Course: Mine AIM
This extended guidance document expands and clarifies the Aims and Approach described in WaterAid’s Global Strategy, serving as an explanatory companion for staff. It is designed to help staff internalise, interpret and adapt the strategy within their country and programme contexts, while acknowledging it is not exhaustive or final. The document is organised to first provide more detailed exposition of each Aim and then to explain Our Approach and how it should be integrated across aims. Each Aim section restates the strategy outcomes, explains the focus areas and suggests delivery options, links to examples, and outlines implications for programme design. Country strategies are expected to specify which Aim(s) they will pursue and where within the Aim they will concentrate effort. The Our Approach section elaborates four cross-cutting components — services/capacity/influencing, partnerships and alliances, gender equality, and evidence, learning and innovation — and describes how these should be combined. Practical examples and programmatic case studies (e.g., SusWASH, Beacon Project, Twenty Towns) are provided to show prior experience that can be scaled or adapted. The document emphasises systems strengthening, long-term partnerships, gender-responsive programming, and the need for rigorous context and barrier analysis to select and justify sub-national focus areas. It flags the expectation of iterative updates during the transition year as country strategies develop and new evidence emerges. The guidance stresses that work in focused geographic areas should aim for universal, sustainable, and safe WASH services that can generate evidence and influence wider change. It also outlines complementary Aims — WASH & Health, Climate Resilience, and More & Better Finance — and how each ties into the central objectives. Importantly, the document frames WaterAid’s role as convenor, catalyst and influencer rather than sole deliverer, calling for long-term commitments and clear exit roadmaps. Overall, it is a practical roadmap to translate global ambition into locally-led, evidence-informed programming while building alliances for scale.Lesson
Topic: Extended Aims and Approach — Guidance to internalise and implement WaterAid's Global Strategy
Learning Outcomes
- Understand the purpose and structure of the extended Aims and Approach document.
- Identify the four cross-cutting components of Our Approach and how they interact with each Aim.
- Recognise the three focus areas within selected Aims (partners, institutions, users' voice) and their practical implications.
- Be able to explain how country strategies should select and target Aim(s) and sub-national areas.
- Apply the guidance to create context-sensitive programme choices and a basic roadmap for influence and exit.
Conceptual Explanation
This document is an expanded explanatory companion to the Global Strategy, intended to help WaterAid staff convert high-level aims into operational programmes. It provides a structured approach: each Aim is unpacked into outcomes, delivery options and implications, while Our Approach defines four integrated components to be applied across Aims. The guidance emphasises systems strengthening (services, capacity, influencing), partnership-building, gender-responsive programming, and evidence-driven innovation. Country teams are asked to conduct robust context and barrier analyses to select sub-national focus areas where WaterAid can add most value, commit for the long term, and plan exits that enable local ownership. The document includes practical examples and further reading to support replication and scaling where feasible.
| Aim | Main Outcome | Principal Focus / 'How' |
|---|---|---|
| Subnational Universal & Sustainable WASH | Universal, sustainable WASH in selected districts/towns | Partner models; institutional strengthening; users' voice |
| WASH & Health | WASH embedded in health sector and HCFs | Integrate hygiene; WASH in HCF; health-sector ownership |
| WASH & Climate Resilience | Climate-resilient WASH embedded in national adaptation | Risk analysis; climate finance; engage high water users |
| More & Better Finance | Increased quantity and quality of WASH finance | Domestic budgets, ODA, private and climate finance, transparency |
Bilingual (EN → বাংলা)
English: This document expands the Global Strategy to provide staff with detailed guidance for programming, partnership, and influencing at national and subnational levels.
বাংলা: এই ডকুমেন্টটি গ্লোবাল স্ট্র্যাটেজির বিস্তৃত ব্যাখ্যা হিসেবে কর্মীদের জন্য দেশীয় এবং উপ-জাতীয় পর্যায়ে প্রোগ্রামিং, অংশীদারিত্ব এবং প্রভাবকরণে বিস্তারিত নির্দেশনা প্রদান করে।
- English term: Systems strengthening — বাংলা: সিস্টেম শক্তিশালীকরণ
- English term: Gender-responsive — বাংলা: লিঙ্গ-সংবেদনশীল
- English term: Climate-resilient WASH — বাংলা: জলবায়ু-সহনশীল WASH
- English term: Life-cycle cost — বাংলা: জীবনচক্র ব্যয়
Important Notes
- The document is a guide, not an exhaustive rulebook; iterative updates are expected during the transition year.
- Country strategies must define which Aim(s) they target and specify focus areas within each Aim.
- Programmes should be designed to generate evidence that can influence wider systemic change.
- Gender equality, partnerships and evidence must be integrated, not treated as separate add-ons.
Exercises → True / False / Fill in the Blanks / MCQ / Matching / Descriptive / Creative
True / False
- Statement: "The extended document replaces the Global Strategy and is the final authority on programming."
Answer
False. The document is an explanatory companion and explicitly states it is not the last word; updates are expected and country strategies will adapt it.
- Statement: "One of the core components of Our Approach is partnerships and alliances."
Answer
True. Partnerships and alliances are one of the four cross-cutting components emphasised.
- Statement: "Country programmes must implement every Aim in full regardless of context."
Answer
False. Country programmes should select Aim(s) based on context analysis and where they can add most value.
Fill in the Blanks
- "The three focus actions in the Subnational Aim are partner models, institutional strengthening, and ________."
Answer
Answer: users' voice (enhancing users' voice and representation).
