South-Western Towns Water and Sanitation / Water and Sanitation Development Facility - Monitoring with Backstopping Services
The South Western Towns Water and Sanitation (SWTWS) project became operational in 1996 and was targeted specifically at providing safe water and improved sanitation facilities in small towns and rural growth centres (RGCs). Over time the original project has evolved into a regional programme covering 17 districts (EUR 17.5 million over 5 years, 2006-2011, including significant EU co-funding). The target of the current phase is to implement 75 schemes serving about 300,000 beneficiaries.
The project has had significant influence on the development of the rural sub-sector in Uganda by developing a number of new and innovative approaches in water supply and sanitation that are today considered as national best practices; i.e. demand-led, participatory project identification based on transparent criteria; introduction of innovative technologies, including ecological sanitation, solar energy supply and rainwater harvesting; using water supply as an incentive by making 100% sanitation coverage a commitment; effective operation & maintenance mechanism (e.g. delegated management by local private scheme operators in rural WSS, establishment of an umbrella organisation of local water services providers).
Since 2006 the project has been converted from a regional implementation programme into a pilot branch of a national Water and Sanitation Development Facility (WSDF - South-Western Branch), with less direct involvement in implementation and a stronger role given to local governments and to the private sector. Funding is channelled through a multi-donor basket fund (Joint Partnership Fund - JPF). A replication of the WSDF model has been adopted in two other regions - the WSDF-North and -East branches.
The objective of the assignment is to develop a detailed concept for the financing of rural water infrastructure in Rwanda.
The expert team provided by hydrophil in association with the University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences, Vienna, had a key role in developing the model described above. Specifically it has been tasked to ensure
- continuous assistance and backstopping to the PIU (internal reviews);
- identification of problems, potentials and the need for applied research and specialised consultancy services (quality assurance);
- scaling up of the model and change management, i.e. preparation and support of the transformation process from a project towards a national Water and Sanitation Development Facility for funding and implementing WatSan infrastructure in rural Uganda.
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