KONGOWEA MARKET:

Creating Youth Enterprise to provide safe and secure

water, sanitation and hygiene facilities
A unique partnership between Mombasa County, Kongowea Traders Association and Maji na
Ufanisi, with seed funding from Government of Sweden, has provided youth with opportunity
to salvage failed market toilets while building a thriving, independently managed facilities
that serve over 10,000 market users every day

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CONTENTS
KONGOWEA MARKET................................................................................................................................... 3

INTERVENTION STRATEGY ........................................................................................................................... 5

IMPACT OF KONGOWEA MARKERT SANITATION FACILITIES ..................................................................... 6

WOMEN AND YOUTH EMPOWERMENT ...................................................................................................... 7

TESTIMONIALS FROM THE BENEFICIARIES ................................................................................................ 10

Community Members ............................................................................................................................ 10
County Government Officials................................................................................................................. 12

LAUNCH OF THE DISABILITY CHARTER ...................................................................................................... 13

SCALING UP TO OTHER COUNTIES ............................................................................................................. 14

SUCCESS STORIES FROM OTHER PREVIOUS PROJECTS: KAPTAGAT USAFI GROUP, NAIROBI ................. 15

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KONGOWEA MARKET
One step into the toilets at Kongowea Market and you wont believe the change that has taken
place, especially if you had previously been to the market five years ago. Kongowea Market
in Mombasa County is one of the largest open air markets in East Africa. Toilets at Kongowea
are now clean well anaged with the best sanitation facilities in Mombasa County.
The sixty (60) sanitation facilities were rehabilitated by Maji na Ufanisi through funding from
the Embassy of Sweden.
Over 10, 000 people visit the market daily to sell or buy agricultural produce. Micro-
businesses at the market create an influx of buyers and sellers hence managing the market a
daunting task.

A section of the busy Kongowea Market, Mombasa.

Prior to water and sanitation intervention, the water and sanitation facilities were in a
dilapidated state. The hygiene standards were very poor and the market traders were
subjected to relieving themselves in open places particularly under the cover of darkness as
the toilets were in dirty, dilapidated and insecure condition.

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 Before: Kongowea toilets prior to rehabilitation.

After: The rehabilitated sanitation facilities in Kongowea Market.

The above situation led the County Government to make critical decisions of either
rehabilitating the facilities or close the market citing fear of a cholera outbreak. The latter
would have serious economic implications as Kongowea market serves the entire coastal
region and beyond. The situation was not made easy due to the constant protests by the
local market traders who complained that only one facility was in use as the others were
either clogged or in a rundown state.

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INTERVENTION STRATEGY
Mombasa County Government approached MnU to undertake the rehabilitation of the public
toilets in Kongowea.
Through funding from the Embassy of Sweden rehabilitation of 5 sanitation blocks
commenced in October 2013 and by March 2014 the construction was complete.

A consultative meeting between Maji na Ufanisi management and Mombasa Governor, H.E Ali Hassan
Joho in progress.

Upon completion, Maji na Ufanisi went a step further by convincing the County Government
to adopt MnUs entrepreneurial model of managing the sanitation blocks. This was
opposed to the other system of having vendors use the facility at no cost at all, a method
which was tried by the County Government and failed. The entrepreneurial model entails
having the CBO trained by Maji na Ufanisi to manage the facilities at affordable cost to the to
the users, creating both social and financial sustainability. Among the targeted groups
identified included the youth, women, persons living with disabilities and the market
superintendents.
The funding from the Embassy of Sweden (EoS), has enabled the renovation of the 5
sanitation blocks in Kongowea and one in Makupa Market to have profound effects on the
market users and surrounding community.
Social transformation is now evidenced by the uptake of projects by the CBO members and
economic empowerment of disadvantaged groups such as youth, women and people with
disabilities.

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IMPACT OF KONGOWEA MARKERT SANITATION FACILITIES
Indeed the Kongowa sanitation facilities were not the only ones improved by MnU. The
organization had previously constructed 3 water and sanitation facilities in Bangladesh and
one sanitation facility in Makupa Market (funded by the Embassy of Sweden in 2013) and
Bangladesh slums (were funded by the Hungarian Maltese and CAFOD in 2011).

Members of Uvumilivu Development CBO share a special moment with Mombasa County Government Officials
and Maji na Ufanisi Team during the Commissioning of the Water and Sanitation Facilities in Bangladesh,
Mombasa.

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 Maji na Ufanisi team take a group photo with Members of Makupa Market Committee, the CBO
mandated to manage the facilties implemented by MnU and funded by Embassy of Sweden.

