In order to support India's universal sanitation initiative, the government and World Bank have signed $1.5 billion loan agreement for the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM). The pact for SBM Support Operation Project is to help the government in its efforts to ensure that all citizens in the rural areas have access to improved sanitation with a focus on changing behaviour and eliminating the practice of open defecation by 2019.
The project will support the rural component, known as SBM - Gramin (SBM-G), over a five-year period using a new performance-based programme which links funds directly to results, ensuring that benefits are delivered to the people in need - more than 60 per cent of India's population that resides in rural areas. The project will also finance specific activities to strengthen the current monitoring and evaluation system to capture timely, relevant, and reliable information on the programme's progress.
The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation (MDWS) will oversee and coordinate the project and support the participating states. Funds will also be used to develop the capacity of MDWS in programme management, advocacy, monitoring and evaluation. The World Bank will also provide a parallel $25 million technical assistance to build the capacity of select states in implementing community-led behavioural change programmes targeting social norms to help ensure widespread usage of toilets by rural households.