] Policy and regulation
According to the 2003 Water Framework Law sector policies are defined by the National Water and Sanitation Council (CONASA), which is chaired by the Minister of Health. Regulation is the responsibility of the Potable Water and Sanitation Regulatory Agency (ERSAPS).
[edit] Recent developments
Under the provisions of the 2003 Law SANAA will have to transfer this function to the concerned municipalities until 2008 and transform itself into an agency providing technical assistance to municipalities and Juntas. The new sector structure mandated by the 2003 law is still in the process of being established, with the new institutions still being weak and new institutions still adapting to their new roles. In 2006 the government issued a Strategic Plan for the Modernization of the water sector to strengthen the decentralization of services. [6]
[edit] Efficiency
Water losses, or – more precisely – non-revenue water is estimated at 50% in the capital Tegucigalpa and 43% in San Pedro Sula, well above an estimated efficient level. The water system in Tegucigalpa has more than 9 employees per 1,000 connections, which is about three times as high as the estimated efficient level. [7]
[edit] Tariffs
The WHO estimates that average urban water tariffs in 2000 were only US$0.13 per cubic meter. A household in Tegucigalpa with a house connection paid only US$2.45 per month for water and US$0.50 per month for sanitation. [8] Tariff approvals occur infrequently and are insufficient to compensate for inflation, thus resulting in an erosion of real tariff levels. Tariffs in municipal systems tend to be even lower than tariffs for systems managed by SANAA, suggesting that tariff setting in municipalities is more prone to political capture in Honduras than tariff setting at the national level. [9]
[edit] Sources
PPIAF Country Framework Report Honduras, 2003, p. 83ff. [6]
[edit] Notes
- ^ WHO/UNICEF JMP [1]
- ^ WHO/UNICEF JMP [2]
- ^ WHO/UNICEF JMP [3]
- ^ Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF) 2003, Country Framework report, p. 90
- ^ WHO 2000 [4]
- ^ PEMAPS
- ^ PPIAF 2003, p. 91
- ^ WHO 2000 [5]
- ^ PPIAF 2003, p. 92
[edit] See also
- Water supply and sanitation in El Salvador
- Water supply and sanitation in Nicaragua
- Water supply and sanitation in Latin America
[edit] Comments
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