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Agua del Pueblo (AdP) is a private, non-profit, non-denominational and Guatemalan organization. AdP has completed more than 500 integrated rural water, sanitation, and community development projects serving more than 1,000 communities and their 500,000 Guatemalan residents. AdP is the oldest non-governmental organization focused on rural water supply and sanitation in the world.
A team of young, international volunteers founded "Agua del Pueblo" in 1972 in San Lucas Tolimán, Sololá, Guatemala. Agua del Pueblo (AdP) is a private, non-profit, non-denominational organization. [1] Agua del Pueblo was incorporated in 1973 in the State of Missouri as "The People's Consultants. [2] The US Internal Revenue Service classifies the People's Consultants as a 501(C)(3) public charity. Researchers have studied the impact of AdP projects on economic development, [3] [4] community development [5] and health. [6] Agua del Pueblo's headquarters is in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, and has regional offices in Coban, Alta Verapaz and Poptun, Peten.
AdP's prime directive is to promote, advise, direct and generate financing for non-profit activities related to community development and the introduction of potable water, latrines and other aspects of environmental sanitation in rural and urban communities. AdP's aims are to: a) Build potable water and sanitation systems; b) Promote rural and urban development. c) Cooperate with any organization in drinking water, sanitation, education and community development, including training of appropriate personnel. d) Research the impacts of such projects on public health and economic development and e) Participate in international, state, municipal or private projects with similar goals.
AdP focuses on the poorest of the poor throughout the highlands of Mayan Guatemala. For that reason, AdP's board prioritized the departments of San Marcos, Huehuetenango, Quiché, Totonicapan, Quetzaltenango, Solola, Retalhuleu, Suchitepequez, Chimaltenango, Alta Verapaz, Baja Verapaz and Peten. AdP views water and sanitation projects as a means to the end of consciousness-level raising and rural development. AdP favors projects based on renewable energy with minimal operation and maintenance requirements. Education and community organization form the foundation of AdP's work.
The Guatemalan government incorporated the Association of Agua del Pueblo on May 22, 1981 and registered the Association on 6 July 1981. The Guatemalan “Association of Agua del Pueblo” is included in the Registry of the Municipality of Quetzaltenango, Guatemala, Book 1 NGO.
The State of Missouri (USA) incorporated People's Consultants – Agua del Pueblo-USA (web site) in 1973. AdP’S founders established the People's Consultants to support AdP's work around the world. The US Internal Revenue Service recognizes the People's Consultants as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
In 1972, volunteers from the San Lucas Mission, the Maryknoll's (Father Bill Woods and Dave Hennessey's) Ixcan Project and San Carlos University's school of social work (Dr. Sayra Cabrera) founded Agua del Pueblo. Father John Goggin sponsored AdP's first water project in Tzalamabaj, San Lucas Toliman. Sr. Benito Pic directed the project. Sr. Pic's son, Don Oscar Pic Solís, eventually became the first re-elected mayor of San Lucas Toliman.
With the help of Jerry Carmody, Bruce Clemens incorporated the organization in St Louis Mo. Jerry was in Law School at St. Louis University. Ms. Louise Clemens was the first registered agent. The Board included Tom Gullette, Bill Copacino and Bruce. In order better describe the breadth of Agua del Pueblo's (AdP's) goals, the Board incorporated the organization under the name “The People's Consultants”. The name was later modified to “The People's Consultants aka Agua del Pueblo USA”.
Monsenor Gregory Schaffer led AdP's next project in Pampojila and Panimaquib [7] was one of the first rural pumping water supply project in Guatemala (Karp, Cabrera and Cabrera). The project had a significant impact on improving the plight of indentured servants in Guatemala's south coast. Sr. Andres Tos Toy led the first successful strike against a large absentee landlord (Don Oscar Dias, owner of San Andres Pampojila).
One of the original goals was to “Guatemalize” AdP. In 1979, AdP began incorporation as an independent Guatemalan non-profit “Asociacion Pro Agua del Pueblo ApAdP”. Lic. Carlos Gomez was the first Director of the AdAdP.
Agua del Pueblo has:
In the realm of engineering, significant expertise has been directed toward the development of water infrastructure, as suggested by the nomenclature of the involved entities. Historically, the initial focus of these engineering projects predominantly revolved around spring captured gravity systems, particularly in the early stages of development. These projects were often regarded as the 'low hanging fruit' due to their relative ease of implementation.
One of the most notable attributes of these spring captured gravity systems is their remarkably low operational and maintenance costs. This aspect has been a defining characteristic, contributing to their popularity and widespread adoption in various engineering projects. Despite the minimal costs, a unique financial model is employed to sustain these systems.
