Servicios de Abastecimiento y Saneamiento - La Tribuna del Agua

SERVICIOS DE ABASTECIMIENTO Y SANEAMIENTO
REFORM IN THE URBAN WATER
SECTOR IN BURKINA FASO:
THE CASE OF ONEA
Harouna Ouibiga
ABSTRACT:
Burkina Faso is a country located in the heart
of West Africa. It measures 274,000 km 2 . The population
is some 13,400,000, spread among some
302 rural communities and 49 urban communities,
of which the capital – Ougadougou – has a
population of 1,300,000 inhabitants. The level of
urbanisation is estimated at 25%, with 66 hubs of
over 10,000 inhabitants. The poverty line lies at
83,000 FCFA/year/person (€123) and affects 45%
of the population.
Regarding water resources, Burkina Faso is
characterised by poor rainfall (300 mm in the north
to 1000 mm in the south per year), aquifers
located in 80% of the country on a crystalline
platform and which are not very productive, and
notable evaporation of surface water.
Access to drinking water was estimated at 60%
in the rural areas and 75% in the urban areas as
of 2005. As regards sanitation, this was estimated
at 10% in the rural areas and 14% in the urban
areas in 2005.
The urban water sector is run by the National
Drinking Water and Sanitation Office (ONEA)
– created in 1985 as a public entity of an industrial
and commercial nature (EPIC) but it was transformed
into a State company in 1994. ONEA currently
manages 42 centres spread around the country.
In order to maintain its course, ONEA relies on
three handles:
The development of the company management
through the formal strategic plan for 2004-
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2008; the setting up of a quality management
system – denominated ISO 9001 2000; the review
of the information directive scheme; and the setting
up of the latest generation client software.
Audits:
• audit from contract to contract plan: commitments
of ONEA and of the State
• audit of the integrity of the financial model
and recommendations on tariffs and control
over the costs
• account audits by an international financial
auditor
Improving the coverage of drinking water in
the urban areas, as a driving force behind a dynamic
partnership with other players and within
the context of the on-going decentralisation in
Burkina Faso.
Reforming the urban water sector in Burkina
Faso has meant attaining clear results in terms of
improving access to drinking water and sanitation
in the urban area and in terms of financial stability
in the sector. The originality of this reform lies
in the fact that it remains in the public domain
and has benefited, under the terms of a service
contract, from the intervention of a professional
in client and financial matters.
The results show that a public company can
perform if political will and leadership work together
– as in the case of ONEA.
The challenges to be overcome are numerous,
but the amount of experience accrued provides a
good base from which to move forward.