Key Findings Capacity Assessment on Rural Electrification through Renewable Energy Technologies

1. Key FindingsCapacity AssessmentonRural Electrification throughRenewable Energy Technologies Bemmerlein-Lux/ Dr. Schmid 14.03.2010

2. Key Findings on the Organizational/Individual Level

3. Process: Provincial Planning • Challenges: • Data on electricity demand and existing supply of provinces is poor *) • Potential assessment for renewable energy sources are rudimentary *) • Provincial supply concepts are not available *) • National Energy Master Plan excludes rural electrification Current actors: Mainly technical cooperation partners, lack of direct counterpart at MEW *) In Badakhshan first efforts are made

4. Process: Project Selection • Challenges: • Project proposals preparation uncoordinated *) • No transparent priority setting • Inefficient PDP budgeting process • Project design and planning is rudimentary *) • Sustainable operation & management models are not included in project planning • Monitoring and evaluation of projects not existing Current actors - depending on implementation approach: MEW, MRRD (NSP/FP), cooper. partners, MoEC, MoF *) but note: NSP has an established procedure

5. Process Implementation 1: Planning of Project Implementation • Challenges: • Site assessment and local supply concept not optimal • Identification of on-site technicians and operators - difficult • Tendering technical design, construction and O&M – not existing or suboptimal • Service quality control – not existing Current actors - depending on implementation approach: NSP/FP, cooper. partners, communities, donors

6. Process Implementation 2: Construction • Challenges: • Construction – lack of skills on all levels – private sector is weak, lacks skills and (investment) support, standards are low or non existing • Installation – lack of skills on all levels • Commissioning – unclear procedures Current actors: NSP/FP, communities, technical cooperation partners, private companies

7. Process: Operation and Supply Management • Challenges: • Relations between owner, operator and user – no standardised approaches and contracts existing • Fee collection procedure – no general rules exist • Consumer advise and service – not existing or insufficient • Promotion of productive use – rudimentary *) • Maintenance & repair - neglected • Spare part supply – difficult and mostly low quality Current actors: NSP-FP, communities, private operators, technical cooperation partners *) In Badakhshan first efforts are made

8. Human Resources - Development Needs in 11 Competence Fields

9. Attitudes & Orientation for National / Provincial Strategies • Challenges: • Rural electrification through renewable energy is not a top priority on national level • Target Institutions and Group: • Decision makers & main stakeholders: • ICE and ICE Subcommittee • Elected persons with a political, decision making function • Heads of Departments • Chambers, Industry • Training institutions • Universities • General public • Objective: • Awareness raising and promotion of RE • Show the use of RET in context of rural development, improvement of living conditions, livelihoods • Create positive attitude / understanding towards RE and its potentials for the development and stability of Afghanistan • =>To push rural electrification on the political agenda

10. Recommendations: Attitudes & Orientation for National / Provincial Strategies

11. Example: Competence Field Operation and Maintenance • Necessary technical and managerial Skills: • System management and operations (generation, distribution, load regulation) • Maintenance and repairs (incl. trouble-shooting and taking actions following breakdowns) • Financial Control(incl. tariff calculation, billing, fee collection, savings and salaries) • Record-keeping • Agreement with electricity end-users • Resolving disputes arising from electricity usage within the community • Monitoring and follow-up

12. Competence Fields for selected Institutions Detailed Need assessment with the FP is necessary.

13. Current actors: Marginal in different Organisations / training providers (like MEW vocational training centre, FP’s, Universities Training and Education • Awareness Building • Long term academics - partnerships • Technical skills training on vocational level • Managerial skills training • Administrative skills training • Short duration technical skills training • On the job training • Special skills courses for updating existing knowledge and skills • Basic working tools training like English, Dari, Computer skills Human Resource Development

14. Challenges for Strengthening training facilities, training of trainers • Vocational training in the energy sector is insufficient • Substantial lack of teachers and lecturers • Lack of training infrastructure, training material (books, labs etc.) and teaching methods • No special standards for curricula • Soft skills are taken up also by the private sector, but no “hardware” related technical trainings • Training providers on provincial level weak • Training offers not demand driven, but supply driven • Hands-on training / on the job training and internships insufficient • General problem: Competition for skilled people

15. Recommendations for Capacity Development on Organisational Level (1) • Strengthen the cooperation of MEW and MRRD (e.g. Technical working group, Joint implementation program) • Define role of DABS in rural electrification • Define responsibility for policy development and execution within MEW and strengthen respective directorates • Establish provincial representation of MEW for energy matters and strengthen cooperation with other departments • Develop capacities for energy planning at provincial level • Elaborate guidelines for planning, implementation and monitoring processes