Integral to the sustainability of these water infrastructure projects is the inclusion of a community-based financial contribution model. In this model, each beneficiary family is required to pay a monthly fee. This fee, colloquially referred to as a "community tax," is specifically designated for the ongoing operations and maintenance of the water systems. This approach ensures a steady stream of revenue for the upkeep of the infrastructure, thereby guaranteeing its long-term functionality and reliability. [8]
The US Agency for International Development recently awarded a grant to Agua del Pueblo in 2022. [9] The grant that was given was a Global communities five-year grant (worth 15 million dollars) to support the departments of Alta Verapaz, Huehuetenango, and Quiche. The program is also to support the governance of local Water and Sanitation (WASH) systems. [10] This goes along with the mission of USAID Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean, which is to help Latin America become more peaceful, secure, and prosperous by assisting the governments and enhancing the private sector. [11]
There was a water project in Sanik Ya and Chitulul to provide water to 100 families to allow them to move to this area. This land was donated to "Poorest of the Poor" by Greg Schaffer, the leader of the local missionary at the time from his parish community development fund. With support from various groups such as rotary international, various Furman engineering students, and other contributors, a sustainable water project was built. This allowed for the residents to grow coffee, which allows the residents to make money after a certain amount of sacrificed effort to become profitable. One measure to show the extreme poverty in this community is the socio-economic survey that showed that the residents lived on 4.5% of the income of an average Guatemalan citizen. [12]
Quetzaltenango is a department in the western highlands of Guatemala. The capital is the city of Quetzaltenango, the second largest city in Guatemala. The department is divided up into 24 municipalities. The inhabitants include Spanish-speaking Ladinos and the Kʼicheʼ and Mam Maya groups, both with their own Maya language. The department consists of mountainous terrain, with its principal river being the Samalá River. the department is seismically active, suffering from both earthquakes and volcanic activity.
Senahú is a town and municipality of the Department of Alta Verapaz in the Republic of Guatemala.
San Lucas Tolimán is a municipality in the Sololá department of Guatemala. The town of 17,000 people sits on the southeastern shore of Lago de Atitlán. The population is 90–95% Highland Maya. There is a population of about the same size living in the surrounding villages.
Water supply and sanitation in Latin America is characterized by insufficient access and in many cases by poor service quality, with detrimental impacts on public health. Water and sanitation services are provided by a vast array of mostly local service providers under an often fragmented policy and regulatory framework. Financing of water and sanitation remains a serious challenge.
Water supply and sanitation in Mexico is characterized by achievements and challenges. Among the achievements is a significant increase in access to piped water supply in urban areas as well as in rural areas between 1990 and 2010. Additionally, a strong nationwide increase in access to improved sanitation was observed in the same period. Other achievements include the existence of a functioning national system to finance water and sanitation infrastructure with a National Water Commission as its apex institution; and the existence of a few well-performing utilities such as Aguas y Drenaje de Monterrey.
Drinking water supply and sanitation in Ecuador is characterized by a number of achievements and challenges. One key achievement is a significant increase in both access to an at least basic water source and at least basic sanitation. Significant increases in coverage in urban areas were achieved both by the public utility EMAAP-Q, serving the capital Quito, and the private concessionaire Interagua in the country's largest city Guayaquil. However, municipalities rely overwhelmingly upon central government investment, rather than recouping the costs at a local level. Another problem is intermittent water supply, which affects half of the urban areas. Also, only 8% of all collected wastewater is being treated. The level of non-revenue water is estimated at 65%, one of the highest in Latin America. Addressing these challenges is complicated by the atomization of the sector: A multitude of stakeholders – the Ministry of Housing, the Emergency Social Investment Fund, the Solidarity Fund, the State Bank, NGOs, municipalities and others – intervene in the sector. Despite the existence of an Interinstitutional Committee for Water and Sanitation there remains room to improve coordination.
Water supply and sanitation in Colombia have been improved in many ways over the past decades. Between 1990 and 2010, access to improved sanitation increased from 67% to 82%, but access to improved water sources increased only slightly from 89% to 94%. In particular, coverage in rural areas lags behind. Furthermore, despite improvements, the quality of water and sanitation services remains inadequate. For example, only 73% of those receiving public services receive water of potable quality and in 2006 only 25% of the wastewater generated in the country underwent any kind of treatment.
Access to drinking water and sanitation in El Salvador has been increased significantly. A 2015 conducted study by the University of North Carolina called El Salvador the country that has achieved the greatest progress in the world in terms of increased access to water supply and sanitation and the reduction of inequity in access between urban and rural areas. However, water resources are heavily polluted and the great majority of wastewater is discharged without any treatment into the environment. Institutionally a single public institution is both de facto in charge of setting sector policy and of being the main service provider. Attempts at reforming and modernizing the sector through new laws have not borne fruit over the past 20 years.
