Market-based solutions to bridge LatAm rural vs urban sanitation gap

Despite improvements in recent years, Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) nations still suffer disparities in rural vs. urban access to sanitation improvements, while solutions to bridge the gap may require looking beyond governmental support or self-financing projects.

Urban centers require greater water and sewerage development primarily due to the risks associated with the potential for communicable diseases to spread much faster than in any other setting, which has led to the higher penetration figures.

In Mexico, 75% of the urban population had access to improved sanitation facilities in 2012, up from 55% in 1990, according to the World Health Organization. Meanwhile, 66% of the rural population enjoyed the same access in 2012, up from 35% in 1990.

Humberto Cáceres, an advisor with US-based non-profit Water.org, says the main difficulties in developing rural sanitation projects include limited water sources, the rapid rise of informal communities and lack of sufficient pipeline capacity, and the limited capital to develop the community-based projects in a timely manner.

"The biggest problem in basic sanitation is seen in Latin America's peri-urban zones, where authorities and professionals can't provide water and sewerage in an effective way," Cáceres told BNamericas.

ANOTHER ROADBLOCK: FINANCING

In the latest UN-Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking-Water (GLAAS) report, 80% of countries surveyed reported insufficient financing for the sector.

"With 70% of countries reporting that tariffs do not cover the costs of operation and maintenance, the quality of services and coverage levels are at risk of decline," said the 2014 GLAAS report.

The World Health Organization (WHO), who authors the GLAAS report and listed improved access to sanitation services as one of its Millennium Development Goals, says that while rural improvements have been made in the region, the advances are largely limited to higher-income sectors.

Organizations such as Water.org, meanwhile, are promoting market-based-solutions to help the lower income rural population, considering that residents of LAC countries pay more in out-of-pocket expenses and rates linked to their water and sanitation needs than any other region in the world, according to GLAAS.

One market-based solution is the WaterCredit model. "It channels microfinance loans to people who want to either construct new water and sewerage facilities or upgrade defunct wells and pit latrines," Cáceres said.

"Water.org is also exploring the possibility of channeling financing through new networks outside of the microfinance sector, for example from international remittance flows from the Latin American diaspora around the world."

And while governments employ subsidy programs to implement new infrastructure or revamp older systems, ensuring that sustainable practices are developed alongside the works is of equal importance, Cáceres said.