Niger’s ‘common financing mechanism’ has created a robust institutional arrangement, which has helped to increase confidence in WASH sector investment. The principles of SWA’s ‘Collaborative Behaviours’ are the conceptual foundation for the mechanism, which allows partners to reduce risk by pooling resources, as well as harmonizing sector financing procedures with national budgeting procedures.
Niger’s experience with the SWA Collaborative Behaviours spans several years, as the country was involved in their design in 2014. Since then, the country has worked to integrate the SWA Collaborative Behaviours into its sector work and activities, through a number of different coordination and consultation mechanisms.
The common financing mechanism enables a broad range of partners to collaborate on the complex issues of improving water, sanitation and hygiene in Niger. When partners coordinate through the mechanism, it shows the Collaborative Behaviours in action.
The common financing mechanism marks a significant contribution to mobilizing funding for the sector. It manages risk and utilizes government funding to the sector more efficiently. It provides a more innovative, effective and co-ordinated way to manage and use the increased funding for the sector, which has tripled its budget between 2019 and 2020.
The clarity and increased co-ordination provided by the common financing mechanism has also already made it easier for the sector to attract increased external funding. Niger’s Programme Sectoriel Eau, Hygiène et Assainissement (PROSEHA) launched an ambitious project using the common financing mechanism in February 2020. The project aims to provide access to water and sanitation for 120,000 people, including building or rehabilitating over 50 hydraulic works and building over 200 latrines for schools, health centres and public places.