When thinking about business possibilities, it is essential to understand the factors affecting the business environment where CBEs are working in the Madimba area. There are several things having impact on the business that cannot be controlled by the enterprises. The factors discussed are classified as political, economic, social and technological.
When considering political factors, laws and regulations seem to be in place or at least improving when it comes to the sanitation in Zambia and in the Madimba - area. Importance of the sanitation is noted in the political agenda. In the interviews with the sanitation institutions, it became clear that on-site sanitation is getting more attention and there will be more regulations and by-laws related to the on-site sanitation and FSM. Also, tariffs are
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included in the political factors as a financing method, but pricing of the services needs to be discussed between the parties and will be regulated soon also in the on-site sanitation sector. According to the institutions, co-operation between the CBEs and government agencies is told to be in place and the CBEs are involved in the decision making. One thing giving negative impact on operating in the environment is the rate of corruption. It is quite high in Zambia, so it is possible not all the financing is going to purposes it is supposed to or there might be challenges to find financing because of the reputation of the country when it comes to the corruption. Otherwise Zambia has been politically stable which is good sign for business.
Economic factors are divided into macro-and micro-economic. When it comes to macroeconomic factors, it should be noted that according to the World bank (2019) Zambia is among the countries with highest inequality in the world, 58% of population living under poverty line (1,90 $ per day) and according to the research by Chisanga (2019) 78% of population in Madimba is really poor. In 2018 external pressures caused high costs of debt service as well as put pressure on the Zambian kwacha, which depreciated by 12% in 2018 before stabilizing around 1 USD = 12 kwachas. Depreciation has not affected on the inflation, which has remained in medium range of 6-8%. (World bank 2019.) According to the numbers, the poverty of the population may be seen as low capability to pay for services and in general low purchasing power in the area. But on the other hand, there could be many people in Zambia and in Madimba that are looking for new income creation possibilities to sustain themselves and their families, and who could be utilized as work force.
About microeconomic factors, first of all, the field of business, sanitation is necessary in the area because it is in a very poor state. Many people are lacking basic sanitation facilities, hygiene level is low, diseases spread widely, and groundwater is contaminated causing many problems. It is clear that there is a market and demand for the dry toilets, but because of the high poverty levels, sanitation facilities are not the top priority for households to invest.
Challenges for people to understand the value of the sanitation and some stigma against dry toilets among the people also exist. Pit latrines, septic tanks and sewerage systems can be seen as competitive solutions in the area. Though, compared to other options, dry toilets could be cheaper and more sustainable option, because of the reuse possibilities of the
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manure and urine. Also, Madimba area is water locked and that is the reason why pit latrines are not good option for the environment, since through them the groundwater gets contaminated. Because of the fast growing population and urbanization, compounds around Lusaka are getting really crowded, meaning that there is inbuilt demand and many users for the dry toilets. It could be difficult to provide flushing toilets for everyone with low costs, but dry toilets could be built more easily to the challenging areas, despite the type of the ground, which is one of the advantages.
When considering social factors, like it was mentioned by the institutions, dry toilets are not totally accepted by the people, especially the emptying of the toilets, instructions on the use of facilities as well as reuse part of the toilet output. Although, according to the households they were satisfied with their toilets and saw potential in the reuse of the material but using it in their own gardens was still relatively rare. More sensitization and awareness creation are needed to increase the interest and also local researches and scientific proof are needed.
The written proof could increase the value of dry toilets and make the reuse part of the chain more accepted and active, and by that way create more business possibilities.
The technology of a dry toilet seems to be fitting well in Madimba, since it is easy to build and maintain, even local materials can be used. The technology of the dry toilets is suitable for areas with high water levels and it reduces the contamination of the groundwater. Also emptying is simple. In the double vault toilets, composting is done while using the other vault and after the time required for processing, material can be straight applied to gardening without need for separate treatment facilities. However, there is still room for technology development when it comes to dry toilets. Currently in Zambia only squatting pans are easily available for the UDDTs, while sitting pans are ordered for a high price from abroad. Sitting pans could make dry toilets more modern and more accepted by the population.
All in all, it seems that the business environment for the dry toilets is quite potential in Madimba area, there is clearly a need for the sanitation facilities and the political agenda is supporting sanitation, taking the on-site sanitation even more in consideration. The technology of dry toilets is good and suitable for the environmentally challenging area. Still, awareness raising and marketing are essential to create more demand and make people
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realize the importance of the sanitation and possibilities of the reuse of toilet waste.
Challenges in the area are related to the poverty level, since not many households are able to pay for the dry toilets or services, but on the other hand, poverty in the area can be seen also as potentially available workforce. There is also room for technology development. If sitting pans were easily available, they could bring additional value to the dry toilets and could be more accepted by the households.