Madagascar

Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH)

Access to adequate sanitation is a challenge for people living in urban Madagascar as it is in many other urban and rural settings. To address the lack of sanitation options in densely populated areas, WASHplus is exploring public-private sanitation solutions in several communes in Madagascar. Under the USAID Hygiene Improvement Project, the predecessor project to WASHplus, several pilots for public toilets (known locally as blocs sanitaires) have proven popular and profitable. But to keep them clean and lessen the environmental and health impact of these facilities, sound management of the fecal sludge they produce is an urgent priority. A WASHplus partner, Practica Foundation, conducted an assessment of sludge management options in two communities with public-private toilet-shower facilities, and is now working on a pilot project to test feasible options for broader application.

The assessment found that although the demand for formal pit emptying services services is high, there is a lack of treatment plants and few pit emptiers. The day laborers who are hired to perform this filthy job face serious health hazards, engage in questionable disposal practices, and lack the capacity to improve the quality of their services. This assessment proposes innovative low-cost options for fecal sludge management in three areas: sludge removal/transfer, transportation, and disposal/treatment. The report concludes that fecal sludge management could become a profitable enterprise in this region in Madagascar. The report is available in English and French.

Resources

Publications

• Downstream of the Toilet:Transforming Poo into Profit: Briefing Note, 2013. (pdf, 252KB) - WASHplus engaged the international NGO Practica to design and pilot a private-sector service delivery model to sustainably manage fecal sludge generated in Madagascar using low-cost decentralized technologies.
   
• Expanding Coverage and Promoting Sustainability of WASH Infrastructure and Hygiene Investments in Madagascar: Program Brief, 2013. This brief discusses how the WASHplus and WSUP partnership in Madagascar increased sustainable access to safe water and sanitation services in ways that promoted environmental awareness, generated employment and income for communities, changed behavior, and built the management and financial capacity of local associations.
   

• Manuel de Formation Technique: Vidange Hygienique a Faible Cout, 2013. French language Sludge Removal Training Guide developed by Practica for WASHplus-supported fecal-sludge management pilot activity in Madagascar.
   
• Summary Report: Field Review of WASH Approaches, 2012. Success factors and lessons learned from WASH activities in Madagascar.
   
• Review of WASH Approaches in Madagascar - Data Collection Tools, 2012. (French only)
   
• Low cost systems for the management of sludge from toilets and shower units: current techniques and improved options in Ambositra and Mahanoro. Practica, WASHplus Project, May 2011. French version.

Madagascar Stats in Brief

Population (x1000) - 2012

• 22,294

Water Access (improved source)

• 35% rural areas
• 78% urban areas
• 50% national total

Sanitation Access (improved facility)

• 11% rural areas
• 19% urban areas
• 14% national total

Source: UNICEF/WHO JMP 2014