To make change happen, you need to know how. The Global Sanitation Fund now has a Theory of Change and a monitoring framework to track its impact

We were contracted by the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) to help develop the Global Sanitation Fund’s theory of change and conceptual framework, as well as its new results and monitoring framework.

The Global Sanitation Fund (GSF) has been one of the key players in transforming the sanitation sector. Programmes supported by the GSF have contributed greatly to stopping open defecation. During its next phase, GSF needs to address the challenges of sustainability, scalability and equity, while at the same time strengthening its results and monitoring framework.

Several independent evaluations and studies have shown that GSF needs to strengthen its systems, procedures and approaches, and in particular to:

• revise the GSF Results Framework so that it uses adequate indicators to capture what is actually taking place as the GSF’s theory of change is put into action;
• include equality and non-discrimination, as this is a core principle of WSSCC and the GSF;
• address supply side approaches to enhance sustainability of behaviour change along with sanitation marketing.

GSF’s new theory of change and conceptual framework, and its new results and monitoring framework are due to be presented for global discussion before the end of 2017.

A mid-term review of 20 Water Operators Partnerships

WaterWorX (WWX) is a programme that seeks to contribute to ensuring sustainable access to safe drinking water and sanitation to 10 million people in the period 2017-2030. WWX is funded by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign affairs (MFA) and implemented by 10 Dutch Water companies (represented by the companies VEI, PWN, World Waternet, Dunea and Oasen), in partnership with 37 selected water utilities in 17 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

In April 2019, IRC was hired by VEI, on behalf of the WaterWorX consortium, to carry out a mid-term review of 20 Water Operators Partnerships (WOPs). The review took place against a framework of utility performance improvement and OECD-DAC evaluation criteria.

The evaluation team also looked into the overall WaterWorX programme management structure – including work to strengthen the enabling environment, knowledge management and project coordination, and provided recommendations.

Our services included

• Evaluation management, including:
  • overall methodology development,
  • guidance and supervision of country evaluators
  • liaison and point of contact between client and consulting team
  • overall project management,
  • quality control of communication products,
  • contributing to the synthesis and presenting to client,
• Carrying out the country evaluations in the mentioned countries, through document review and interviews with staff involved in the WOPs.
• Development of communication materials

Key team members were Stef Smits from IRC and Goufrane Mansour from Aguaconsult

Working towards a new multi annual strategy

In 2019, IRC Consult was selected by Woord en Daad to carry out an evaluation of its sustainable water programme. This evaluation formed part of a wider set of activities that served as input to develop a Woord en Daad’s new multi annual strategy (2021-2025).

Our services included

• The design of an evaluation and learning matrix to guide the learning process;
• Training on outcome harvesting and the facilitation of outcome harvesting exercises to generate lessons of ongoing programmes;
• A systems-based framework analysis;
• Conducting on reflection sessions
• Analysis
• Evaluation report

A deep dive into the challenges around the sustainability of rural water supply infrastructure

Key underlying factors for the challenges around the sustainability of rural water supply infrastructure can be found in the lack of robust data; the lack of information management systems to inform planning and budgeting; and lack of clarity around unit costs; and a lack of tools for decision makers.

In 2016, DfID Tanzania contracted IRC Consult to carry out a comprehensive value-for-money (VFM) assessment that would consider expenditure against targets, and to carry out a life-cycle-cost-assessment (LCCA) that would establish the costs associated with each stage in the delivery and operation of rural water supply.

Our services included

• The development of a checklist for the information required to conduct a value-for-money and life-cycle cost assessments, indicating data requirements;
• Conducting data collection, analysis and synthesis;
• Field visits and key stakeholder interviews at national and local government levels;
• Conducting community level surveys;
• Development of value-for-money case studies;
• Project management, financial control and supervision, administration, and report writing.