On Tuesday, April 11, 2023, the Waste and Sanitation Management Company (Société de Gestion des Déchets et de la Salubrité, SGDS) held an official handover ceremony in the municipality of Abomey-Calavi marking the operation of the country’s first viable Fecal Sludge Treatment Plant (FSTP). The ceremony was attended by stakeholders in the sanitation sector, including the leasing SGDS, private operator DELVIC, the Association of Professional Emptying Operators of Benin (Association des Vidangeurs professionnels du Bénin, AVIPRO-Benin), and the USAID/West Africa Municipal Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (USAID MuniWASH) Activity. MuniWASH, funded by USAID, works to increase sustainable public and private investments in the sanitation sector by supporting and facilitating joint activities between local authorities and private sanitation actors. In a bid to drive impactful reforms, USAID MuniWASH has partnered with SGDS to implement essential changes in the water and sanitation sector. As part of this collaboration, USAID MuniWASH closely works with Vacuum Trucks Operators (VTOs), recognizing their significance in effective sanitation service delivery. These collaborations directly influence the operations of DELVIC, a newly established private operator. With DELVIC just beginning its activities, USAID MuniWASH actively coordinates with DELVIC to ensure better synchronization and a unified approach achieving the shared objectives of the Benin government and USAID resulting insignificant advancements in the sanitation sector, ultimately benefiting communities in need.

The handover ceremony of the FSTP in Abomey-Calavi holds particular importance for the Government of Benin and the private sanitation sector, as it represents a crucial step in implementing recent reforms in the wastewater management sector. USAID MuniWASH’s participation represented the diversified and multifaceted support that USAID provides for effective fecal sludge collection, transport, and treatment in Benin. USAID MuniWASH actively supports the implementation of reforms alongside the Government and through SGDS by preparing sanitation operators to adapt to the sub-sector changes. One remarkable achievement is the transformation within the empty-search services sector, which was previously characterized by disorganization and fragmentation. Now, these companies have united, pooling their resources to form well-structured companies capable of meeting the organizational, legal, technical, and business management requirements to obtain the necessary approvals to provide emptying services to the population.

USAID's capacity building initiatives have played a crucial role in making this accomplishment possible, focusing on formalization, understanding different legal statuses, and the associated benefits and drawbacks in terms of credibility and access to financing. Moreover, USAID MuniWASH has enhanced the capacity of these companies by providing training in areas such as bookkeeping, personnel and productivity management, marketing, and costing. By equipping these companies with the necessary skills and knowledge, USAID MuniWASH aims to position them for successful collaboration with DELVIC, thus strengthening the overall sanitation ecosystem. This concerted effort represents a significant step towards establishing well-functioning and sustainable partnerships that will ultimately benefit the population and improve sanitation services.

During the ceremony, the representative from SGDS expressed gratitude to USAID for their support in the reform process of Benin’s on-site sanitation subsector. He also expressed satisfaction in the handing over of the treatment plant to DELVIC. The DELVIC representative reassured participants about the effective measures taken, including recruiting qualified operational staff, facilitating time saving measures during unloading, and the digitizing payment for unloading fees. The President of AVIPRO-BENIN, representing the emptying operators, expressed their hopes for a transparent and productive collaboration between SGDS, DELVIC, and AVIPRO for the benefit of the local population.

The Abomey-Calavi Sludge Treatment Plant, with a capacity of 600 m3 is the first FSTP commissioned by the Benin government under lease to the private sector. It is important to recall that the government of Benin is also constructing three new FSTPs in Abomey Calavi, Sèmè-Podji and Parakou, with the aim of revolutionizing the wastewater management sector in country. The ceremony ended with the official handover of the treatment plant’s keys to DELVIC.