1. Background and Introduction:

Skat Consulting Ltd. is the implementing partner of Skat Foundation for the project Integrated Water Supply and Sanitation in Moldovan Villages (ApaSan+). The project aims at providing sustainable access to safe drinking water and household sanitation to the rural population in Moldova. With an overall budget of approx. 2 million €, the project is funded by the Austrian Development Agency (ADA), together with financial contributions from Skat Foundation and from the population, local public authorities and water and sanitation service providers of selected rural localities. The project started in November 2020 and is expected to be completed by January 2024. It builds on the experiences and lessons learned from the ApaSan project funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and ADA between 2009 and 2019 and is aligned with the Water Supply and Sanitation Strategy of the Republic of Moldova.

As the project approaches its completion, an external final evaluation will be contracted to assess the
project's achievements, impact, effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, and sustainability, in accordance
with ADA’s Guidelines for Programme and Project Evaluations1 and the OECD/DAC evaluation criteria.
The evaluation is a “partner-led evaluation”; it will be contracted and managed by Skat Consulting Ltd.,
on behalf of Skat Foundation.

2. Objectives of the Evaluation:

The overall objectives of the external final evaluation are:

• To assess the overall impact of the project on the rural population's access to safe drinking water
  and household sanitation in Moldova.
• To evaluate the project's effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, and sustainability in achieving its
  stated outcomes and objectives.
• To provide recommendations for future improvements in water supply and sanitation projects
  and strategies in Moldova.

3. Scope of the Evaluation:

The evaluation will cover the following areas:

• Assess the progress made towards achieving the expected outcomes and impacts of the project.
• Evaluate the project's contribution to the sustainable management of water supply and
  sanitation services.
• Analyse the effectiveness of the decentralized sanitation solutions introduced by the project and
  their scalability across the country.
• Examine the capacities and technical abilities of the regional and local water supply and
  sanitation operators.
• Assess the project's adherence to budget and timeline.
• Review the project's collaboration with local partners and stakeholders.

The detailed terms of refference can be downloaded here: https://tinyurl.com/56twhu26

Qualified individuals or firms are invited to submit their proposals by 24.10.2023 at the latest to Mirco Keller, mirco.keller@skat.ch