Infrastructure design selection should balance function, aesthetics, and lifecycle costs. The interim evaluation report noted that the RSRC buildings were impressive and beautiful, and the design attracted patrons to visit. However, it also noted concerns that design choices resulted in excess noise and dust, and complicated maintenance of the facilities. For example, the Ohangwena RSRC’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system was in disrepair at the time of interim data collection because the Ministry of Works (MOW), which is tasked with maintaining it, was unfamiliar with its “advanced design.” Similarly, MOW pointed to “the way it was built” as the reason they could not fix a roof leak at one of the facilities, despite having repaired leaks at the other facilities. The final evaluation report reaffirms that maintenance challenges are attributed to design choices and systems that are too sophisticated for MOW staff to maintain. Underscoring the importance of sustainability, one person interviewed for the evaluation noted how nice a facility looked and also asked “if things that were used are not locally available and this is maybe [the] third or fourth year, what about after ten years?” While the physical appearance of the RSRCs is important, it is also important to ensure infrastructure meets partner country needs and can be maintained at a reasonable cost post-compact. One solution is to consider Design-Build contracts, when appropriate, as they allow partner countries to select contractors using performance criteria rather than just technical and cost criteria. This approach can give bidders the incentive to balance function, aesthetics, the upfront cost, and lifecycle costs. However, because the contractors would control some of these aspects instead of the owner, Design-Build contracts are best used with owners that are already familiar with them. Also, not all countries allow Design-Build contracts, so they are not necessarily an appropriate solution everywhere.
If MCC and partner countries are aware of the lifecycle costs upfront, they can select options that minimize these costs and also plan for them during implementation, well-ahead of closeout. This approach is being used in the procurement of road construction contractors in the Abidjan Transportation Project. A related solution might be to hire commissioning agents who would be responsible for balancing the user experience with ongoing operational costs, and ensuring the overall intervention comes together as expected—this would be another approach to help balance function, aesthetics, and lifecycle costs as infrastructure intended for a social purpose is often designed and built with little coordination with the sectors that will ultimately use it.