Where are we visiting?

Location : Bishoftu
Project type : Urban Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene Capacity building
Project status : Pre intervention small town
Implementer : Bishoftu town Municipality, Water Utility and Health Department

In any other metropolis, Bishoftu could be considered a twin city to Addis Ababa. Even if it's located 45 kilometers southeast of Addis's city center, the distance from the southern tip off Addis to Bishoftu is only 25 kilometers, a distance bridged by another small town called Dukem.

Bishoftu is a beautiful small town with seven crater lakes (four of which are within the town itself while the other three are all around it), and a few mountaintops dotting its surrounding skyline.

With an elevation of 1,920 metres (6,300 ft) above sea level, Bishoftu is considered a relatively low land, which explains the hot weather especially after November. The town has a population of over 175,000, which puts it among the major towns of the country. For a country that only came into existence after the Second World War, such population shows a high growth rate which only makes service provision like water and sanitation more difficult.

Bishoftu hosts the country's major dairy and poultry farms, a factor which contributes to a major dry waste disposal crisis in the town. Bishoftu now has five reservoirs with capacity of 1000m3 (x3), 500m3 and 200m3. The 500-m3 and 200-m3 reservoirs are new and waiting to be connected to the boreholes. The Town Water Supply and Service Enterprise has 21,000 subscriber customers with tap stands in their houses while the rest of the population gets water from the town's 54 water fountains. Unlike other towns, Bishoftu does not have a lack of water meters.

Location: Butajira
Project type : Urban Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene Capacity building
Project status : Post intervention small town
Implementer : Town Municipality, Water Utility and Health Department

Butajira is found in the ethno-diverse region of Southern Nation's Nationalities and Peoples Region, about 133 kilometers south of Addis Ababa.

Part of the Guraghe zone, Butajira is inhabited by about 40,000 people. The town Water Supply and Services Enterprise has 4,000 subscribers and about 1,000 more are in the waiting list to get access in their houses. The town generates enough water for its population. However, lack of water meters has limited the reach of the Enterprise and revenue of the town utility.

Butajira is a commercial center for the Guraghe zone and hence sanitation management is a concern for its municipality and health offices. At an elevation of 2,131 meters above sea level, the weather is temperate and similar to Addis Ababa.