Deadline: 15-Apr-21
UN-Habitat has launched the EU-WOP Programme to help eligible water and sanitation operators to present WOPs Project Proposals for funding and reach the SDGs.
The EU WOP programme is an opportunity to build on European commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, at the heart of its 2017 European Consensus for Development. It also reflects EU commitments to the Paris Agreement Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the New Urban Agenda, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Reduction 2015 -2030 and Human Rights commitments, including the European Citizens´ Initiative declaration of 2013.
The new priorities of the European Commission, in particular the EU Green Deal and responses to the current COVID-19 Pandemic, provide further impetus for the EU-WOP Programme.
The EU WOP Programme is a four-year initiative, led by UN-Habitat’s Global Water Operators’ Partnerships Alliance (GWOPA) and funded by the European Commission DEVCO.
What are WOPs?
WOPs are peer support between two or more water operators, carried out on a not-for-profit basis. Through mentorship, WOPs progressively strengthen beneficiary utilities’ capacity and performance on management, financial and technical levels to implement operational and organizational changes that lead to better and more sustainable services.
Objectives
The overall objective of the EU-WOP Programme is to contribute to Sustainable Development Goal 6: Improved availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all. The EU-WOP Programme will fund a suite of Water Operators’ Partnerships aiming at the following specific objectives:
- Increased access to improved drinking water source and/or sanitation within Beneficiary Partner service areas.
- Improved operational, financial, social, environmental and cross-cutting capacity and performance of the water and sanitation Beneficiary operators.
- Additional finance for water and sanitation operational or infrastructure improvements
- Strengthened capacity and commitment among partner organizations to engage in Water Operators’ Partnerships beyond the scope of this programme.
Funding Information
Through the programme, between 250.000 and 450.000 USD is available for 20 to 30 Water Operators’ Partnerships (WOPs) projects of 36 months’ duration.
Why you should Participate?
- AS LEAD PARTNER UTILITY
- Exercise solidarity or corporate social responsibility with overseas communities;
- Contribute to global sustainability objectives/local or national development objectives;
- Attract or retain staff through international exposure and mentoring experience;
- Share skills with fellow peers and forge new alliances.
- AS BENEFICIARY PARTNER UTILITY
- Gain exposure to new knowledge and get help in implementing improvements;
- Address pressing operational/capacity challenges;
- Realize local development objectives and get international exposure and experience;
- Acquire or sustain investments.
- AS SUPPORTING ACTOR
- Facilitate WOPs and increase visibility of the practice;
- Include WOPs in development programming as worthwhile investment and/or precursors to investment;
- Ensure an enabling environment for WOPs and support advocacy;
- Encourage engagement of utilities.
Eligible Projects
To be eligible for funding under this call, proposed projects must:
- Be Water Operators’ Partnerships (WOPs, or Sanitation-focused WOPs, SWOPs) meaning they are: not-forprofit partnerships between two or more peer water and/or sanitation service providers aiming to strengthen the beneficiary service provider’s capacity and performance.
- Involve a mentor (“Lead Partner”) and at least one designated mentee (“Beneficiary Partner”). “Additional Partners” may also participate in the WOP in a supporting role (including as ‘co-mentors’ if they are operators).
- Be compliant with GWOPA ‘s Code-of-Conduct. Lead Partners and Additional Partners also commit to not enter into commercial contracts with the WOP Beneficiary Partner(s) for at least four (4) years after the end of the WOP.
- Fall under one of the two call windows:
- WINDOW 1 will fund new WOPs in which the Lead Partner and the Beneficiary Partner(s) have no previous partnership history or up to, but not exceeding, one year of partnership history. Projects under this window are expected to generate capacity and initial performance improvements for the mentee utilities. (Total indicative funding for Window: approximately 4.75 Million USD).
- WINDOW 2 will fund recent or ongoing WOPs that build on at least one year of recent partnership history. Such partnership history must have occurred in the last three years. They aim to build on ongoing capacity and performance improvements and, where appropriate, help accompany or bridge towards investments for the mentee utility. (Total indicative funding for Window: approximately 3.5 Million USD).
- Require between 250,000 and 450,000 USD in grant funding (in addition to cash or in-kind counterpart contributions).
- Have a fundable duration of 36 months.
Eligibility Criteria
- Applications must be submitted by a designated Lead Partner who, if awarded a grant, will be responsible for WOP project management and fund administration and serve as the focal point with UN-Habitat. Lead Partners play a role of “mentor” in the WOP.
- The Lead Partner will be responsible for managing all grant funding, including any necessary transfers to Additional Partners, procurement or outsourcing of services, as required. Lead Partners will be required to demonstrate their fitness to manage the grant.
- To be eligible, a Lead Partner must be a water/sanitation service provider that is either a government body or publicly-owned (at least majority ownership), registered and operating in a European or DCI–approved country.
- There can be only one Lead Partner per WOP. There is no limit to the number of applications an organization can make, however the Selection Committee will cap the number of WOP Projects awarded to any given Lead Partner at five (5).
- The Lead Partner will engage in the partnership directly and not act as an intermediary. In the spirit of partnership, the Lead Partner is expected to design and implement their WOP in collaboration with all WOP Partners, ensuring priorities, capacities, and expectations of all partners are considered.
For more information, visit https://gwopa.org/eu-wops/