The City Wide Inclusive Sanitation (CWIS) has been emphasized by the government along with implementation of the National Action Plan (NAP) for Institutional and Regulatory Framework for Fecal Sludge Management (IRF-FSM) to achieve safely managed sanitation services in Bangladesh. In order to achieve the sanitation targets under SDG, ITN-BUET and Practical Action jointly organized a daylong capacity-building training program on ‘CWIS Approach and FSM Service Delivery Incorporating National Action Plan’ for the participants from nine cities on 29th August 2022 at the ITN-BUET Seminar Room. Twenty-eight participants including two female officials from nine cities (Faridpur, Meherpur, Rajbari, Magura, Satkhira, Barguna, Laksham, Kalaroa and Kalapara Paurashavas) attended the event; they were the Paurashava officials, Panel Mayors and Councilors from five cities and city support personnel of Practical Action from the nine cities.
The training event was inaugurated by Dr. Muhammad Ashraf Ali, Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, BUET, and former Director of ITN-BUET. Mr. Imtiaz Sharif, Training Specialist of ITN-BUET, facilitated sessions on the background and pertinence of CWIS to urban sanitation and SDG as well as on the existing laws, rules & regulations on sanitation for the cities of Bangladesh. Mr. Alauddin Ahmed, Project Manager of ITN-BUET, facilitated the session on CWIS Principles and Frameworks for sanitation service delivery.
Mr. Uttam Kumar Saha, Strategic Lead – Urban & Energy, Practical Action, shared their experiences in implementing the CWIS approach in Bangladesh. In the last session, the participants identified the next course of sanitation actions for their cities in line with CWIS principles and NAP targets through group work. Afterward, the groups made presentations on the outcomes.
The training sessions were delivered in a highly interactive manner which included open discussions, question-answers and group works. During every training session, there were several open discussion and question-answer platforms that acted as a learning hub through learning-sharing of the participants’ experiences. The questions and queries made by the participants were addressed by the facilitators as well as by the other participants.
In the closing session, the participants opined that the demonstration sessions were effective and well organized, and expressed a strong commitment to do the needful to ensure safe sanitation service for all in their cities. Mr. Shahinur Rahman, Panel Mayor of Meherpur Paurashava, said that the training was highly essential for them to implement CWIS and FSM at Meherpur Paurashava, where the FSM activities have been initiated recently. He also requested to include more city officials and Councilors in such training programs. He expressed his commitment to utilize the learning to ensure inclusive sanitation for all his city dwellers, and invited all others to visit Meherpur Paurashava. Mr. Md. Matiur Rahman Shamim, Councilor of Faridpur Paurashava and President of Multi-Stakeholder Steering Committee (MSSC), said that Faridpur Paurashava and Practical Action have been jointly working for the last several years for better FSM delivery ensuring safety and equity for the sanitation works. He added that the training will now help them to ensure sustainable sanitation through CWIS implementation in Faridpur City. The senior city officials from each Paurashava also made commitments to carry out sanitation and FSM activities following CWIS in their cities and to develop a complete list of action items along the whole Sanitation Service Chain. Finally, Mr. Uttam Kumar Saha assured the support of Practical Action in the journey, and thanked ITN-BUET for extending its support continually.
