Sani Boniface Mutale

Management of Village Water Supply Hand Pumps in Zimbabwe: Shifting Responsibilities to User Communities Sani Boniface Mutale

Management of village water supply hand pumps in rural Zimbabwe is a matter that still requires much attention from the authorities, to run smoothly and sustainably. There are obviously still a lot of loopholes in the management of village hand pumps and water supplies are often interrupted due to inefficiencies that are inherent in the management systems of these hand pumps. It is also clear that numerous deficiencies existed at all levels of the management structures of the water supply systems in rural areas. DDF and BRDC had virtually no capacity to effect efficient operation and maintenance of village water supply systems for rural communities. In particular DDF was failing to procure spare parts for maintenance purposes . Critical technical staff as well as logistics in the water division was virtually non-existent. Without exception the RDC also had serious challenges of its own, in ensuring that efficient management structures at all levels were in place and functioning for effective management of hand pumps. Given this scenario, the communities were found not ready to be left on their own to manage their water supply systems in a sustainable manner.