From Pilot to Policy: Mainstreaming Inclusive Sanitation Governance

This news is from the Bartlett Development Planning Unit. 

Dr Pascale Hofmann, Associate Professor at the Development Planning Unit (DPU), has been awarded funding from the Economic and Social Research Council’s (ESRC) Impact Acceleration Account through UCL Innovation & Enterprise for a new project titled From Pilot to Policy: Mainstreaming Inclusive Sanitation Governance. 

This initiative aims to foster inclusive, climate-resilient sanitation systems in Mwanza, Tanzania and other urban areas by embedding co-developed guidance into municipal planning and everyday operations. The project aims to address the needs of poor households in underserved communities, fostering knowledge exchange and innovation to advocate for inclusive sanitation governance. By doing so, the project support DPU’s mission towards socially just and sustainable development in the Global South.

The work builds directly on OVERDUE: tackling the sanitation taboo across urban Africa, a 3-year action-research project led by the Bartlett Development Planning Unit, alongside partners across seven Sub-Saharan African countries, including Ardhi University, the Centre for Community Initiatives (CCI), and the Tanzanian Federation of the Urban Poor. The OVERDUE project was funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund and produced vital evidence to tackle the sanitation crisis. In Mwanza, Tanzania, the project produced sanitation guidance with an emphasis on more inclusive governance arrangements, accessible finance, and a portfolio of inclusive and climate-resilient sanitation options.

Pascale was the city lead for Mwanza in the OVERDUE research project, led by Prof Adriana Allen (Professor of Development Planning and Urban Sustainability, DPU). She now leads this knowledge‑exchange and innovation initiative, working closely with partners in Tanzania including Professor Wilbard Kombe (Ardhi University), Tim Ndezi (Director of CCI), and the Tanzanian Federation of the Urban Poor. 

The new project seeks to translate OVERDUE’s insights into practice by strengthening collaboration among local authorities, service providers, and communities. It will also extend the knowledge exchange and learning to other Tanzanian cities.

The project is funded by the ESRC Impact Acceleration Account through UCL Innovation & Enterprise.

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