Morocco - Pilot Rural Infrastructure Project

Report No. PIC3670 Project Morocco-Pilot Rural (@+) ... Infrastructure Project Region Middle East and North Africa Sector Water Supply & Sanitation Project ID MAPA43723 Borrower Kingdom of Morocco Implementing Agencies Ministry of Interior and Office National de l'Eau Potable (ONEP) Contacts Mr. Driss Ghessab, Ministry of Interior Tel: 011.212.7.73.45.63 Fax: 011.212.7.73.44.65 Mr. Ahmed Hajji, ONEP Tel: 011.212.7.77.54.03 Fax: 011.212.7.77.54.08 Date initial PID prepared May 1996 Date this update prepared March 1997 Project Appraisal Date June 1997 Project Board Date October 1997 Background 1. While Morocco has been successful in providing water supply to its urban population of about 14 million, rural water supply and sanitation have been developed on a very limited basis. Currently, about 14 percent of the rural population (12 million inhabitants living in 31,000 douars or villages) has access to safe drinking water: 2 percent through house connections, 6 percent through public standpipes, and 6 percent through public wells. 25 percent of the rural population relies on individual sanitation: pit latrines or leaching pits. Often sanitation facilities do not exist. (i) Rural Water Supply The responsibility for rural water supply is split among several agencies: "Administration de l'Hydraulique" of the Ministry of Public Works for the development of water resources (generally: boreholes or wells); ONEP (Office National de l'Eau Potable) for water supply facilities and DAR (Direction des Affaires Rurales) of the Ministry of Interior for assisting the rural population in operation and maintenance (O&M) of rural water supply facilities. To a minor extent, the Ministry of Agriculture and the DEA (Direction de l'Eau et de l'Assainissement) of the DGCL (Direction Generale des Collectivites Locales) of the Ministry of Interior contribute in assisting rural population in O&M.  Maintenance is inadequate because of lack of funds and know-how. Disinfection of water points is sporadically provided by the Ministry of Public Health. Water borne diseases are prevalent in rural areas. (ii) Rural Sanitation The Ministry of Public Health controls the water quality of water points in rural areas and provides advice to the rural population on sanitation matters. ONEP is playing an increasing role in planning sewerage and individual sanitation facilities in semi- urban and rural areas: currently, sewerage / sanitation master plans are being carried out by ONEP with the assistance of consultants for 140 towns. (iii) Rural Electricity The electricity service is currently available to about 10 percent of the rural dispersed population through small individual generators privately owned and operated. However, in rural and semi-rural towns electricity from electrical lines is provided by ONE. (iv) Rural Roads/Tracks Construction and maintenance of main roads is the responsibility of the "Direction des Routes" (DR) of the Ministry of Public Works. However, the DR does not maintain rural tracks starting from the douars, whose maintenance is left to the initiative of the villages and the Communes. The Proposed Pilot Infrastructure Project 2. Given the dispersion of beneficiaries who are scattered over the whole country and the need to simultaneously provide several basic services to the rural populations to improve their standards of living, increase and stabilize their revenues and encourage them to stay in their douars, the Government wishes to carry out a pilot rural infrastructure project in six priority Provinces and considers the simultaneous provision of four basic services: water supply, sanitation, electricity and access to the road. The chosen Provinces are also representative of different ethnic groups living in Morocco. 3. The total population served amounts to 2.7 million inhabitants living in about seven thousand douars. The lessons to be learned from this pilot project (called hereinafter "Pilot Rural Infrastructure Project") will allow the Government and the donors to better identify the investments needed and implement a nation- wide rural infrastructure project concerning the remaining 59 Provinces, of which rural water supply would be the priority component. Project Objectives -2-  4. The project's major objective is to provide satisfactory basic infrastructure services (water supply, sanitation, electricity and access to the road) to the rural population of the six priority Provinces through a community participation approach. This pilot operation, conceived at the province level and covering several basic services, would be the first of this kind in Morocco and is deemed to provide the feed-back from the field experience to set up detailed design and implementation criteria tailored to the habits of rural populations and to be the basis of a nation-wide rural infrastructure program comprising the same four basic components of the pilot operation, but extended to the whole country. Project Description 5. The proposed project would focus on the above-mentioned six priority Provinces and include the following components: (a) sensitization of the rural population to the importance of basic infrastructure services, to their participation in the selection and implementation of appropriate solutions, to entrusting them with the responsibility of operation and maintenance (O&M) needed to secure the continuous operation of the proposed infrastructure works. A detailed survey would be carried out in each one of the douars considered in the project; the survey will provide information on the current situation, data to design and cost-estimate all the required facilities and, in particular, location and yields of existing and new water points. The survey will assess people's willingness to pay, to actively participate in the construction and assume responsibility for O&M. The technological solution will be identified on this information basis while institutional arrangements