Social connection policy – the pilot in Kayole Soweto, Nairobi

1. Social connection policy – the pilot in Kayole Soweto, Nairobi Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN Phillip Gichuki MANAGING DIRECTOR NAIROBI CITY WATER AND SEWERAGE COMPANY, KENYA.

2. Contents • Introduction • Highlights on characteristics of Informal Settlements in Nairobi • Initiatives on Improving access to water • Social connection policy – Kayole Soweto Pilot Project • Conclusion Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

3. Introduction • Nairobi is the capital City of Kenya with a population of 3.3 million people (2009 population census result) • About 40% of the population is in the informal settlements • Developed on land with freehold tenure • Others are squatters either on private or public land; Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

4. Informal Settlements Characteristics • Lack of basic services • The housing structures are mostly temporary • Mainly located along the Nairobi River Basin • The trunk sewers • Water pipes are at high pressures Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

5. Improving water access in the informal settlements Communal Water Points • Water Kiosks • Initial Water kiosks in Nairobi were developed in Kiberaaround 1970 Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

6. Improving access to water services Communal Water Points cont’ • Ablution Blocks • Water sale point as well as public toilets and bathrooms are provided • Ladies and gents sanitation facilities are separated Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

7. Improving access to water services Individual connections and the Barrier • Water Tariff for community water points KES 2.00 per 20 liter (translate to KES 100/m3) • For individual connections highest tariff block is KES 53.6/m3 (USD 0.63/m3) and lowest tariff block is KES 18.7/m3 (USD 0.22/m3) • The main barrier to individual connections in low income settlements has been the high connection fees (KES 8215 (Approx. USD 100)) • Survey fee of KES2,500 (USD 30) (non-refundable), • KES2,500 (USD 30) refundable meter deposit and; • KES3,215 (USD 40) cost of piping and fittings. Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

8. Social Connection policy - Kayole Soweto Pilot Project Bridging the gap and commitments • Through social connection policy NCWSC established a financing arrangement to bridge the gap • A commercial Bank (K-Rep Bank) is providing loan to finance 80% of the first time connection fees while applicant is supposed to pay the balance 20% as commitment fee. Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

9. Social Connection policy - Kayole Soweto Pilot Project • The pilot project covers KayoleSoweto in the Eastlands of Nairobi. • Kayole Soweto is an informal settlement with a population of over 90,000 • Previously served through water vending through water kiosk • Illegal connections were rampant • Description of the Project Area Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

10. Social Connection policy - Kayole Soweto Pilot Project The OBA Support • Under the output based aid (OBA) of the World Bank, the loan will be subsidized based on the following pre-agreed outputs • At least 2200 connections in one year and; • 90% of the new accounts under the project are billed and revenue collected • The OBA subsidy will be up to 40% of the project cost, reducing loan burden to the applicant by up to 50%. • The applicants will pay the balance of the loan in installments within 3 years. Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

11. Social Connection policy - Kayole Soweto Pilot Project The Progress • There are 2908 plots and it was estimated 2200 will be connected with water within one year • 2076 plots were connected by 30th October 2013 and 2288 had paid their commitment fee • The average billing per month per customer is Kshs.281.00 • Out of total billing of Kshs.1.5M between July and September 2013 Kshs.0.5M (33%) was paid • The number of paying customers is at 14% Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

12. Social Connection policy - Kayole Soweto Pilot Project Challenges • The wait and see attitude of the community • Several Community mobilization meetings • Slow internalization of the concept within the utility • Customer management system took long to be upgraded to capture loan repayment • Political interference • Cartels previously exploiting consumers tried using politicians to work against the project Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

13. Water tokens initiative • In the informal settlement where individual water connections is not possible, the Company is piloting on stand pipe dispensing prepaid meters • Water is dispensed using electronic tokens • The selling price for the token meter is at 50 cents per 20 litresjerrican compared to water at 2 shillings per 20 litresjerrican by the vendors. • WSUP (an NGO) have offered 80 token dispensers. Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

14. Conclusion • Formal supply of water in the informal settlements can alleviate poverty and enhance water rights • Communities in the informal settlements are ready to deal directly with the water utility but … • The utility presence should be felt • Innovative way of billing customers there need to be devised • For the success of the projects, there is need to involve the beneficiaries from inception to completion of the project Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN

15. END THANK YOU Presented at Strategy meeting on the Future of Public Water, Barcelona SPAIN