Gambia Project - Role of the World Food Programme (WFP)

Transcription

1 ANNEX 1. IDENTIFICATION Title/Number The Republic of the Gambia Drainage, sanitation and waste management interventions for flood prevention in the Gambia GM/FED/23753 Total cost EUR th EDF contribution - B envelope Aid method / Method of implementation Project approach Partially Decentralised Management and Joint Management with the World Food Programme DAC-code Sector Basic Sanitation 2. RATIONALE 2.1. Sector context Context of the intervention: In September and October 2010, the Gambia faced heavy rainfall which created massive flooding. The government declared a state of emergency the 7 th September families were directly affected, about persons or 2% of the population, with 17 deaths. The Gambian Government decide to request EU assistance in the infrastructure sector in order to mitigate the impact of future flooding. Policies and strategies: The Government has focused successfully for the last 20 years on access to safe drinking water. However, drainage, sanitation, waste management and sewage have been somewhat neglected and there is no master plan ready to allow the implementation of a relevant and efficient infrastructure project in that sector. This sector needs to be addressed in a comprehensive way, starting by building a complete national strategy. The government has already prepared Terms of Reference to prepare such a strategy and a master plan, mainly in the Greater Banjul area. Unfortunately, due to the lack of important donor support for the sector, there are no funds for investment, although the Department of Water Resources has the capacity to manage and maintain such drainage and sanitation system. Moreover, the Department of Water Resources can be efficiently assisted by the Ministry of Works and the National Road Authority, well capable of implementing complex works contracts. In terms of crisis management, the country is setting up, through the National Disaster Management Act of 2008, and with the help of the UN agency World Food Programme (WFP), a complete organisation, including: i) the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) under the responsibility of the Vice-President, to face emergency situations and improve procedures and organisation; ii) the National Disaster Management Programme and the National Disaster Management Policy 2008, providing a comprehensive action plan and strategy for emergency issues. This National Disaster Management Organisation has already faced several crises including the 2010 flooding, in a satisfactory way, according to the UN. In terms of waste management and urban planning, no real organisation exists in the country and no dialogue is in place in these sectors between the Government and the main donors/organisations, even though it is recognized by the main stakeholders that they are the main sectors for which an improvement would have a major impact on mitigating the impact of future heavy rains. 1

2 Problem analysis and issues addressed by the project: No proper drainage system is in place in the country. The impact of such a lack of facilities on other infrastructure, such as settlements and roads, is severe. Moreover, in case of heavy rainfall, the "natural" drainage system is often overwhelmed, mostly because of settlements in inappropriate locations, rubbish blocking the flows or lack of any infrastructure. The rain water mixes with sewage and garbage and drastically increases the possibility of contracting diseases such as malaria, cholera and infant diarrhoea. The impact on health is increased by the vulnerability of the victims who often live in poor conditions in very populated areas with low hygienic knowledge. The consequences of the 2010 flooding have been identified by a joint report issued by the Government, the civil society and the UN. The proposed interventions will temporarily address the issue of drainage, sanitation and waste management in 7 dense urban areas where the population is the most vulnerable, and the impact of the flooding is the most important. This intervention is fully in line with the third pillar of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper II ( ) of the Gambia: to "improve coverage of the basic social services and social protection needs of the poor and vulnerable" Lessons learnt The present project will pave the way for future interventions of any donor. Following the 2010 flooding, the Government rapidly implemented infrastructure activities, mostly to repair damages caused by the floods or to improve the flow of water in very specific areas. The works performed by the government have been assessed during the formulation phase. The assessment concluded with the following recommendations: For part of the works performed by the government, it was assessed that the technical choices were either inappropriate or designed in a sub-standard way. Based on the assessment of the actual needs, the present project will complete, redo or repair the works performed by the Government; The Government did not address the issue of waste management, inappropriate land use and urban planning, although the assessment clearly shows that these problems are increasing the consequences of heavy rains by blocking the natural flow of water Complementary actions Following the 2010 flooding, most of the organisations responded to urgent needs, with interventions by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP), the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Gambian Red Cross, the Spanish Red Cross, Concern Universal and Muslim Aid. The activities included supply of health equipment, disinfection products and mosquito nets, distribution of water, soap, chlore, matrix, food and seeds, rehabilitation of wells and boreholes, resettlement, etc. Following an assessment mission performed in October 2010 by the Commission's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Directorate-General, the Commission decided to mobilize funds for the Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) of the Red Cross and to use a small-scale disaster Decision for an intervention of the NGO Concern Universal. Prior to the 2011 rainy season, the Government decided to focus on: repairing the main damages on the infrastructures caused by the floods, including roads, drainage systems, bridges, buildings, etc; improving some drainage facilities (bridges, culverts, etc.); cleaning part of the drainage system. To complement these emergency interventions, the Government requested the assistance of the EU to implement a project with the main objective of mitigating the impact of future flooding. This project will sustain and complement the interventions already performed in 2010 and 2011 by 2