16. Recommendations for Capacity Development on Organisational Level (2) • Elaborate sustainable O&M models, develop necessary guidelines, and implementation capacities • Initiate and support certification procedures and mechanisms for engineers and installers, construction firms and manufacturers • Develop training/ education infrastructure • Short duration training activities (1 month to one year) to meet emerging needs • Mid-term and long-term development of a more formalised vocational training system and university level education programmes

17. Background MaterialNot for Presentationbut could be printed

18. Example: Competence Field - BUSINESS AND MARKET - ECONOMICS AND SOCIAL IMPACTS • Necessary technical and managerial Skills: • Entrepreneurship, business opportunities and marketing: • Project appraisal • Cost calculation, (incl. environmental costs of fossil fuel production/consumption, financing energy investments) • Budgeting and account affairs • Economic evaluation methods (cost-benefit, net present value, annuity) Evaluation of investment, subsidies and their impact • Assessment of local availability of components/imports needed • Contracting • Basic skills in user training

19. Strengthening training facilities, training of trainers - Challenges • Special vocational training in the sector does not exist (incl. Training of Trainers). In general for “electricity” and the construction sector vocational training exists in Afghanistan. • A substantial lack of teachers and lecturers in all training and educationalinstitutions dealing for engineers, assistant engineers, electricians, civil engineers, planners, site managers/operators, managerially and administratively skilled persons at all levels, and in the private sector. • This deficiency is reinforced by the competition of donor related jobs. • Lack of Infrastructure like buildings, boarding facilities, laboratories and facilities for practical / vocational learning. • Insufficient or lacking Training material (books, labs etc.); In combination with the more traditional, theoretical, lecture based teaching methods the quality of teaching and learning is low.

20. Strengthening training facilities, training of trainers - Challenges • There are no special standards for curricula. • While training soft skills are taken up also by the private sector, all “hardware” related technical trainingsare hardly taken up. • While certain potentials of the development of offers exist in the few urban centres, the provincial installations and organisations are rudimentary in all aspects. • Complicated system of vocational trainingwith centralised administrative mechanisms and the lack of operational and financial autonomy => constrain of all training providers. • Existing training offers are normally not demand driven, but supply driven. Cooperation with the manufacturers – but also administration – and the ‘Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industry’ (ACCI) is urgently needed. • Not enough offers for hands-on training / on the job training and internships exist.

21. Recommendations for Capacity Development on the Training/ Education sector • The process to developing national and local capacities and competences takes a long time and is costly. The process has to be multi level: • 0 Develop training/education infrastructure • Short duration training activities (1 month to one year) to meet emerging needs to plan, construct and manage operate / maintain and use micro and small hydro plants with focus on the provincial level. • Middle term development of a more formalised vocational training system with educational programmes optimised for RE in combination with a learning environment for practical oriented courses, training material (laboratories) and an integrated training of trainers programme. • Long term the development of university level education programmes for electrical and civil engineers with strong modules of RE, on-the-job training semesters and demand orientated curricula.

22. Increase the investment in Education and Training infrastructure (boarding schools, labs) • Start an association of vocational training providers and design first capacity building programmes. • MEW– Vocational Training Centre, MRRD-ERDA and NSP – FPs, German Technical School Kabul (DED-TSK),Vocational training centres (DED-VTC), Renewable Energy Centres Afghan National(DED-REC), Teacher Training Centres (DED-TTC), USAID, Association for Adult Education (ANAFAE), GTZ Educational Programme etc. • Create a network to organise and facilitate on the job training /hands on training modules. MEW, ESRA, MRRD-NSP and ERDA, DED, ACCI manufacturers and operators of small hydro power stations etc. - important to root the activities in a demand oriented system. • Develop ‘Provincial Renewable Energy Centres’ (DED-REC) • Design a system of short, medium and long durationtraining programmesand strengthen the educational sector Recommendations on the organisational level Training/Education

23. At the training level - Recommendations : • Design short term training courses for operators/site managers, planners, designers, installers, constructors/civil engineers and equipment manufacturers. • Develop syllabi and curricula for the competence fields with modules for the different target groups. • Training courses have to be always combined with Train the Trainers courses to training subject specific teaching skills. • Facilitate institutional twinning arrangements between Afghan training providers with providers in India, Nepal, Pakistan and China.

