Towards Sustainable Rural Water Services: Analysis and Modeling of Maintenance Provision in Kenya

Chintalapati, Pranav

Graduate Thesis Or Dissertation

Towards Sustainable Rural Water Services: Analysis and Modeling of Maintenance Provision in Kenya Public Deposited

Analytics

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Citeable URL: https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/graduate_thesis_or_dissertations/wp988m126

Abstract

Reliable water access continues to be a complex global challenge, with 785 million people lacking access to basic water services, 80% of whom live in rural communities. Despite billions of dollars of investments, recent estimates show that nearly a quarter of water infrastructure remain nonfunctional. Recognition of the importance of post-construction support has increased emphasis on the implementation of maintenance approaches to improve rural water service delivery. In this research, I apply statistical and system dynamics modeling to determine the effects of resource allocations and scaled implementation of repair and maintenance services to improve rural water sustainability. Statistical modeling and interrupted time series analysis showed that dedicated resource allocations specifically supporting borehole repairs (such as fuel, per diem funds, and spare parts) can lead to improved pump performance outcomes, while the distribution of monitoring data without additional resource allocations generally did not. I applied system dynamics modeling to the rural water sector in Turkana county to assess the effects of increased resource allocations towards repair and maintenance on pump functionality and water access. The results showed that raising maintenance allocation proportions from the current 30% to the optimal 85% could lead to an additional 83 working boreholes and 95% functionality. Finally, I applied system dynamics modeling to investigate the financial and functionality impacts of scaling the FundiFix professionalized maintenance service in Kitui county. The results showed that scaled service delivery leads to higher functionality rates, and reduced government expenses on major repairs, but the cost of scaling requires significant external subsidies.

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