Strong buy-in and commitment of sector partners can contribute to the sustainability of institutional reform. The objective of the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) Project was to lay a policy and institutional framework in Cabo Verde, strengthening the WASH sector and encouraging future investments to support the Government of Cabo Verde to maintain and expand the foundational work. Nearly five years after the Compact, the evaluation found that a range of stakeholders in the sector credit the institutional and utility reform activities for setting the foundation for more effective policy setting, decision-making and operations in the sector. The political will of the government and local partners led to successful implementation of the reform activities such as realigning the responsibilities of the economic regulator for the water sector; creating a new National Agency of Water and Sanitation responsible for resource allocation, strategic planning, and coordination within the WASH sector; and consolidating the eight municipal water utilities on Santiago Island into one corporate entity, Aguas de Santiago. Commitments to these remained strong even after the Compact, as evidenced by continued support for capacity building to the key institutions, investments in infrastructure and other developments in the WASH sector. MCC’s policies and projects recognize the importance of country ownership and commitment to the compact objective in leveraging the compact to incentivize difficult reforms.
Lesson Learned