Management of Public Sanitary Facilities in Urban Slums of KCCA: A Case of Nakawa Slum

Abstract

The study was aimed at assessing the management of public sanitary facilities in urban slums in KCCA especially in Nakawa slum. The objectives of study were to examine the current management system of public sanitary facilities in urban slums and their accessibility, to examine the challenges faced in the management system of public sanitary facilities in urban slums and their accessibility and to suggest the possible strategies on how to address the challenges in the management system of public sanitary facilities in urban slums and their accessibility. The research adopted a cross sectional research design to gather data due to the time limit of the research. Descriptive research design was also used so as to describe observations and examine the findings. A representative sample of 103 respondents was selected from a population of 140. The selection of the sample size was based on the Krejcie and Morgan 1970 table (Amin, 2009) for determining sample size for research activities. The study used primary data sources that was obtained from the respondents of Nakawa slum. The main method used for data collection was questionnaire method. This was used because it helped the researcher to gather a lot of information in the shortest possible time. In reference to the findings, the study concludes that all manner of unsanitary facilities (latrines and toilets) irrespective of being improved or not; deliver the same negative effects as open defecation. Therefore, if not well maintained, fixed point defecation can be no better than crude open defecation. This calls for an enforcement framework for compliance in various ways and means. In the absence of this, people will shun or misuse any latrine or toilet for either, explicit or implicit open defecation. Plausible cleaning options for latrines in slums include; the user group (tenants, landlords and other categories of users) hiring a paid cleaner, sharing cleaning on a rotational basis or can incorporate the costs of cleaning in their rental calculations and user fees. The study recommended that KCCA administration need to prioritize the aspect of sanitation and hygiene. The excuse of inadequate financial resources is not genuine enough to explain the inadequacy of the sanitation facilities in the KCCA. It is expected that the increase in enrolment comes with increase in income to the KCCA. It is therefore strongly recommended that a separate budget is put aside and strictly observed by the KCCA to cater for this indispensable service in the KCCA.