Development of a Sector Information System, Water sector in Kenya
Since 2000 the Ministry of Water and Irrigation (MWI) and its partners have introduced a number of sector reforms focusing on the separation of policy formulation and regulation from service provision and the separation of water resources management from water services.
The sector has developed a framework and roadmap for achieving a Sector Wide Approach to Planning (SWAP), which was launched in October 2006. The SWAP implies a gradual move towards more budget support for the sector, and a reliable performance monitoring system is important for the Development Partners and the Government to be able to monitor assess the progress and efficiency in the sector.
A reliable Sector Information System (SIS) is an important tool in facilitating improved performance in the water sector. The water sector is in the process of establishing a Sector Investment Plan (SIP), initially an Interim SIP is being developed on the basis on the presently available data on existing coverage and the strategic and business plans for the sector institutions. The new institutions are also in the process of establishing computerised financial management systems, and gradually the Government budgets are being restructured to respond to the new institutional set-up in the water sector.
A consistent sector performance monitoring framework requires that the investment plans, the financial management systems and the information systems are structured around well defined indicators and sub-sector definitions and terminology e.g. it is only possible to monitor progress compared to plans and efficiency in the implementation if the financial management system and progress monitoring system measure comparable issues that are related to the plan. Agreement of definitions and terminology is needed across the sector and include important partners like the Ministry of Health in relation to definition of hygienic latrines and coverage for sanitation and the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). It is vital that that the data available in the general census and household surveys can be used in the water sector information system.
The objective of the assignment is to provide support to the MWI and the SIS project committee to define the overall requirements of the SIS, propose a set of key sector performance indicators to be used at sector level for assessing the progress in the sector in relation to investment plans and develop a workplan and TOR for implementation of the SIS.
The work shall be based on the results of the work done to date in the SIS project and the design of the sub-sector information systems. This assignment will complement the ongoing efforts in the development of the SIS and is needed in order to fast track the establishment of the overall SIS for sector to guide the ongoing development of the sub-sector information systems, the development of investment plans and the establishment of the financial management systems, to ensure that these will form an integrated performance management set-up.