01 BP 1241 Ouagadougou 01, 89, Rue Liwaga, Secteur 54, Ouaga 2000, Burkina Faso, Tel. +226 50 37 53 08, +226 50 37 52 08,

+226 77 59 95 64, Fax +226 50 37 52 09, Email: wash-bf@fiu.edu, Site web: http://wawash.fiu.edu/

USAID West Africa Water Supply, Sanitation and

Hygiene Program (USAID WA-WASH)

WA-WASH SUSTAINABILITY CHECK TERMS OF REFERENCE

May 2014

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Table of content

1. BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND RATIONALE ...................................................................................................1

2. EVALUATION OBJECTIVE AND APPROACH ...........................................................................................................2

3. BENEFICIARIES OF THE EVALUATION ...................................................................................................................2

4. SCOPE OF THE EVALUATION...............................................................................................................................2

5. METHODOLOGY ...............................................................................................................................................3

6. GOVERNANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY .................................................................................................................3

7. GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND VALUES .....................................................................................................................4

8. PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS .......................................................................................................................4

9. DELIVERABLES AND SCHEDULE ..........................................................................................................................5

10. BUDGET AND PAYMENT SCHEDULE .................................................................................................................5

11. STRUCTURE OF THE PROPOSAL AND SUBMISSION GUIDELINES ..........................................................................5

12. SELECTION CRITERIA .....................................................................................................................................6

ANNEX 1: USAID WA-WASH RESULTS FRAMEWORK ................................................................................................1

ANNEX 2: USAID WA-WASH INTERVENTION AREAS ..................................................................................................1

ANNEX 3: ILLUSTRATIVE SUSTAINABILITY FACTORS AND INDICATORS ............................................................................2

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1. BACKGROUND INFORMATION AND RATIONALE

The primary goal of the USAID West Africa Water Supply, Sanitation Hygiene Program (WA-WASH) is

to increase sustainable access to safe water and sanitation and improve hygiene in West Africa. This

four year (2011-2015) program will accomplish its objectives by introducing innovative and low-cost

water and sanitation technologies and promoting adequate hygienic behaviors at community level;

by developing practical models of sustainable WASH service delivery; by facilitating cooperation and

creating synergies between WA-WASH and other relevant USAID/West Africa programs and priorities

in the region; by increasing the capacity of national and regional institutions to replicate these

approaches and models throughout the region; and by facilitating knowledge sharing among the WA-

WASH countries and beyond.

USAID WA-WASH is implemented by Florida International University with a consortium of five

international partners (CARE, IRC, RAIN, UNESCO-IHE and Winrock) and three local partners (ANIMAS

SUTURA, PROMACO and WSA), as well as a number of local partners working under the international

partners. The context under which USAID WA-WASH program activities are being implemented is

outlined in the Program Result Framework (see Result Framework in Annex 1). While individual

activities are implemented by one partner, all efforts are coordinated between the partners to

provide for an efficient implementation of the project while taking into account the country specific

context in which we operate. Thus, to deliver the desired and expected impact, the partners work in

concert as an integrated country team.

USAID WA-WASH has selected five major geographical areas in Burkina Faso (the Southwest, Sahel,

Center-West, and Boucle du Mouhoun Regions and the peri-urban area around Ouagadougou), the

Upper West Region in Ghana and five regions in Niger (Dosso, Tahoua, Tillabery, Zinder and Maradi)

to implement field activities. Specific communities are selected jointly by the partners. In addition,

some countrywide activities such as capacity building takes place at the national level. Please refer to

the program intervention areas in Annex 2 for more details.

The WA-WASH Program has been designed to respond directly to Assistance Objectives established

by USAID/West Africa and is expected to deliver key outputs and reach beneficiaries in three

countries. In particular, the program aims at increasing, directly (hardware activities) and indirectly

(software activities), the number of people with access to improved water supply services for

household and productive use, as well as the people with access to improved sanitation services. The

program will also increase number of people adopting household point-of-use treatment

methods/products. Other achievements and outcomes include: the development, implementation

and replication of new, low-cost, demand-driven and market-based approaches to WASH service

delivery for rural and peri-urban populations. USAID WA-WASH also leads to improvements in

operational practices of local government and the private sector in the three countries (including

technical, financial, managerial and monitoring aspects); strengthened national and regional enabling

environment and capacity to achieve WASH MDGs in West Africa and increased government

compliance to regional and international commitments; increased capacity and synergy among WA-

WASH regional partnership members for improving the local governance of WASH services. The main

expected results of the USAID WA-WASH program are stated in the performance monitoring plan

(PMP) which will be available for the selected evaluation specialist(s).

