Paper Title
Benefits Distribution Pattern of a Water and Sanitation Program

Abstract
Largely, the water and sanitation programs do help alleviate poverty, but whether these programs distribute the benefits equally among the households having varying wealth status has been a big question mark. Hence, the objectives of the study was to determine the impact of a water and sanitation program on households having different wealth status in alleviating poverty through: a) reducing their medication cost; b) enhancing income generating opportunities; c) improving education, health, gender equity and empowerment of the households. Also, what are the perceptions of the beneficiary households about these benefits: do they perceive them as a help toward escaping from the vicious circle of poverty? For the study, 48 households in six villages were selected for the study. Methodology for selecting villages and households is discussed in the following paragraphs. For the field study, a questionnaire was prepared with the intention of using it for the semi-structured interviews with the men and women of the selected households. The findings of the study revealed that the target households are drawing multiple benefits from the program interventions. In addition to attaining the goal of the program, i.e., “improving the quality of life through reducing the diarrhoeal incidences in the target population,” the program has an appreciable impact on poverty reduction. The program interventions have empowered the beneficiary households through involving them in all phases of the program. However, the degree of empowerment varies significantly and corresponds to the degree of well being. Keywords - Income, Savings, Gender Equity, Empowerment, Health and Hygiene Education