Maximising Accountability Around Technical Cooperation

1. Maximising Accountability Around Technical Cooperation LenCD Conference • 3 – 5 October 2006 • Nairobi • Tessa MacArthur, Governance Adviser • LS Nagarajan, Policy Officer • Donor Policy and Partnership Team, DFID

2. CONTENT Mutual Accountability – An Overview Role of Technical Cooperation Issues / Challenges Good Practices Discussion

3. Mutual Accountability – An Overview • Recognises the need for Donors to be equally accountable • Facilitates country-led approach • Participatory - Common M&E framework • Options for setting up Independent Monitoring Group • eg. Tanzania • Making aid more predictable

4. Mutual Accountability – An OverviewContd… International Forums addressing Mutual Accountability: Besides Paris Declaration – • Economic and Social Council • OECD DAC Donor Peer Reviews • Global Monitoring Report (World Bank / IMF) Regional Forums include: • Africa Partnership Forum • Africa Progress Panel

5. Role of Technical Cooperation • Growing vision for a mutual & domestic accountability approach • Inadequate human and institutional capacity, both in quality and quantitative terms • An important input but not an end by itself • - Provision of expertise to enhance capacity

6. ISSUES / CHALLENGES • General Criticism - Lack of sustainability of enhanced capacity - Cost ineffectiveness - Unresponsive to priority needs of the recipient country • Challenges - Donor acct rather than domestic or mutual acct • Donor responsibility rather than Shared • Coherent systems / national policies • Influencing donor partners for more harmonisation

7. Mutual Accountability – Level Playing Field ISSUES / CHALLENGES Contd… PARTNER Harmonised Framework DONORS Partner led Other Aid Instruments + Partner Govt’s leverage M&E Outcomes T C Paris Agenda – Other International / Regional/ Country Mechanisms

8. Good Practices • DFID’s How to Note on Technical Cooperation - Draws on our commitment to White Paper and Paris Declaration and our Policy on Conditionality • Intensive analysis of good practices across various regions

9. Good Practices Contd… • Identification and Design - Importance of Demand - Analysing political economy problems - Transactional vs Transformational • Mutually Agree on clear outcomes with shared accountability • Consider options for pooling to increase domestic accountability (TC in national plans, budget etc)

10. TC Donors Partner Procurement Donors TC Partner managed Procurement Good Practices Contd… Procurement :- • Inclusive process involving Partners • Skill mix / Untying • Exploring options for TC to be procured and managed by Partner

11. Good Practices Contd… Monitoring & Evaluation :- • To move away from Project Implementation Agencies • To be led and managed by the Partner • Outcome based • Recognising importance of Paris for overall monitoring of TC good practice at country level and transparency • Better statistical reporting on TC through DAC

12. Mutual Accountability reinforces donors’ responsibility for development outcomes • TC acts as a catalyst in the process of strengthening capacity • As set out in the How to Note, TC can be provided in a way that supports both mutual and domestic accountability SUMMARY TC PERSONNEL DONORS PARTNER

13. DISCUSSION To deliberate on: Key observations Existing gaps in the current context of strengthening Mutual Accountability and how TC could complement and support domestic accountablity Three key areas that needs to be focused as priorities in DAC / LenCD forward work on TC