Baseline Assessment Exercise on Municipal Infrastructure Assets and Development of a District Infrastructure Asset Management Action Plan (AMAP)

The Government of South-west State through the Ministry of Interior, Local Governments, and Reconciliation, and in collaboration with the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), established a Financing Durable Solutions Initiative for Forcibly Displaced People (FDPs) facility.

The Financing Durable Solutions Initiative for Forcibly Displaced People (FDPs) is designed to promote an equitable access to social services and economic opportunities for forcibly displaced persons in host cities in developing countries so that they have a better quality of life with dignity. The specific objective of the initiative is to enable forcibly displaced persons to be sustainably financed in the host cities in target countries. Four key results are expected from the project:

·       Result 1: Established local policy and regulatory framework that creates an enabling environment for FDPs to have access to legal rights, services, and social-economic opportunities.

·       Result 2: Improved local capacity in increasing own source revenues and strengthening fiscal health.

·       Result 3: Financing mechanisms designed to unlock private capital for municipal projects that are economically productive with the capacity to absorb commercial funding.

·       Result 4: Financing and technical assistance provided to create jobs and economic opportunities for FDPs.

This is a 4-year regional project funded by the Swiss Agency for Development. Pilot countries include Uganda, Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia. The pilot cities in phase I of the project include Gulu and Arua (Uganda), and Baidoa and Bosaso (Somalia). The project aims to provide support to 3-5 inclusive infrastructure projects per city and enable up to 15 catalytic MSMEs to promote job creation and economic opportunities for IDPs. Therefore, the SWS Ministry of Interior Local Government and Reconciliations (MOILGR) is seeking local consultant to support with project implementation and particularly, the . baseline assessment of infrastructure asset management practices.

This baseline assessment aims to establish the current status of infrastructure asset management practices in selected local governments. It aims to provide an evidence-based foundation to inform the design of a comprehensive and systematic infrastructure asset management framework. The assessment is integral to improving transparency, accountability, efficiency, and sustainability in infrastructure investments and maintenance at the local level.

The overall objective of the baseline assessment is to conduct a comprehensive diagnostic of infrastructure asset management practices in selected local governments. Specifically, the assessment seeks to:

1. Evaluate the institutional, policy, and regulatory framework governing infrastructure asset management.
2. Inventory, categorize, and assess the condition of existing public infrastructure assets.
3. Analyse current practices for asset planning, budgeting, maintenance, operation, and disposal.
4. Assess the human, technical, and financial capacity of local governments to manage infrastructure assets effectively.
5. Identify critical gaps, risks, and opportunities in infrastructure asset governance.
6. Develop actionable recommendations and a roadmap to support the establishment or strengthening of asset management systems.

The assessment will focus on the following thematic components:

4.1 Institutional and Policy Framework

• Review relevant national and subnational policies, laws, guidelines, and regulations related to infrastructure asset management.
• Analyze institutional mandates and governance structures responsible for asset oversight.
• Assess the extent of integration of asset management principles in local development planning, procurement processes, budgeting cycles, and public financial management systems.
• Identify coordination mechanisms between departments (e.g., planning, public works, and finance) and external stakeholders (e.g., utilities, development partners).

4.2 Asset Inventory and Records Management

• Evaluate the existence, coverage, accuracy, and format of asset inventories, registers, or databases.
• Classify assets by type, location, ownership, condition, operational status, and functional use.
• Assess the systems or technologies in use (manual or digital) to track and manage assets.
• Identify gaps in recordkeeping, asset tagging, and data management.

4.3 Asset Lifecycle Management

• Examine current procedures for infrastructure asset planning, acquisition, utilization, maintenance, rehabilitation, and decommissioning.
• Evaluate adherence to preventive and corrective maintenance protocols.
• Assess practices related to asset condition assessment, lifespan forecasting, and lifecycle costing.
• Analyze asset replacement planning and strategies for infrastructure sustainability.

4.4 Financial and Budgetary Aspects

• Review the level and trends of budgetary allocations for asset maintenance, rehabilitation, and capital investments.
• Assess whether asset depreciation, renewal, and operational costs are reflected in financial plans and statements.
• Examine financing mechanisms for asset development and maintenance, including intergovernmental transfers, own-source revenue, and donor support.
• Review audit practices, accountability systems, and controls related to asset expenditures.

5.5 Human Resource and Institutional Capacity

• Analyze the skills, qualifications, and roles of technical staff responsible for infrastructure planning and asset management.
• Identify capacity development needs and gaps in staffing, training, and organizational structures.
• Assess the use of tools, systems, or software to support asset management functions.
• Explore partnerships with academic institutions, professional associations, and private sector providers for knowledge transfer and capacity building.