3 working on the drainage system, sanitation and hygiene, waste management and disaster management. The project will not look at the urban planning issue, but the European Union will start a dialogue process with the Government, the local authorities and the other relevant partners with the objective of addressing the floods issue in a comprehensive manner. It will be performed through workshop set-up within component 3. In terms of disaster management, the World Food Programme of the United Nations (WFP) is the focal partner to the Government. The WFP has already actively participated to the creation and the improvement of the Disaster Management system and is currently preparing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) to continue the partnership. The present project will complement the actions already performed by WFP through a contribution agreement to WFP to implement activities in the framework of the NDMA/WFP Memorandum of Understanding Donor coordination The Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs is in charge of implementing the Aid Effectiveness Action Plan and has established a Directorate of Aid Coordination. De facto, donors efforts to harmonize around government s own development agenda have not benefited from a strong government-led donor coordination mechanism. However, in the frame of crisis situations, the Office of the Vice-President is in charge of coordinating the efforts of the Ministries, the local agencies, donors and NGOs. The relevant stakeholders were therefore identified by the Office of the Vice-President to participate in the formulation of the project. 3. DESCRIPTION 3.1. Objectives The overall objective is to improve the living conditions and health of the most vulnerable population by mitigating the impact of future heavy rainfall. In particular, the project will have the following specific objectives: a) Improve the living conditions and health for households in the urban areas vulnerable to flooding by improving the drainage system, enhancing the sanitation capacities and providing a basic waste management service; b) Sustain the first objective by sensitizing/training the local communities in sanitation, waste management and hygiene, and by creating jobs and improving skills for the poorest in the field thanks to labour-intensive techniques; c) Improve the efficiency of the interventions performed by the government in responding to emergency situations, in particular flooding Expected results and main activities The activities of the project will be implemented in 7 "hot spots", i.e. locations of a high density of population, where the number of population affected was the greatest. Three of these hot spots are in the Greater Banjul Area with Banjul, Brikama, Bundung. One is north bank of the river with Barra. Three are country side with Soma, Bansang and Basse. The Project is built around three components with the following expected results and activities: Component 1: Improve the living conditions in the urban areas vulnerable to flooding This component will address the most urgent cleanings/rehabilitations/modifications/constructions to be done to allow a direct and efficient impact on the communities. However, due to the 3

