1999 Project Evaluation Results
Prepared by the UNCDF Evaluation Unit

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I. Basic Project Data

Project Number:	GAM/92/C01/94/99
Type of Evaluation:	Final
Project Title:	Rural Water Supply and Sanitation
UN Cooperating Agencies:	UN Development Programmed (UNDP) UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA)
Government Executing Agency:	Government of Gambia
Sector:	Natural Resources
Date Project Approved:	August 1996
Date Project Began:	January 1997
Date Project Evaluated:	November 1999
UNCDF Budget:	US$    4,628,900
UNDP Budget:	1,203,151
Government Budget (in kind):	242,000
Total Budget:	6,832,051
Total Budget (cash):	5,074,051
UNCDF Expenditures at Evaluation:	1,812,247

 

II. Background

In the Gambia, there is a need to increase the health status of the rural population through the promotion of decentralized management and local control. The strategy to meet this need focuses on the provision of water supply systems through a participatory and integrated approach. The importance of the water sector in relation to national policy was established by the 1990 “Programme for Sustainable Development”, and the more recent “Strategy for Poverty Alleviation” (SPA). Two major issues had to be addressed: the poor health status of the rural population and the sustainability and management capacity of the water supplies. The Rural Water Supply and Sanitation project originated from the Government’s request to UNDP and UNCDF to further support national efforts to improve rural water supplies and to strengthen national capacity in planning, implementing and supervising water supply programmes.

>III. The Project

The overall development objective of the project was to contribute towards improving the living conditions and the alleviation of poverty for the rural population of the Gambia in three selected Divisions. The project aimed to encourage self-reliance and local governance at the village and regional levels by adopting a participatory approach. Women (as the main collectors of water) and children (the most vulnerable to water-related diseases) were the main focus of the project

The immediate objectives were:

1. To construct approximately 120 new hand-dug wells, fitted with 180 hand-pumps, to supply water to an estimated 18,000 people.
   
2. To improve approximately 60 existing hand-dug wells, fitted with 90 hand-pumps, to supply an estimated 9,000 people.
   
3. To construct approximately 10 solar powered piped water supply systems to an estimated 15,000.
   
4. To increase community standards of sanitation.

The primary target of the project was the rural community and their institutions, while the private contractors and the trained Government staff and their decentralized institutions constituted intermediate target groups. The key activities undertaken by the project included community participation, health education and sanitation activities, wells and hand-pump implementation, implementation of reticulation systems, water resources planning and management, training, participatory monitoring and evaluation, as well as coordination and linkages with other assistance.

IV. Findings of the Evaluation

A. Project Design:

The evaluation team found flaws in the design of the management structure that resulted in inefficient implementation of the project. The subordination of the project to the Directorate of Water Resources was a critical error as this hindered the ability of the project coordinator to take on fully the responsibilities of implementation. Also, the over-emphasis on an engineering approach to the project was also a mistake as it reinforced the tendency for such infrastructure projects to be dominated by technical specialists who have limited understanding and appreciation of the social processes necessary to ensure proper distribution, maintenance and sustainability of the structures. Another major oversight was the failure to recognize the area councils as major players in rural water supply and their omission as key stakeholders in the project.

B. Project Implementation Performance

On average, 27,000 rural poor people will directly benefit from the installation of 270 hand pumps. Another 15,000 will benefit from solar powered installations. To date, largely due to teething problems during project start-up related to the faulty management structure, project implementation performance is poor. The outputs are far short of the targets at two and 3/4 years into the three-year project and, as yet, there is no evidence to show that the achievement of the project outputs has led to a corresponding drop in water and sanitation related diseases. Nevertheless there has been some progress in the delivery of physical outputs and in capacity building.

i. Physical outputs

31% of new wells have been completed though none have been handed over to the community. None of the 60 wells targeted have been rehabilitated, though 11 were in tendering process at time of evaluation. Furthermore, 17% of hand-pumps have been installed and 28% of demonstration latrines dug covering 50 villages. The low installation of hand-pumps is worrisome as the already purchased hand-pumps have a 2-year warranty and one year has already passed. Also of concern is the fact that the majority of the wells with pumps fitted have no sanitary outlets. The mission noted with satisfaction the good quality of the work of some of the contractors but noted that others failed to meet the specifications in their contracts. The project cost was affected by poor implementation of the engineering team that participated passively in the inspection and monitoring of field activities, as well as additional costs incurred for the correction of the defects in the works executed by private contractors.

