Progress in the establishment of water decade committees in the Central African Republic

The consultants found that the National Action Committee for Water and Sanitation (CNEA) has become increasingly active in promoting and coordinating water and sanitation activities and that the GOCAR, closely following WASH advice since 1982, has established both a permanent CNEA secretariat for Water Decade activities and a Ministry of Hydraulics to plan, manage, and implement all water supply and sanitation activities nationwide. The report notes donors" increasing response to and cooperation with the CNEA. On the negative side, the consultants found that the organization and responsibilities of the CNEA and of its secretariat are still somewhat uncertain, and that the CNEA"s Technical Committee, while performing admirably over the past 2 years, has been unable to keep abreast of all recent events in water supply and sanitation sector. Both general and USAID-specific recommendations are provided; the latter include providing long- and short-term technical assistance in planning to the CNEA secretariat. Appendixes, in French, provide supporting documentation.