Role of Citizen Science in Safe Drinking Water in Nepal: Lessons on Water Quality Monitoring from Brazil

Abstract

Availability and accessibility of safe drinking water remain some of the main challenges in many parts of the world, especially in developing countries. Brazil and Nepal are two developing countries from two different continents, and both are considered water resourceful countries, but they still face significant water and sanitation problems. An experience of a research work in the rural area of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil ‘Design of a Community-Based Water Quality Monitoring (CBWQM) Strategy’ implies a huge potential of involving active stakeholders in assessing and monitoring water quality to ensure the improved health of the citizens. In the case of Nepal, about 80% of prevalent communicable diseases are due to poor sanitation and lack of access to quality water. There is a big gap between the coverage and functionality of the water supply system owing to the degraded quality of water. In fact, there is no data available on water quality. The Water Safety Plan (WSP) tool has been helping the government strategy, but the data accuracy of Citizen Based Monitoring (CBM) needs to be checked. In order to provide reliable baseline of water quality data and institute a monitoring mechanism with proper SDG indicators, a specific methodological approach has been designed for the selected area of Nepal (Pokhara Metropolitan City). The approach focuses mainly on the selection of appropriate tools (Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) like mobile applications, sensors) implemented with stakeholders’ participation (through water user’s committees, local schools and authorities), which in conjunction will provide a suitable data management system for the proper collection, storage, analysis, verification, and dissemination of acquired data.