Community-managed infrastructure facilities

Abstract

The design and construction of infrastructure facilities such as road network, water supply and sewage disposal in Botswana, have often been done in a top-bottom fashion where the government or local authority decides what is good for the community. While the design and construction of infrastructure facilities require technical knowledge, heavy equipment and proper supervision, their management hardly requires these resources to the same extent. This offers the beneficiaries of the facilities an opportunity to manage their day-to-day operations and maintenance. Reports on an approach adopted to engage the community in the management of local road network, water supply and sanitation in three major villages in Botswana. It analyses the method previously employed in managing these facilities and outlines the benefits which will accrue when this approach is fully operational. Concludes by underlining the fact that, for community-managed facilities to work, the people in the community need to participate in all the stages of the project (i.e. planning, design, construction and eventually maintenance).