Questions/Answers

One of the main challenges that Mexico City faces is the sustainable manage of water resources. The large demand of drinking water has led to the overexploitation of aquifers and groundwater systems and the unequal distribution of this resource. This overexploitation has caused a progressive sinking of the city of 10 centimeters per year, which in turn, has resulted in drainage breakages and leaks. Nowadays, 1 million people in Mexico City still lack of drinking water and sanitation services. If this irresponsible use of water continues, in approximately 50 years the city could collapse due to water scarcity . Agua a tu Casa (ATC) is a social program launched by the Secretariat of Social Development of Mexico City (SEDESO) in 2016, with the main objective of contributing to solve the water scarcity problem in marginalized areas within the city, through the installation of rainwater harvesting systems and purification technologies in homes, housing units and community centers. Thus, it contributes both to diminish the overexploitation of aquifers and to guarantee the right to sustainable drinking water and sanitation services. Besides, the Program encourages the active collaboration between government, neighbors, organized civil society, private sector and universities. SEDESO is responsible for financing, promoting and monitoring the program. On the other hand, civil associations and the private sector provide training and technical support for the installation and maintenance of the systems. The neighbors participate in the whole process since they are the ones who request and approve, through neighborhood assemblies, the installation of the systems in public spaces and housing units; they also collaborate in its maintenance. To date, 865 rainwater harvesting systems have been installed in homes, 5 in housing units, as well as 21,279 water purifiers, 21 water dispensing machines and 9 drinking fountains, impacting a total of 68,459 people.

The main goal of the program is to generate equal access to drinking water supply through the installation of rainwater harvesting systems and purification technologies within houses, housing units, sport centers and Community Dining Rooms in Mexico City. In order to achieve this goal, SEDESO has identified and prioritized six districts with the most serious deficiencies regarding sanitation and drinking water supply: Magdalena Contreras, Iztapalapa, Tlalpan, Xochimilco, Tláhuac, and Milpa Alta, which together represent a population of 721 thousand 365 people. The goal for 2018 is to benefit at least 10 thousand people who live in areas that suffer from drinking water scarcity, through the installation of rainwater harvesting systems and purification technologies. Additionally, the program aims to contribute to the creation of a culture of responsible care and use of water among the city’s population, mainly through the training of any person interested in the installation of rainwater harvesting systems and purification technologies, as well as promoting urban art regarding the appropriate use of water in the systems installed in housing units and community centers.

Some important elements which make ATC appropriate to the criteria of the category are: - The program makes these eco-technologies affordable for households and neighborhoods with low incomes. - It tackles one of the most severe kinds of scarcity in Mexico City, since the lack of drinking water increases the vulnerability of the population as a whole, and especially in groups like children, senior citizens, people with disabilities, among others. - Citizen and community participation is fundamental for the installation of the systems within housing units and community centers. - The program promotes a close collaboration among organized civil society, academic institutions and private sector. - The results of the program and the quantity of the systems installed per territory is regularly published through SEDESO’s Transparency Website. All these elements are explained in depth in the following questions.

ATC was launched as a comprehensive strategy of Mexico City’s social policy, in order to promote the compliance of the Human Right to Water and Sanitation. The Program directly impacts improves the quality of life of Mexico City’s inhabitants, especially of those who lack of drinking water services. A single rainwater harvesting system is capable of supplying 40 thousand liters of water per year. This represents a saving of 4,200 Mexican pesos (233.3 USD) per family, as the beneficiaries stop buying water tank trucks and water jugs. The water purification systems and drinking devices installed at sport centers benefit around 11 thousand people each year. These technologies ensure the purity of water since they are designed to eradicate 99% of pathogenic bacteria . ATC consolidates an equitable floor of social rights for the most vulnerable population through the free and full exercise to their Right to Water and Sanitation. It also strengthens cooperation between different actors of the society.

Within Mexico City, drinking water and sanitation services must satisfy the needs of almost 9 million residents and a transient population of 4 million 200 thousand people. In consequence, the city has the lowest index of water availability in the country (186 cubic meters per inhabitant). Moreover, water distribution is not homogeneous, since there are 1,088,928 people who present water scarcity, and one million and a half have to get their water supply from water tank trucks. ATC contributes to guarantee the access to drinking water in areas which present the aforementioned problems, through rainwater harvesting systems and purification technologies which improve the supply, quality, reuse and treatment of water. Last year, 380 rainwater harvesting systems and 10 thousand water purifying systems were installed in single family homes, 4 housing units and one sport center. ATC has proved to be efficient even in emergency situations; after the earthquake occurred on September the 19th, 2017, several areas in the city suffered the lack of the public service of water, such as the community of “San Gregorio”, where all the neighbors could access to drinking water thanks to a rainwater harvesting system installed in one of the houses by the ATC Program.

