WASHNote provides services to to a wide range clients from governments to private sector and non-profit organizations in the monitoring and evaluation of water, sanitation, and hygiene services (WASH), net zero energy, and information and communication technology (ICT).
Additionally, we work with partners to innovate new approaches and accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals. This includes work on AfricaSan and Ngor Sanitation Goal monitoring, WHO GLAAS, WASH Accounts, Sector Wide Sustainability Checks and Country-led monitoring. We also have supported the development of events and thematic tracks and event management systems for IRCWASH symposia, AfricaSan, and the Stockholm World Water Week.
Public and validated sector data
We support major data publishers such as WHO GLAAS and Sanitation and Water for All. WASHNote maintains the open-source jmpwashdata R package which allows data scientists to analyze all the data available from the Joint Monitoring Programme country files and collaborates with the JMP to ensure it’s accuracy and the documentation of parameters.
In our work with multilateral and government partners, we support the development of validated datasets and research that can be shared in knowledge products and in learning platforms like Joint Sector Reviews.
In recent years, WASHNote has also started to focus on providing public domain resources and hosts WASHWeb as an open forum for discussions about how to improve the water, sanitation and hygiene data ecosystem. WASHWeb is collaborating with ETH openwashdata.org, who have used the jmpwashdata R package to train water and sanitation professionals on the analysis of WASH data and to build their capacity to share validated datasets.
Artificial intelligence and machine learning
WASHNote has developed and is testing together with IRCWASH WASH Systems Academy, a Learning Companion to help onboard and support WASH professionals to learn about WASH systems and the building blocks.
It is built from two components:
- The Knowledge Companion, that provides a validated set of information and a model of the conceptual framework to be used.
- The Learning Companion, a conversational agent that can chat with users via mobile apps such as Telegram, Whatsapp, Signal or Element.
For the WASH Systems Academy, the document and data repository focuses on WASH systems and their building blocks, and the conceptual framework of the WASH Systems Academy courses (IRC building blocks).
These components are easily extensible and it is possible to switch conceptual frameworks (knowledge graphs) on the fly to be able to map, for example, results from one data source to another methodology. Ultimately, these will be used to help in monitoring and evaluation and to support the development of validated public datasets.
Country-Led Monitoring
WASHNote works with governments to strengthen national and local monitoring and evaluation systems. We assess the current systems in place in multi-stakeholder processes and work together with governments to improve the performance of the system by optimizing stakeholder roles and responsibilities, resource distribution and data management and use.
Read more about our work on CLM here and the Country-Led Monitoring toolkit.
Using evidence and evaluation
WASHNote also helps people and organizations think about their core goals and strategies and facilitates the development of effective policies, monitoring and evaluation systems so that evidence can be used to accelerate progress to those goals.
Read more about our work on M&E here.
We do quite a bit of tool development as well to structure information in organizations and processes. We also have experience working on offline and online data collection processes and automating data analysis.
Data science
WASHNote use a number of different data science toolkits and platforms in order to support our clients and their goals. Whether python in an AI / machine learning workflow or R to support statistical data analysis. We also build tools using Excel and Microsoft PowerQuery and PowerBI, when these are more appropriate.
We maintain the ActivityInfo R package and add lazy data frames and user-friendly features to build questionnaires, download and analyze large datasets efficiently, and manage databases and users.
Innovating with data
At our core, we focus on how people can use data to achieve results.
Development of data standards
Sharing and combining datasets remains difficult if datasets are organized and formatted different, resulting in the need for matching the datasets manually. Data standards unlock the potential of all data gathered. WASHNote has the expertise to develop the standards in consultation with stakeholders and advise on the implementation of the standard at international and regional level. We have for instance been involved in the development of the Water Point Data Exchange (WPDx).
In the energy sector we have contributed to creating a standard for exchanging energy performance data of households that respects rules and regulations around privacy and data ownership and a separate standard for authenticating and authorizing the building owners, inhabitants, energy assurance providers and other people who have a contractual requirement to use this household data. We are also exploring the creation of a sanitation data standard.
Water point data: WASHNote can advise on how to collect, process, manage and use water point data to improve water services. This includes the use of WPDx and tools for machine learning. See our white paper and pre-print (local copy).
Structuring WASH data for use: data in the WASH sector is often scattered or is of low quality. WASHNote can help to prepare data for effective use towards the SDGs by cleaning data, connecting datasets and developing tools to act on the data. We are passionate about structured data and also the use of public repositories such as wikidata, JMP, AMCOW WASSMO, IATI, WPDx, SWA Mutual Accountability mechanism and other data sources and we also work to improve them so that in the future WASH activities and ultimately positive outcomes are accelerated. We have supported SWA and AMCOW most recently to structure data on country commitments and their monitoring of those commitments. Read about some of the ideas we are developing for WASH data.
Finance and life-cycle costing: organizing data and sharing results
Nick Dickinson worked on the IRC WASHCost project from 2008, a precursor of WHO TrackFin, and lead the development of tools to organized and share life-cycle costing data about water and sanitation service areas at IRC. More recently, WASHNote has developed models to characterize the costs of routine district activities in Sierra Leone related to water and sanitation to project the required finance to routinely monitor, support and regulate the implemention water and sanitation activities in Sierra Leone. Based on action plans in 8 countries, WASHNote is also characterizing the finance required to strengthen and maintain national M&E systems.
Additionally, we have experience evaluating business proposals using mobile technologies for WASH and energy and we are exploring ways of structuring data WASH services to create new markets and investment potential for WASH businesses.