- "Our Approach lists four components: services/capacity/influencing, partnerships, gender equality, and ________."
Answer
Answer: evidence, learning and innovation.
- "The global ambition stated is to deliver an additional ______ million people with sustainable and safe WASH by the end of the strategy."
Answer
Answer: 400 million.
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)
- Which activity is NOT emphasised as part of the More & Better Finance Aim?
- A. Advocate for increased government spending on WASH
- B. Develop WASH-specific private equity funds internally as the primary financier
- C. Improve transparency and equity of WASH finance
- D. Engage with climate finance channels
Answer
Correct: B. The document states WaterAid does not aim to become a large finance provider; it will convene, catalyse and influence rather than supply principal private equity as its main role.
- Which of the following is a suggested entry point for integrating WASH into health?
- A. Routine immunisation programmes
- B. Space exploration initiatives
- C. Offshore oil drilling
- D. None of the above
Answer
Correct: A. The guidance lists integrating hygiene into routine immunisation and other public health programmes as a key entry point.
Matching
Match Aim (left) with Primary emphasis (right).
- Left:
- Subnational Universal & Sustainable WASH
- WASH & Health
- WASH & Climate Resilience
- More & Better Finance
- Right:
- Influence climate finance allocations and embed risk analysis in designs
- Demonstrate universal WASH in selected districts to inform scale-up
- Embed hygiene and WASH into health sector programmes and HCFs
- Mobilise and improve the quality and transparency of WASH financing
Answer
Matching: A→2, B→3, C→1, D→4.
Descriptive
Question: Briefly describe the recommended relationship between direct service delivery, capacity strengthening, and influencing in programme design.
Answer
Programmes should balance direct service delivery with capacity strengthening and influencing in ways that are mutually reinforcing. Delivery can demonstrate practical solutions and build credibility; capacity strengthening ensures local institutions and service providers can sustain services; influencing addresses systemic barriers at higher policy and financing levels. The balance is context-dependent and should be based on continuous political economy and barrier analysis, with a clear theory of change and exit roadmap.
Creative
Task: Propose a brief two-paragraph concept for a pilot subnational programme that integrates gender-responsive WASH, climate resilience, and a finance leverage component. Include the main partners you would approach.
Answer
Paragraph 1 (Concept & objectives): Pilot in a climate-vulnerable district to demonstrate universal, sustainable WASH across households, schools and a selected cluster of healthcare facilities. The programme will prioritise gender-responsive design (safe sanitation, menstrual health management, and women’s participation in water committees), climate-resilient infrastructure (low-carbon boreholes with recharge and flood-proof latrine designs), and an institutional roadmap for scale. The objective is to reach universal access in the district while generating evidence for national scale-up and influencing national finance allocations for climate-resilient WASH.
Paragraph 2 (Finance & partners): Use WaterAid seed funding to pilot, coupled with proposals to the national finance ministry for a co-financing envelope and to climate funds (e.g., Green Climate Fund pipeline partners) for resilience components. Private sector partners would include local utilities and vendors for supply-chain improvements; women’s rights organisations and disability groups for inclusive engagement; and an academic partner for rapid applied research and monitoring. This multi-stakeholder coalition will support technical design, build local capacity, and mobilise layered financing for maintenance and scaling.
Activities, Vocabulary, Homework, Practice Task
Activities
- Activity: Conduct a 45-minute group PEA (political economy analysis) focusing on a proposed subnational area. Prepare a one-page summary of identified barriers and three practical entry points.
Answer
Deliverable: One-page PEA summary listing barriers (e.g., weak local budgets, political fragmentation, gender norms), and three entry points (e.g., strengthen utility billing, link hygiene to immunisation campaigns, partner with a women’s coalition for accountability).
- Activity: Draft a short checklist (6 items) to assess whether a proposed activity is gender-responsive in WASH.
Answer
- Has a gender analysis been completed and used in design?
- Do women and girls have meaningful leadership roles in decision-making?
- Are infrastructure designs safe and accessible for all genders and people with disabilities?
- Does the budget allocate resources to gender-specific needs (e.g., MHM materials)?
- Are there safeguards to mitigate gender-based violence risks?
- Is monitoring disaggregated by sex and other relevant characteristics?
Vocabulary
Systems strengtheningAnswer
Interventions that improve the functions and relationships among institutions, finance, data, human resources and regulations so services are sustained at scale.
Answer
Financial analysis covering capital, operation, maintenance and replacement costs over the expected life of services to ensure sustainability.
Homework
- Read the Beacon Project partnership learning document and list three lessons that could be adapted to your country context.
Answer
Suggested lessons: (1) Government co-funding increases ownership; (2) cross-country technical partnerships accelerate learning; (3) visible community benefits accelerate political buy-in.
- Prepare a one-page plan identifying one potential donor and one national partner to approach for a finance-leveraging brief in your context.
Answer
Example: Donor – bilateral climate fund; National partner – finance ministry unit on decentralisation; Brief should demonstrate cost-effectiveness, gender impact, and pathway to scale.
Practice Task
Using the document structure, create a two-column table that contrasts "short-term delivery actions" with "long-term systemic actions" for WASH in healthcare facilities.
Answer
| Short-term delivery actions | Long-term systemic actions |
|---|---|
| Repair and equip handwashing stations in HCFs | Embed WASH indicators in national health performance frameworks |
| Provide training on IPC for health staff | Secure regular domestic budget lines for WASH operations and maintenance |
| Run targeted hygiene behaviour campaigns for patients | Institutionalise routine WASH monitoring within health information systems |