Multiples Uses of Water in Madagascar: drinking water, agriculture and livestock

About

Multiple Uses Services (MUS) is an approach being supported by UNICEF and partners to help build drought resilience for the poorest communities in Southern Madagascar. The MUS approach aims to meet both households’ domestic and livelihood needs whilst at the same time, ensuring the most efficient use of water resources. The programme operates on three basic principles: i) sustainability of groundwater resources needs to be ensured, ii) water services are to be paid for and iii) the quality of water for drinking purposes must be preserved. There is a major incentive to keep MUS functional (more so than single-use water systems) as livelihoods depend on it. Cost recovery and attention to maintenance are improving with time.