Northern Rural Infrastructure Development Sector Project

The proposed positions are required to assure that design quality will be maintained and that there is adequate technical support available during the preparation of subproject designs and their subsequent review based on technical criteria. They will also be needed to support the PPOs as they proceed during implementation to assist in subproject supervision during construction and to strictly enforce the safeguard requirements during construction of works. In addition expertise is needed as irrigation subprojects represent some 80% of the total resources available for civil works. Many reservoirs have complex hydrologic characteristics and need thorough analysis before investing in the rehabilitation of a downstream irrigation system.  They will be based within the NPMO but will be required to travel on frequent occasions to the project area, sometimes for extended periods. 1.         Duties of the specialists will include the following: (i) Establish the Quality Assurance Regime for irrigation subprojects; (ii) Prepare construction supervision quality control guidelines to be followed by the national consultants appointed to carry out this task. This shall specifically address the quality control of materials and the construction processes; (iii) Undertake a technical review of all subproject feasibility studies prepared by the national consultants and prepare a SIR. In general the review shall; Include field inspections of the proposed sites; Pay special attention to minimizing any disturbance to the natural environment and mitigating and corrective measures as appropriate; Audit the design for safety and provide guidance accordingly to mitigate any potential hazards; Ensure that designs take account of more intense and frequent extreme rainfall events, and more severe droughts expected to develop with climate change. In particular ensuring design measures to increase resistance to damage associated with increased runoff. These include design of irrigation headworks, canals and control structures; Provide written comments and recommendations to the NPMO on each subproject reviewed detailing any changes or modifications to the technical design; (i) Review the irrigation SIRs for the following specific technical issues; Ensure that canal design is appropriate given the characteristics of the command area and cropping alternatives; The hydrological analysis prepared by the national design consultants is current and future demands anticipated from the water source will be accommodated given the run-off and other catchment characteristics; Recommend improvements in the design of irrigation structures in irrigation related SIRs to improve efficiency of water utilization and facilitate efficient water management during the operational phase;  (ii) Assist the NPMO and relevant Department of Agriculture and Forestry Offices / District Agriculture and Forestry Offices in rationalizing the use of water for irrigation purposes where there are competing demands for the resource such as industry, domestic water supply etc; (iii)   Assisted by the national irrigation specialist, brief consulting engineers engaged to prepare SIRs on the proposed changes and explain the reasons for these changes; (iv)  In coordination with the other technical specialists, prepare training courses in the use of quality control guidelines; (v)    Carry out the training program and coordinate activities related to capacity building for and skill transfers to the EA and IA staff; and (vi)   Building upon successful irrigation experiences[1] in Lao PDR and neighboring countries review and assess O&M requirements and arrangements and make recommendations for optimum O&M practice. In close liaison with the irrigation system owner, manager and users develop asset management plans for each subproject.   [1] A Framework for Improving the Management of Irrigation Schemes in Viet Nam. Hector M. Malano, Biju A. George and Brian Davidson. Modeling and Monitoring of System Operation: Three Different Irrigation Systems in Viet Nam, Biju A. George, Hector M. Malano, Vo Khac Tri, Nguyen Chien and Hugh Turral.