A community-based approach to promote household water treatment in Rwanda

Abstract

Treatment of drinking water at the household level is one of the most effective preventive interventions against diarrhea, a leading cause of illness and death among children in developing countries. A pilot project in two districts in Rwanda aimed to increase use of SÛr'Eau, a chlorine solution for drinking water treatment, through a partnership between community-based health insurance schemes and community health workers who promoted and distributed the product. Evaluation of the pilot, drawing on a difference-in-differences design and data from pre- and postpilot household surveys of 4,780 households, showed that after 18 months of pilot implementation, knowledge and use of the product increased significantly in two pilot districts, but remained unchanged in a control district. The pilot was associated with a 40-42 percentage point increase in ever use, and 8-9 percentage points increase in use of SÛr'Eau at time of the survey (self-reported measures). Our data suggest that exposure to inter-personal communication on SÛr'Eau and hearing about the product at community meetings and health centers were associated with an increase in use. © IWA Publishing 2012.