Funded by Swiss Agency for Development Implemented by Oxfam GB in and Cooperation (SDC) Tajikistan (OGB) Selection of Geographical Areas for Tajikistan Water Supply and Sanitation project (TajWSS) Field Assessment Report July 2010 Contents ACRONYMS ................................................................................................................... 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY................................................................................................. 4 INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................. 5 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................ 6 FINDINGS IN PRE-SELECTED DISTRICTS .................................................................. 7 Temurmalik District.................................................................................................. 7 Vose District ............................................................................................................. 9 Muminobad District ................................................................................................ 12 Rudaki District: ...................................................................................................... 15 CONCLUSIONS ............................................................................................................ 18 RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................................................................. 21 ANNEXES ..................................................................................................................... 22 2 Acronyms ACTED Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development (France) ADB Asian Development Bank CBO Community Based Organisation CHF Swiss Frank CSO Civil Society Organisation DDP District Development Plan GAA German Agro Action HH Household (I)NGO (International) Non-Governmental Organisation KMK Khojagii Manziliyu Komunali (State Housing Services Enterprise) MoLRWR Ministry of Land Reclamation and Water Resources MSDSP Mountain Societies Development Support Programme (a Project of Aga Khan Foundation) OGB Oxfam (Great Britain) RRS Rayon of Republican Subordination (direct rule district by national authority) SDC Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation SES State Sanitation and Epidemiology Control TACIF Social Investment Fund of Tajikistan TajWSS Tajikistan Water Supply and Sanitation Project (Network) TJS Tajik Somoni TOD Tojik Ob Dehot (Branch of MoLRWR dealing with design, construction, operation and maintenance of Rural Water Supply) UN United Nations UNDP United Nations Development Programme WS&S Water Supply and Sanitation 3 Executive Summary This field assessment report of pre-selected districts 1 is aimed at selection of 2 districts to lay down the ground for starting the project activities in the field, e.g., capacity building of relevant stakeholders at local level (including authorities, state and non-state operators, consumers), directly target communities in at least 12 villages and approximately 23100 people will benefit from the newly constructed / rehabilitated water systems, pilot projects and establishment Water Trust Funds at district level. Criteria for selection of geographical areas were drafted (see annex 1), consulted and finalised with TajWSS Network members. Based on the agreed criteria TajWSS Network members proposed pre- selected districts (first the long-list was developed and following to selection criteria the short was prepared). Letters of Interest to be considered for gaining support from TajWSS project were obtained from 4 short-listed districts. Then the task group has been established comprising 25 specialists representing Government of Tajikistan, UN, INGOs, Civil Society who are members of TajWSS Network (see Annex 2). The group resulted with draft questionnaire / checklist that has been finalised in consultation with State Committee on Statistics. After that the field work has been started. Based on the findings (mentioned on pages 7 – 17 of the current report), comparisons and conclusions (mentioned on pages 18 – 20 of the current report) it is recommended to TajWSS Network Steering Committee TajWSS Project Steering Committee members (MoLRWR, SDC, UNDP and Oxfam) by field assessment team who was involved in data collection and analysis to select: 1. Muminobad District & 2. Rudaki District for implementation of TajWSS project in these two geographic areas. The following are justification for such proposal: • Willingness of local authorities (especially senior management in the districts) to collaborate with the project. Starting from introductory field visits up to issuing the report authorities of Muminobad and Rudaki were very much enthusiastic and were initiators of communication with project staff. • Level of prioritisation of importance to improve access to potable water is indicated in measured undertaken by these districts, e.g. conduct inventarisation of water supply and sanitation systems in the districts, design the DDPs that includes WS&S as priority issue, connecting the DDPs to National Level and National Budget, attraction of donor support and investments to WS&S sub- sector, work on ensuring sustainability of WS&S objects, etc. • Piloting & reforming the WS&S sub-sector at the district level, representation of state and non- state operators, ability and willingness of consumers to pay for water supply. • Incidents of water related diseases are relatively equal amongst pre-selected districts so this issue is also relevant to be addressed when working in selected districts. • Sources of water in the selected districts are matching with the potential of the project (Note: in both districts WS&S systems will be constructed in rural areas only). • Access to potable water in two districts is improving year by year. Guarantee the sustainability of investments and support from donors that have been done in the past is still under risk. TajWSS project will contribute to take these efforts forward. All these factors are important in establishment of successful experience in the selected districts for further replication nation-wide, attraction of more support from donors and investors, and creation and more enabling environment in WS&S sub-sector of Tajikistan. 1 1. Rudaki District (Rayon of Republican Subordination – Direct Rule District): 2. Vose District (Khatlon Province, Kuliab Zone); 3. Temurmalik District (Khatlon Province, Kuliab Zone); Muminobad District (Khatlon Province, Kuliab Zone) 4 Introduction This field assessment report of pre-selected districts is aimed at selection of 2 districts to lay down the ground for starting the project activities in the field, e.g., capacity building of relevant stakeholders at local level, directly target communities in at least 12 villages and approximately 23100 people will benefit from the newly constructed / rehabilitated water systems, pilot projects and establishment Water Trust Funds at district level. TajWSS is funded by SDC and implemented by Oxfam GB. The project aims to tackle issues of sustainability in rural water supply in Tajikistan. Overall project goal is that rural communities in Tajikistan have sustainable access to drinking water and sanitation. Project objectives are: enabling environment related to water supply and sanitation (WS&S) at central and local levels; and improved practices that lead to sustainable management of WS&S services are endorsed by key stakeholders. The project has four components such as: 1. Policy support to the Government of Tajikistan – wit support of UNDP to set up of the Inter- Ministerial Coordination Council and drawing on the expertise and ideas of the TajWSS Network to develop new policy approaches. 2. TajWSS Network of Stakeholders on Sustainable Water Supply and Sanitation – a collaborative network of Government, Donors UN, NGOs, and other interested stakeholders that will seek to address sustainability through sharing best practices, commissioning research and piloting innovative approaches. The project will fund a range of consultancies, research projects and pilots through its members. 3. Capacity building in chosen districts – in 2 districts the learning and best practices of TajWSS Network will be put into practice by supporting the development of local government agencies, private sector and community organisations in planning, execution, supervision, and monitoring of rural water supply and sanitation projects. 4. Setting up the Water Trust Funds to support new investment in water supply and sanitation - in the later part of this project, community funds will be established in chosen districts of Khatlon to implement water supply solutions, using the findings of the network research and pilots. The intended outcomes of the project are: • Enhanced collaboration and cooperation across the Tajik water and sanitation sub-sector through the creation of an effective network; • Innovation in solutions to the problems of sustainable supply of potable water to rural populations, including water charging models, maintenance models and design. Incorporating within those, aspects of gender, governance and disaster risk reduction; • Changes in the legal and institutional framework of water supply by the Government of Tajikistan; influenced by defining, testing and modeling effective solutions for the governance, management and maintenance of water supply in rural areas of Tajikistan; • New and targeted funding