Water supply and sanitation in Chile were once considered efficient and equitable but in 2022 Chile struggled to reliably provide water throughout the country. Chile's water resources have been strained by the Chilean water crisis, which was partially caused by a continuing megadrought that began in 2010, along with an increased demand for agricultural and other commercial interests.
Drinking water supply and sanitation coverage in Honduras has increased significantly in the last decades. However, the sector is still characterized by poor service quality and poor efficiency in many places. Coverage gaps still remain, particularly in rural areas.
Drinking water and sanitation in Nicaragua are provided by a national public utility in urban areas and water committees in rural areas. Despite relatively high levels of investment, access to drinking water in urban areas has barely kept up with population growth, access to urban sanitation has actually declined and service quality remains poor. However, a substantial increase in access to water supply and sanitation has been reached in rural areas.
Drinking water supply and sanitation in Argentina is characterized by relatively low tariffs, mostly reasonable service quality, low levels of metering and high levels of consumption for those with access to services. At the same time, according to the WHO, 21% of the total population remains without access to house connections and 52% of the urban population do not have access to sewerage. The responsibility for operating and maintaining water and sanitation services rests with 19 provincial water and sewer companies, more than 100 municipalities and more than 950 cooperatives, the latter operating primarily in small towns. Among the largest water and sewer companies are Agua y Saneamientos Argentinos (AYSA) and Aguas Bonarenses S.A. (ABSA), both operating in Greater Buenos Aires, Aguas Provinciales de Santa Fe, and Aguas Cordobesas SA, all of them now publicly owned. In 2008 there were still a few private concessions, such as Aguas de Salta SA, which is majority-owned by Argentine investors, and Obras Sanitarias de Mendoza (OSM).
Water supply and sanitation in Venezuela is currently limited and many poor people remain without access to piped water. Service quality for those with access is mixed, with water often being supplied only on an intermittent basis and most wastewater not being treated. Non-revenue water is estimated to be high at 62%, compared to the regional average of 40%. The sector remains centralized despite a decentralization process initiated in the 1990s that has now been stalled. Within the executive, sector policies are determined by the Ministry of Environment. The national water company HIDROVEN serves about 80% of the population.
The water and sanitation sector in Peru has made important advances in the last two decades, including the increase of water coverage from 30% to 85% between 1980 and 2010. Sanitation coverage has also increased from 9% to 37% from 1985 to 2010 in rural areas. Advances have also been achieved concerning the disinfection of drinking water and in sewage treatment. Nevertheless, many challenges remain, such as:
Costa Rica has made significant progress in the past decade in expanding access to water supply and sanitation, but the sector faces key challenges in low sanitation connections, poor service quality, and low cost recovery.
The Dominican Republic has achieved impressive increases in access to water supply and sanitation over the past two decades. However, the quality of water supply and sanitation services remains poor, despite the country's high economic growth during the 1990s.
The drinking water supply and sanitation sector in Guatemala is characterized by low and inconsistent service coverage, especially in rural areas; unclear allocation of management responsibilities; and little or no regulation and monitoring of service provision.
Water resources management (WRM) in Honduras is a work in progress and at times has advanced; however, unstable investment and political climates, strong weather phenomena, poverty, lack of adequate capacity, and deficient infrastructures have and will continue to challenge developments to water resource management. The State of Honduras is working on a new General Water Law to replace the 1927 Law on Using National Waters and designed to regulate water use and management. The new water law will also create a Water Authority, and the National Council of Water Resources which will serve as an advising and consultative body.
Guatemala faces substantial resource and institutional challenges in successfully managing its national water resources. Deforestation is increasing as the global demand for timber exerts pressure on the forests of Guatemala. Soil erosion, runoff, and sedimentation of surface water is a result of deforestation from development of urban centers, agriculture needs, and conflicting land and water use planning. Sectors within industry are also growing and the prevalence of untreated effluents entering waterways and aquifers has grown alongside.
A German Guatemalan is a citizen of Guatemala whose ancestors were German settlers who arrived in the 19th and 20th century. Guatemala had a massive immigration of Germans in the nineteenth century. The government of Justo Rufino Barrios provided them with farmlands for coffee in the departments of Quetzaltenango, Alta Verapaz and Baja Verapaz, and by the early 20th century Germans populated Guatemala City, Zacapa and Jutiapa. Guatemala currently has a strong community of Germans who make up the majority of European immigrants in the country, and it is also the most numerous German community in all Central American countries.