For additional information, visit the USAID WA-WASH website at http://wawash.fiu.edu.

2

2. EVALUATION OBJECTIVE AND APPROACH

This evaluation seeks to assess the USAID WA-WASH Program employing a standardized scoring

system that ranks alliance-supported community WASH services against a range of criteria in four

categories: institutional, management, financial, and technical. Based on the score received in each

of these categories, the Program will be classified in terms of its likelihood to achieve long-term

sustainability as follows:

Excellent ≥ 90% of sustainability criteria satisfied;

Good = 75-90% of sustainability criteria satisfied;

Satisfactory = 50-75% of sustainability criteria satisfied;

Fair = 25-50% sustainability criteria satisfied;

Poor < 25% of sustainability criteria satisfied.

A draft list of sustainability criteria and indicators for the sustainability check scoring is presented in

Annex 3 for water supply services, sanitation services and hygiene behaviors/services. These

indicators are based on those employed in other internationally recognized sustainability monitoring

efforts in the WASH sector.

More information and guidelines on the methodology can be found at

http://www.washplus.org/rotary-usaid.

3. BENEFICIARIES OF THE EVALUATION

The intended beneficiaries of the evaluation include:

USAID/W-AFR and other relevant USAID/West Africa programs in the region;

USAID WA-WASH implementing partners (CARE, FIU, IRC, RAIN, UNESCO-IHE, Winrock,

ANIMAS SUTURA, PROMACO and WSA);

Governments and local authorities of Burkina Faso, Ghana and Niger;

The program’s beneficiaries within the three countries;

NGOs and other programs in the WASH sector within Burkina Faso, Ghana and Niger.

The regional office will share the results of the sustainability check with each stakeholders group as

appropriate.

4. SCOPE OF THE EVALUATION

The consultancy is expected to take approximately 40 working days including travel time and the

time to prepare the report and incorporate comments. A visit for three to five days should be

planned in each of the three countries, starting with Burkina Faso. The objective of the visit is to

conduct field visits and gather stakeholders’ (government, partners, communities, etc.) feedback.

Considering that some aspects of the program will be difficult to analyze during the prescribed time

period, the evaluation should be focused on specific geographic areas receiving most of the program

activities.

3

5. METHODOLOGY

Information used to score USAID WA-WASH should be collected following three data collection

methods as indicated below:

Document review: The consultant(s) should review the written documentation associated

with the program, including program descriptions/grant agreements, periodic progress

reports, field visit reports, etc.

Individual and group interviews: The consultant(s) should collect information using

individual/household and group interviews conducted using structured questionnaires

administered to key stakeholders in the water, sanitation and hygiene sector (e.g.,

government officials, water committee members and users, etc.). Questionnaires should be

designed for specific target audiences, such as households versus government officials, and

contain a mixture of quantitative and qualitative measures associated with the sustainability

check factors agreed upon. The balance of different interview types conducted will be

determined based on considerations of technical need, efficacy and budgetary constraints.

Site visits / sustainability checklists: The consultant(s) should visit a sample of project sites to

personally observe conditions on the ground and gather information directly from the

communities, water service providers, local government officials, technicians and suppliers,

etc., as necessary to complete data collection on services sustainability.

For all three methods, the consultant(s) should draw on a review of data collected through the USAID

WA-WASH internal monitoring system, complemented by supplemental information collected from

other sources as needed. In addition, the survey instruments and data collection approach will be

discussed with the Regional Office to ensure that all aspects of the program have covered.

The sustainability check uses a cluster sampling frame in accordance with best practices for statistical

sectorial studies. For the communities selected in the sample, the assessment should cover both

water supply and sanitation services as well as hygiene behaviors whenever possible.

6. GOVERNANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY

The consultant(s) will formally report to the program’s Regional Director, Dr. Lakhdar Boukerrou. Day

to day support, facilitation and coordination will be provided by the Deputy Director and the M&E

Specialist, based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.

A representative from each USAID WA-WASH implementing partner should be involved in the

process of reviewing and approving the evaluation plan and subsequent products when appropriate.

For accountability purposes, the Regional Office will organize a workshop following the submission of

the final report for all relevant stakeholders (government, local authorities, implementing partners,

representative of beneficiaries, etc.). The purpose of the workshop will be to:

Present the report and the findings of the sustainability check;

Gather feedback on the findings and build consensus on recommendations;

Develop action-oriented workshop statements on lessons learned and proposed

improvements for the future.

4

The following resources will be provided to support the evaluation:

A car and a driver for field visits and meetings

Office supplies for preparing the survey materials.

7. GUIDING PRINCIPLES AND VALUES

The following fundamental principles and values are applicable to this sustainability check:

Transparency at all stages of the consultancy

Cost-effectiveness in the data collection process

Collaboration with beneficiaries and relevant stakeholders with an involvement of local

authorities (mayors, community leaders, etc.)

Confidentiality of data collected

Integration of gender considerations

Anonymity of responses gathered

Learning shared with Regional Office staff

Accountability throughout the evaluation.

No data or other information from this assessment will be released to third parties without the

written approval of the USAID WA-WASH Regional Director. All documentation related to the

sustainability check (whether or not produced in the course of the consultancy) shall remain the sole

and exclusive property of USAID WA-WASH.

8. PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS

USAID WA-WASH invites applications from all qualified individual or firm with the following criteria:

At least 10 years of experience in the coordination, design, implementation, or monitoring

and evaluation of development programs

Significant experience in the WASH sector and WASH programming

Significant experience in the West Africa Region

Relevant post-graduate degree in development studies (WASH, food security, climate

change, project management, etc.)

Good communications skills and experience in cross cultural settings

Ability to write clear and useful reports (will be required to produce examples of previous

work)

Understanding of USAID requirements related to development evaluations

Ability to manage the available time and resources and to work under tight deadlines

Ability to travel in rural areas of Burkina Faso, Niger and Ghana

Fluent in English with a strong level of French

Independence from the parties involved.

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9. DELIVERABLES AND SCHEDULE

The following deliverables are required for this sustainability check:

Initial draft of the survey and other instruments both in French and English. This deliverable

is due within five working days after the beginning of the consultancy.

Draft final report including an executive summary (maximum 3-page), with all raw data

provided as annexes. This deliverable is due five working days after the consultant’s

departure from West Africa. This document shall be in English.

Final report including a 3-page executive summary with all recommendations and feedback.

This report is due no later than 50 calendar days after the beginning of the consultancy. This

document shall be in English.

Furthermore, USAID WA-WASH will require weekly regular updates (to be sent by email to the

Regional Director) on the evaluation progress.

10. BUDGET AND PAYMENT SCHEDULE

Payments will be made upon presentation of an invoice, in line with receipt of key deliverables.

Payment will be made per the following schedule:

20%: Submission of survey and other data collection instruments.

30%: Draft final report including a 3-page executive summary, with summarized raw data

provided as annexes

50%: Final report including a 3-page executive summary with all recommendations and

feedback

11. STRUCTURE OF THE PROPOSAL AND SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Interested bidders should contact the M&E Specialist, Kader Sanfo (ksanfo@fiu.edu) to receive a

packet of program materials which will assist in the development of the technical approach.

All proposals should be submitted to Kader Sanfo (ksanfo@fiu.edu) in Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF

format by midnight GMT on June 13, 2014. Late proposals will not be accepted.

Proposals must demonstrate an understanding of the tender specifications and should be clear,

concise and unambiguous. Each tender submission must include:

Approach (10 pages maximum): Tenderers must demonstrate their understanding of the

program environment, and give a detailed description of the methods to be used in

undertaking the assessment. They must include recommendations for the size and

composition of the sample, justifying their approach and highlighting any risks.

Timing (1 page maximum): Tenderers must provide a detailed timetable for carrying out the

work based on the proposed approach and method. This should highlight key milestones and

deadlines, including suggested meetings. Preference will be given to consultant(s) who can

begin the evaluation in June 2014.

