Sustainability Study – Syria Area-Based Integrity Recovery (SABIR)

1.BACKGROUND

Between 2013 and 2017, a large part of the north-east region of Syria was under the yoke of the Islamic State, before gradually returning under the control of the Syrian Democratic Forces. The war against Daesh has caused massive destruction, which has considerably weakened economic activity and access to essential services.

According to the United Nations, 12.1 million people are food insecure in Syria and about 5.5 million people need direct food aid. Climate change, unpredictable weather conditions and regional political tensions also put considerable pressure on access to water in the region and on agriculture.

It is this context that Expertise France launched the SABIR project in 2020. Its objective is to address these needs and contribute to the stabilisation of north-east Syria by fostering local recovery and improved living conditions for the most vulnerable communities in the region. The project is financed by the Crisis and Support Centre of the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs with €11 million. The fourth phase of the project started in March 2024 and will reach completion in early 2026.

Expertise France has opted for an integrated territorial approach (ITA) for the implementation of this project, to ensure that the response is appropriate and effective.

The integrated territorial approach involves providing multi-sectoral services in a defined area to better serve the needs of vulnerable communities. It is particularly relevant in situations with multi-sectoral needs and geographical disparity.

The SABIR project is thus supporting and assisting local committees, community organisations, and civil society organisations. Synergies between the activities and coordination between the local partners are encouraged to strengthen the impact and ownership of the project activities by the beneficiaries.

2. PROJECT COMPONENTS AND RESULTS

Through the Syrian NGOs, Expertise France has supported the implementation of the following activities under the SABIR project:

Rehabilitation of public facilities to improve access to basic services

• There has been an improvement in the availability and management of drinking water and/or irrigation: the project has served to dig wells, in consultation with local communities, and equip them with solar panels. Farmers have been assisted and supported with the development of more efficient and more sustainable irrigation systems
• Electricity networks have been rehabilitated: electrical transformers have been installed in several locations, medium-voltage lines have been rehabilitated, and training has been provided for the recipient populations
• Several schools destroyed during the conflict have been renovated

Improved access to inclusive and sustainable livelihoods for local communities

• Agriculture has been strengthened through the distribution of agricultural inputs, climate-resilient seeds, and training geared to needs
• Livestock farming has been supported with veterinary care, the distribution of vaccines and artificial insemination for livestock, and training for farmers in the cultivation and use of feed crops
• Technical and vocational training has been organised to increase the employability of young people in the region. The project has also supported local small businesses, especially in the agricultural product processing sector

Capacity building for local partners

• The organisational capacities of the partner NGOs have been assessed, with the aim of jointly building an action plan for the development of their capacities. The technical and operational capacities of civil society organisations and community organisations have also been strengthened, and local community committees have been created and supported.

3.OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT

During the three first phases of project implementation between July 2020 and February 2024, SABIR project has rehabilitated 19 water stations and 56 electric facilities in different locations in Al-Hassaka, Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor governorates through local partners,. In addition, around 715 individuals participated in technical and vocational education trainings (TVET), of which 103 small business were supported through in-kind grants or equipment. Expertise France emphasizes the sustainability to achieve longer term goal. Thus, Expertise France is seeking a qualified service provider to conduct a sustainability study to assess the extent to which the positive results of the projects have lasted up to date. The goal is to reveal the current status of the rehabilitation as well as the economic situation of the project participants as and where necessary. The overall objective is to identify sustainable activities and effective operational methods that allowed activities to have a long-term impact, to provide input for strategic thinking and design of future similar projects.

The main objectives are outlined but not limited to:

• Assessing rehabilitated facilities in terms of current services provision to the community and ensuring meeting basic needs.
• Assessing issues and gaps met by implementing partners after the project implementation, related to facilities per geographic location.
• Identifying internal and external factors that might have affected the functionality and quality of service provision after the project implementation.
• Assessing the extent to which project participants improved their income as a result of participation in the project, with a specific focus on small businesses, technical and vocational education training (TVET) as well as small holder farmers. Also assessing the sustainability of their business or income generation project across the years (after the end of the project implementation)
• Capturing lessons learnt and best practice to maximize sustainability in future programming with a focus on project handover and exit strategy of Expertise France and Implementing partners.

4.METHODOLOGY AND APPROACH

The proposed methodology is a mixed-method data collection including survey checklist filled through field visits, interview with beneficiaries, and a few key informant interviews with key stakeholders. The study design should be participatory approach through detail-oriented tools. The data collection should be physical to the identified facilities and beneficiaries’ business locations. In addition, the facilities are currently running by the local authority. As such, the consultant should have access to the three governorates and follow up with obtaining permission for data collection in coordination with former implementing partners as deemed possible.

4.1 Rehabilitation of Public Infrastructure

The rehabilitation of facilities aimed at improving access to basic services such as water and electricity. According to the internal final evaluation reports, facilities were functioning well right after the completion of the project. However, EF is seeking to assess the current capacity of these facilities to provide water and electricity after the end of the support provided under the SABIR project. Therefore, the study should cover at least 20 centers (5 water and 15 electric) in different locations.

The consultant should develop an appropriate checklist to collect data at the level of the centers in order to assess the infrastructure and the functionality. Moreover, the result of the collected data through checklist will help comprehensive discussion with local authorities and respective implementing partner.

When rehabilitated facilities are no longer functioning, or show dysfunctions, the study should analyse the reasons and seek to target the origin in order to inform EF about the factors behind malfunction.