UNICEF on behalf of the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE) contracted Socio-Economic Data Center Ltd (SEDC) to undertake a Value for Money Study (VfM) on Sanitation primarily on “The Effectiveness and Efficiency of the District Sanitation and Hygiene Conditional Grant (DSHCG) and Sanitation Week (SW) Activitiesâ€. Data for the study was collected between May and July 2018 in 10 districts spread in all the Technical Support Units (TSUs) and at national level covering selected stakeholders.
PROJECT TITLE
The Effectiveness and Efficiency of the District Sanitation and Hygiene Conditional Grant and Sanitation Week Activities
To aid learning from past and current experiences with the District Sanitation and Hygiene Conditional Grant (DSHCG) to inform a potential reform of this mechanism, the development of associated Guidelines, and organization of future Sanitation Weeks.
To determine Value for Money for the District Sanitation and Hygiene Conditional Grant (DSHCG) and Sanitation Week focusing on the effectiveness and efficiency of the use of the Grant and the Sanitation Week. Specifically, the study sought to:
1. Evaluate the relevancy and effectiveness of targeting of DSHCG
2. Evaluate the effectiveness of the DSHCG and Sanitation Week activities in terms of fund utilization, quality of implementation and the resulting improvement in the sanitation and hygiene condition at the district level.
3. Evaluate the relevance and efficiency of channelling and disbursement mechanism including tracking (an audit) of financial flow of DSHCG from the Treasury to the implementers and use of fund against planned activities on sanitation and hygiene
4. Evaluate the relevance and effectiveness of the governance arrangement, including coordination mechanism, the involvement of the health sector, monitoring, reporting, and auditing procedure.
5. Examine the complementarity and value added compared to other funding mechanisms like Uganda Sanitation Fund (USF) or bi-lateral funding from development partners
6. Identify the lessons learnt and best practices for replication
A cross-sectional survey design utilizing quantitative and qualitative methods was used in executing this study. Data collection methods included: an extensive desk review of grey literature and other relevant documents; in-depth interviews with selected stakeholders at national, district, sub-county and village levels and focus group discussions (FGDs) with community members. In addition, Transect walks were carried out in all the visited villages to ascertain sanitation coverage, Open Defecation (ODF) Status and hygiene conditions. Households along the transect were checked for availability of latrines, Hand Washing Facilities (HWFs) and drying racks.