A full CV for the consultant(s) and/or a company capability statement should be provided as

an annex.

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Budget (2 pages maximum): Tenderers must provide a breakdown of costs, including daily

rates with time allocations by task. The price quoted must be fixed; inclusive of travel and

subsistence costs; exclusive of all duties and taxes and expressed in USD.

Please note: Tenders which do not comply with the length and content requirements detailed may

be excluded from the tender evaluation. Applications should be submitted electronically only.

If you have any questions relating to the requirements of the tender, please submit them to the M&E

Specialist, Kader Sanfo (ksanfo@fiu.edu).

12. SELECTION CRITERIA

Tenders will be evaluated using a weighted scoring approach, as specified below:

Criteria Weight

Quality of proposed approach and methodology Demonstrating a strong understanding of the analytical / contextual / logistical issues relevant for a study of this type and the objectives of the assessment.

40

Quality of the team Relevant expertise, experience, understanding of the issues and ability to collaborate productively in an international setting.

20

Organizational capacity Ability to draw on other people’s expertise, particularly to ensure cultural awareness and access to relevant language skills.

10

Quality of past performance An example of the consultant’s best work should be submitted with the tender.

10

Budget Value for money; adequacy and coherence between the proposed budget and approach

20

Total 100

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ANNEX 1: USAID WA-WASH RESULTS FRAMEWORK

IR A.

Increased community access to

potable water and improved sanitation

IR B.

Improved sustainability of WASH services

IR C.

Increased income generation and food security outcomes of WASH investments

IR D.

Strengthened national and regional enabling

environment for integrated WASH

Sub-IR A.1

Improved access

to and quality of

sustainable water

supply services

for domestic and

productive

Sub-IR B.1

Adoption of

replicable and

sustainable WASH

management

approaches

Sub-IR C.1

Adoption of

complementary

agricultural

technologies and

practices in WASH

programs

Sub-IR D.1

Strengthened

national and

regional

organizations in

integrated WASH

advocacy

Sub-IR A.2

Improved access

to and use of

sustainable

sanitation

services

Sub-IR B.2

Strengthened

national and local

policies and

governance for

WASH service

delivery and

Sub-IR C.2

Increased local

and national

capacity to adapt

to water-related

climate change

Sub-IR D.2

Increased regional

integrated WASH

knowledge

management and

networking

Sub-IR A.3

Increased

adoption of key

hygiene

behaviors

Sub-IR B.3

Increased access

to sustainable

financing for

WASH services

Sub-IR C.3

Increased

availability of

climate relevant

information

Sub-IR D.3

Enhanced gender

mainstreaming in

integrated WASH

programs

Sub-IR D.4

Expanded private

sector

engagement in

integrated WASH

programs

Assistance Objective:

Strengthen resilience and sustainable access to water supply, sanitation and hygiene for better livelihoods

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ANNEX 2: USAID WA-WASH INTERVENTION AREAS

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ANNEX 3: ILLUSTRATIVE SUSTAINABILITY FACTORS AND INDICATORS

Program Objectives Factors Indicators

Water Supply

Institutional

Number of operational/non-operational water supply systems;

Existence of a database and/or water supply system monitoring system at

Ministry or local government level;

Existence of clear lines of government and community responsibility for

supporting operations and maintenance of water supply services, and

conducting monitoring of system functionality.

Management

Number of water points working and being used;

Presence of a water/sanitation committee or system maintenance group for

each community water point;

Clarity of roles and responsibilities in the water/sanitation committee or

system maintenance group (e.g., chairperson, secretary, treasurer, mechanic,

sanitation and hygiene promoter, etc.);

Regular meetings scheduled by the water/sanitation committee;

Level of community skills to implement preventive maintenance activities of

community water supply systems;

Level of knowledge by communities about where to get technical support in

case of system breakdown.

Financial

Number of households financially contributing to service delivery and

maintenance of the community water supply system (through water use fees

or some other collection mechanism);

Total amount paid by each household for services and system maintenance

(and existence or not of a social safety net for community members who

cannot afford to pay);

Existence of sustainable and transparent financial management of

community contributions/system revenue and expenditures (including: Who

establishes the tariffs? Who collects money? When is the money collected?

