Community Participation and Sustainability of Water Projects in Narok South Sub-County, Kenya

Abstract

Sustainability is a crucial success factor in any development project. In strive to achieve project sustainability, various water reforms have been established by both governments and development partners globally with an aim of ensuring sustainability of water projects. However, despite these initiatives, a high rate of community water project failure still exists. It is against this background that the study sought to establish the influence of community participation on the sustainability of water projects. The specific objectives were to determine how community participation in decision making influence sustainability; assess how community participation in labor provision influence sustainability; establish the influence of community participation in non- financial contribution on sustainability; examine the influence of community participation in financial contribution on sustainability of water projects in Narok South Sub-County, Kenya. The study was informed by Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) model. A quantitative research approach was used, and the study adopted an explanatory research design. The target population was 15,500 project beneficiaries drawn from Narok South Sub- County. A sample of 384 was selected through random sampling frame using Cochran’s sample size determination formula across the ten water projects in Narok South Sub-County. Out of 384 respondents contacted, 322 responded to the questionnaires making an 83.85% return rate. Quantitative data was gathered using questionnaires, and descriptive data were analyzed using means, percentages, and standard deviations, while inferential data were analyzed using regression analysis (R 2 ) and Pearson’s product-moment correlation (r) to determine the strength and direction of the relationships between independent and dependent variables. The study established a significant influence at (p<0.05) of community participation in labor provision (β 4 =0.495, p=0.0001), provision of non-financial materials (β 4 =0.533, p=0.0001), and financial contribution (β4=0.300, p=0.0001). However, it was found that there is negative effect of community participation in decision making (β 4 =-0.022, p=0.665), on sustainability of water projects. Overall, there is a positive and significant effect between community participation (R=0.675a) and sustainability of community water projects in Narok South Sub- County. The study’s R 2 value was 0.456 which means that community participation in decision-making, labor provision, the contribution of non-financial materials, and financial provision accounted for 45.6% of the total variance in community water projects’ sustainability. The study concluded that community participation in labor, non-financial and financial contribution had positive and significant influence on sustainability of community water projects, and joint influence with participation in decision. It is therefore recommended that, to enhance sustainability of water projects, beneficiaries should participate in all stages of the projects and contribute in labor, financial and non-financial resources towards the project which conforms with the provision of ABCD model. Thus, policy makers should incorporate community participation initiatives in formulation of policies regarding water projects.