Phase II of the Participatory District Rehabilitation in Mogadishu Project, which is directly supported by the Government of Italy within the UN Joint Programme on Local Governance and Decentralized Service Delivery framework, started in July 2011. UN-Habitat has partnered with the NGO SAACID for the implementation of the project.
The success of the project’s activities to date clearly reveals that there is much more that can be done to develop the districts and lives of Mogadishu residents. There is also a clear message from the district and regional leaders of Mogadishu: district participatory planning can now move to a more structured, medium-term phase where the district leaders and communities have growing, clear roles to play in district development, including humanitarian assistance.
Under the joint programme, district capacity-building efforts are thus expanding to include basic training of district technical staff and civic education, in an attempt to establish the broad range of skills required for participatory, accountable local governance. The training will include basic financial management, improved revenue collection, the district procurement process, and the participatory annual local planning cycle (the latter two provided by ILO, UNDP, and UNICEF, in concert with UN-Habitat).
Participatory district consultation and rehabilitation of community infrastructure
Under Phase II, the rehabilitation of community infrastructure is scheduled in all 16 districts of Mogadishu and the Bermuda area. As of February 2012, participatory district consultation workshops had been conducted in 15 districts. The 2-day consultations involved 60 key stakeholders and identified the urgent needs of districts. Nearly all the districts have identified new subprojects and prepared action plans. Technical assessments and design work for these projects have already started.
Governance capacity building
UN-Habitat’s senior training consultant prepared a new training module for Conflict Management, Gender in Local Governance, and Local Leadership, and three SAACID trainers were trained in Garowe on the new series. Then in August 2011, the 12-day trainings commenced. District authorities selected the 35 participants from each district, which included representatives from the district office, youth and women’s groups, local leaders, and district sports committees.
Mapping of public infrastructure
Phase II also covers a comprehensive update and enhancement of Geographic Information System mapping, data collection, and database development for public infrastructure and service delivery. The expansion of the mapping work builds upon the 16 district base maps and initial databases prepared during Phase I. Additional attributes will be collected for a wide variety of services, facilities, and sectors, from health facilities and water supply services to road networks and markets.
These additional activities have been carried out on a pilot basis in Shingani, Hamarweyne, Waberi, and Hamar-jajab Districts. In order to improve the quality of the mapping work and build the capacities of local staff and key counterparts, advanced Geographic Information System training was provided to two SAACID staff in October 2011, while staff from the Transitional Federal Government Ministry of Interior, Benadir Regional Administration, and UN-Habitat received a basic course.
The new and expanded joint programme activities in 2012 are important contributions, particularly as the UN Mogadishu Recovery and Stabilization Plan emphasizes direct benefits to Mogadishu residents and stability for all.
Activity update
During the reporting period, UN-Habitat, within the framework of the UN joint programme, completed the delivery of Conflict Management, Gender in Local Governance, and Local Leadership training for 16 district authorities and civil society organizations (women’s and youth groups) in Mogadishu. In total, 480 local leaders, district authority staff and civil society representatives were trained. In parallel to the training sessions, district consultations were conducted in all 16 districts. In total, 960 people attended the consultations.
Each district consultation resulted in the identification of five priority projects. After follow-up consultations, one project was selected for implementation under a district grant. The project selection shows a clear preference for the rehabilitation of district offices and related infrastructure. So far, 15 rehabilitation projects have been identified by local communities (Hodan, Waberi, Abulaziz, Shingani, Hawl-wadag, Shibis, Yaqshid, Deynile, Hamarweyne, Wadajir, Whardigley, Karaan, Heliwa, Dharkenley, Hamar-jajab).
Drawings, specifications, and bills of quantities are being prepared for all selected projects, and an expression of interest has been published for local contractors. Projects in Hodan, Waberi, Wadajir, and Karaan have been tendered, and construction started in April.
UN-Habitat is also preparing tender documents for the rehabilitation of the Benadir Regional Authority Registration and Tax Collection Offices, located in Shingani District. Finally, a joint pilot intervention by UNICEF and UN-Habitat is being prepared, which will remove the sludge and waste from pit latrines in IDP settlement areas and safely dispose of it. |