24. Huge efforts in capacity development are required to supply RE to the rural population and to sustain the functioning of the implemented systems. • Decentralised RE is weak but in the process to develop shape – it has not been a major focus of the Afghan government and the donor community so far. • The institutional set up / framework conditions are just emerging. • Provincial planning is problematic in terms of quality and in terms of lack of integration in a budgeting process. • Most of the small size electrification efforts were programme based with many “teething troubles”. • Power generation and supply has to focus more on business generation and productive use of electricity. Conclusions 1

25. The lack of trained people and skilled labour in national institutions and organisations and even more in the province and at local level is one of the biggest challenges. • Vocational training for RE is not available • The supply of engineers from universities is slow and the quality is questionable. • Any solution for the development of RE will depend on the efforts and successes in the sector of education, training and practical learning. • It is necessary to initiate a broader discussion about capacity development needs and possible interventions. • Training and other capacity development interventions have to be embedded into an institutional framework. • The process of capacity development must be closely linked to the strategy development process under way. Conclusions 2

26. Challenges and important activities: Policy Rural Electrification is not of high importance at national level: => Awareness campaigns for the political and decision makers level No policy and no strategy for RESRET exist => Support the design of a Rural Electrification Policy and Strategy at national level Line Ministries and Regulations The lack of clearly defined responsibilities for RESRET (overlap of responsibilities MEW and MRRD - incl. its programmes : => Support the cooperation of MEW and MRRD in the sector of RESRET The MEW department for Renewable Energies is not functional: => Support of the restructuring / upgrading process of MEW to give more importance to RESRET and its organisational and functional capacities

27. DABS The consequences for RE -RET, especially for community driven assets, is not clear : => Advise and contribute in the discussions and the process of corporatization of DAMB -> DABS to include mechanisms for dealing with RE-RET

28. Standard Implementation models – regulatory framework • No regulatory framework for RE-RET exists: • => Support the drafting and implementation of a regulatory framework for RE-RET incl. the design and subsequent inclusion of standard operation model in a national strategy • Elaborate specific O&M model including legal conditions and rules as well as responsibilities for construction and O&M and add it to the national strategy and policy advice. • Commercial (user pays full generation and distribution costs + profit) • PPP - concession • Subcontracting construction, operation management of PPP and commercial model • Leasing for operation and maintenance • Community based ESPROS

29. Sub-National level Unclear planning procedures (community to district to province) for RE-RET - It is not clear: => Observation of the planning procedures of the district level including the possible changes in the institutional set-up. No clear responsibility is assigned who leads the energy planning process on provincial level and which institutions and stakeholders should be involved: => Optimisation of the provincial development planning process in the energy sector on provincial level: The provincial development planning process has a weak national follow up and integration into the national budgeting process is not favourable for Provincial Contributions: => Improving the link between provincial and national government level - a bottom-up top-down approach.

30. Capacities for design of baseline data, electrification concepts and plan development do not exist at national and sub national level. => Train local stakeholders – especially new staff for the DoWM for energy matters - (and private service providers) in data gathering analysis and RE – planning: basic RE-RET concepts and technical background, basic data for RE, planning tools, socio economic assessment, etc. No baseline data for rural electrification and potentials exist. => Development of Best Practice Provincial Electrification Concepts (Proactive Energy Planning) The capacities for identification, design and proposal writing for larger electrification projects do not exist on provincial level => Development and training on operational planning, planning tools, elaboration of terms of reference, proposal writing, basic RE-concepts, documentation and conflict resolution

31. Quality and standards There exists only dispersed – and low quality - data about potentials for all RET: => Suggest a “Centre of Excellence for RESRET” as supporting Organisation No Afghan standards for RESRET exist: => Support the development of standards for RET and RET-associated products There is no regulating agency for structuring and supervising the quality and processes for rural electricity supply. : => Suggest and support the establishment of an independent Regulatory Authority (“Regulator”) outside of the responsible line ministries No certification mechanisms exist for engineers, construction firms and manufacturers : => Initiate and support certification procedures and mechanisms for: engineers, construction firms and fabricators

32. Implementation Process No guidelines for all RE-RET processes exist: => Initiate the design and distribution of guidelines No RE-RET implementation unit exists: => Suggest a “Renewable Energy Agency” as national and provincial implementation Unit Lack of finances for RE-RET operation and management : => Support the financing of a sustainable system of RESRET Use of Renewable Energy RE activities are not linked to productive use of electricity leading to less or no sustainability of the rural development process linked to electricity supply: => Emphasise in all concepts and policies and in implementation projects the necessary business development aspects.

33. Portfolio Analysis: Tasks and Functions

35. Summary of needed training (national level)

36. Summary of Capacity Deficits (national level)