A descriptive cross-sectional study to assess factors of sustainability of water supply and sanitationrnprojects was done in the rural setting of North Gondar in North Western Ethiopia, January 2002. Thernquantitative study included an interviewing 768 female household respondents using a structuredrnquestionnaire. A qualitative study was conducted from one hundred fourteen water and sanitationrnprojects using observation checklist and supported by slide film and computer print out pictures.rnFocus group discussion was conducted, both at the community and at the project fundingrnorganization level. The study examined Utilization, Functionality and Participation of therncommunity as important elements of sustainability to their water and sanitation projects. The meanrnage of the respondents were 37.09 years. Seventy (9.11%) were literate, six hundred thirty tworn(82.3%) were married, of these 267(42.25%) of their husbands were literate, a mean family size ofrn5.31 persons per household, a mean of 60.72 Birr family income per month. Four hundred forty tworn(57.6%) households were using protected water projects and 5 (0.7%) were having pit latrines. Thernmean per capita water consumption was 6.68 liters, the mean time to collect water; total time, fromrnhouse to source, staying at the source, and back to the house were 20.51, 6.11, 5.65, and 8.76rnminutes respectively. The average frequency of water collection was 2.04 times per day. Threernhundred thirty nine (76.7%) were participated in the development of the water projects. Fifty-tworn(11.76%) of the respondents were complaining of not functionality of the water projects. Arnsignificant positive association of adequate water per capita was found with the family size four andrnless number of people (p= .009).rnViirn10rnA very significant positive association with the respondents complains of projects not function (p