What is the MUS Group?

''Poor men and women have much to teach us, if we can only find the time and the humility to listen ... poor people are saying that they need water not only for drinking, cooking and washing, but also for productive purposes. We must hear the desire of poor households to lift themselves up out of poverty, and the role that water can play in this process."
Ronnie Kasrils, Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry, South Africa

The thematic group (originally known as the PRODWAT group) was established in 2003 in order to contribute to the reduction of poverty and gender equity through the improved delivery of small-scale multiple-use water services at the household level.

The group works to achieve its aims by advocating and supporting the development of improved policy and practice in providing water to people in ways that respond to their full range of needs: both domestic and productive. There are three principal groups of activities

• Bringing together a group of sector professionals from the water, rural development and poverty alleviation sectors to operate as a "think tank", with the aim of advancing our common understanding of the issues related to developing and scaling up community managed, multiple-use, water supply systems and improving the productivity of water used at the household level.
• Initiating specific "projects" (e.g. action research, workshops, e-conferences etc), involving a wider group of stakeholders, to improve our understanding of how to: implement effective systems on the ground, support improved water productivity (market linkages, crop choice, inputs etc), and scale-up community and household managed multiple-use systems.
• Engaging in advocacy activities to support and promote self-managed multiple-use systems. Advocacy is principally aimed at: a) policy makers and donor agencies and b) the wider community of sector professionals.

The work of the group is based upon a set of principles, findings and recommendations from an international symposium held in Johannesburg, South Africa in January 2003. These are captured in a statement that was adopted by the symposium.

If you would like to join the group, or learn more about its activities, please contact John Butterworth.