ii. Capacity Building

Implementation Capacity
In terms of capacity building, two training workshops for well-digging contractors were held, and 55% of area mechanics and 33% of masons have been trained. It is assessed that the contractors now have a clear understanding of the specifications and drawings on which the tenders are based. However, for many, the bidding format is too complicated. It was found that very few contractors have the necessary equipment to carry out the various construction tasks in a timely manner and resorted to hiring equipment as work progressed. The training provided for the area mechanics coupled with the village training and sensitization for maintenance mobilization has definitely increased the capacity of the nation-wide maintenance system. With regard to village-level training, local capacity could have been tapped to get a timely start-up of the PRAs, social development exercises and well and bore-hole construction.

Management Systems and Institutional Arrangements
The project has performed unsatisfactorily in providing support to the establishment of local systems. Although a tendering system has been introduced and construction documents have been completed, there are, as yet, no reticulation design and systems. The sector strategy development study has been suspended and the database update of the Divisional Planning Offices (DPOs) has not been done because the DPOs are not in place. These delays registered in contracting of private contractors and the time lag between opening of bids and award of contracts (3-5 months) are all in violation of the provisions of the Rules and Regulations governing the contracts. The anomalies in the award of the contracts and the deficiencies in the execution of these are mainly due to the weak management and institutional arrangements in place.

The evaluation team strongly feels that in order to fulfill the objectives of the project in an extended time frame, the current management structure of the project must be overhauled. The prevailing decision-making structure and process have to a large extent been responsible for the delays in the execution of all components of the project. More importantly it has so far neglected the primary objectives of decentralization and community empowerment. The project was also poorly monitored. Supervision was not effectively done, and lagged too long behind the inspection of the wells.

Social Development Capacity
The promotion of sanitation, health and hygiene education did not receive enough or equal attention as that given to the construction of water supply facilities. A Health Education Task Force was set up in September 1998. Two health education manuals (one for health workers and the other for schools) and 4 posters were identified for revision and reproduction. However, the production of the manual for schools is suspended due to procedural problems at the Curriculum Development Unit, the Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices (KAP) survey has not been done and the Health Education and Hygiene campaign has not begun. The social development methodology relied too much on the extension teams during the actual village capacity building rather than facilitating implementation through community based extension agents. Given the current pace of progress, full implementation of the social development component will not be achieved by the end of the present project dates.

iii. Community Participation

The project document puts emphasis on beneficiary participation to ensure ownership. So far, the training received by the communities concentrates mainly on preparing them to receive the facilities. 38% of Village Water Committees (VWCs) have been trained to receive water supply but not to manage, operate and maintain facilities. As none of the wells have been handed over to the VWCs, it is not possible to assess their performance. The budgetary allocation for social development work is only about 1.4% of total. With the focus on service delivery, there was hardly any mention of attempts to measure changes in the behavior of the beneficiaries.

Participation of Women
It seems that women have the opportunity to participate in management and are empowered in the decision-making for their water and sanitation projects. Also, gender-balanced approaches to meeting water and sanitation objectives are enforced in some communities, but in some, there remains inequality.

>V. Recommendations

i. Institutional Issues

The Department of Water Resources is, to a large extent, responsible for the delays in the execution of all components of the project because of its inadequate management style. It is recommended that the responsibility of DWR be minimized, and that of the Project Coordinator be reinforced. The role and attributions of the Project Coordinator should be clearly spelt out in an amended document and approved by the Office of the President, UNDP and UNCDF.

The PCC should remain the sole organ at central level to which the Project Coordinator should report and it should be expanded to include the NEA. UNDP/UNCDF should play a more assertive role within the PCC in monitoring of all aspects of the project execution.
After the project ends, the DCs should monitor and/or pursue some activities of the project. The DCs should be prepared to request from the Central Government during fiscal year budgeting, necessary funds to meet project requirements to warrant its sustainability.
ii. Implementation Issues

With regard to existing private contracts and for the ensuing lots for construction, defaulting contractors should be excluded from all project works. The use of local contractors with roots in the community, districts or division is recommended as this will promote competition and better performance amongst those contractors or group of contractors resident known by the communities to serve them better.

