Evaluation of user satisfaction of rural water supply in Yemen

This paper compares rural water supply (RWS) and sanitation project schemes where national policies on RWS had been adopted against schemes constructed by public authorities as part of the General Authority for RWS Project. This evaluation tests the policies and provides a comparison of donor supported and government projects. The results indicate that policies will result in relatively high levels of beneficiary satisfaction and will increase the likelihood that the communities will sustain the systems over their design lives. More confidence in Water User Associations as governing and management bodies for water schemes is medium and more transparent selection processes are required. Although beneficiaries are agreeing to and paying tariffs that cover operation and maintenance costs, it affects the quantity of water they use and leads to negative health impact. High percentages of respondents have expressed dissatisfaction with current water charges, water quantity and water quality. Findings suggest that RWS Project's strategy for developing communities' capacity and meaningful involvement in planning and managing their own water systems is effective, however, progress is needed in two areas: RWS subsector still lacks a clearly agreed strategy and a demand-responsive approach should be adopted strictly in all programs.