RFP - Advisory services for identifying and facilitating technical assistance opportunities for Water and Sanitation Infrastructure Interventions via DevNetJobsIndia

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL 

Advisory services for identifying and facilitating technical assistance opportunities for Water and Sanitation Infrastructure Interventions

February 2025

1. About Water.org

Water.org has been at the forefront of developing and delivering solutions to the water crisis for more than two decades. Founded by Gary White and Matt Damon, Water.org challenges the traditional approach by pioneering innovative, community-driven, and market-based solutions to ensure all people have access to safe water and sanitation (WSS); giving women hope, children health, and communities a future. Water.org has positively

transformed the lives of more than thirty-six million individuals in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean by providing access to safe water and improved sanitation. Water.org’s headquarters is in Kansas City, Missouri, USA.

In India, Water.org has reached 25 million people with access to safe water and sanitation with the help of grants awarded from different funding sources. In India, Water.org has been partnering with MFIs, PSB banks, private banks, self-help promoted institutions (SHPIs) and govt. institution across 24 states of India. More can be found on the organisation’s website.

2. Introduction and Background

• WSS financing is a widely discussed and studied topic. The annual need for WSS investment is estimated to be about US $114 Billion worldwide. For India, the estimated gap is about US$ 123 Billion in the financing needed to reach universal WSS access by 2030.
• Blended finance combines public, private, and philanthropic capital to address the WSS financing gap by de-risking investments and unlocking larger funding pools.
• Utilities are the local self-governing bodies responsible for WSS projects in India. They are therefore pivotal to achieving blended financing. Their control over project lifecycles enables the integration of diverse funding sources, driving large-scale, impactful, and sustainable WSS interventions. Strategic engagement at the utility level ensures WSS projects are designed to align with sustainable financing models and attract diverse investment. 
• Engaging with the WSS project lifecycle at the utility level enables integration of blended finance by supporting project conceptualization and preparation. Utilities can shape projects to attract investors for sustainable operations rather than limiting contractor roles to engineering procurement and construction (EPC), ensuring long-term impact and financial viability.
• Water.org now seeks to appoint suitable consultant organization(s) on a non-exclusive basis to render services and deliverables as described herein (collectively referred to as “consultancy services”). The suitability of the consultant organization is related to its reach into India’s water and sanitation sector, including experience of running program/ project management units and other initiatives to facilitate sustainable investments in the water/ sanitation sector.
• The primary objective is to understand WSS utilities financing opportunities and identify the technical assistance services for WSS utility organizations and private sector entities involved. 

3. Scope of work

The following is the scope of work for the consultancy services.

Note: It is not a contract. Any organization potentially chosen for such work must enter into a Consultancy Services Agreement with Water.org, following the submission of the proposal and its acceptance after a competitive bidding process. Any activity, service, or requirement not explicitly mentioned in the scope of work but necessary for the successful achievement of the project objectives shall be deemed to be included within the scope and shall be carried out by the appointed consultant without additional cost or modification to any signed contract. 

1. Identify drivers in India for successful PPP implementation in WSS infrastructure projects and how those could be adapted for small/ medium projects.
2. Identify four opportunities for providing Technical Assistance to facilitate eligible WSS interventions (see the eligible intervention criteria below). The technical assistance requirement could be for the WSS utilities, government organizations, or private sector implementing/ financing entities involved in the eligible WSS interventions.
3. Facilitate Water.org’s partnership with the key stakeholder involved in two of the identified opportunities to implement the intervention, including structuring the WSS project involved. The said facilitation shall lead to the signing of an MoU with the relevant stakeholder.
4. Assist in providing the TA for the two confirmed partner opportunities. An example of the TA can include but is not limited to partial assistance to feasibility study/ detailed project report (DPR) either through grant or in-kind. It may be noted that completion of the TA will be considered when ready to tender documents are provided to the TA beneficiary by the consultant. Bid process management is out of scope.

Submission Requirements

Eligible consulting firms are requested to submit a technical and financial proposal no later than March 30, 2025. The proposals should be submitted to tpol@water.org with a cc to samit@water.org. The technical proposal must include among other things the reach out plan and templates to be used as a methodology to funnel potential partnership opportunities, especially using the existing relationships/ reach of the applicant consulting organizations. It is a key criterion for evaluation of the proposal. 

The proposal should be no longer than 25 pages, typed in no smaller than font size 10, margins no smaller than 0.5 inches.

For detailed information, please check the complete version of the RFP attached below. 

Download Attachment: Water.org rfp for partnership consultant.pdf