The Jordan Compact benefitted from successful donor coordination. MCC and USAID cooperated closely to help ensure that the United States’ investments in Jordan’s water sector were mutually reinforcing, cost-effective and sustainable. Input and collaboration between USAID and MCC played a significant role in the development of the As-Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant Expansion Project which built on previous work of USAID. USAID shared lessons learned on the original build-operate-transfer transaction of the plant. The agencies also collaborated on a feasibility study of bio-solid and sludge at the As-Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant. The study examined ongoing stockpiling of dried sludge and bio-solids at the plant, and developed short- and long-term solutions for proper use and disposal, including reuse in agriculture and land application. The results will assist the Government of Jordan in establishing a reuse strategy and developing related standards and guidelines. The organizations coordinated on sector policy, particularly during the development of the new National Water Strategy which called for a better management of scarce water resources and in analyzing tariff scenarios, on which USAID was the lead donor.
As previously stated, the compact’s Women Plumbers Program (WPP) trained 30 women in semi-skilled plumbing. While a few of the trained women found employment, others needed further support to become economically active. To support program sustainability, MCC and MCA-Jordan explored establishing partnerships with other existing programs that support women’s entrepreneurship in Jordan. USAID’s Local Enterprise Support project will provide further support (training in business skills, coaching and provision of grants) to 24 of the 30 women graduates of the WPP to establish themselves as entrepreneurs through 2020.
MCC and the Government of Jordan also worked closely with donors most active in the water sector, including Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Germany’s Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) and Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau(KfW). MCA-Jordan established a water advisory group that included representatives from USAID, GTZ (which represented KfW), and JICA. In addition, MCC and MCA-Jordan participated in a donor-lender task force to coordinate water sector projects in Zarqa, under the leadership of GTZ.
The complementary investments by the Government and other donors will amplify and improve sustainability of the MCC compact.The Government contributed a total of $92.4 million in improvements in the water sector in Zarqa—exceeding the compact agreed-upon amount of $73.7 million. These funds, managed independently, were used for the construction of additional pumping stations, wastewater and water lines, water meters and O&M training.