Honduras

Water1st is proud to support COCEPRADIL, serving communities in Lempira, one of the poorest, most isolated regions of the country. COCEPRADIL is a cooperative composed of communities that have previously completed water and sanitation projects. They assist communities with long-term system maintenance and construct new systems for communities in need. Their model is incredibly effective and we believe that one day the COCEPRADIL headquarters will serve as a learning center for development organizations around the world.

A COCEPRADIL project provides the highest level of service possible, on par with a small public utility in the United States. Every home, school, and health clinic receives a water connection, toilet, shower, and water meter. The communities invest their labor to complete the project, including digging miles of pipeline trench. Households flourish and hygiene conditions improve dramatically when an ample supply of water is piped directly to the home.

ABOUT HONDURAS*

Population: 9,265,000
% living on less than $1.90/day: 16%
Partner: COCEPRADIL

COMPLETED PROJECTS

63 projects in 102 communities
39,189 people with clean water and toilets

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

16 projects serving 6,684 people in 16 communities

*Source: World Bank and UNICEF

Program Highlights

100% Access

In several municipalities in southern Lempira, we are approaching the goal of 100% access to water supply and toilets. Within 10 years, the entire region could achieve 100% access, serving as an example to the world of effective development work.

Local Government Participation

COCEPRADIL has leveraged its popularity in the region to capture the attention of local government. Mayors are required to contribute 30% of the overall project cost.

New Database

Development of a new centralized database allows for analysis of water meter data and payment information. COCEPRADIL can accurately set fee structures that lead to the best outcomes for health and resource conservation, while informing future project development.

Built, maintained, and operated by the community

As with all of the projects we support in Honduras, the Azacualpa Centro system was literally built by the people of Azacualpa Centro, under the guidance of our experienced Honduran colleagues. There were no trucks to carry 300-pound steel pipes or 100-pound bags of cement, no backhoes to dig trenches. Working together over the past year, the community dug 10 miles of pipeline trench and constructed a 50,000-gallon water storage tank. Every single family now has a toilet, a shower, and a kitchen faucet for washing hands, dishes, and laundry.

Water Systems

The mountainous geography of the Lempira region allows communities to build gravity flow water systems. High elevation springs serve as the water source. Water is piped to a storage tank, where it can be chlorinated, allowing for 24/7 water service. A network of pipes delivers water to each household, school, clinic, and community center.

High-quality toilets

Toilets are critical to the health equation. Each home, school, and community center is equipped with a flush toilet that is odorless and easy to keep clean.

Showers

Each household receives a shower room. For the first time in their lives, community members can bathe every day. Feelings of shame have been replaced with a sense of dignity.

Climate Change

The biggest challenge to our work in Lempira is climate change. Locating and purchasing mountain springs is becoming increasingly difficult and expensive. In response to this challenge, beginning in 2014, COCEPRADIL adopted the policy of metering water use at every household and community tap, including schools and health clinics. Meters encourage users to fix leaks and use water efficiently.

Hygiene Education

Community members attend hygiene workshops to learn how their new water system can contribute to healthier homes. Children are a critical focus of the hygiene-promotion activities because they are the principal victims of the water crisis. COCEPRADIL makes hygiene education fun with songs, games, and skits, all while demonstrating the importance of using a toilet and washing hands.

Sustainable Programmatic Strategy

Labor & cash contributions

Before a project starts, at least 80% of community households must sign a contract detailing their contributions. Project participants provide all labor required to construct the water system as well as a monetary contribution in the form of cash or a loan. The labor investment is significant and includes digging miles of pipeline trench by hand and carrying heavy pipe up steep hills. Because communities recognize the benefits of clean water, they work long days to guarantee project success.

Training, water committees & water bills

COCEPRADIL is particularly skilled at preparing communities to independently own and operate their systems. A local water committee, comprised of 50% women, is trained in all aspects of system management. Once a project is completed, each household pays a monthly water bill of about $2, enough to cover system operation, maintenance, and repair.

Watershed protection

Communities are educated about the symbiotic relationship between their water source and the surrounding watershed. They learn ways to restore and protect the watershed, including new agricultural practices that support the preservation of forest cover.

Independent rating

Received an independent evidence-based evaluation from the Water for Life Rating System and scoring “Recommended for Future Funding.”

Take a virtual tour of a typical project:

LEMPIRA, HONDURAS

A long dry season amplifies the effects of lack of access to water. Women and girls make multiple trips a day to local streams and water holes to collect water for all household uses. The water they use causes frequent bouts with illnesses.

Mothers are especially stressed. They have to decide between leaving young kids alone at home while they collect water or bringing them along. Imagine this woman's relief when her project was completed!

Project beneficiaries contribute the labor needed to complete the project. The labor investment is substantial, but communities recognize the benefits of the project and they persevere.

Because of the mountainous geography of the region, water systems in Lempira are gravity flow. Mountain springs are capped and protected.

Water is then piped to a storage tank, where water can be chlorinated. Storage also allows households to have 24/7 water service.

Then a pipe network brings water to individual household water taps and wash basins (“pilas”), providing a good quantity of safe water at the turn of a faucet.

Our projects serve the whole community: homes, schools, health clinics, and community centers all receive water connections.

In 2014, COCEPRADIL adopted the policy of metering water use at every household and community tap, including schools and health clinics. Meters encourage users to fix leaks and use water efficiently.

Toilets are an important element of the health equation. Each household, school, church and community center builds a pour-flush toilet that is easy to keep clean and odorless.

Each household receives a covered water dispenser for safe storage of drinking water.

Before a project starts, at least 80% of the households in the community must sign the project agreement, which details what their contributions will be.

The labor requirement can be very high. The water source could be as far as 6 miles away. There are times when communities wonder if the project is possible. COCEPRADIL encourages them and they always prevail.

Before a project is completed, homes are bleak places with little vegetation surrounding them.

With easy access to water, families grow gardens and even flowers. It's a transformation!

Our local partner prepares communities to be the owners and operators of their system with training in technical and administrative components. A local Water Board is trained to effectively manage the system in perpetuity.

Once the project is completed, each household will pay a monthly water bill of about $2. This is enough to cover system maintenance and repairs and also build up a savings account for future system expansion or replacement.

Communities receive extensive education to help them understand the relationships between their water source and the watershed surrounding it; what actions they can take to restore and protect it; and new agricultural practices that better maintain forest cover.

Once construction of the water system is underway, community members begin participating in health-education activities to learn about ways in which they can utilize their new water systems and be healthier.

Children are a critical part of the hygiene-promotion activities because they are the principal victims of the water crisis. COCEPRADIL makes hygiene education fun with songs, games, and skits, all demonstrating the importance of using a toilet and washing hands.

It is no wonder then that COCEPRADIL received a very high score in a Water for Life independent evaluation. Their projects provide the highest level of service possible, and Water1st is proud to support them.

Stories from the field

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