Scenarios for public systems transition using learning alliances : the case of water supply in Uganda

Display title

Scenarios for public systems transition using learning alliances

Strapline

The case of water supply in Uganda

Publication DOI

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07900627.2021.1969223

Node read time

5 minutes

Resource type

Journal article

Listing introduction text

An overview of Uganda’s efforts to modernise rural water supply through collaborative learning alliances and action research.

Page introduction

An overview of Uganda’s efforts to modernise rural water supply through collaborative learning alliances and action research.

Member

Uganda

Location

Uganda

Theme

Systems leadership

RIVA Authors

Author role

Primary Author

RIVA author profile link

Patrick Moriarty

Language English

Name prefix

Dr

Surname

Moriarty

Member

Riva Global

RIVA role

Secretary General

Job description

Secretary General, Riva Network

Featured image

Listing introduction

A visionary leader who has played a leading role in redefining global water policy, turning systems thinking into a movement for lasting change

The world knows how to deliver essential public services to everyone. What unlocks it is political will, the right systems, and leaders who understand that water and sanitation are not technical problems – they are governance ones. Patrick Moriarty has spent twenty-five years making that case, and building the intellectual tools to back it up.

His central contribution has been to shift how the sector thinks: from infrastructure to systems, from projects to services, from delivery to sustainability. The concepts of systems thinking, systems strengthening and systems leadership – now embedded in the vocabulary of the field – were developed in significant part through his work at Riva over more than two decades.

That intellectual agenda has always been matched by political engagement. Through his work in Riva and as chair of Sanitation and Water for All, he helped build the Presidential Compact model – head-of-state commitments to water and sanitation as a national priority – into a movement in more than ten countries. A civil engineer by training with a PhD in Water Resource Management, he brings technical grounding to debates that are fundamentally about politics and human behaviour. He is Irish and lives between Bristol and The Hague.

A few highlights

Secretary General of the Riva Network – leading the transformation of IRC from a Dutch NGO into a federated global network of nationally-led organisations
An architect of the Presidential Compacts movement – head-of-state commitments to water and sanitation as a national priority, now active in more than ten countries across Africa and Asia
Co-founder of the One For All alliance – a unique partnership with Water for People built around a shared strategy, shared results framework (Destination 2030), and a jointly registered UK legal entity; one of the few genuine peer alliances in international development
Co-founder of the Agenda for Change – a network of organisations committed to driving systems change in water and sanitation globally
Pioneer of the systems strengthening agenda in water and sanitation – co-developing the life-cycle costing approach to sustainable services, and convening the All Systems Connect Symposium to connect water, health, climate and social justice
Working languages: English and French

LinkedIn link

https://www.linkedin.com/in/pbmoriarty

Metadata Description

Patrick Moriarty metaData description text.

Profile quote

Patrick Moriarty - profile

First name

Patrick

Author role

Secondary Author

RIVA author profile link

Jane Nabunnya Mulumba

Language English

Surname

Nabunnya Mulumba

Member

Uganda

RIVA role

CEO

Job description

CEO, Riva Uganda

Featured image

Listing introduction

From grassroots advocacy to national reform, Jane Mulumba makes systems work for the people they serve

Before Jane Nabunnya Mulumba joined Riva, she spent a decade helping civil society organisations across Uganda find their voice – learning how to document evidence, engage local government and hold public institutions to account. She brought that understanding with her when she joined, and it shapes everything she does: systems don't transform because of better plans. They transform because the right people are involved and heard.

Jane connects grassroots-level evidence with the policy tables where decisions are made – helping Uganda's institutions build the accountability structures that make services work for everyone. She’s equally at home moderating a national planning dialogue with government ministries as she is helping local leaders find their seat at the table. What she brings to both is the conviction that the least-heard voices should shape what happens next – and the skill to make that happen.

Twenty years of being embedded in Uganda's public service landscape have given Jane a depth of relationships and understanding that goes well beyond her formal roles. Recognised among the Top 100 African Women Leading Africa’s Water and Sanitation Future in 2026, and as one of the women influencing change in Uganda in 2015, she holds three Master’s degrees – in Communication, in Public Policy and Management, and in Public Health Leadership. She is based in Kampala.

A few highlights

15 years building systems leadership and institutional reform in Uganda – from district networks to national planning tables
Country Coordinator, Triple-S initiative in Uganda – multi-country systems change programme supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Member of the National WASH Steering Committee – cross-ministerial body working to break institutional silos and strengthen accountability for service delivery
Board of Directors, UWASNET – the national civil society network for water and sanitation, representing a unified voice for policy influence
National Coordinator, Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) – a UN-hosted global membership organisation
One of the Women Influencing Change in Uganda, UWASNET, 2015
One of the 100 women leading Africa’s Water and Sanitation Future, the African Water and Sanitation Association (AfWASA) and Rural Water Supply Network (RWSN), 2026
Working languages: English and Luganda

Profile quote

Jane Nabunnya Mulumba

First name

Jane

Author role

Tertiary Author

RIVA author profile link

Martin Watsisi

Language English

Surname

Watsisi

Member

Uganda

RIVA role

Expert

Job description

Regional water and sanitation advisor

Listing introduction

Martin has worked alongside local leaders, governments, and communities, recognising that meaningful development is built on local knowledge, local ownership, and strong partnerships.

First name

Martin

External authors

Author role

Primary Author

External author

Angela Huston

Featured image

Name prefix

Dr

External author/speaker first name

Angela

External author/speaker surname

Huston

External organisation name

Former IRC Associate

External author/speaker role

Director of Policy, External organisation name

Angela Huston joined IRC in 2016 and after seven and a half years of full commitment to the WASH sector, she moved to the role of IRC Associate. In this role, she supported IRC's CONNECT initiative.

Angela has a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from McGill University, completed in close collaboration with the IRC Uganda team. Angela is experienced in dialogue facilitation and inclusive multi-stakeholder methods. She values pragmatism and humour.

Angela speaks English, French, and Spanish, and is currently learning Italian and German.

Author role

Secondary Author

External author

Susan Gaskin

External author/speaker first name

Susan

External author/speaker surname

Gaskin

External organisation name

McGill University

External author/speaker link

https://www.mcgill.ca/

Job description

Professor in Civil Engineering

Publisher

International Journal of Water Resources Development

Page sections

content

Uganda's Vision 2040 aims to modernize rural water supply through a transition from community-managed point sources to professionally managed piped water services. At the start of the transition period, a learning alliance established in Kabarole District participated in action research to develop scenarios predicting possible future development trajectories. The diversity of its membership, whose formal institutional roles spanned national, district and niche levels, increased the robustness of the strategies proposed for the adaptively managed transition of the public water service. The learning alliance has been facilitated by a non-governmental organization providing funding and expert advice; the effectiveness of this approach is demonstrated.[author abstract]