Community-based rainwater harvesting (CB-RWH) to supply drinking water in developing countries: lessons learned from case studies in Africa and Asia Yongkyun Kim, Mooyoung Han, Julius Kabubi, Hong-Gyoo Sohn and Duc-Canh Nguyen ABSTRACT This paper uses pragmatic findings and lessons learned from three case studies to deduce that community-based rainwater harvesting (CB-RWH) is an innovative solution to develop sustainable drinking water supply systems in developing countries, especially in Africa and Asia. Taking advantage of traditional community-based activities in African and Asian villages, the water supply system can be significantly improved with the introduction and implementation of CB-RWH systems. Furthermore, sustainable, safe water sources in Africa and Asia can be brought to fruition when transparent self-regulatory management systems are supported through comprehensive design and maintenance guidelines and funded from private and public sources. To this end, the potential for CB-RWH to lead toward greater resilience and sustainability was investigated. Based on case studies of three successful demonstration projects in Africa and Asia, this paper identifies 14 innovative solutions resolving technical, economic, and social problems which have been barriers preventing the wide implementation of CB-RWH in developing countries, especially in Africa and Asia. It also recommends strategies to promote CB-RWH in African and Asian villages, which include the following: implementation of more pilot projects at local levels; promotion of and education in rainwater preservation and harvesting at all levels of the education system; and innovation in micro-funding systems in cooperation with corporate social responsibility activities. These strategies will promote the implementation of CB-RWH as a mainstream and high-priority technique for national, regional, and global water strategies. Yongkyun Kim Disaster Preparedness and Coordination Division, Ministry of Public Safety and Security, 55 Sejong-Ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-760, Republic of Korea Mooyoung Han (corresponding author) Duc-Canh Nguyen Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, #35-302, Seoul National University, 1, Daehakro, Kwanakgu, Seoul 151-742, Republic of Korea E-mail: myhan@snu.ac.kr Julius Kabubi UNISDR Africa Office, United Nations Complex, Block N, Level 2, Gigiri, P.O. Box 47074, 00100 Nairobi, Republic of Kenya Hong-Gyoo Sohn School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Yonsei University, 50 Yonsei-Ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-749, Republic of Korea Key words | community-based rainwater harvesting (CB-RWH), corporate social responsibility (CSR), developing countries, drinking water, one company for one community (1C1C) movement, sustainable drinking water supply INTRODUCTION Africa and Asia are suffering physical and economic water scar- city, which will become increasingly severe due to urbanization and climate change. Studies conducted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2008 (UNEP ) and Asia Development Bank (ADB) in 2011 noted that freshwater resources in Africa and Asia are already facing serious threats, with the situation expected to worsen in the future. Africa’s extreme temporal and spatial variability of rain- fall is reflected in an uneven distribution of surface and groundwater resources, from areas of severe aridity with lim- ited freshwater resources such as the Sahara and Kalahari Deserts in the north and south, to the tropical belt of mid- Africa that contains abundant freshwater resources. One of the greatest water issues in Africa is the unequal 1110 © IWA Publishing 2016 Water Science & Technology: Water Supply | 16.4 | 2016 doi: 10.2166/ws.2016.012 Downloaded from https://iwaponline.com/ws/article-pdf/16/4/1110/411897/ws016041110.pdf by guest on 01 June 2020