Water International

Special Issue: It Doesn't Hurt to Ask

Quantification of qualitative data in the water sector: the challenges

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DOI:: 10.1080/02508060802022209

Christine Sijbesma^a^* & Leonie Postma^b

pages 150-161

Available online: 20 May 2008

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Abstract

This paper describes a participatory methodology that quantifies qualitative information for management at all levels. The methodology, developed to assess the sustainability of community- managed improved water supplies, sanitation and hygiene, allows correlation of outcomes to processes of participation and gender and social equity. Application in over 15 countries has shown that such quantified qualitative methods are an important supplement to or an alternative for social surveys. When properly applied, quantification offers interesting new opportunities. It makes participatory methods more attractive to large programmes and gives practitioners and donors a new chance to adopt standards of rigor and ethics.