Final evaluation of the project: “Children, communities and institutions better prepared to respond to emergencies in the municipality of Prinzapolka, Nicaragua”

Background   
The Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua and particularly the Autonomous Region of North Atlantic (RAAN) is classified as a priority area of high risk for its geographical location in the natural corridor of hurricanes (June-November) and its multi-threaten factors against social, political, economic, physical, educative and cultural vulnerability conditions among the most important. Save The Children has been supporting RAAN from the time of Mitch Hurricane with actions and initiatives of community preparedness for disaster reduction and visibility of rights of boys, girls and adolescents in different moments of prevention, preparedness and attention before an eventual disaster. 

Based on the experience obtained, Save the Children implemented the project of the VII DIPECHO plan: Children, communities and institutions better prepared to answer to emergencies in the municipality of Prinzapolka (RAAN), Nicaragua 2010-2012” with funds from the Directorate-General for the Commission's European Community Humanitarian Office (ECHO) and SCN to continue creating and strengthening preparedness capacities to answer to emergencies and disasters with child’s right approach in 18 communities (*), 19 schools and at municipal levels   (The Major Office, the Municipal Committee for the Prevention, Mitigation and Disasters Attention - COMUPRED-). In the same, 3,417 (42%) boys, girls and adolescents participated actively out of a total of 8,252 beneficiaries. Other important outcomes are: Committees and Community and school brigades trained and equipped; the development of emergency preparedness and response plans for community and schools, including risk maps, and humanitarian stock prepositioned; institutional strengthening of civil defense, the Ministry of Education, URACCAN, the Ministry of Health, COMUPRED of Prinzapolka);  a municipal development plan based on risk management and child’s right approach; a system of early alert along Prinzapolka River;  and a virtual platform for an improved water system. 

(*)18 communities: Auka Mango, Tuburus, Bethel, Auhia Pura,  Dos amigos/ El Edén, Limbaikan, Galilea, Buena Vista, Ladrikula, Klarindan, Tasba Pauni, Naranjal, Apawonta, Tungla, Silibila, Los Cerritos, Bluno 1, Bluno 2 and the municipal head city of Alamikangban.

Purpose/objective (including evaluation questions)   
To evaluate the compliance of objectives and expected outcomes in the project as well as the expectations, opportunities and impact of the project. 

Methodology   
The participative methodology was used with the following steps:
1. Review of existing documentation: Context of project formulation, strategy of scheduled implementation, initially proposed outcomes and adjustments that the project has undergone during its implementation: intermediate report and the baseline of the project.
2. Interviews to wholesale key stakeholders: Using guidelines of semi-structured interview for interviews-reflections with respondents of strategic stakeholders who participated in the project: field stakeholders and at the national level of Managua.
3. Evaluation-Workshop per Objectives: Based in the logical framework of the project. 
4.  Survey of opinion on impact: With the beneficiaries from the community to obtain their perceptions regarding the relevance of project actions, assessment on the intervention strategy and the sustainability of outcomes.
A child rights based approach was taken into account in the evaluation.

Key findings    
 
1. Active and effective participation of boys, girls and adolescents in the activities of project as authors, stakeholders and subjects: they participated in the planning and design of trainings for committees, communites and school brigades, as well as in simulations and in the project evaluation; whose impact profiles them as agents of horizontal change and cultural teachers by the cultural changed they influenced (hands washing, participation in community activities, solidarity, leadership building up, awareness to be prepared).
2. The project strategies fosters a high possibility that the sustainability of actions endure over time, beyond the punctual support from the external agents. We worked out different links in a simultaneous way: involvement of community people, leaders, boys, girls, teachers and municipal and national authorities.
3. Willingness and capacity of the Ministry of Education to keep working on the risk management approach as a cross-cutting topic in their curriculum.
4. Capacities and link established between COMUPRED of Prinzapolka with local, regional and national structures of answers have shown their answer capacity before different natural phenomena. 
5. Incorporation of the risk management in municipal planning as an indispensable prevention tool. It marks the starting of the institutionalization of the theme, beyond the current city mayor on duty.
6. Physical presence of Save The Children in the territories. It is expected we can follow-up and reinforcement to the communities and the schools of the project.
7. Risk Management stops being a concept to be a strategic need so people live in vulnerable and risks conditions.

Recommendations   
1. The project implementation strategy comprises three stages: 1. An execution as it is signed by the donor. 2. An exit strategy to ensure and/or strengthen the sustainability of outcomes. 3. probable but not certain, the 2nd phase of the project to strengthen and reinforce the outcomes with the accompaniment of served communities and the expansion of coverage in outstanding communities.
2. Further strengthening of strategic alliances for the response among different institutions, municipal, regional and national level to develop joint actions for the benefit of communities.
3. To consider the possibility of supplementing the community approach with a family approach, identifying groups of families who have specific risks as the constant "eaten" the lots where they have built their homes by the constant flooding. We propose conducting conservation work to protect these families to the latent risk of collapse of their homes by flooding.
4. Outgoing staff that could have enough time to help new people to establish all connections with the different stakeholders involved in the project. For the own conditions of the project, at all levels, there was a change of technical staff during the implementation, which has had an impact in terms of information flow. It is recommended in the specific case of SINAPRED. This situation has been critical as SINAPRED staff argues they have not received monthly reports from Save the Children as is established by an article of the cooperation agreement.

Follow up (with reference to Action Plan) 
- Follow-up to the development of Bio indicators (Recovery of nature signals for early alert of adverse events). Validation with teachers and teaching methodology.
- Corners of risk management and reinforcement of capabilities: municipal and school simulation in the beneficiary schools of DIPECHO that will be part of the Education Project and peace culture.