Thalia Konaris

Effective Impact Increase Strategy through Successful INGO and NGO Partnerships in the Field of Water and Sanitation for the Purpose of Poverty Alleviation: A Nepal Case Study

International NGO – in?country NGO partnerships are often founded on a donor?recipient mentality, creating dependency rather than effective support. These partnerships are of particular importance in Nepal where a large NGO sector tries to compensate for the ineffectiveness f the government and of centralised infrastructure in the water and sanitation sector. In light of the 7th Millennium Development Goal, achieving access to water quantity, quality and adequate sanitation facilities is crucial for removing the barriers to poverty alleviation. This report looks at criteria for successful INGO?NGO partnerships in the WatSan sector through a partnership between the Centre for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technology (CAWST) in Canada and the Environment and Public Health Organisation (ENPHO) in Nepal. This partnership is part of CAWST’s impact increase strategy which seeks to build up in?country organisations into CAWST replicas, (so?called WET?Centres) to increase in?country capacity for training and consultancy in decentralised WatSan technologies and their effective implementation.

The structure, culture, portfolio, successes, challenges and needs of each organisation are presented separately to the partnership to offer one an independent perspective f the other. The WET?C partnership is then introduced as an opportunity to address challenges of both and create new opportunities. It is concluded that for such a growth model as this, the process by which the relationship will develop is key in allowing a flexible relationship which can withstand shocks and mve organically into new opportunities. In the absence of these, friction can be caused due to organisational differences. Opportunities to be explored together for effective WatSan solutions include development of sustainable markets for WatSan technologies.