Water and other urban infrastructure and services / Urban policy, institutional and capacity development - Urban water supply

The National Poverty Reduction Strategy (NPRS) emphasized the need for safe water. One of the seven point strategic agenda of the NPRS is water and sanitation. The goal of NPRS is to reduce the number of people who do not have access to safe water (26%) by half and to reduce water pollution. Improvement of water supply infrastructure in urban areas and ensuring quality services have been identified as prerequisite for hygiene and nutrition and contributing factors towards poverty reduction by reducing health risks and creating employment. The NPRS also envisages introduction of water supply projects for all urban areas and water quality monitoring and surveillance. The water supply programs need to focus on provision of basic services as well as participation of private and public sectors in collaboration with strengthened local government institutions.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been supporting the Government's efforts to ensure safe water supply to the urban population. ADB has supported six development projects for secondary towns in Bangladesh since the 1980s. The program is to provide support to Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (DWASA) in contributing to the national target through developing institutional capacity and infrastructure in Dhaka.

Project physically completed on 30 June 2016.

About 8.0 million people have benefitted from improved access to water supply in terms of 24-hour supply, good pressure at the consumers-end, and good quality of potable water. The project includes pipe rehabilitation works carried out on district metering area (DMA) approach for substantial non-revenue water reduction and using the water saved to improve the service level to 24 hours. Dhaka WASA is now working on post-completion DMA management to ensure sustainability of the project investments.

Improved distribution system and quality control in DWASA (project component A) - Rehabilitated and strengthened distribution network

Strengthened DWASA capacity and institution (project component B) - Strengthened financial and operational management capacity of DWASA

Project management and implementation support (project component C) - PMU and management support adequate and operational

Improved distribution system and quality control in DWASA (project component A) - Improved water quality and monitoring system

Strengthened DWASA capacity and institutions (project component B) - Trained staff and resources for DWASA

Strengthened DWASA capacity and institution (project component B) - Demand control and public awareness

Project management and implementation support (project component C) - Feasibility study of the future water treatment plant completed and tender documents prepared

Component A: The project used the DMA approach in rehabilitating and strengthening the water supply system in Dhaka Metropolitan Area. The project has rehabilitated 47 DMAs comprising 2,456 km of water distribution network and installed 106,662 numbers of house connections.

As a result of the effective DMA approach, nonrevenue water (NRW) in the network has been substantially brought down from a high level of more than 50% before the project to less than 10% in most of the completed DMAs. Major civil works packages financed by the Project were structured with functional guarantees that contractors were required to achieve to ensure physical losses are less than 15%. The residents in the completed DMAs are benefitted with 24-hour water supply with good quality and pressure.

Additionally, a two-tier monitoring system is under implementation for monitoring water quality. The project has constructed 46 deep tube wells, degenerated 18 deep tube wells, installed 200 chlorination units, and distributed water quality test kits to pump operators. DWASA laboratory facilities were also rehabilitated and equipped with modern testing tools that are now being used in monitoring water quality.

Consistent with ADBs and the governments socially inclusive and gender sensitive approach, the project is also implementing works to serve people in low-income areas of Dhaka. Through the project, DWASA is providing about 1,000 connections to the population in Korail slum. In Korail, the residents earlier did not have any adequate water supply system, and were forced to buy water from private vendors at exorbitant rates. The project is instrumental in improving access to water to the people in this informal settlement. Community Based Organizations in Korail and other slums were mobilized and are in charge with supporting smooth operations of the entire system in consultation with the beneficiaries and Dhaka WASA staff. Water bills for new connections are being distributed, and the residents are regularly paying their water bills without any default. More than 50,000 people have been benefitted in Korail from this initiative. In Sattala slum, 363 connections have been provided, benefitting about 20,000 persons. Dhaka WASA is now replicating the success of Korail and Sattala in other informal settlements.

Component B: Capacity-building and institutional strengthening activities were carried out under the project. DWASA training center has been refurbished and trainings conducted for management, operation, and development system offices staff on DMA operation and management, including conducting zonal level orientation program for each zone. Trainings also included a session on gender in all trainings. The project has conducted 126 training programs with around 2,244 staff trained in various capacity building programs. A total number of 460 pump operators have been trained. Refresher trainings were conducted to 200 pump operators on operating water quality test kits and water quality reporting system. Continuous trainings are essential in maintaining the capacity of the pump operators. NGOs have carried out awareness raising seminars, house to house campaign among men & 100% women dwellers in selected wards of each respective zone on (a) minimization of NRW by discouraging illegal water connection & meter tampering (b) water conservation through economic use of water (c) hygienic use of water.

Through the project, DWASA has established an automated billing system and 100% bills are being issued through online system. DWASA is taking steps to improve the payments to reach toward 100% online system.

Component C: Future water treatment plant has been taken up under another ADB-financed project Loan 3051-BAN: Dhaka Environmentally Sustainable Water Supply Project - approved in 2013. Another project, Loan 3397-BAN, approved in 2016, is being implemented which aims to consolidate and enhance the gains made in the efficiency of the water distribution network achieved under Loan 2382-BAN and Loan 3051-BAN.

1. Consultants were selected and engaged under the Project in accordance with ADBs Guidelines on the Use of Consultants (February, 2013, and as amended from time to time). An international consulting firm was engaged as the Design and Management Consultants (DMC) following ADBs quality and cost-based selection (QCBS) procedures. The DMC was based in Dhaka and assisted the PMU in managing the Project, prepared the detailed design, supervised the works and assured the technical quality of design and construction. The DMC conducted the feasibility study for future water source development, and prepared preliminary design and tender documents.

2. An international consulting firm was engaged as Financial and Capacity Building Consultants (FCBC) following ADBs QCBS procedures. FCBC is responsible for implementing all activities outlined in Component B of the Project, in particular: (i) preparing and providing operational and technical training to the staff of DWASA; (ii) providing corporate financial planning, financial reforms and management advisory assistance to DWASA; (iii) conducting public awareness and demand control as well as resettlement implementation activities. FCBC has engaged non-government organizations (NGOs) in order to manage parts of the demand control, community awareness program and resettlement implementation works, and has engaged professional media and public relations firms to conduct the public outreach programs and media campaigns.

3. In addition, consultants was engaged for the performance-based management consultant (PBMC) contract, to outsource O&M operations (under Component B-1 after the rehabilitation work is completed) on a pilot-basis for one of the four zones.