Breaking the Build-Neglect-Repair cycle in Beira Mozambique
How partners at the frontline of climate change, try to get infra investment right: design choices; O&M; central-local, local-community & donor coordination

Friday, March 24, 2023
Worldbank Venue at Millennium Hilton New York (One UN Plaza)
River View Room, 3:00 – 4:15pm EDT

The Government of Mozambique, the City of Beira, the World Bank and the Government of the Netherlands cordially invite you to a side event to the UN 2023 Water Conference.

The City of Beira in Mozambique experiences challenges that many other cities in the Global South face: build-neglect-repair of water infrastructure. An independent evaluation, of the Netherlands’ worldwide portfolio of water programs implemented during 2006-2016, found “build-neglect-repair” symptoms in many.

Causes are manifold. But typical enabling factors include orientation toward short-term results instead of long-term sustainability. Shortfalls in coordination are a common feature as well: between central – local government, local government – communities, those who design and those who will operate, and between those who finance investment and finance O&M. Focus on technicalities of design rather than sociology of O&M is another. Projects contribute relevant pieces of the puzzle. But the process to connect those pieces to the ones already laid out on the board, is generally underemphasized and underfunded. This keeps the vicious build-neglect-repair cycle going.

Development partners collaborating in Beira work hard to break the cycle. Central government, local government and a development partner each will present their experiences and perspectives on a 12-year journey since 2011. They will share progress and setbacks, including those resulting from cyclone Idai: the strongest cyclone to make landfall in Southern Africa in the past half century, hitting Beira full blast in 2019, and causing major devastation from which the city is still recovering.

In a second segment the Mozambican Minister for Public Works, Housing and Water, the Mayor of Beira and a representative of the World Bank will discuss how they are now strengthening central-local coordination, improving donor coordination and trying to get not just the infra but also the O&M and the financing of O&M right for nature based solutions for coastal protection, and for hard infra drainage improvement.

In a final segment the conversation will broaden to Mayors from other cities, and networks in the urban and infrastructure domains where experiences like those from Mozambique and Beira can be shared and where peer to peer learning can happen.

Objectives of the event:

1. Layout Beira’s build-neglect-repair challenges – an African city at the climate change frontline
2. Share how central and local govt, community reps, donors are finding ways to address these
3. Solicit feedback from/explore opportunities for exchange and learning with peers in audience

Program outline:

• 15:00 Introduction: welcome remarks, build-neglect-repair, who is in the room?
• 15:05 Presentation Beira case build-neglect-repair (3 perspectives)
  • Central government: Ms Suzana Saranga, Ministry of Public Works, Housing and Water, Regulating Authority AURA
  • Local government: Mr Albano Carige, Mayor of Beira
  • Development partner: Mr Maarten Gischler, Netherlands Foreign Ministry
• 15:30 Panel 1 (build-neglect-repair – exchange between key actors)
  • Mr Raul Mutevuie, DNAAS; Mr Victor Tuacale, FIPAG; Ms Rute Nhamucho, AIAS; Ministry of Public Works, Housing and Water
  • Mr Albano Carige, Mayor of Beira
  • World Bank (TBC)

Is build-neglect-repair high on your agenda?
Do you see promise in/feel ownership of the Beira approach?
What is the value of the coordination round tables?
What can a regulator achieve short-term, what long-term?
Does the experience in Beira make you change your approach, or replicate it?

• 15:50 Panel Discussion 2 (peers reflecting on Mozambique case)
  • H.E. Dr. Habtamu Itefa, Minister of Water & Energy, Ethiopia (TBC)
  • Vice Mayor of Musanze, Rwanda, Andrew Rucyahana Mpuhwe (TBC)
  • Ms Kobie Brand, Regional Director, ICLEI Africa

Do you recognize the build-neglect-repair dynamics?
What is relevant for you in Mozambique’s approach?
What experiences do you have that Mozambique could benefit from?
What channels could support peer to peer exchange, how to use these?

16:10 Closing remarks

• • Mr Albano Carige, Mayor of Beira
  • H.E Carlos Mesquita, Minister of Public Works, Housing and Water