Galvanising and Fostering Sub-National Government Leadership for Area-Wide Sanitation Programming

Though the importance of sub-national government leadership for water, sanitation, and hygiene is widely acknowledged, to date much of the focus has been on the delivery of water services. This article sets out to start to address this imbalance by focusing on practical ways to galvanize and foster sub-national government leadership for sanitation programming. By focusing on the experiences across three sub-national areas in East Africa where positive changes in the prioritization of sanitation by local governments have been witnessed, the article cross-examines and identifies lessons learned. The results presented in this paper and subsequent discussion provide practical recommendations for those wishing to trigger a change in political will at the local level and create the foundation to strengthen sanitation governance and the wider system needed to ensure service delivery for all.