Analysing the sustainability of community-managed water systems in Nepal

Abstract

A multi-faceted, multi-factorial interaction of technical, financial, social, and institutional factors limits the sustainability of community-managed water systems (CMWS) in Nepal over the long run. This paper goes beyond the descriptive analysis to utilise a structural equation modelling (SEM) framework as an empirical test to quantify the association between these key determinants. The sample size used was 360 households and 36 water committee members in three different ecological regions of Nepal which were chosen through a stratified random survey. It defined latent constructs of financial viability, institutional governance, technical capacity, and community social capital, and it tested their direct and indirect impact on the measured outcome of system sustainability (measured through functionality, service quality, and user satisfaction). Findings of the SEM analysis indicate that the most powerful direct predictors of sustainability are financial viability (b = 0.38, p < 0.01) and institutional governance (b = 0.42, p < 0.01). Moreover, community social capital has a great indirect influence as it reinforces governance and financial management. The model offers a strong evidence-based model that explains more than 65% of the sustainability outcomes. The proposed study finds that the interventions should be coordinated; the key to making the rural water supply in Nepal sustainable is to invest in governance capacity and the financial system, and to foster social cohesion.