It is for this reason that MnU saw the need to scale up on these water and sanitation project
in other public areas and informal settlements in Mombasa County.

WOMEN AND YOUTH EMPOWERMENT

The biggest challenges facing the urban development is the increase in population
particularly in informal settlements. Majority of those residing in these informal settlements
are the youth who grapple with issues of poor education and unemployment. In Mombasa
County the situation has been made worse due to the fact that majority of the youth have
joined crime gangs or have been radicalized by fundamentalist religious groups.
Maji na Ufanisi begun to look into the youth issue and has partnered with the County
Government, to jointly develop and implement demand driven solutions to their emerging
problems. Key among the solutions has been to integrate the youth in the organizations
water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) intervention strategies as entrepreneurs obtaining
direct livelihoods form operation and sustainable management of the services and facilities.
The success of the WATSAN intervention in Kongowea Market, Mombasa County was not the
construction and rehabilitation of the five sanitation blocks but the sustainable management
of the facility in a public market and recognition of the county government on the key roles
played by non-state actors in supporting devolution and service delivery as well as the value
for citizens participation in decision making and driving development agenda within their
respective counties.

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 Payday: Members of KOMAWASA who manage the sanitation facilities, show signs of joy after
receiving ATM cards for their newly registered bank accounts.

On 2nd of September 2014 an M.O.U was signed between the 4 parties namely: Maji na
Ufanisi, the County Government of Mombasa, the Market Central Committee and Mwaga
Taka Youth Group. This was to give the facilities the best management team for sustainability
of the toilets at the market. The Management was dubbed Kongowea Water and Sanitation
Project (KOMAWASA).

Maji na Ufanisi Head of Finance and Administration, Mr. Steve Kariuki; Mombasa County Executive,
Trade, Abdi Mohamed; Kongowea Market Central Committee Chairman, Ali Mstumi and Mwaga Taka
CBO Chairman Mohamed Mwalimu shake hand after signing a joint WASH Partnership MOU in
Kongowea Market Mombasa County.

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KOMAWASA manages the facilities using the pay- per- use system with the charges made
affordable to all the users of the facilities. The youth group has been able to collect enough
revenue to employ staff to operate and maintain the toilet facilities, pay the Mombasa Water
and Sewerage Company service tariffs and operate a savings and credit scheme which is
aimed at improving the youths social and economic livelihoods.
The project registers approximately 20,000 users and generates on average a revenue of
over 50,000 per day which pays for supplies, maintenance and salaries of the over sixty eight
(68) youths who have been employed. Most of these youth are women and persons with
disabilities have generated enough income to further their studies and at the same time
assist other family members.

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TESTIMONIALS FROM THE BENEFICIARIES
Below are a few testimonials of how the project has transformed the lives of these
community members:

Community Members

Maji na Ufanisi Head of Programmes, Mr. Simon Thuo (right) shares a moment with
Mwaga Taka CBO members, Abdallah Feiswali (centre) and Mwalmu Mohammed (left) during a visit of
the sanitation facilities in Kongowea Market, Mombasa.

Abdallah Feiswali, is a young man living with disabilities. Prior to his employment at
the facility he had lost hope in life, dejected roaming the streets of Mombasa City. He
came on board as a member of Mwaga Taka CBO and has been employed by
KOMAWASA as a chief cashier in charge of all the daily collections and banking.
Through is hard work and determination, the revenue collected has substantially risen.
He is the now family bread winner and is taking a course on Accounting.

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Mwanaidi Rashid is a disabled lady who was living in poverty. Prior to her employment
she was unable to educate her six children. She is currently working as a cashier and
is able to comfortably pay her monthly bills, feed and educate her children.

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County Government Officials

Hamisi Mwaguya, County Secretary:

We appreciate all the efforts that Maji na Ufanisi has done in improving WASH in the
County. We are proud to partner with you and look forward replicating the MnU
model through the revival of five facilities in Likoni and Ziwa la Ngombe. The
government is very keen for the partnership to work especially because the Kongowea
project has created employment for the youth as youth unemployment continues to be
a challenge the government continues to face.

Binty Omar, County Executive Health:

As a County we are happy partnership with MnU. This is a viable mechanism to that
can lead to closer ties between government and civil society. The MnU model has
created social transformation in the lives of women and youth and the county is eager
to upscale the projects in other areas where they are facing challenges like such as
Coast General Hospital, Mombasa which is completely strained especially with the
increase in patients due to the free maternity services.

