Austria Embassy donates sh7.8b for clean water access in Lango

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Communities in the Lango sub-region are set to benefit from improved access to clean water and sanitation, thanks to sh7.7b investment from the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) for the second phase of the Sustainable Water Supply, Sanitation, and Hygiene for All (SWaSSH4A II) project. This initiative will cover five districts: Lira, Alebtong, Dokolo, Kwania, and Kole, aiming to provide safe water to 198,700 people while improving sanitation for 30,000 more, including access to handwashing facilities with soap.

Phase I, which cost about sh6.9b (1.65 million euros), reached over 300,000 people by rehabilitating more than 140 boreholes and increasing access to improved sanitation from 15% to 32%,” said Engineer John Robert Okello, project manager at SNV Uganda, reflected on the impact of the first phase.

At the launch of Phase II at Fairway Hotel, Kampala on Tuesday, Okello said that SWaSSH4A II builds on the phase one achievements with a focus on inclusivity and sustainability.

“To improve sanitation and hygiene in schools, we are constructing accessible latrines, washrooms, and menstrual hygiene facilities with ramps, handrails, and changing rooms. Children with disabilities will have safe access. We are also training school health clubs and science teachers to be hygiene change agents in their communities,” he said.

Engineer John Robert Okello, project manager at SNV Uganda. (Credit: Ronnie Kijambu)

At community level, he said the project will upgrade high-yield boreholes to piped water systems, especially in flood-prone areas, and rehabilitate existing water points.

Okello said they will be leveraging on government structures from district water officers and health inspectors to sub-county staff and village health teams.  He noted that the project will ensure cost-effective delivery, strengthen local capacity, and give communities ownership over their water and sanitation systems.

Megan Ritchie, Country Director at SNV Uganda, said that the sustainability focus, specifically “Phase I,” showed that community-based models work. She noted that over 238,000 people benefited from improved sanitation through over 6,000 latrines.

Ritchie assured that phase II will ensure services established in phase one remain functional around the clock, even during climate-related challenges.

Dr Katja Kerschbaumer, head of the Austrian Embassy/Development Cooperation Office in Uganda, said the project is focusing on development and dignity, also seeing people from deepest local communities getting access to clean water.

The Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Water and Environment, Alfred Okidi, said that under the National Development Plan IV, Uganda is transitioning from basic access toward safely managed water and sanitation services, with SWaSSH4A II supporting professionalised, long-term service delivery.

SWaSSH4A II adopts SNV’s Climate Resilient Rural WASH approach, including training 150 hand pump mechanics (30% women), equipping 1,702 Water Source Committees, rehabilitating 60-point water sources, and conducting 30 technical rehabilitations. The project will also construct five-stall pit latrines in at least three schools with rainwater harvesting systems.

Representing the Dokolo beneficiaries, Mary Akwii from Dokolo district, clean water is life-changing. She said walking long distances to fetch water used to take hours, and her children missed school. She is hopeful that with these new boreholes and school latrines, life will be easier, safer, and healthier for everyone.

(Credit: Ronnie Kijambu)

Background

Access to basic sanitation and hygiene services in the Lango sub-region remains significantly underdeveloped at both household and institutional levels. The Ministry of Water and Environment reports that 5,814 boreholes, 4,026 deep wells, and 1,788 shallow wells have been fitted with hand pumps across the region. However, many boreholes remain inaccessible due to technical breakdowns, poor water quality, low yield, and inactive Water User Committees.

At the household level, only 19% of households have access to at least a basic sanitation facility, compared to the national rural average of 26.9%. In SWaSSH4A sub-counties, basic sanitation coverage reached 50% by the 2025 endline, but poorer households lagged at 20% basic access and 6% safely managed. Handwashing access is similarly low, with only 28% of households in Lango having a handwashing facility with soap.

Institutional water and sanitation health (WASH) services are inadequate, with the national pupil-to-teacher ratio at 71:1, far from the recommended 40:1, and schools struggle to manage menstrual hygiene, affecting girls’ education. The 2024 Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) Child Poverty Report recommends scaling up investments in school WASH facilities to improve health and educational outcomes.