Financial insecurity among sanitation workers and its impacts on safe service reliability: a case study of the Arusha depot manual emptying group

Abstract

ABSTRACT Graph showing how sanitation workers income's income insecurity and debt cycles reduce sanitation performance, and how scheduled emptying, municipal contracting, social protection and financial inclusion improve both worker livelihood and service delivery Despite sanitation workers' role in urban public health and environmental protection, their financial security and its implications for service delivery remain poorly understood, particularly in low-income settings of rapidly growing cities. This study examined the nature of financial insecurity among sanitation workers and its implications for reliable sanitation service delivery in Arusha, Tanzania. A mixed-methods approach was employed, combining financial diaries, in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and field observations along the sanitation service chain. Results revealed substantial income volatility, with monthly earnings ranging from below TZS 300,000 to over TZS 1,000,000. Also, there are frequent mismatches between income and essential household expenditures, particularly education and healthcare costs. The absence of formal employment contracts (75%), limited access to social protection and financial services (18%), and reliance on informal credit (7%) contributed to financial insecurity. Financial insecurity directly affects service reliability through delayed response times (34%), reduced safety compliance (8%), equipment downtime (2%), and prioritization of higher-paying clients (56%), which constitutes a structural constraint to reliable equitable urban sanitation services. Addressing this challenge requires integrated institutional reforms, including their inclusion in municipal sanitation planning. Sanitation workers' financial security is essential for advancing safely managed sanitation towards achieving SDG 6.2.