Publish Date: August 2020

In Bangladesh, approximately 31% of urban residents are living without safely managed sanitation, the majority of whom are slum residents. To improve the situation, the Dhaka Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (DWASA) is implementing the Dhaka Sanitation Improvement Project (DSIP), mostly funded by the World Bank. This study assessed the challenges and opportunities of bringing low-income communities (LICs) under a sewerage connection within the proposed sewerage network plan by 2025. This study conducted nine key-informant interviews from DWASA and City Corporation and 23 focus-group discussions with landlords, tenants, and Community-Based Organisations (CBOs) from 16 LICs near the proposed catchment area. To achieve connections, LICs would require improved toilet infrastructures and have to be connected to main roads. Construction of large communal septic tanks is also required where individual toilet connections are difficult. To encourage connection in LICs, income-based or area-based subsidies were recommended. For financing maintenance, respondents suggested monthly fee collection for the infrastructural management by dividing bills equally among sharing households, or by users per household. Participants also suggested the government’s cooperation with development partners/NGOs to ensure sewerage connection construction, operation, maintenance, and prerequisite policy changes such as assuring land tenure.