Six IRC titles selected in peer review on decision-making support tools

Six IRC books have been selected by international authors in their wider selection of 120 existing support resources to assist decision-making support tools for WASH practitioners. Meena Palaniappan, Micah Lang, and Peter H. Gleick of the USA-based Pacific Institute did this in their Review of Decision-Making Support Tools in the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Sector, Spring 2008, PDF

It is interesting to see that the authors included in their selection for this work IRC titles from 1991: Just Stir Gently: The Way to Mix Hygiene Education with Water Supply and Sanitation; and 1994: Together for Water and Sanitation: Tools to Apply a Gender Approach. The Asian Experience. The others were:

• Linking Technology Choice with Operation and Maintenance in the Context of Community Water Supply and Sanitation (2003);
• Technology Selection for Water Treatment and Pollution Control (2003);
• Community Water, Community Management: From System to Service in Rural Areas (2003);
• Small Community Water Supplies: Technology, People and Partnership (2002).

They are listed below in the format as described by the authors.

Together for Water and Sanitation: Tools to Apply a Gender Approach. The Asian Experience

Editor: Bolt, Eveline

Year: 1994

Title: Together for Water and Sanitation: Tools to Apply a Gender Approach. The Asian Experience

Publisher: IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre

Volume: Occasional Paper No. 24

Number of Pages: 113

Notes: "This document is the manual made by middle-level project management staff from rural water supply and sanitation projects in Asia. It combines the joint experiences of 15 participants of the workshop from 9 countries in Asia, the IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre and the NGO Water Supply and Sanitation Decade Service."

Just Stir Gently: The Way to Mix Hygiene Education with Water Supply and Sanitation

Author: Boot, Marieke T.

Year: 1991

Title: Just Stir Gently: The Way to Mix Hygiene Education with Water Supply and Sanitation

Publisher: IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre

Number of Pages: 171

Report Number: Technical Paper no. 29

Notes: "Provides options and methods for integrating hygiene education with water supply and sanitation projects. Illustrations and examples are used to reinforce the text and to give some ideas from 'real life' situations. Target audience: those responsible for the development and implementation of hygiene education components in water supply and sanitation projects.”

URL: http://www.irc.nl/page/1889

Reference Type: Report

Linking Technology Choice with Operation and Maintenance in the Context of Community Water Supply and Sanitation

Author: Brikké, François, and Maarten Bredero

Year: 2003

Title: Linking Technology Choice with Operation and Maintenance in the Context of Community Water Supply and Sanitation

Publisher: WHO and the IRC Water and Sanitation Centre

Number of Pages: 142

Notes: "This document focuses exclusively on community water supply and sanitation in developing countries, in particular, the services that can be managed by communities in rural or low income urban areas). It is designed to help planners and project staff select water-supply and sanitation technologies that can be maintained over the long term in rural and low income urban areas. As has been repeatedly demonstrated worldwide, the selection of a particular technology can have far-reaching consequences for the sustainability of the services. For many years, technical criteria and initial investments were emphasized when choosing such technologies. Although these aspects are important, the roles of financial, institutional, social and environmental factors are also germane for ensuring the sustainability of services. In this manual, it is proposed that an O&M component be added to the selection process. With new actors, such as formal or informal private entrepreneurs, becoming increasingly involved, O&M is no longer simply a technical issue. It is now seen as encompassing social, gender, economic, cultural, institutional, political, managerial and environmental aspects, and is viewed as a key factor for sustainability."

Link to PDF: http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/hygiene/om/wsh9241562153.pdf

Reference Type: Report

Technology Selection for Water Treatment and Pollution Control

Author: Alberto Galvis C (Cinara, Colombia)

Year: 2003

Title: Technology Selection for Water Treatment and Pollution Control

Publisher: IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre

URL: http://www.irc.nl/page/8313

Reference Type: Frequently Asked Question

Community Water, Community Management: From System to Service in Rural Areas Author: Schouten, Ton, and Patrick Moriarty

Year: 2003

Title: Community Water, Community Management: From System to Service in Rural Areas

Publisher: Practical Action

Notes: “This book considers the opportunities and constraints of community management in providing a service to the millions of people who need it: What factors affect community cohesion? Why do systems fail? Under what conditions is community management the most suitable model? How can support to community managed systems best be provided? What are the key actions needed to scale up community management successfully? Published in collaboration with IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre.”

Reference Type: Book

Small Community Water Supplies: Technology, People and Partnership

Editor: Smet, Jo, and Christine van Wijk

Year: 2002

Title: Small Community Water Supplies: Technology, People and Partnership

Publisher: IRC International Water and Sanitation Centre

Number of Pages: 585

Notes: "In 1981 IRC first published Small Community Water Supplies and the book has been a regular bestseller. A large part of its appeal has been that it is one of the few textbooks to link water supply science and technology with the specific needs of small communities in developing countries.

This completely revised edition with contributions from 29 authors from different countries provides a general introduction to a wide range of technologies. Among the topics covered are: planning and management of small water supplies, community water supplies in Central and Eastern European countries, water quality and quantity, integrated water resources management, artificial recharge, rainwater harvesting, spring water tapping, groundwater withdrawal, water lifting, surface water intake, water treatment, aeration, coagulation and flocculation, sedimentation, multi-stage filtration, desalination technology, disinfection, household level water treatment, technologies for arsenic and iron removal from ground water, and emergency and disaster water supply."

Target audience: Engineers and other staff involved in water supply programmes and projects, and students.

URL: http://www.irc.nl/page/1917

Reference Type: Edited Book

“Existing support resources fail to adequately serve WASH practitioners”

In developing countries, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) practitioners need a way to choose among the numerous available options for securing safe water and sanitation. Effectively addressing community needs requires that technologies or approaches be economically, ecologically, and socially appropriate and sustainable. Decision-making support tools help address this need, guiding practitioners to the most appropriate water and sanitation solutions.

The authors of this analysis conducted an assessment of 120 existing support resources including books, manuals, and websites. Additionally, they performed an in-depth evaluation of the 18 support resources that most closely resembled decision-making tools. This analysis indicated that existing support resources fail to adequately serve WASH practitioners. Most commonly missing among the resources evaluated were: an effective user interface; consideration of social implications; regional specificity; information on costs and financing; hygiene approaches; project replicability; and evaluation and monitoring.

Clearer picture for an ideal tool

Emerging from this analysis is a clearer picture of the necessary characteristics of an effective decision-making support tool. The ideal tool would include all elements necessary to implement a water, sanitation, and hygiene project; serve multiple languages; be developed in both web and print form; and include success stories. The tool would be complimented by a comprehensive and ongoing dissemination and support system, including regional workshops; on-call technical support teams; and long-term support for on-the-ground experts, including financing, community, and technical support. A decision-making support tool that includes these elements, particularly the critical support system, would best be able to ensure the selection and success of appropriate solutions. It is clear that developing this ideal decision-making support tool will be a significant challenge and require the concerted effort of numerous stakeholders.

The authors hope that this report will lead to the development of a decision-making support tool in the WASH sector that will serve practitioners seeking the best options to meet the water, sanitation, and hygiene needs of their communities. They also seek to build a foundation to develop the ongoing support system that will be required to ensure that technologies and approaches in the WASH sector are successfully implemented and maintained on the ground.