for O&M will be tailored to the specific habits of the community; (b) rehabilitation and reinforcement/extension of water supply, sanitation, electricity systems and track improvement to secure adequate access to roads to reach schools and dispensaries, and to transport agricultural products; and (c) consulting services and technical assistance concerning design and works' supervision of the proposed works which would be carried out by the villagers on force account and/or by small local contractors making extensive use of village manpower. Project Preparation 6. During the last 10 years two small scale programs have been implemented in several Provinces by the Ministry of Interior with the help of UNICEF and CIDA, the Canadian Aid Agency. This latter program consisting of supply and installation of 200 solar pumps is still underway. The implementation of these programs gave the opportunity to the Ministry of Interior to assess the willingness of the villagers to adhere to the programs and to promote community participation both in works implementation and O&M. An extensive survey was carried out by the technical services of the six - 3 -  participating provinces from July 1996 through January 1997 in the framework of project preparation to identify major patterns of water demand, supply availability, and interest of the population for adequate infrastructure services. 7. This survey covered 239 sample villages (or douars) inhabitated by about 215,000 people, and it identified major patterns of demand for infrastructure services, level of current services, responses of the villagers to the proposed survey methodology and better tailor the survey questionnaire and interviews to catch all the relevant information in order to improve the cost estimates and the knowledge of the range of technological and institutional arrangements that the pilot phase would implement. Project Benefits 8. The project would benefit an estimated 1.4 million rural people of the villages located in the six priority Provinces by providing access to basic infrastructure. Waterborne diseases and infant mortality would be significantly reduced and productivity of affected population, in particular women, substantially improved. Improved rural infrastructure is expected to contribute to stabilize and improve rural revenues. Project implementation 9. In each one of the six Provinces, the whole operation would be based in the Province itself and would be closely followed-up by the Governor. The proposed project is designed to allow for implementation over about 5 years (1998-2002). The major implementing agencies would be the six provinces with the support of ONEP, in close collaboration with the Ministry of Interior. Operation and maintenance would be entrusted to the villagers themselves (users' associations or small private operators) through adequate sensitization and training. Project cost and financing 10. Total project cost is estimated at US$60 million with a tentative Bank loan placed at US$40 million. Lessons Learned from Previous Bank Operations 11. To date, the Bank financed in Morocco five water supply operations, one of which concerned the water supply of rural populations of Tafilalet through a 100 km. pipeline going from Errachidia to Erfoud - Rissani (3rd Water Supply Project). The implementing agency was ONEP. This was a successful although limited rural water supply operation. The choice of the same highly performing implementing agency (ONEP) in the proposed project would be a guarantee for the success of the new infrastructure operation. The Bank financed also two rural electrification projects aiming at - 4 -  providing electricity to rural and semi-rural towns starting from the distribution network of ONE (the implementing agency). Poverty Category 12. The project will essentially benefit the rural poor. This project fits into the targeted intervention category because the population of project beneficiaries has a significantly larger proportion of poor people than the country's population as a whole. Environmental Aspects 13. Category B has been proposed for this project. Please see attached Annex. Risks 14. The project would not pose specific technical risks. The risks mostly involve the villagers motivation to comply with conditionalities required to adhere to the proposed project. However, due to the scarce (and often non-existent) current services, the villagers' motivation is expected to be high. Program Objective Categories 15. The proposed pilot project, by supporting access improvement to basic rural infrastructure is meant to target rural poor and to provide detailed information for establishing a rural infrastructure strategy and for designing a national operation. Contact Point: Mr. S. Calegari, Task Manager The World Bank 1818 H Street N.W. Washington, D.C. 20433 Telephone No.: (202) 458-5454 Fax No.: (202) 522-1500 Note: This is information on an evolving project. Certain components may not necessarily be included in the final project. Processed by the Public Information Center week ending April 11, 1997. - 5 -  Annex Environmental Aspects It is evident that the proposed project will enhance the environment through the provision of basic infrastructure services. This will be achieved through an adequate sanitary protection of water points and the provision of adequate sanitation and other basic services. The environmental situation will be strongly improved through the following actions which are included in the works construction: (a) construction of sanitary perimeters (through wall protection made with local materials) around each water point to protect it from animal contamination; (b) construction of a small drainage concrete slab around each water point to avoid water stagnation and mud at the water point; (c) construction of a pit latrine at each household (through locally available materials); (d) provision of electricity; and (e) improved access of remote douars to the road. -6 -