Haiti—USAID Water and Sanitation; Water Security and Systems Strengthening Activity (USAID Eau)

Though facing ongoing economic, security, and climate crises, Haitian water utilities continue the remarkable improvements in service quality and management started under the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Water and Sanitation project. The Direction Nationale de l’Eau Potable et de l’Assainissement (DINEPA) has also begun embracing its role as a regulatory agency, aided by better sector data. Despite this progress, most utilities still provide intermittent service, many have fewer than 1,000 customers, and none of Haiti’s piped water systems supply enough water for all urban residents. Haitian communities are suffering from a prolonged drought and there is no regulation of the drawdown of the aquifers. To respond to these challenges, Haitian utilities and DINEPA require assistance through the Water Security and Systems Strengthening (USAID Eau) Activity.

USAID Eau builds on the USAID Water and Sanitation project’s strong foundation to improve water delivery in Haiti. In addition to supporting Centres Technique d’Exploitation (CTEs, water utilities in larger towns), USAID Eau will expand to work with Offices Régionaux de l’Eau Potable et de l’Assainissement (OREPAs) (regional water authorities) and DINEPA to put in place policies and regulations to improve the overall management of the water sector. We work with CTEs, as well as Comités d’Approvisionnement en Eau Potable et Assainissement (CAEPAs) (water utilities for smaller systems) and private operators, by strengthening market systems to improve access to water for marginalized populations. USAID Eau is focused on transforming the water sector by helping water utilities develop and begin implementing plans to expand coverage to all targeted areas, gain access to finance, and better manage water resources for sustained service delivery. USAID Eau’s goal and two complementary objectives will accelerate Haiti’s progress to create stronger accountability for and delivery of water services for all.

Using a locally driven system‐strengthening approach, USAID Eau partners with multiple stakeholders—water utilities in larger towns and smaller water systems, regional water authorities, the national water authority, civil society organizations, and private entities—to transform the water sector by helping service providers develop and implement plans to expand coverage to all target areas, gain access to finance, and better manage water resources for resilient, sustained service delivery.

Sample Activities

• Provide technical assistance and support to DINEPA to develop clear standards for governance and transparency in the management of the local water systems.
• Use the World Bank’s Water Utility Turnaround Framework to assist the CTEs to improve their management of the water systems, responsibly manage the water resources, and advance on their path towards creditworthiness.
• Solarize water systems to reduce reliance on expensive and unreliable energy sources.
• Promote gender and social inclusion to mitigate the adverse effects of poor water services and poor governance on women’s safety, health, and economic opportunity.

Select Results of USAID Water and Sanitation

• Provided 318,850 people with improved or basic water services.
• Assisted more than 50 entrepreneurs and small enterprises.
• Built capacity of nine water and sanitation national and sub-national institutions through training in sector planning, investment, monitoring, or regulation.
• Working with the Haitian National Water Authority to assist local water utilities (CTEs) to function as independent businesses. Despite COVID-19, an increase in crime, the presidential assassination, and a fuel shortage, a core group of CTEs increased their combined revenues from 3 million gourdes to nearly 8 million gourdes in 2021.
• Operationalized two fecal sludge management facilities in the districts of Fondfrede and Morne Cabrit. These facilities increased access to sanitation for more than 75,000 people and prevented human bio-waste from polluting drinking water sources.
• Introduced modern management systems, including a customer management and invoicing system that substantially increased revenues and a cloud-based reporting system that allows regional and national authorities to monitor system performance.
• Launched the Water Resilience Center.