Even though the program aims to be universal at its coverage, the most vulnerable sectors are prioritized, such as pregnant women, women in lactation period, women heads of households and disabled people who require a reliable supply of drinking water. Besides, ATC has an gender equity focus that contributes to empower women and women trans who have suffered domestic violence. Under this approach, women receive training to learn how to install and give maintenance to the rainwater harvesting systems and purification technologies. This action not only allows women to overcome its situation as victims of violence through economic empowerment, but also contributes to tear down the idea that works of plumbing are only for men. This way, women are not only beneficiaries but also suppliers of the government in the implementation of this program. A total of 30 women (15 Master Plumbers and 15 Plumber Assistants) contributed to the installation of 200 rainwater harvesting systems.

ATC is an innovative practice due to the cost-benefit ratio generated in favor of the population. Rainwater harvesting systems manage water supply issues in an environmentally and economically sustainable way, generating considerable savings in household spending, and ensuring the availability of quality drinking water. Each rainwater harvesting system has the capacity to store around 666 liters per square meter. This prevents aquifers and groundwater and drainage systems of being over exploited, and guarantees the supply of up to 40 thousand liters of drinking water per year for the homes that have installed it. It also promotes the responsible use of water through citizen participation. Furthermore, ATC is a perfect example of a comprehensive, inclusive and efficient social strategy, which strengthens collaboration among local government, academic institutions, organized civil society, communities and private sector.

The use of rainwater harvesting systems and water purifiers is not new, nevertheless, in Mexico City and other entities of the country, its installation and use was only made by the private sector or some civil society organizations, any governmental strategy or program was launched in this matter until ATC was created in January 2016. Therefore, the use of these eco-technologies was almost exclusively by the population with medium or high income levels who, in most of the times, are not the sector of the population who suffer water scarcity. One year after ATC started to operate; both the governments of the political territories and the Federal Government have recognized its social, sanitary and environmental benefits. In consequence, these governments have replicated this experience born in Mexico City.

In the year of its creation, ATC Program received a budget of 3 million Mexican pesos (106 thousand 380 USD) for the installation of rainwater harvesting systems in order to improve the availability and quality of water and sanitation services for up to 10 thousand people. Due to its success, in 2017 the budget of the program increased to 15 million Mexican pesos (801 thousand 900 USD). The same amount was approved for the year 2018 for the installation of both rainwater harvesting systems and purification technologies within single-family homes, housing units and sport centers that will improve the supply, quality, reuse, treatment and optimization of water resources. For the implementation of the program, SEDESO will sign collaboration agreements with specialists in rainwater harvesting and purification technologies. ATC also is open to receive in-kind donations from private institutions, civil society organizations, the federal government, among others, for the implementation of this program.

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ATC program is designed for urban environments, which by 2050 will host 66% of the world’s population. Based on this projection, and due to its minimum technical requirements, this initiative may be replicable in most urban contexts in the short, medium and long term. For its implementation it is vital that local governments establish alliances with private institutions and civil society organizations, in order to guarantee its affordability and sustainability. At a national level, the federal government has recently launched a similar strategy that consists in the installation of rainwater harvesting systems and other eco-technologies in rural areas with highest marginalization indexes.

According to the Social Development Index developed by the local social policy evaluation council in 2010, approximately 1 million 088 thousand 928 people in Mexico City suffer from lack of drinking water and sanitation services. Guaranteeing the access to a safe water supply for this amount of people is a challenge that cannot be faced without the collaboration every sector of the society. In order to widen the access to drinking water, improve its quality, and guarantee the financial and social sustainability of the program the Government of Mexico City has joined forces with organized civil society, academic institutions and enterprises. ATC helps vulnerable domestic economies by eliminating the expense of hiring waterpipes, and guaranteeing a permanent, safe and free drinking water supply. The total annual saving per family is of 214.6 USD, which can be destined to other basic needs such as food, clothing and health. Furthermore, this initiative maintains a strong gender equity focus that contributes to the empowerment of women and transgender women that have suffered domestic violence. At the Units for the Attention and Prevention of Domestic Violence (UNAVI for their acronym in Spanish), these women have the chance to learn how to install, give maintenance and repair rainwater harvesting systems and water purification technologies. This training offers them a self-employment opportunity to support themselves and their children. Environmentally, the use of the rainwater harvesting and purification technologies has a positive and lasting impact, since it prevents aquifers and groundwater systems of Mexico City from being over exploited.

