Participants of the Sahel regional meeting held from Nov 12th – 14th in Bamako, Mali
By Bethlehem Mengistu & Afou Chantal Bengaly
The Agenda for Change meeting in Bamako, Mali, held from November 12th to 14th, 2024, brought together members from across the Sahel region (Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso) to discuss and identify collaborative activities for strengthening WASH systems. The meeting objectives aligned with our global strategy priority of enhancing country collaboration effectiveness and influencing the scaling of WASH systems strengthening, leveraging diverse resources and capacities.
Key Highlights and Discussions:
- Collective action for Systems Strengthening: The convening aimed to improve collaboration between existing country partnerships and expand the number of active country collaborations. The goal was to amplify the collective impact of WASH interventions in the region, aligning efforts with the global strategy of systems strengthening.
- Contextual Challenges: The discussion highlighted the challenges posed by fragility, such as:
- Volatile sociopolitical contexts and the risks of political sensitivities that may hinder the stability of WASH interventions.
- Short-term funding cycles and low levels of funding, which limit long-term impact and sustainability in the region.
- Sector instability, with some countries experiencing backsliding in previously achieved WASH progress.
- Opportunities for Resilience Building: Despite these challenges, the meeting participants identified several opportunities to leverage systems strengthening, including:
- Building stronger sector coordination and improving regulation to foster sustainable WASH services.
- Using systems strengthening as an entry point for transformative programming that includes sector learning and adaptation.
- Emphasizing the idea that crisis could be a chance to reset and rebuild with resilience in mind, creating a more robust foundation for future development.
- Navigating Fragility in WASH Systems: One significant topic of discussion was the question: How can systems strengthening be implemented when there isn’t a clear system in place? This is particularly relevant in the Sahel region, which is experiencing high levels of fragility, where the traditional systems may be weak or fragmented. The solution proposed was to be agile in adapting tools and approaches to dynamic and often unpredictable contexts. Even in situations where WASH systems seem absent or weak, there is always some existing system to engage with and strengthen. The focus should be on resilience—both systems and the services they provide.
- Strategic Collaboration and Funding: The support from the Vitol Foundation provided a key opportunity for Agenda for Change to identify and explore collaborations that could increase the overall impact of WASH interventions. This support helped the members explore how to better leverage their varied capacities and resources to maximize the impact on WASH system strengthening, particularly in the context of fragile environments.
In conclusion, the meeting emphasized the importance of collaborative action in the Sahel region to enhance WASH systems resilience. It also highlighted the need for adaptability and contextualization of WASH interventions, with a focus on systems strengthening as a pathway to improving sector coordination and regulation. Despite the challenges, the opportunity to reset and rebuild stronger systems was seen as key to transforming the WASH sector in fragile contexts