4 emergency context, the short timeframe and the limited budget, the works will be preferably smallscale works, which can be undertaken by community groups. Result 1.1. The drainage system is cleaned, rehabilitated or adapted The 7 hot spots are targeted. The works will be mostly limited to the smaller channels where directlabour can be employed. With the objective to improve the flow of rain water into streams and rivers, the works will include: i) cleaning of channels/culverts/drains; ii) removing followed by carting it away to a specified site; iii) improving some of the smaller channels; iv) reinforcing earth channels with laterite stone/cement or sandbag linings; v) Minor repairing on damaged existing small concrete, brick or block channels; vi) reinforcing or repairing some foot bridges or foot paths; vii) supplying sandbags at points distributed throughout each community for emergency method of holding back the effects of flooding. Result 1.2. Sanitation facilities are rehabilitated and adapted to the flooding risk The activities linked to this result will be implemented in 4 hot spots (Barra, Bundung, Soma, Basse). The works will include the construction/renovation/replacement of pit latrines at public places, such as mini-bus stations and ferry terminals, where existing facilities have generally become unusable. The latrines will be raised above ground level. Result 1.3. Basic waste management services are set up The 7 hot spots are targeted. A basic refuse collection system will be installed for each hot spot. They will consist of several local collection teams, equipped with rice-sacks, wheel-borrow or donkey cart to collect rubbish from designated points and deposit it at collection points (bins). The transfer of the rubbish to the ultimate dump site will be performed by motor-tricycles, motorcycledrawn cart or tractor. For larger communities, an extra larger collection point, enclosed in wire-net fencing will be included. The ultimate dump sites will be equipped with a suitable machine to spread the waste and cover it with a layer of soil. The financial sustainability of the system will be assured by an income system from the population paying for the service. The project, the communities and the municipalities will agree on the system and the rate. Finally, a Waste Management Committee will set up at the community level. The system will be set up through the following activities: i) trainings to municipalities' staff to manage the basic refuse collection system; ii) works to be performed to prepare the sites; iii) supply of the necessary equipments mentioned above; iv) set up of a financial system and of a waste management committee. Some care will be exercised in the selection of collection and transfer points for waste collection. Communities will be involved in the choices. After the inception phase, the systems will be handed over to the Municipalities and Local Government Authorities already responsible for these activities. A Memorandum of Understanding will be signed between the Ministry of Finance, NDMA and these institutions to clearly state that they must concentrate in collecting and disposing rubbish from the flood prone areas in the 7 hot spots. To ensure ownership and sustainability, local communities will be responsible for small collection points Component 2: Train and sensitize the local communities to sustain the improvement in the living conditions in the urban areas vulnerable to flooding Result 2.1. The local communities and the Municipalities are trained and sensitized to sanitation, waste management and hygiene issues The activities will be based on the existing manuals prepared by UNICEF and the Ministry of Health. The training sessions will target Municipal and Local Government cleaning service workers, community groups, women's and youth groups in each of the 7 hot spots. The targeted groups will be trained and sensitized to understand the following messages: i) the linkage between a 4

5 good hygiene, good waste management and good sanitation with a better health and wellbeing; ii) description of hygienic methods of solid and liquid waste disposal; iii) reasons to keep drains cleaned. Result 2.2. The local communities are trained to labour-intensive techniques and hired locally The local communities will be trained in drainage cleaning, using labour-intensive techniques: i) to perform the drainage cleaning part of the works contracted to a company for Component 1; ii) to develop skills to be hired permanently by local authorities to perform regular drains cleaning; iii) to develop skills to be hired by local companies in need of such services in the future. To achieve these results, the activities will include the procurement of basic cleaning equipment (rakes, brooms, spades, pick-axes) to waste management committees and will provide practical training sessions on drains cleaning. Component 3: Improve the capacity of the government in disaster management issues Result 3.1. The capacities of the National Disaster Management Agency are improved The activities will start a few months before the beginning of the rainy season and stop in November, when the rainy season will have ended. The technical assistant will be at the NDMA and will provide support and in house trainings on disaster preparedness and mitigation, including: i) support to the activities of the NDMA before and during the rainy season; ii) community-based disaster risk management training, including for schools; iii) capacity building of NDMA and its regional and community structures on local risk assessment, including early warning; iv) post-disaster needs assessment; v) vulnerability and capacity assessment training; and vi) Disaster Risk Reduction Advocacy at all levels Risks and assumptions In absence of comprehensive policies and organisations, the European Union and the Government decided to address the issue of mitigating the impact of future flooding by implementing short-term interventions in component 1. However, even though these interventions will provide immediate results in an emergency context, the limited funds will allow only small cost-efficient interventions, limiting the expected scale of impact. The studies showed that any intervention focusing only on the drainage system would have no sustainable effect because flows will remain constantly blocked with the illegal dumping from the population. Therefore, activities are included to address this issue with component 2. However, due to the limited funds available and the short implementation period, the interventions will be limited to the most urgent activities through basic services and trainings. On the other hand, sanitation being a major sector of activity of NGOs and UNICEF in the Gambia, the studies limited the interventions to crucial activities complementing others. The project lacks addressing the issue of settlements in inappropriate locations vulnerable to flooding (natural drainage channels or shore of the river Gambia). However, relocating hundred of families is highly sensitive and cannot be performed through a rapid response project. The government has already identified the issue. Nonetheless, the European Union will start a dialogue with the Government to emphasize that full benefit of the interventions cannot be realised if existing settlements on the waterways are not relocated and a zoning regulation is not applied. The component 2 will ensure the sustainability to the results of the component 1. Indeed, by training and sensitizing the local communities, the good use and the day-to-day maintenance of the rehabilitated or newly provided facilities will be ensured. However, this assumption is depending on the involvement of the Government and the local authorities to provide assistance and financial means to the communities Crosscutting Issues There is no study available in the Gambia linking the impact of climate change on the rainy season. Moreover, the high increase of the population and the absence of urban planning can be considered 5