Where is the money kept? How are community member payments

registered? What measures are taken if households/individuals do not pay?

How is money disbursed (e.g., for maintenance or repairs)? What checks and

balances (and oversight mechanisms) are in place regarding finances?).

Technical

Technical quality and condition of system installations / infrastructure;

Number of local water supply system technicians/mechanics who can

maintain and repair systems, and their location in the community and/or

district;

Community and/or technician knowledge on how to get spare parts and the

cost of the spare parts;

Accessibility of spare parts for water supply systems at the district/local

government level (e.g., levels of existing stock, existence and location of

marketing and selling points including artisan associations or local

commercial shops);

Operational status of the water supply system (as measured by the frequency

of breakdowns, the time between breakdown and repair, and total number of

days per year the system is out of operation).

Sanitation

Institutional

Presence of national, regional or local plan for household sanitation – both

rural and urban;

Degree to which sanitation investment plans take into account needs of

women and socially excluded groups Capacity of local line agencies to monitor performance of rural sanitation

services;

Capacity of local NGOs and other implementing organizations to facilitate

quality CLTS processes at the community level.

Management

% of households that maintain the hygienic state of their latrine (i.e., well

operated and free from the potential of fecal-oral disease transmission);

Existence of financial incentives, such as the existence of paid attendants, to

maintain public/institutional sanitation systems;

% of communities achieving open defecation free status that have plans to

receive follow-up support to maintain the ODF status;

Level of community skills to implement preventive maintenance activities

for household sanitation systems;

% of households that have plans to maintain/desludge septic tanks in

3

Program Objectives Factors Indicators

compliance with local ordinance(s);

% of schools that maintain the hygienic state of their latrine(s) (i.e., well

operated and free from the potential of fecal-oral disease transmission);

% of schools that maintain functional hand-washing stations with soap;

% of communities that maintain the hygienic state of their latrine(s)/toilet(s),

well operated and free from the potential of fecal-oral disease transmission)

Financial

Existence of small and medium enterprises that sell sanitation hardware;

Existence of small and medium enterprises engaged in sanitation related

business and marketing activities;

% of households that paid a subsidized rate for a sanitation facility;

% of households that paid full cost for a sanitation facility.

Technical

State/quality of latrine infrastructure;

State/quality of pour-flush toilet infrastructure;

State/quality of septic tank infrastructure;

State/quality of wastewater treatment plant infrastructure;

% of latrines that are designed to withstand the rainy season and potential

flooding;

% of latrines with a cover over the defecation hole to prevent flies from

entering the pit and to limit odor.

Hygiene

Institutional

Existence of hygiene promotion/behavior change program in a national

ministry;

Clear designation of hygiene promotion responsibilities in national

government;

Official acceptance of household water treatment as a recommended practice

in national policy and promotion documents.

Management

% of households that can state the key instances in which to wash their

hands;

% of schools that maintain functional hand-washing stations with soap;

% of households that report using plastic BSF qualified on optimal, sub-

optimal, poor and no use of plastic BSF;

% of households that were visited by community facilitator;

% of follow-up visits completed by community facilitator;

% of household members who state that they know where to go or who to

contact if they have problems with plastic BSF;

% of households that report using ceramic filter qualified on optimal, sub-

optimal, poor and no use of ceramic filter;

% of household members who state that they know where to go to replace

their ceramic filter;

% of households who cite community facilitator as source of information or

assistance with BSF problems.

Financial

Existence of enterprises that sell soap in target communities;

% of households that paid a subsidized rate for plastic BSF;

% of households that paid full cost for plastic BSF;

% of households that paid a subsidized rate for ceramic filter;

% of households that paid full cost for ceramic filter.

Technical

% of households that maintain a hand-washing station with soap;

Operational state of the biosand filters;

Assessment of filter use by households;

Total household members trained in plastic biosand filters (BSF) use;

% of plastic BSFs with flow-rate <0.8L/min and % of plastic BSF with

physical problems;

State of ceramic filters;

Total household members trained in ceramic filter use;

Presence of local source(s) for ceramic filters, should a household wish to

replace theirs.