Developing and Expanding Certification to cover Business Management, and Operational Excellence (DECOE)

Overview of the Action

ACWUA provides current and state-of-the-art training for its member water and wastewater utilities across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, thereby increasing efficiency in operations, and improving service quality in water supply and sanitation for communities and citizens.
This action falls under the Middle East Regional (MER) Middle East Water Security Initiative (MWSI). MWSI seeks to increase the supply of water, while decreasing demand, by engaging both international and local actors from among private sector, civil society, public sector, and other organizations to support dynamic entrepreneurs, researchers, and consumers with opportunities to develop, test, scale-up, market and utilize “water-smart” technologies. Assistance activities will be implemented through a Fixed Amount Award (FAA), which is based on a milestone system.

Objectives of the action

The action objectives are:
 Analysing the causes for high NRW in the Arab Region utilities and investigate the reasons behind fluctuations in NRW management performance through understanding the underlying factors and challenges related to sector governance, utility organization and structures, operational systems and functions, nature of supply and services, and network physical status.
 Developing the capacity within ACWUA to provide support to its utility members to target NRW reduction and advance utilities efforts to improve performance.
 Creating and strengthening a permanent NRW task force within ACWUA as a continuing technical resource to the region, particularly for expanding the effort to new utilities.
 Supporting ACWUA utilities in developing and implementing action plans to reduce NRW.
 Building linkages and knowledge exchange platforms between ACWUA and the African Water Association (AfWA) members through common research on NRW problems in the region.

Results of the action (Outcomes & outputs)

 Developing a NRW diagnostic tool and adopting it in the Arab Region.
 Developing Miyahuna Five Years NRW Strategic and Investment Plan (2017-2021)
 Establishing a NRW task force in ACWUA from its constituent utilities that works in cooperation with AfWA NRW water team.
 Leveraging the knowledge base that has been established within ACWUA through its Technical Working Groups to inform understanding of the contextual factors underlying NRW in the region and accordingly our scope and design details of the research activities and identifying subject utilities.