Mtalaki Mwashimba, Ag. County Attorney

Maji na Ufanisi has done a tremendous job in the WASH sector, here in Mombasa
County. The current projects on the ground indicate that WASH sector can be
improved and impact on citizens positively. This can be enhanced by involving the
youth in being ambassadors of change as many youth remain hopeless due to
unemployment. The government remains committed to ensure more projects are
started and others up scaled.

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LAUNCH OF THE DISABILITY CHARTER
In the same breath Maji na Ufanisi and Mombasa County Government launched a Disability
Charter. The core purpose and mandate of the charter is to promulgate and formulate means
and measures designed to achieve equal opportunities through affirmative action where
necessary for persons with disabilities so that they obtain education, employment and
participate in economic, cultural and recreational activities.

Mombasa County Governor, H.E. Ali Hassan Joho with the Deputy Governor,
H.E. Hazel Katana, sign the Disability Charter with Maji na Ufanasi, represented by Promgrammes
Officer, Coast Region, Ms. Hamisa Zaja.

Through the charter, a grand scholarship programme was launched that would benefit
approximately 45,000 Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in the year 2015. Currently 34
(PWDs) students have so far benefited from this initiative.
In this programme, Maji na Ufanisis contributions are coming directly from the communities
the organization has partnered with particularly Kongowea Market water and sanitation
facilities which are being managed by Mwaga Taka youth CBO, Market Traders Association
and the county government.

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SCALING UP TO OTHER COUNTIES
The success of this model has led to strengthened partnership between Mombasa County,
Market Traders Association, the youth and Maji na Ufanisi resulting in an MOU which spells
the roles of each partner.
The County Government has also made a formal request to Maji na Ufanisi to replicate the
Kongowea model in the other nine (9) public markets, bus parks and public beaches within
Mombasa County.
What is quite significant is the commitment that the Governor for Mombasa County has in
working extending this initiative to the rest of the Coast region. The Governor has acted as a
link in connecting MnU with the County Governments of Kwale and Kilifi who are also keen
on replicating the MnU model for public WASH interventions in their respective counties.

Maji na Ufanisi Programmes Officer, Coast Region, Ms. Hamisa Zaja demonstaring
To Members of Kakamega County Assembly how the MnU Entrepreneurial works
During a tour of one of the sanitation facilities in Mombasa County.

Significant interest has also been generated by several county governments including
Kakamega, Kisumu and Turkana after their representatives visited Kongowea market and
witnessed the huge potential for realizing sustainable urban development and curbing youth
unemployment the model provides.

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 Maji na Ufanisi team during a courtesy call meeting with H.E. Prof Philip Kutima Deputy Governor,
Kakamega County.

The organization is also looking to strengthen knowledge management in the water and
sanitation sector and mainstreaming climate change adaptation in current and future
projects.

SUCCESS STORIES FROM OTHER PREVIOUS PROJECTS: KAPTAGAT USAFI

GROUP, NAIROBI
In Nairobi, WASH interventions have been realized in Kibera, Mathare, Kambi Muru,
Muthurwa market and Kaptagat. Mnu has used the entrepreneurial model over the years not
only to increase sustainability of projects implemented but also improved the livelihoods of
targeted communities.
The community in Kaptagat informal settlement, are a clear beneficiary of the above model.
Prior to 2002 the sanitation scenario in Kaptagat was in a deplorable state, flying toilets were
the order of the day and the Kaptagat community used to dispose their fecal matter in the
neighboring villages. Kaptagat community was mobilized by MnU in the year 2002 and
several capacity building initiatives were undertaken.

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 Maji na Ufanisi CEO, Prof. Edward Kairu(far left) with Members of Kakamega County Assembly and
Kaptagat Usafi CBO, during a tour of the sanitation facilities in Kaptagat informal settlement.

In addition two facilities were constructed and storm drains rehabilitated by MnU. These
facilities contained toilets, bathrooms, water kiosks and water storage facilities. The
community managed the facilities using the pay- per- use system. The ability of the
community to manage the facility propelled them to invest more in capital assets The CBO
was able to connect the two toilet facilities to the national grid at a total cost of Ksh.75, 000
as well as construct a social hall and subsequently equip it. This hall is utilized by the
community and local churches at a fee.
The group has also been able to acquire 37 acres of land in the outskirts of Naivasha, which
they intend to build and relocate to. These investments have transformed the community to
a point where they now feel more secure about their future with less fear of being trapped
in the poverty cycle.

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