6 as the main reasons for creating flooding. Therefore, the project cannot be considered as fully addressing the climate change issue, even though it might mitigate the impact of climate change. The impact on climate change should be minimized with the use of intensive labour activities. An Environmental Impact Study has been performed during the formulation of the project. While having a short term negative impact to the environment (noise, use of machines, relocation of trashes, etc.), the project will have a sustainable positive environmental impact by addressing the illegal dumping issue (soil, water, air, flora and fauna). Gender equality is not a specific objective of the project. However, groups of women will be the main targets to hygiene and waste management sensitization activities. The trainings to labour techniques will also include women in order to ensure a new income generating activity for them. Finally, the trainings in waste management and sanitation will target local municipalities to improve local governance in these areas Stakeholders The first stakeholder is the National Authorising Officer to the European Development Fund in the Gambia. Per sector, the main stakeholders are the following: Sector Emergency issues Drainage issues Sanitation and Waste management issues Stakeholders Office of the Vice-President National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) World Food Programme (WFP) Department of Water Resources (DWR) National Road Authority (NRA) National Environment Agency (NEA) Ministry of Local Government (MoLG) Municipal Councils Ministry of Health (MoH) UNICEF National Environment Agency (NEA) Ministry of Local Government Municipal Councils A steering committee will be set up with all these stakeholders as members to monitor and manage the components 1 and 2 of the project. 4. IMPLEMENTATION ISSUES 4.1. Method of implementation The project will be implemented through a Financing Agreement signed with the Republic of the Gambia. Component 1 and 2 "Improve the living conditions in the urban areas vulnerable to flooding" and "Train and sensitize the local communities to sustain the improvement of the living conditions in the urban areas vulnerable to flooding" The method of implementation for components 1 and 2 is partially decentralised management in accordance with Articles 21 to 24 of the Financial Regulation of the 10 th EDF. The Commission controls ex ante all the procurement and grant procedures. Payments are executed by the Commission. 6

7 Component 3 "Improve the capacity of the government in disaster management issues" The method of implementation for component 3 is joint management through the signature of an agreement with the World Food Programme (WFP) of the United Nations, focal partner to the National Disaster Management Agency, in accordance with Article 29 of the Regulation (EC) No 215/2008 on the financial regulation applicable to the 10 th European Development Fund. The international organisation complies with the criteria provided for in the applicable Financial Regulation. The WFP is one of the UN agencies to which the European Commission-UN Financial and Administrative Framework Agreement applies. The choice of the International Organisation is justified by the existing framework between the Government of The Gambia and the UN agency World Food Programme (WFP), which has proven expertise and monopoly in the field of Disaster Management and crisis awareness in The Gambia. A standard contribution agreement will be signed between the WFP and the European Commission. The component's main activity is to implement a Technical Assistance to the National Disaster Management Agency set up in the framework of an existing Memorandum of Understanding signed between the WFP and the Gambian Government in the disaster management sector. The change of management mode constitutes a substantial change, except where the European Union "re-centralises" or reduces the level of tasks previously delegated to the beneficiary country, international organisation or delegated body under, respectively, decentralised, joint or indirect centralised management 4.2. Procurement and grant award procedures The flexible procedures apply to the entire action under this decision, following Articles 72-3 c and 73-1 of the revised Cotonou Agreement. Components 1 and 2: 1) Contracts All contracts implementing the action must be awarded and implemented in accordance with the procedures and standard documents laid down and published by the European Commission for the implementation of external operations, in force at the time of the launch of the procedure in question. Participation in the award of contracts for the present action shall be open to all natural and legal persons covered by the 10 th EDF. Further extensions of this participation to other natural or legal persons by the concerned authorising officer shall be subject to the conditions provided for in articles 20 of Annex IV of the revised Cotonou Agreement. 2) Specific rules for grants The essential selection and award criteria for the award of grants are laid down in the Practical Guide to contract procedures for EU external actions. They are established in accordance with the principles set out in Title VII 'Grants' of the Financial Regulation applicable to the 10 th European Development Fund. When derogations to these principles are applied, they shall be justified, in particular in the following cases: Financing in full (derogation to the principle of co-financing): the maximum possible rate of co-financing for grants is 80%. Full financing may only be applied in the cases provided for EDF in Article 109 of the Council Regulation on the Financial Regulation applicable to the 10 th European Development Fund. Derogation to the principle of non-retroactivity: a grant may be awarded for an action which has already begun only if the applicant can demonstrate the need to start the action before the grant is awarded, in accordance with Article 108 of the Financial Regulation applicable to the 10 th EDF. 7

