An assessment of the enabling environment on inclusive urban sanitation in Nakuru city: policies, institutions, financing and service delivery 

Billions of people still lack access to safe sanitation despite global progress in sanitation coverage. In 2022, only 17 countries were on track to achieve universal sanitation access, while 84 countries were making insufficient progress and 24 countries were experiencing declining coverage. This shows the persistent challenge of attaining Sustainable Development Goal 6.2, which emphasizes access to safely managed sanitation. Urban areas such as Nakuru City in Kenya continue to face sanitation infrastructure gaps and enabling environment challenges that affect the delivery of inclusive and sustainable sanitation services.

This study assessed the influence of the enabling environment on inclusive urban sanitation service delivery in Nakuru City. The study was guided by four objectives: to examine the influence of the policy framework, assess the influence of the institutional framework, determine the influence of financial models, and assess the influence of service delivery approaches on inclusive urban sanitation service delivery. The study used a cross sectional design and combined quantitative and qualitative methods.

A census approach was applied to a target population of 80 sanitation actors drawn from the County Government, water utilities, national agencies, Ministries, Non-Governmental Organizations, sanitation service providers, financial institutions, the private sector and community leadership. Key informants were selected purposively because of their direct knowledge of sanitation governance and service delivery. Information was obtained through questionnaires, key informant interviews, document review and observation.

Questionnaire data were analysed using frequencies, percentages, means, standard deviations, Pearson correlation and multiple regression, while interview data were analysed thematically. The descriptive findings gave an average mean of 3.630 for the institutional framework, 3.296 for the policy framework, 3.236 for financial models and 3.218 for service delivery approaches. Inclusive urban sanitation service delivery recorded an average mean of 3.069, pointing to moderate performance.

The findings showed that Nakuru City had an established policy basis for sanitation, although implementation continued to be affected by weak enforcement, limited monitoring, incomplete operational instruments and gaps in stakeholder awareness. Institutional performance was constrained by coordination difficulties, inadequate community participation, political interference, enforcement weaknesses and capacity limitations. Financing arrangements were also uneven, particularly in relation to financial inclusion, support for low-income and non-sewered areas, cost recovery and dedicated sanitation budgets.

Service delivery had progressed, but technical capacity, infrastructure limitations, inconsistent operational procedures, limited scheduled emptying and weaknesses in downstream fecal sludge management remained evident. The study concluded that inclusive urban sanitation had not yet been fully realized in Nakuru City and that improvements depended on strengthening the wider enabling environment.

It recommended the operationalization of fecal sludge management regulations and standard operating procedures, stronger institutional coordination, dedicated sanitation financing, wider use of innovative financing options, better tracking of sanitation services, improved technical capacity and deeper community involvement.