The Other Half

Training the Water Committee in Pueblo Nuevo

While I wait for funding to come through to begin construction on water system infrastructure, I’ve been focusing on “the other half” of my work – training of the water committees. While it’s not as glamorous, it is just as important to ensure the long term sustainability of the water systems.

In larger cities and towns, the local or regional government is responsible for providing potable water to the residents. In rural villages, this task falls to the Water Committee, a group of citizens elected by the village as a whole. These unpaid volunteers have charge of maintaining and repairing the water system as well as collecting and managing the monthly fee (cuota) from each household, usually between $0.50 and $2 per month. (Don’t you wish your water bill looked like that?)

The training sessions that I and other PCVolunteers provide focus on maintenance and accounting practices, although in some villages where the WC has become defunct – like Ipeti Embera – we start from scratch and assist the community with organizing a big community meeting for elections and explaining the roles of the various WC officers.

The WC accounting "starter kit"

Usually, training in basic accounting practices is the most badly needed education. Most WC accounting systems consist of various scraps of paper, on which are recorded payments collected. Some don’t even do that, which often leads to the suspicion of corruption, if not corruption itself.

To help improve accountability and increase trust, I created an accounting “starter kit”, which contains the tools needed for a basic accounting system – accounting ledger, receipt books, acct payable log and related stationary. Then we have a session on how to use it. We practice writing receipts, ledger entries and compiling an annual report for the community. I’ve found that giving a household payment really increases confidence in the WC. Having a well-kept ledger increases pride and confidence of the WC, too.

Election of new Water Committee in Ipeti

We also discuss ways of improving collections, since most villages collect less than half of water fees due. Having a well known and set time and place for folks to pay can help. But, the most effective ploy is simply cutting off water to those who don’t pay. This sounds completely logical and practical to someone from a developed country, but it is a 

Teaching water tank maintenance in Pueblo Nuevo

hard sell here. Despite the delightfully low monthly water fee, payment has traditionally been essentially voluntary and the attitude that “water is a free gift from God” is prevalent. Further, most of the folks in a village are related or good friends. No one on the WC wants to be the bad guy who cut off water to his friend’s house – the job is thankless enough as it is. Oddly, the arrival of electricity and cell phones has helped change the “no pay” attitude, as folks realize that non payment of these services results in cut-offs.