DUBAI CARES’ WASH in School Initiative in Mali (DCWSIM)

Call to Action for WASH in SchoolsThe Hague, May 24-25 2011

24/5/2010

Program Overview & Vision

The Dubai Cares’ Wash in Schools Initiative in Mali aims to provide a complete package of WASH components, including the provision of basic sanitation and environmental facilities, water and soap for hand washing, safe drinking water and hygiene promotion.

Through the combined competencies of five implementing partners; UNICEF, CARE, Save the Children, Oxfam and WaterAid, the program seeks to bring 726 existing schools (among most vulnerable and populated) to minimum WASH standards for both hardware and software components.

Additionally, the program will develop a comprehensive Monitoring Evaluation and Learning framework to document impacts on health and education performances, as well as the spread of best practices.

Key Facts & Coverage

Key Facts:

726 primary schools 224,455 beneficiaries 4 year time-frame $16M USD in total + $4M of matching

funds

Supports the National Strategic Plan for the Promotion of WASH-in-Schools (SPPWIS) for the 2009 – 2013 period.

School Distribution:

UNICEF: 300CARE: 151Save the Children: 130Oxfam: 100WaterAid: 45

The Partnership

The Partnership has defined the common framework of interventions for the WASH-in-Schools Initiative by agreeing on the following:

a common goal, specific objectives and related indicators, common standards for main achievements and the scale of the initiative and the geographical allocation between organizations.

While ensuring an integrated approach and synchronized effort, each organization has become responsible for a thematic modality:

Communication for Development: UNICEF Local Governance: Save the Children Low Cost Technology – Sanitation: WaterAid Low Cost Technology – Water Supply: Oxfam Sustainability and CBO Capacity Building: CARE

The Management Structure

Management Structure for WASH for Quality Education Program

Strategic Analysis, Planning, and Coordination

Member Agencies

Interagency Steering Committee

Dubai Cares

Government Agencies

National Plan for WASH in

Schools Quality assurance and impact monitoring

Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning Coordination Unit (MELU)

Learning and Knowledge Management

CARE Oxfam Save the Children UNICEF WaterAid

Thematic Champions

Thematic responsibilities’ Sustainability/ CBO Capacity

building

Low Cost Technology

(Water supply)

Local Governance

Communication For Development

Low Cost Technology (sanitation)

Operational Management

Through individual projects implemented by the members of the Partnership in specific geographic areas

Coordination unit within UNICEF / 2 international staff

Progress to Date…

Baseline needs assessment and work plan of interventions for all schools

Construction activities ongoing in a first batch of 230 schools: Hygiene kits ordered and/or distributed= 230 kits Latrine cabins under construction = 676 Water points under construction / rehabilitation : 137

Coordination with governmental policy & counterparts: Validation of the Strategic Plan for the Promotion of Hygiene

in Schools (4 ministries of Education, Water, Sanitation, Health)

Validation of the govt. led health in school policy Coordination and launch of the initiative at regional levels

Progress to Date

Harmonization & Standardizing: The MEL framework (common list of indicators/baseline

questionnaire/ data collection and consolidation system) The design of WASH facilities The methodologies for hygiene promotion and support to

local governance Advocacy:

Integration of harmonized models/approaches in all WiNS interventions at national level (Govt. adopted standardization of hardware and software)

Leverage to develop another WASH in school program, DANIDA funded, targeting 350 schools by 2013 with the same objectives and working model of the DC WiNs

Lessons Learned…

I. Prerequisites Validation of the MEL framework by an academic institution Finalizing and validating the baseline survey and needs

assessmentsII. Framework for Coordination & Governance in Partnership

Defining the roles and responsibility during design phase Institutionalizing the Steering Committee Establishing common approaches & feedback mechanisms to

pave the way for continuous learning & enhancements Finding the appropriate balance between harmonized

common approaches and individual distinct programs implementation (each partner has its own contract with DC) to obtain harmonized products but allow for innovations

Lessons Learned

III. When Planning interventions Accounting for the needs of teachers when planning

hardware components (i.e. ensure 1 latrine per male/female teachers or latrines will be locked)

Varying the soft approaches: each partner has a slightly different approach for the implementation of the software component of the program, which will allow for an interesting comparison as the project evolves. This will be monitored by the MEL unit to evaluate the pros/cons of the various approaches and will provide insight for the WASH sector. ( ex: PHAST vs. CHAST vs. School- led total sanitation etc..)

Lessons Learned

IV. Research study Important to pool resources and target research questions

that we can examine across the partnership, as opposed to each partner conducting their own “light” study which might not add much value to the sector

Value of partnership with Universities ( e.g. Emory and local Universities in Mali) to both build capacity and to ensure that the studies produced will be academically sound and relevant.

Thank You

Learning as we go: Next

Steps