Emptying, Transportation and Disposal of feacal sludge in informal settlements of Kampala Uganda: The economics of sanitation

Abstract

Emptying, transportation and disposal of feacal sludge in informal settlements of Kampala Uganda is still a big challenge. With the use of semi-structured interviews, observation and review of secondary data, this study aims at identifying actors and factors determining emptying costs and the constraints limiting improved service provision. Individual private cesspool operators and Kampala City Council Authority (KCCA) on behalf of public services determine emptying charges. The main determining factors are: the capacity of the truck, fuel, distance, labor, dumping costs and profit margins of the cesspool truck operator and or the owner of the truck. The main constraints faced included limited number and poor maintenance of cesspool trucks, poor quality vacuum pumps and pipes, poor maintenance of pit latrines and customers' ignorance on the functionality of cesspool trucks. It is concluded that emptying prices are too high and a bottleneck to sludge removal. To influence emptying fees there is need to develop policies to regulate pricing, increase the number of cesspool trucks to stimulate competition, improve institutional capacity and encourage partnership, provide financial support and ensure that subsidies are 'tapped' by the rightful persons and sensitize the communities on the performance of cesspool trucks.