The main purpose of the Rural Water Supply and Sanitation project is the full-scale demonstration of the new sector strategy whose objectives are: 1) to maximize the impact and use of safe water supply and sanitation facilities in rural areas; and 2) to ensure that the future development of the sector will actually respond to the demand of rural population. This requires the creation of an enabling environment for local contractors and consultants, for commercializing village-level operated and maintained (VLOM) pumps and spare parts through private networks and for promoting affordable solutions for on-site sanitation. The project comprises four components: a) water supply for rural communities in two regions; b) provision of VLOM pumps to cover the needs of all rural water supply projects in Benin; c) sanitation and hygiene education for rural communities in two regions; and d) capacity building. The project will cover the Atlantique and Zou regions.