75601 December 2012 PPIAF Assistance in Central African Republic The Central African Republic is one of the poorest countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. The country ranks 179 out of 187 countries on the 2011 Human Development Index. The incidence of poverty is 67.2% (2003). Life expectancy was estimated at 48.4 years in 2011, about ten years below the African average. The vast majority of the Central African Republic’s population lacks access to even basic infrastructure, and low service levels are exacerbated by poor maintenance of existing infrastructure. Urban infrastructure requires significant investment in response to rapid urbanization as the rural population flees lawlessness in outlying areas. These problems are particularly acute in greater Bangui, where about one third of the total population is thought to live. Technical Assistance for Central African Republic’s Sanitation Sector In Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, there is no sewerage network, and latrines are of poor quality or nonexistent. Urban services such as solid waste collection were discontinued during the period of conflict in the 2000’s and need to be re-established. The bad sanitary situation combined with poor drainage pose critical health risks, including cholera and malaria. Many parts of the city are built on floodplains with shallow water tables. Dumping trash in the drainage canals exacerbates urban flooding. In the absence of a reliable solid waste collection and management system in Bangui, several informal dumpsites have emerged, which pose a huge health hazard and could easily trigger a health disaster. Only six percent of trash produced in the city of Bangui is collected and disposed of properly. In fall of 2009, the mayor of Bangui approached PPIAF for support to help develop a waste management system. The activity focused on exploring and piloting an innovative primary waste recycling and collection system in one district in Bangui as well as drafting a solid waste management plan for Bangui and Bimbo. Given the lack of public resources and expertise, the waste recycling and collection system and the waste management plan needed to rely heavily on private sector participation. To this end, the proposal explored business opportunities in composting (e.g., manure, biogas) and recycling (deposit system for batteries, glass bottles; and reuse of plastic bags for mud bricks ovens). To execute the pilot, an international consulting firm partnered with a local non-governmental organization (NGO) to prepare an operational guide on the solid waste management system in the sixth arrondissement of Bangui. In doing so, the local NGO and the consulting firm facilitated the involvement of private actors in Bangui’s solid waste management system by preparing a contractual package for micro-enterprises. The pilot project team also conducted community education and developed promotional materials on the importance of solid waste management and recycling, as well as trained and mentored municipal officers. The pilot also resulted in: 1) an increase in the pilot area of the number of households that subscribed to solid waste collection (the subscription rate increased from 19% to 27% in the pilot area); and 2) the training of 1.2% of households in the pilot area on household-level composting techniques. In addition to the pilot, PPIAF supported technical assistance to develop a solid waste management strategy for the communes of Bangui and Bimbo. The pilot contributed to increased capacity and awareness on the ground and provided useful lessons learned that informed the strategy. The strategy development process resulted in further capacity building in solid waste management for the municipal staff in Bangui. Through consultations and dialogue among Bangui and Bimbo’s solid waste management stakeholders, the strategy that was developed assessed the state of the current waste management system. It outlined the demographic and socioeconomic aspects of the communities and provided a diagnostic of the codes governing hygiene, environment, and waste. The strategy also outlined a way forward for the communities, providing short-, medium-, and long-term plans that included technological and financial strategies for how to expand the waste management system in Bangui and Bimbo. Elements of the strategy were included into a priority maintenance plan, which forms the basis for a contract between the central government and the city council of Bangui. 1 The results of this activity are feeding into the broader capacity building activity for urban services financed by Cities Alliance. Results of PPIAF’s Activities in Central African Republic’s Sanitation Sector Category Outputs Enabling environment reform  Solid Waste Management Strategy for the Cities of Bangui and Bimbo, May 2012 Plans/strategies prepared  Operational guide on the management of the primary solid waste collection at the arrondissement level, March 2012 Project cycle-related assistance  Contractual package for micro-enterprises to manage solid Transaction support waste in the sixth arrondissement of Bangui, March 2012 Capacity and awareness building  Training for the involvement of private micro entrepreneurs and community-based organizations in waste management, 2011 Knowledge products produced or  Community education and marketing tools on the benefits of disseminated solid waste management and composting in the municipality of Bangui were distributed to 1,000 households in the sixth arrondissement of Bangui Category Outcomes Enabling environment reform Plans/strategies adopted or  Solid Waste Management Strategy for the Cities of Bangui and implemented Bimbo adopted, 2012 Capacity and awareness building  Training of 1.2% of households in the pilot area on household- Technical capacity enhanced level composting techniques, 2012  Training for municipal staff in Bangui, 2012 Category Impacts Increased number of people with  In the pilot area of the number of households that subscribed to infrastructure services solid waste collection increased from 19% to 27%, 2012 2