Guideline for Provision of Water and Sanitation Services in Rural and Underserved Areas.

This Guideline is made by the Water Services Regulatory Board (WASREB) under the Water Act. Section 72 (1)(a) and (p) as read together with section 94(3) of the Water Act requires the regulator to determine and prescribe national standards and make recommendations on how to provide basic water services to marginalised areas. The Guideline aims to: Ensuring that water service standards are adhered to in terms of quality, cost and customer service in order to to guarantee health and safety of consumers; Regularizing rural water service in order to streamline, professionalize and formalize operations; Updating the databank in WASREB as part of monitoring the progressive realization of the right to water, and; Enabling the county governments to operationalize section 94 of the Water Act 2016 that requires the devolved governments to focus on areas that are not commercially viable under the guiding principle of leaving no one behind. The Guideline describes the current situation and challenges of mainly community management of water supply systems in rural areas and identifies a new framework for the delivery of services in a more functional manner.