Source: USAID
BACKGROUND
With a population of around 28 million people, Mozambique ranks 180th out of 189 countries on the United Nations Development Program 2018 Human Development Index. Almost half of the country’s population still lives in poverty, with the highest concentration in Nampula and Zambezia provinces, where almost half of the 11.2 million poor live. In the last decade, the Government of Mozambique focused water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) investments in urban and rural areas. In small towns, around 15 percent of the total Mozambican population, little investment for water and sanitation has been provided, despite the trend of economic growth. The water services coverage rate in small towns is at around 20 percent, 14 percent with hand pumps and 6 percent piped water, often neither functioning. USAID has designated Mozambique as one of its WASH High-Priority Countries, to provide safe and resilient water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance.
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
Transform WASH is a five-year $18.6 million program that supports the Government of Mozambique’s efforts to strengthen water sector governance, increase water access, and accelerate households’ adoption of key hygiene behaviors. It builds on previous USAID programs, such as Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Financing (WASH-FIN), Supporting the Policy Environment for Economic Development (SPEED+), and Strengthening Communities through Integrated Programming (SCIP), and complements current programming. Transform WASH also liaises with other donor partners, the private sector, and civil society to develop the political will and the technical capacities necessary for creating a sound business environment. The program focuses primarily on small towns, rural growth centers, and peri-urban areas in Zambezia, Nampula, and Cabo Delgado provinces.
EXPECTED RESULTS AND IMPACTS
Transform WASH results will include:
- Strengthened policy implementation and institutional capacity to deliver WASH services;
- Increased technical, financial, and management capacity in WASH-related government programs and private providers;
- Improved water and sanitation financing and business environment for the private sector;
- Accelerated uptake and maintenance of key water and hygiene behaviors among households and institutions; and
- Increased women’s leadership within the sector, and enhanced decision-making power within the household for WASH products and services.