On September 2, 2021, the district government of Tangerang and USAID IUWASH PLUS organized a high-level event to discuss the sustainability and replication of USAID IUWASH PLUS initiatives in Tangerang district, as well as inaugurating a new target to eradicate open defecation in the area by 2025. This event also marked the conclusion of USAID IUWASH PLUS’ five-year program in the district.
Opening remarks were given by the Director of Housing and Settlements of BAPPENAS, Ms. Tri Dewi Virgiyanti; the Tangerang Regent, Mr. Ahmed Zaki Iskandar; and the Director of Environmental Office of USAID Indonesia, Mr. Brian Dusza. Other participants included the Director of Environmental Health of the Ministry of Health, Ms. Vensya Sitohang; the Head of Regional House of Representatives of Tangerang District, Mr. Kholid Ismail; the heads of relevant government offices; the Managing Director of Perumda Air Minum Tirta Kerta Raharja, Mr. Sofyan Safar; the President Director of Kopsyah Benteng Mikro Indonesia, Mr. Kamaruddin Batubara; the Head of Indonesian Association of Village Governments, Chapter Tangerang District, Mr. H. Maskota; the representative of BAZNAS Chapter Tangerang District, Mr. Ahmad Nawawi, the USAID IUWASH PLUS COR, Ms. Trigeany Linggoatmojo; and the Deputy Chief of Party of USAID IUWASH PLUS, Ms. Alifah Lestari. In total, about 380 people attended the event, with 70 people participating in person in adherence to health protocols and the rest via Zoom™ and YouTube™. After one and a half days, the recording of the event on YouTube had garnered 336 views.
The event aimed to share USAID IUWASH PLUS’ initiatives in Tangerang district and solidify stakeholders’ commitment to ensure its sustainability and replication. Since 2017, USAID IUWASH PLUS has been assisting Kayu Bongkok, Serakan, and Pondok Jaya villages in Sepatan sub-district in implementing the Urban STBM approach and working with several microcredit institutions, including Kopsyah Benteng Mikro Indonesia (BMI) and BPR Nusantara Bona Pasogit 14, to help increase access to water and sanitation. USAID IUWASH PLUS also assisted in developing two regulations in 2017 and 2018, namely Regent Regulation 80/2017 on Domestic Wastewater Management and Regent Regulation 22/2018 on Community Based Total Sanitation (STBM).
Reinforcing the district’s commitment to continuing and replicating the above-mentioned initiatives, the Tangerang Regent signed the Sustainability of USAID IUWASH PLUS’ Results Work Plan during this event. The document sets forth various plans that the district government will carry out, e.g., building a new septage treatment plant in Balaraja, organizing STBM monitoring and evaluation at 42 Puskesmas’, and reviewing the Master Plan of the Water Supply System (RISPAM).
During the event, the Tangerang Regent also signed Regent Regulation No. 52/2021 on Accelerating the Attainment of Access to Drinking Water and Eradication of Open Defecation, which stipulates that Tangerang district should become Open Defecation Free by 2025 and details various strategies to do so, especially concerning its financing. Bappeda worked closely with USAID IUWASH PLUS to prepare for the issuance of the regulation.
The Tangerang Regent, Mr. Ahmed Zaki Iskandar, emphasized that the regulation covers “the use of Village Fund for financing the drinking water and sanitation services, especially to eradicate open defecation.”
In the near future, as a follow-up to this event, the District Government of Tangerang will organize training on mWater™ for enumerators with support from USAID IUWASH PLUS and replicate the participatory monitoring and evaluation initiative in four villages and one urban village in Sepatan Sub-district.
As of March 2021, USAID IUWASH PLUS has helped the district government of Tangerang to deliver improved water services to 46,555 people—2,345 of which are the poor, safely managed sanitation services to 32,595 people, and improved sanitation services to 15,640 people—14,210 of which are the poor. The Program has also managed to leverage IDR27.1 billion (US$1.9 million) for several WASH projects, funded by the local government budgets, the central government allocations, and private sector firms.