With the appropriate care and maintenance, each rainwater harvesting system has an average useful life of 40 years, and is capable of storing about 666 liters per square meter. This represents a supply of up to 40 thousand liters of safe drinking water per year. Furthermore, at a legal level, the Political Constitution of Mexico City, enacted in 2017 states the Government of Mexico City is responsible of guaranteeing a sufficient, affordable, equal and safe drinking water and sanitation services for all its inhabitants. In this context, SEDESO would search for counseling and coordination with other local government initiatives aimed to ensure a universal access to drinking water, in order to increase the durability of ATC program.

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All the social programs in Mexico City are constantly evaluated according to methodology of the “Budget based on Results” used at the national level and adopted by the government of Mexico City. Every internal and external evaluations are published at the Social Development Information System (SIDESO in Spanish) website. The ATC Program had an internal evaluation in 2017 in which the alignment with the social policy strategy of Mexico City, coverage of the target population, actions, objectives, implementation, monitoring, follow-up process, indicators and complementarity with other programs and institutional actions was evaluated. The external evaluation will be done by the Social Development Evaluation Council of Mexico City (EVALUA-CDMX), the only institution authorized by law to carry out such work. It will evaluate the design of the Program, the congruence of objectives and actions, and the identification methodology of the potential, target and beneficiary population.

The internal evaluation found that the Program carries out its operation acoording to the Operating Rules; likewise, it complies with the established laws related to social development. The Program has a positive impact in families’ income, it contributes to health improvement by decreasing gastrointestinal diseases, improving personal hygiene and food preparation. In addition, ATC has a gender equity approach as it promotes the empowerment of women who have suffered domestic violence by providing them with training on installation and maintenance of the rainwater harvesting systems, and certifying them as a plumbs. Another positive element of the evaluation is the social promoters work, they help to inform people about the benefits of the rainwater harvesting systems, encourage their adoption and identify the target population to give them priority attention. The evaluation also points out that the design of the program has actions that clearly impact its objective while it promotes a culture of sustainable water management by training social promoters on the proper use of water, who in turn transfer this knowledge to the program beneficiaries.

The ATC Program has Operating Rules that establish the objective, goals, budget and operation of the Program, as well as the evaluation methodology and indicators. To establish the evaluation methodology, a Matrix of Indicators was designed following the Matrix Methodology of the Logical Framework which showed that the most appropriate indicators to evaluate this Program are those of Effectiveness, which provide relevant information on the progress and achievement of the objectives of the Program. In order to calculate these indicators, a systematic collection of data is carried out through constant monitoring.

Guaranteeing the Right to Water and Sanitation for a population of over 8 million residents and 4 million people in transit is a challenge that cannot be completed without inter-agency cooperation. Therefore, the Government of Mexico City has joined forces with civil society organizations, academic institutions and enterprises in order to widen the access to drinking water and improving its quality. The government, through SEDESO, identified the social problem and designed the Program. The Secretariat identifies those urban areas with deficient drinking water supply, makes the first contact with people, finances the entire process, and monitors the adequate development of the Program. Likewise, other local agencies such as the Sports Institute of Mexico City (INDEPORTE in Spanish), the Women's Institute of Mexico City (INMUJERES) and the Social Procurator's Office (PROSOC) are involved in the following tasks: - INDEPORTE participates in the installation of drinking fountains in sports centers. - INMUEJRES trains women and trans-women that have suffered domestic violence as plumber and plumber assistants to later be hired by the Program for the installation and maintenance of the rainwater harvesting systems. - PROSOC guarantees the appropriate organization of the neighborhood assemblies. The private sector bring its expertise, resources, training for the adequate treatment of water and maintenance of the systems, and certifies women leaders, while citizens participate in decision-making for the installation of these systems and promotes awareness of the proper use and care of water. ATC is a perfect example of an integral, inclusive and effective social strategy, which promotes the collaboration among these actors.

It would be natural to infer that a city where the annual average of precipitation is between 600 and 1200 milliliters per square meter should not face problems with the supply and availability of potable water for its inhabitants. Yet, the enormous population, the inaccessibility of some areas at the periphery, water pollution, among others, are the main challenges faced towards supplying adequate drinking water. Through ATC we have detected that the main problem is not the lack of water but the lack of equitable, sustainable and innovative means to distribute it to the whole population. Also, a very important lesson is that technical methods are not enough to solve social scarcities; the empowerment of vulnerable sectors of the population and of communities is a guarantee that they will not face the same problem again or, at least, that they will count with the necessary means, organization and skills to face it and overcome it successfully in the future. ATC has promoted greater involvement of neighbors to solve a common problem; it has empowered women through the acquisition of skills for the installation and maintenance of water harvesting systems; and it has created stronger solidarity bonds within communities.