How systems connect - 3 of 3: Scalar connections using WASH examples

Recap

In a last of three articles, today we deal with how systems connect at scale. Previously here and here, we have dealt with how systems connect functionally and structurally citing WaSH examples. These articles are meant to spark discussions on better ways of understanding WaSH service provision conceptually i.e. a mindset for approaching WaSH in its individual systems or as a combination of all.

Scale connections in systems occur when one aspect of a system is a subset or a superset of another.

Scale connections in systems occur when one aspect of a system is a subset or a super-set of another. As a refresher, our starting understanding here is that a system comprises seven aspects. These include the people side i.e. practitioners and target groups, the rules i.e. policy, regulations and institutional arrangements, the system's objective, space i.e. where service provision takes place, transactions and, infrastructure and technology. Therefore, scale connections occur within each aspect of a system.

Examples in the WaSH sector systems

How do scalar connections in a system look like from the people side of systems? Take an example of a project officer of an NGO supervising a borehole in a village. one or more project officer answers to a program officer who in turn answers to the executive director and so on. In similar vein, target groups start at individual level, then house hold, then community and so on. At all these different scale levels, interactions and perspective varies often in a hierarchical way.

How about space? Being in the water sector, you have definitely heard about the terms catchment and subcatchment. Catchments are areas with a natural boundary (for example ridges, hills or mountains) where all surface water drains to a common channel to form rivers or creeks (See more here). Basins and subbasins are also common terms that denote spatial relations. The challenges differ at each geographic scale.

The rules aspect of systems also has a scalar connection. It starts with individual and household rule sets, community norms, regional and country rules, policies and guidelines and global treaties and guidelines. If not geared towards similar objectives, service provision is hampered.

Transactions aspect has a scale component two. The famous 3Ts and two additional one. The well known 3Ts are tarrifs, charged to consumers of WASH services, taxes sourced from revenues collected by governments from all residents in a given country to subsidize services, and transfers that include donors, concessional and grant finance, from multilateral agencies, bilateral donors among others. The other two are household investments and trade (See more here)

Lastly, scalar relations manifest in infrastructure. Trunk infrastructures serve more than one neighborhood while non-trunk infrastructure connect to these and are within a neighborhood. There is also household infrastructure that connects to the former. These three infrastructures are connected both functionally and at scale.

Round up

We now understand how scalar connections look. They are subset and superset relations within an aspect of the system. It is good to keep in mind that different scale levels may interact with different systems either structurally or functionally. This therefore gives one a frame for thinking about interactions of multiple systems in WaSH and beyond.