Why is community involvement important?

Community involvement and forming a Water Committee

The result of the desk study is a first indication of which (parts of) catchments are suitable for constructing sand dams. To fine tune this selection field visits are necessary . From this stage onward, community involvement is crucial to the success of the project.

Involvement of beneficiaries aims at sensitizing and mobilizing communities to improve the quality of their life through collective self-help. Many types of community organizations usually already exist within a community depending on their current needs, problems and aspirations. Before starting a sand dam project in an area, the community must be intensively involved to create a feeling of ownership which has proven to be the key factor in successful construction and maintenance of sand dams. The benefits of a sand dam project are mostly collective, but there can also be individual needs, like irrigation of specific land plots. An organization with sensitivities for collective as well as individual effort is therefore required for a sand dam project.

A sand dam project in a catchment potentially suitable for implementation starts with sensitizing the communities’ awareness on the project. Also, information on institutions, rules and habits of the communities should be identified. Secondly, a community meeting will be held with the project staff and community discuss the possible environmental and social impact of the development of sand dams within the area. The following aspects should be discussed in the community meeting.
• Assessment of water problems
• Assessment of development issues within the project area,
• Informing and educating on the various types of water harvesting technologies, in particular the sand dam technology,
• First and indicative assessment of possible sand dam locations with the communit

Also, the community has to elect a committee from their midst. This so-called water committee consists of a representative group of the community and will take part in several trainings. Awareness and involvement in the project processes will hence be ensured. The water committee will have the following objectives (Munyao et al, 2004):
• Performing baseline survey on water use within the community;
• Joining in the riverbed surveys resulting in selection of the building location
• organising community mobilization for required participation works during the construction process;
• supervise the implementation, operation and maintenance procedures.

The steps in community involvement and its objectives are discussed in further detail in attachment 2.