Mid-February, the ESAP programme officially launched their new strategy by signing grant agreements with its first group of implementing partners (IPs) for the last phase of ESAP3. This new phase is important, as the last years of ESAP are focussed on the institutionalization and sustainability of social accountability. The launch also highlighted the importance of flexibility in adapting the programme, reiterating how the strategy of the programme has been altered several times in order to better address changing needs in society.

ESAP (Ethiopia Social Accountability Programme) is a programme aimed at strengthening the capacities of citizen groups and representatives (e.g. basic service delivery sectoral committees, social accountability committees, etc.) and the government to work together in enhancing the quality of basic public services that are delivered to the citizens of Ethiopia. It works through dozens of Ethiopian Civil Society Organizations, which are trained and monitored by VNG International.

The staff of these first implementing organisations went through a four-day mandatory pre-imbursement training from the 16th  to the 21st of February. This online training familiarizes the IPs with the ESAP programme and all its aspects, strategy, financial and grants management, and evaluation and learning.

Furthermore, the management agency of the ESAP project has been preparing a number of training courses that will be made available to IP staff and other stakeholders ‘on demand’ through the Moodle platform. This platform enables implementing partners and beneficiaries alike to engage with others on content or process or request support from the ESAP team. All policy documents, guidelines, and other resource materials for the IPs are available on this platform.

The grantees of the ESAP project are instrumental in ESAP’s resumption of SA activities in six regions all across Ethiopia, covering 107 woredas. ESAP works in 416 woredas nationwide, and the MA has continued to work on processing steps for the procurement of grantees for the remaining regions not covered by the first batch of IPs. These additional IPs are expected to soon join the project.

More information about the ESAP project, as well as updates on the current state of affairs regarding the project, can be found on the ESAP website (https://www.vng-esap.org/).