Rugumayo Godfrey Mulinda
Rugumayo Godfrey Mulinda is the current WASH Program Manager at Joint Effort to Save the Environment (JESE), an environmental and community development NGO based in Uganda.
Educational Background: MSC; Natural Resources Management, Mountain of the Moon University, BA, Economics and Geography, Makerere University Kampala, Dip, Planning and Management of Community Development project, UMI, Kampala, Uganda
Q1. Can you briefly describe your work in Uganda?
I am involved in Community development work with a focus in safe water hygiene and sanitation promotion. I’m currently working with Joint Effort to save the Environment (JESE) as a Program Manager for the Water and Sanitation Department. We are located in Fort Portal City in the Rweznori region of Western Uganda. We are involved in supporting rural communities and schools to access low cost water and sanitation services and facilities so as to improve their health and productivity. We also support girls through capacity building in appropriate menstrual hygiene management. During my six years working with JESE, we have increased access to potable clean water and sanitation services to a total of 36,550 pupils and teachers spread in 44 primary schools as well as promoting adoption of good sanitation and hygiene practices in over 120 communities (Villages).
Q2: Describe the work and goals of the JESE.
JESE was legally registered in 1993, first as an NGO by the national NGO board and then as a company LTD guaranteed by the registrar of companies. JESE envisions a community where people and nature flourish, and the mission is to facilitate innovative action for sustainable water and natural resource management and improved livelihoods. Our core strategic intervention areas are in increased income and food security among targeted households, improved natural resource management and governance in targeted catchments, and equitable access and use of safe water, hygiene and sanitation in communities and schools.
Our Core programs are;
The inequitable access to water services in still a challenge in the rural areas in the Rwenzori Region in Western Uganda. Whereas the major towns and peri-urban centres have a fair access to piped-water services, the rural communities depend on underground water resources that are susceptible to contamination and occasional drying up due to weather/climatic variations. Additionally, the rural communities here have a low capacity for self-organization, management and demand for water services and the level of understanding of their importance is low. There is a lack of willingness to pay for water services, and the general attitude is that the government should provide communities with water at no cost, except for community labor during implementation. This belief impedes effective community contributions and participation, as well as ensuring ownership and water system sustainability.
Q4: What is the government doing to support clean water and water security?
In the current national development plan and the vision 2040, the government is planning to provide at least one protected water source (Deep wells) for every village. To support this goal, the government has decentralized water management into 5 water management zones and instituted technical support units to bring services closer to users. The water management zones and technical support units are mandated to take on the role of planning, supporting and supervising water and sanitation programs through improvements in monitoring systems and procedures, build the capacity of the district local governments to effectively implement access to water programs, build capacity around management of water catchments and establish water catchment organizations and plans. The missing link however, is in the government’s drive to increase access to water as such that more emphasis and priority has tended to concentrate upon water supply with little attention on strengthening community based management of water facilities and a special focus on water resources management.
Q5: What is the general health impact of unsafe water and climate change?
In Uganda, many rural people suffer from preventable diseases caused by consuming unsafe water and practicing unsafe hygiene and sanitation. Due to climate change, we witness a rise in temperature which has resulted in the melting of all the major glaciers on the Ruwenzori Mountains thus leading to constant floods and loss of both life and property. The climate variations in many parts of Uganda and particularly the Rwenzori region has resulted in disruption of freshwater resources and the depletion of watersheds. Climate change induced drought and food insecurity can exacerbate malnutrition. Warming also contributes to the geographic spread of certain disease vectors and thus significantly increases risks to vulnerable populations.
Q6: How well is the government responding to issues of water rights, flooding and drought?
The government of Uganda has a disaster management policy as well as a Ministry on disaster preparedness that handles emergencies particularly on drought and floods. The government recognizes the right to clean water.
However, due to budget shortages, this has not been fulfilled and is still a work in progress. In my view, the government has tried to respond to flooding and drought albeit on an emergency basis. We need to put in place early warning systems and effective planning on such catastrophes, for example, there is a need to have countrywide rain water harvesting programs, and water for production programs.
Q7: What new policies will be helpful in the near future?
To me the question may not entirely be on new policies, but rather the implementation of the existing policies. Uganda is well known to have excellent policies but falls short on implementation.
Q8. How are NGOs and/or the United Nations helping with water health and security in Uganda?
Uganda has a host of organizations working with government to enhance access to safe water and sanitation services and indeed their role and contribution in the WASH sector in commendable. However, due to the visible current gaps in water health and security NGO’s should continue to lobby other development partners and the government to fund WASH programs in the rural areas. Our efforts should be geared toward facilitating the protection of water resources, ensuring equity in water access, strengthening management structures and to ensure value for money in the provision of water health and security programs.
Q9: Please describe a specific field project you are working on in rural Uganda to improve conditions for water and health.
I’m currently coordinating and managing the implementation of 2 school WASH projects. These projects work with the local governments and 22 primary schools to construct rainwater harvesting tanks and gender separated VIP latrines. In each of the schools, we are also promoting menstrual hygiene management by building the capacity of young girls to make their own low cost reusable menstrual pads. We also support girls to have a safe and clean washroom at their school.
Rugumayo Godfrey Mulinda is the current WASH Program Manager at Joint Effort to Save the Environment (JESE), an environmental and community development NGO based in Uganda.
Educational Background: MSC; Natural Resources Management, Mountain of the Moon University, BA, Economics and Geography, Makerere University Kampala, Dip, Planning and Management of Community Development project, UMI, Kampala, Uganda
Q1. Can you briefly describe your work in Uganda?
I am involved in Community development work with a focus in safe water hygiene and sanitation promotion. I’m currently working with Joint Effort to save the Environment (JESE) as a Program Manager for the Water and Sanitation Department. We are located in Fort Portal City in the Rweznori region of Western Uganda. We are involved in supporting rural communities and schools to access low cost water and sanitation services and facilities so as to improve their health and productivity. We also support girls through capacity building in appropriate menstrual hygiene management. During my six years working with JESE, we have increased access to potable clean water and sanitation services to a total of 36,550 pupils and teachers spread in 44 primary schools as well as promoting adoption of good sanitation and hygiene practices in over 120 communities (Villages).
Q2: Describe the work and goals of the JESE.
JESE was legally registered in 1993, first as an NGO by the national NGO board and then as a company LTD guaranteed by the registrar of companies. JESE envisions a community where people and nature flourish, and the mission is to facilitate innovative action for sustainable water and natural resource management and improved livelihoods. Our core strategic intervention areas are in increased income and food security among targeted households, improved natural resource management and governance in targeted catchments, and equitable access and use of safe water, hygiene and sanitation in communities and schools.
Our Core programs are;
- Agriculture and Enterprise Development with major focus on agribusiness development and promotion through: Increased production, productivity and economic empowerment of active farmers groups, increased access to markets (coffee, beans maize, honey…value chains) and household food storage and intake.
- Natural Resource (NR) Governance Management: JESE engages communities into collaborative NR management to ensure that there is an adoption of integrated and sustainable NR use and management, protection of critical water catchments, transparency and accountability in NR use and governance particularly in the forestry sector and increased social economic benefits derived from NR.
- WASH PROMOTION & Governance: Under this program area we foresee a community engaged in sustainable water and sanitation use and management through WASH infrastructure design and promotion in schools , capacity enhancement for communities and schools in environmental hygiene and education, sanitation demand creation and action research, advocacy, and alliance building.
The inequitable access to water services in still a challenge in the rural areas in the Rwenzori Region in Western Uganda. Whereas the major towns and peri-urban centres have a fair access to piped-water services, the rural communities depend on underground water resources that are susceptible to contamination and occasional drying up due to weather/climatic variations. Additionally, the rural communities here have a low capacity for self-organization, management and demand for water services and the level of understanding of their importance is low. There is a lack of willingness to pay for water services, and the general attitude is that the government should provide communities with water at no cost, except for community labor during implementation. This belief impedes effective community contributions and participation, as well as ensuring ownership and water system sustainability.
Q4: What is the government doing to support clean water and water security?
In the current national development plan and the vision 2040, the government is planning to provide at least one protected water source (Deep wells) for every village. To support this goal, the government has decentralized water management into 5 water management zones and instituted technical support units to bring services closer to users. The water management zones and technical support units are mandated to take on the role of planning, supporting and supervising water and sanitation programs through improvements in monitoring systems and procedures, build the capacity of the district local governments to effectively implement access to water programs, build capacity around management of water catchments and establish water catchment organizations and plans. The missing link however, is in the government’s drive to increase access to water as such that more emphasis and priority has tended to concentrate upon water supply with little attention on strengthening community based management of water facilities and a special focus on water resources management.
Q5: What is the general health impact of unsafe water and climate change?
In Uganda, many rural people suffer from preventable diseases caused by consuming unsafe water and practicing unsafe hygiene and sanitation. Due to climate change, we witness a rise in temperature which has resulted in the melting of all the major glaciers on the Ruwenzori Mountains thus leading to constant floods and loss of both life and property. The climate variations in many parts of Uganda and particularly the Rwenzori region has resulted in disruption of freshwater resources and the depletion of watersheds. Climate change induced drought and food insecurity can exacerbate malnutrition. Warming also contributes to the geographic spread of certain disease vectors and thus significantly increases risks to vulnerable populations.
Q6: How well is the government responding to issues of water rights, flooding and drought?
The government of Uganda has a disaster management policy as well as a Ministry on disaster preparedness that handles emergencies particularly on drought and floods. The government recognizes the right to clean water.
However, due to budget shortages, this has not been fulfilled and is still a work in progress. In my view, the government has tried to respond to flooding and drought albeit on an emergency basis. We need to put in place early warning systems and effective planning on such catastrophes, for example, there is a need to have countrywide rain water harvesting programs, and water for production programs.
Q7: What new policies will be helpful in the near future?
To me the question may not entirely be on new policies, but rather the implementation of the existing policies. Uganda is well known to have excellent policies but falls short on implementation.
Q8. How are NGOs and/or the United Nations helping with water health and security in Uganda?
Uganda has a host of organizations working with government to enhance access to safe water and sanitation services and indeed their role and contribution in the WASH sector in commendable. However, due to the visible current gaps in water health and security NGO’s should continue to lobby other development partners and the government to fund WASH programs in the rural areas. Our efforts should be geared toward facilitating the protection of water resources, ensuring equity in water access, strengthening management structures and to ensure value for money in the provision of water health and security programs.
Q9: Please describe a specific field project you are working on in rural Uganda to improve conditions for water and health.
I’m currently coordinating and managing the implementation of 2 school WASH projects. These projects work with the local governments and 22 primary schools to construct rainwater harvesting tanks and gender separated VIP latrines. In each of the schools, we are also promoting menstrual hygiene management by building the capacity of young girls to make their own low cost reusable menstrual pads. We also support girls to have a safe and clean washroom at their school.
