Investments to meet water needs

The AWF will provide targeted and strategic capital grants for the small-scale water infrastructure projects that are designed to address the African Water Vision and the MDGs targets related to meeting water needs. Projects must focus on meeting basic needs for water supply and sanitation; water for productive uses which includes agriculture and food security; industry, energy or transport; or multi-purposes uses. As a result, advances will be made in meeting water needs through direct project investments and widespread adoption of innovative technologies and approaches.

Investment characteristics

A limited range of criteria will be used to select those investment projects which offer the best chance of achieving these results. Desirable capital investment projects should manifest the following characteristics:

  • Innovative: Projects must focus on innovation and change, through introducing and piloting new improved technologies, making better use of existing technologies, or implement new approaches in order to improve institutional effectiveness  and the use of resources. Projects must have realistic plans for wider replication of innovative technologies and scaling-up of successful practices and approaches.
  • Catalytic: There must be a clear indication that projects will trigger larger investments from other donors or unleash other investment funds that would otherwise not be available, by offering an opportunity for replicating success, encouraging other actors to take over, attracting the private sector, or commercializing research results.
  • Knowledge orientated: To effectively achieve a catalytic impact, it is very important for projects to have strong focus on knowledge generation and dissemination. Projects must promote or emphasize a learning-by-doing approach, with clear plans for dissemination of worthwhile lessons and best practices, and links with national/regional knowledge based organizations.

The many types of project activities which may be supported by the AWF are described as follows:

Water supply and sanitation

1. Meeting Basic Needs for Safe Water

The AWF places great emphasis on meeting basic needs for safe water. Some of the possible areas for which capital grants may be made are as follows:

  • Rainwater harvesting and storage facilities to ensure water security at local level.
  • Multipurpose water uses, such as water for drinking and domestic purposes, as well as productive uses.
  • Hand pump technologies, such as improving functionality or promoting local production.
  • Renewable energy for pumping.
  • Water treatment technologies, particularly at hosehold level.
  • Small to medium size projects designed to improve access at community or local level.

The Facility also supports activities as part of investment projects that pilot new or improved approaches, which may include:

  • Improved household water management practices to maintain water quality from source to point of use, or improve water quality for drinking.
  • Cost-effective boreholes: piloting approaches which can reduce borehole cost and ensure construction quality.
  • Supply chains: ensuring that equipment and spare parts are readily available, along with well trained repair service providers.
  • Sustainable rural water services: ensuring that proper institutional support mechanisms are in place to ensure long-term sustainability.
  • Self supply: encouraging stakeholders to build on the investments which households already make in meeting their needs for water.
  • Re-use/recycling of water to meet variety of needs.

2. Better Health through Improved Sanitation and Hygiene

Some of the possible teachnical areas for which capital grants may be made are as follows:

  • Low cost latrines which are appropriate, affordable and sustainable.
  • Eco-sanitation technologies which promote reuse of excreta for fertilizer and other needs.
  • Cost-effective and efficient sanitation and sewerage systems in crowded peri-urban areas, such as on-site sanitation options, simplified sewerage systems, communal facilities such as public toilet blocks, etc.
  • Sanitation facilities in schools (along with improved water supply)
  • Sewage treatment options such as constructed wetlands, waste stabilization ponds, land treatment, etc.
  • Solid waste disposal options such as sustainable composting, recycling, etc.
  • Design of technologies to better focus on the needs of women and children.

Water for productive uses

1. Agriculture and Food Security: capital grants can be made in the following areas:

  • Supplementary irrigation methods to enhance rainfed production on small holdings
  • Promotion of community-based land and water management activities involving NGOs and farmer groups.
  • Introduction of technologies and management systems to enhance the performance and efficiency of irrigation systems.
  • Improved water conservation and reuse.
  • Demand management practices and other incentives in irrigated agriculture, with income from fees used directly on system O & M.
  • Encouraging local innovation building on tradition and the capacity of farmers organizations.
  • Promotion of policies such as land/water rights to give women greater access to essential resources.
  • Development of country level action plans and programmes on water-food security.
  • Reform of inefficient central irrigation bureacracies and/or establishment of autonomous authorities.

2.  Multi-Purpose and other Water Uses: The specific support areas under this sub-component are:

  • Advocating for greater representation of water infrastructure in multi-donor initiatives or technical assistance facilities.
  • Preparation of approriate social and environmental safeguards and guidelines.
  • National and regional infrastructure development plans at river basin level.
  • Ground water storage and management.
  • Water storage management and safety regulation.
  • Flood and drought mitigation measures, and infrastructure requirement assessment and design.
  • Multi-use water infrastructure for large scale storage and local water supply schemes for productive and domestic uses.
  • Investments for small to medium scale multi-purpose use infrastructure.

Project and programme preparation

The objective of this component is to support the preparation of water resource development programmes and projects, at local and regional levels, which will lead to proposals submitted for funding. The AWF will be very selective in determining which project/programme preparation activities will be suppoted. The main criteria are that projects and programmes must primarily have a water focus or emphasis, and must offer good opportunity that they will be able to attract or leverage additional investments. The type of support which may be offered by the AWF are as follows:

  • Multipurpose projects designed to ensure to ensure water security for various uses.
  • Support preparation of national/regional water resource development programmes and projects which will lead to proposals submitted to donor agencies for funding.
  • Undertake critical studies or preparatory works to stimulate flow of funds to stalled programmes or projects and hence maintain momentum.
  • Undertake preparatory activities to make a project attractive (short term or execution studies, tender documents, preliminary designs, etc.).
  • Develop a master plan or planning framework for national water and sanitation needs to guide programme preparation (which may include assessment of resources, inventory of infrastructure facilities, coverage and demand estimates, etc.).
  • Preparation of national sector investment plans, pre-investment studies, etc. to highlight areas for private sector involvement.
  • Assess investment needs at country and regional levels to guide selection of priority programmes and projects for preparation.
  • Due diligence appraisal of large public sector projects by third party appraisal teams.