MID-TERM EVALUATION OF THE ARCHE NOVA PROJECT IN GAO (MALI): WASH & LIVELIHOOD

CLIENT: archeNova

COUNTRY: Mali

START - END DATE: November 2019-March 2020

VALUE (EUR): 17,390.00 €

PARTNERS: N/A

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

arche noVa is implementing a project "Improving water supply and sanitation services as well as income and food security in the Gao region". Funding is provided by the SKala Phineo initiative and the project is implemented in cooperation with two national partner organizations "North and Development" (NorDev) and "New Horizons" (NoHo).

The project covers activities in the WaSH sector as well as in the FSL sector which are directly implemented by the three partners. With the completion of two thirds of the duration of the project, AN intends to carry out a mid-term evaluation of the project.

The main project activities to be evaluated will focus on: WaSH in schools (boreholes, sanitation, hygiene promotion), construction of boreholes for communities, training and support of fishermen and farmers, training and support of women's groups for home gardening.

The project area in the Gao region is a high risk area due to ongoing conflicts and crime. Expats are not advised to go there.

Objectives of the mid-term evaluation

Through the mid-term evaluation, AN aims to obtain an external assessment of the progress and achievements of the project, to identify good practices and to seek lessons learned as well as recommendations that can be used to improve both the current program and to inform the formulation of new programs or projects. More specifically, the assessment should:

• provide tangible evidence of the results obtained so far to achieve the specific objectives of the project,
• assess to what extent the target groups were involved and took ownership of the project,
• assess to what extent the organizational arrangements at the target group level will ensure the viability and sustainability of the results after the end of the program,
• determine if the project is on track to carry out the stated activities and achieve the expected results using the indicators and milestones listed in the project proposal and schedule,
• determine whether the project provides quality inclusive services, taking into account the inclusiveness of constructions, the empowerment of women and the protection of the most vulnerable people,
• provide practical and applicable recommendations in order to improve the implementation of the project and achieve a sustainable social impact,
• formulate practical and applicable recommendations to support the planning and design of future programs,
• provide qualitative and quantitative data that can improve reporting to donors.

SERVICES PROVIDED

The mid-term evaluation will consist of three main phases:

1. Documentary study of the documentation available on the project and general information available on the context and the situation, definition of the methodology and approach for data collection.
2. Field visit. The consultant or members of his team will make on-site visits to the following circles: Bourem, Gao and Ansongo. In each locality,

the evaluator will apply an appropriate methodology to collect the required information from key stakeholders, such as NA field staff, staff from partner organizations, representatives of local authorities, UN agencies and INGOs, local officials, old people, teachers, women, pupils and participants in organized training.

After the field visit, the evaluators should organize a one-day workshop with AN Mali and the staff of partner NGOs to present and discuss their findings, conclusions and recommendations. The contributions and comments resulting from this workshop should be taken into account in the preparation of the report.

1. Reporting phase. The mid-term evaluation report is provided in French, in a user-friendly format of no more than 50 pages, which will include:
   • A summary of no more than 5 pages
   • An introduction to the project and the context
   • Purpose, scope and objectives of the assessment and approach, methodology and tools applied
   • Main conclusions of the evaluation
   • Recommendations
   • The data collected and processed, the list of interviewees, the evaluation matrix, the data collection tools, the documents consulted and any other material used for the evaluation must be attached as an annex.