With regard to the tendering process, it is proposed that the process be decentralized and new contracts committees be set up at the divisional level, comprising: Divisional WATSAN committees, an NEA representative, an Area Council representative, a representative of the major tender board, and UNDP/UNCDF. The opening of bids, evaluations and award of contracts should be carried out in no more than two sittings at Divisional headquarters.
An inventory must be made for spare-parts and these should be made available to village communities at no cost. Tool-sets for maintenance of hand-pumps should be handed over to the Area Mechanics, with close-monitoring to ensure proper disbursement.

To support capacity building for decentralisation, there should be an assessment of the capacity and performance of the following agencies, focussing on institutional and financial management capacities - the Divisional Coordinating Committees, the Divisional Project Steering Committee (DPSC), the Divisional Area Councils (AC), the Division Extension Teams (DET), the Divisional Commissioners (DCs), WATSAN and VW Committees, the Rural Water Supply Division (RWSD) and the latrine construction programmes.

iii. Technical Supervision

Bore-holes must be flushed every 5 years, and the cost supported by the DCs. Wells should be inspected every two years, cleaned every five years and the cost also supported by the DCs. Hand-dug wells also should be cleaned after a certain number of years.
In regards to the inspection of the water facilities during construction, a decentralized system operating at Area Council level is the most efficient. A coordinated inspection-training program with Area Councils will facilitate and streamline the inspection exercises.

iv. Sector Strategic Issues

Water Sector
Sectoral studies should be conducted to cover technical, socio-economic and environmental aspects of development of a comprehensive Water Sector Strategy and Action Plan. The development of the Water Sector Strategy should be carried out during the extended phase of the project using DWR and other local resources. The Water Resources Engineer and Hydro-geologists in the project can undertake the tasks of strategy development. The key elements of strategy development may be developed from those recommended in Chapter III of the WSSD report. The NEMA and the proposed Water Act proposed in the HIS report of 1993 should be harmonized.

Environmental Sanitation
The project should introduce sustainable waste disposal techniques in the communities, including discouragement of indiscriminate disposal in compounds, streets, and footpaths, and use of simple incinerators using mud bricks or waste bins that can be locally manufactured.

An assessment should be conducted of the water quality impacts of the extension of pit latrine construction and the proliferation of waste disposal sites by ad hoc water quality tests in the vicinity of these sites. This will provide the communities with vital guidelines for locating pit latrine and waste disposal sites.

VI. Lessons Learned

The importance of an effective Management Structure
It is critical for the successful implementation of any project to ensure the establishment of a management structure that is directly accountable for the attainment of the project objectives, and that has the capacity and motivation to carry the project through. During the project design stage, more critical institutional analyses of the proposed management structure need to be conducted and different alternatives considered in light of existing institutional arrangements, personnel, work culture, etc. in order to ensure selection of an effective management structure.

The importance of addressing Social Processes in infrastructure projects
In order to maximize the benefits from the infrastructure built, social development and education processes are critical. Orientation and awareness workshops/seminars should be incorporated into the social development and health education components of the project extension and adequate budgetary allocation needs to be made for these. The expertise of NGOs and other in-country partners should also be harnessed. The mass-media should be utilized for social development and education as well; this includes the use of local media resources; such as distribution of printed materials and village lectures, as well as national media resources, such as radio and television where available.

The importance of explicitly addressing Gender Issues
Empowering women in the decision-making process of water and sanitation projects is necessary. Women in all communities in the division have the opportunity to become organized through Women’s Bureau or DCs to function as cooperatives. Though this is not WATSAN’s responsibility, the Committee could sensitize, motivate and encourage women to further study this model for implementation in their community. Women’s groups should also be given management and problem solving skills and be encouraged to participate in adult literacy programs. Gender-balanced approaches to meeting Water and Environmental Sanitation objectives are, therefore, essential. It has been implemented in some VWCs, for example in Dasilami, and this should be encouraged in all communities.

For the development of gender strategies, reference should be made to - the “UNICEF Strategies in Water and Environmental Sanitation” which urges for the recognition of women as key players and agents of change and not solely as primary beneficiaries; and “United Nations System-wide Special Initiative on Africa”, which focus on empowering women responsibility, ownership, access to technology, credit, extension services, etc.

VII. Evaluation Team

The evaluation was carried out by:

• Abdoulaye Djegal, Hydraulic and Irrigation Engineer, MBA (Team-Leader)
  
• Malamin Sonko, Social Development Specialist
  
• Malick John, Water Resources Engineer