WASH professionals from multiple organizations joined an exposure visit to Faridpur Municipality, a CWIS Mentor City, to gain hands-on lessons on Fecal Sludge Management (FSM). The event was facilitated by ITN-BUET on May 20, 2025 for 19 trainees to enrich practical understanding of urban sanitation systems.
The Municipality, started the proceedings with a presentation by Executive Engineer Mr. Shamsul Alam. In his deliberation, Mr. Alam gave an insightful overview of the current sanitation management scenario of Faridpur, mentioning the challenges and progress made in managing fecal sludge (FS).
During the visit, participants observed a live demonstration of FS collection, transportation and desludging to the Fecal Sludge Treatment Plant (FSTP) using Vacutug. Mr. Alam explained to the participants about the unplanted drying bed system and its role in separating solid and liquid parts. The participants were then introduced to the co-composting facilities.
Additionally, the participants witnessed live demonstration of prior FS collection technologies used in Faridpur, such as the locally adapted Gulper (mechanical and motorized). Subsequently, the participants visited pyrolysis plant near the FSTP.
The exposure visit concluded with an interactive Q&A session, where participants actively engaged with the municipality officials to clarify their queries. The participants expressed sincere gratitude for the opportunity to witness and learn from Faridpur’s comprehensive FSM system.
Mr. Ahmad Salman Haider, Associate Specialist at Institute of Water Modelling remarked, “It’s a great experience for us all to come here and see the initiatives Faridpur municipality has taken to ensure a safer city for its people. We can also see waste management is going to be more challenging in the coming days. We hope this mentor city will keep continuing its pioneering role in waste management with more innovations and standard practices.”