8 Component 3: All contracts implementing the action are awarded and implemented in accordance with the procedures and standard documents laid down and published by the relevant International Organisation Budget and calendar The total project cost is estimated at EUR , all of which shall be financed from the 10th EDF, B-Envelope, in the framework of the revised ACP-EC Partnership Agreement. The budget sets out as follows: Categories Component 1: Improve the living conditions Results 1.1, 1.2 & 1.3: Improvement drainage/sanitation/waste management Works contract and service contract Component 2: Train and sensitize the local communities Results 2.1, 2.2: Sensitization to Hygiene, Sanitation and Waste management and Trainings to labour intensive techniques Service contract or grant ** Component 3: Improve the Disaster Management capacities Result 3.1: Improve capacities of NDMA 1 Contribution agreement Communication/Visibility Service contract Monitoring, External Evaluation and Audit EU contribution EUR Service contract Contingencies * TOTAL * The EU contribution to the "Contingencies" heading may be used only with prior agreement of the Commission The works contract will be procured through negotiated procedure, supply of equipment included. One service contract will be procured through negotiated procedure and will include supervision of the works (component 1), activities of component 2 and communication and visibility activities. **It is foreseen to implement the main action (training to the local government) through a service contract including the sensitization part. However, if it turns out to be difficult to agree on Terms of Reference for the later, the sensitization part could be directly awarded to NGO Concerned Universal, that is the only NGO capable to carry this out in the Gambia. The execution period is 48 months as from the signature of the Financing Agreement, comprising an operational implementation period of 24 months followed by a closing period of 24 months Performance monitoring A project steering committee will be set up to oversee and validate the overall direction and policy of the project. Some institutions, members of the steering committee, will be mandated to monitor component s progress and, where necessary, make specific recommendations to improve performance. 1 National Disaster Management Agency 8

9 Indicators have been identified for each of the objectives and results. However, the absence of official statistics/viable data makes it difficult to identify and measure quantitative impact indicators. The baseline is currently being established and will be available at the beginning of the project. The improvement of data availability will be - up to the possible extent - included in the service contract. Monitoring of component 3 will be performed by the WFP itself on a day-to-day basis and in line with the provisions of the Financial and Administrative Framework Agreement signed on 29 April Additional Monitoring with EU involvement will be performed mostly through the Steering Committee meetings Evaluation and audit Due to the very short period of implementation of the project, only a final evaluation and an ex-post evaluation are foreseen. They will focus on components 1 and 2 as the World Food Programme (WFP) will implement its own evaluation plan in line with the EU-UN Financial and Administrative Framework Agreement. Final evaluation: the evaluation will start at the end of the first rainy season. It will focus on evaluating the short-term impact of the activities, their proper completion and finally the soundness of the technical choices made during the formulation. Efficiency and effectiveness of the project will be evaluated as well. Ex-post evaluation: the evaluation will start at the end of the second rainy season. It will focus on evaluating the long-term impact of the activities, their sustainability. The evaluation will also provide lessons for future project either implemented in an emergency context or in the drainage/sanitation/waste management context. A financial audit will be performed after the implementation. The audit will focus on components 1 and 2 as the WFP will implement its own audit plan Communication and visibility Due to the political context of the project and to the nature of the activities targeting the most vulnerable in very dense urban areas, the European Commission will pay a particular attention to communication and visibility. The recommendations of the Communication and Visibility Manual for EU External Actions will be implemented in full, and its requirements will be made compulsory for all contractors. For components 1 and 2, communication and visibility will be managed through the service contract. The service contractor will set up a visibility and communication strategy in agreement with the European Commission and the main stakeholders. For component 3, the World Food Programme (WFP) will have to apply the "Joint Visibility Guidelines for European Commission-UN actions in the field". 9