6.6 Risk Management and Resilience

• Evaluate the extent to which climate change, disaster risk, and environmental vulnerabilities are considered in infrastructure asset planning and management.
• Assess the resilience of existing infrastructure assets to floods, droughts, storms, and other hazards.
• Identify critical infrastructure serving vulnerable communities and examine any adaptation strategies in place.
• Explore early warning, response, and recovery protocols linked to public infrastructure.

The Consultant/Assessment Team shall adopt a participatory, evidence-based, and context-sensitive methodology, which shall include:

·       Document and Literature Review: Analysis of relevant legal, policy, strategic, and planning documents, including past infrastructure assessments and audits.

·       Key Informant Interviews (KIIs): Engagements with local government officials, engineers, finance officers, planners, and relevant national authorities.

·       Field Visits and On-site Assessments: Physical inspections and geo-tagging (where applicable) of selected infrastructure assets to assess their condition and usage.

·       Stakeholder Consultations and Focus Group Discussions: Dialogues with community members, civil society, sector departments, and service providers.

·       GIS and Mapping Tools: Use of geospatial tools to produce an asset map (where feasible).

·       Capacity Self-Assessments: Application of structured tools to assess technical and institutional readiness for asset management.

The consultant(s) will be responsible for delivering the following key outputs:

8.1    Inception Report (Week 1): Detailed methodology, work plan, stakeholder engagement strategy, and data collection tools.

8.2    Draft Baseline Assessment Report (Week 5): Comprehensive presentation of preliminary findings, institutional analysis, asset inventory summaries, and initial recommendations.

8.3    Validation Workshop (Week 6): Facilitation of a workshop with key stakeholders to review, validate, and provide feedback on the draft report.

8.4    Final Baseline Assessment Report (Week 8): Revised and finalized report incorporating feedback from the validation workshop, including:

·       Executive Summary

·       Assessment methodology

·       Findings by thematic area

·       Asset inventory overview

·       Gap analysis

·       Risk and resilience considerations

·       Recommendations and roadmap

8.5  Digital Asset Inventory: Cleaned and structured dataset or digital asset registry (Excel, Access, or GIS-compatible format), including asset classification, location, condition, and ownership.

8.6  Presentation Slide Deck: Summary slides for dissemination and policy dialogue purposes.

The assignment is expected to be completed within eight (8) weeks, according to the following indicative timeline:

 10.  Required Qualifications and Experience

To ensure a high-quality and context-relevant baseline assessment, the selected individual consultant, firm, or consortium must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Institutional Qualifications (for Firms/Consortia)

• Must be a legally registered consultancy firm, research institute, or development partner with a minimum of five (5) years of verifiable experience in undertaking infrastructure diagnostics, local governance assessments, or public sector consulting.
• Demonstrated experience in working with local governments, ministries of local government, or relevant public institutions in low-income or fragile contexts.
• Proven ability to mobilize a qualified multi-disciplinary team with contextual knowledge and technical capacity.
• Prior experience with international organizations such as UNCDF, UN-Habitat, World Bank, UNDP, or other development agencies is an advantage.

Team Leader / Lead Consultant

• Master’s degree (or higher) in Civil Engineering, Urban Planning, Infrastructure Management, Public Administration, or related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of professional experience in infrastructure asset management, public infrastructure planning, or related areas.
• Demonstrated leadership in conducting multi-sectoral assessments or similar assignments at national or subnational levels.
• Excellent analytical and reporting skills; ability to deliver high-quality outputs under tight deadlines.
• Prior experience leading stakeholder engagement or facilitating high-level validation processes is essential.

GIS and Data Management Expert

• Degree in Geospatial Science, Data Science, or Information Systems.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in GIS mapping, asset visualization, or spatial data integration.
• Proficient in ArcGIS, QGIS, or other spatial analysis tools

The Consultant will report to the District Planning and Infrastructure Unit and work closely with relevant municipal technical teams and DG of the Ministry.

12.  Application submission

·       All applications should be submitted electronically in PDF format.

·       The subject line or file name should clearly state:
“Proposal – Local Government Infrastructure Asset Management Baseline Assessment”

·       Proposals must be submitted to the following email address: finance.department.moisws@gmail.com 

·       The deadline for submission is (24^th May 2025 time 11:59 PM EAT.)

·       Late submissions will not be considered

13.  Evaluation Criteria

Applications will be evaluated based on the following weighted criteria: