CDC - BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS: SOME EXAMPLES

III. BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS: SOME EXAMPLES

19. There are many examples where the Royal Government has successfully begun to build partnerships with its many national and external development partners. At present, these partnerships are at various stages of the programming cycle. In the case of the Seila Program, the partnership arrangements cover all aspect of the programming cycle through joint planning, programming, budgeting/financing, and management of the Program implementation. The RGC now would like to extend these partnership arrangements to include the monitoring of the implementation of Seila Program. In the Education and Health sectors, the partnership arrangements are not as advanced. So far, we have successeded in building partnerships to carryout joint planning and programming for these sectors. We now have an Education Strategic Plan (ESP) and a detailed Education sector Support Program (ESSP). A joint Health sector review has been completed and a strategic plan for the Health Sector for the 2003-2007 is being finalized. It is the Royal Government’s hope that the spirit of partnership will continue to prevail and guide the work in these two critical sectors as we begin to look at the budgeting/financing and implementation issues. A more detailed discussion of these three examples is presented below.

Seila Program

20. Seila Program has been designed as an aid mobilization and coordination framework to support the Royal Government's decentralization and deconcentration reform efforts and as such developing and maintaining strong partnerships with the donor community are essential to its success. The Seila Task Force (STF), and its Secretariat housed in the Council for the Development of Cambodia, devote considerable attention to both individual and collective dialogue with donors, through the Seila Forum to: (i) develop a common shared vision of Seila; (ii) establish mutual commitments among partners; (iii) monitor the program's financing requirements and strategy; (iv) reach consensus on the design/re-design of Seila to ensure that it remains consistent with the evolving reforms; (v) develop a common program evaluation framework; and (vi) develop a unified strategic performance-reporting format. At least two meetings between the STF and the Seila partners are organized each year: one at the beginning of the annual programming and planning process to establish consensus on strategic direction and clarify indicative resource commitments and one at the end of the process to review the draft annual work plan and budget prior to approval.

21. Central to the design of the Seila Program is the strengthening of the concepts, systems and structures necessary for promoting broad partnerships around the reform efforts to promote the deconcentration and decentralization of responsibilities and resources to provincial administrations and Commune Councils. For planning and budgeting, the Government programming framework includes all three jurisdiuctional levels: national, provincial and communes. With a focus on the sub-national level, the primary roles within Government and civil society around which partnerships are promoted through Seila are: National-policy formulation and national programming; Provincial-deconcentrated management and provincial programming; District-extension of services; Commune-local management and commune programming; Village-participation. The $ 95 million, second phase of the Royal Government's Seila Program, 2001-2005, will serve 17 provinces and 1,200 communes.

22. Partnerships at the National Level: Seila Program promotes both inter- and intra-governmental partnerships as well as partnerships between government and the donor community in support to the reforms. The Seila Task Force, chaired by the Minister of Economy and Finance with senior officials from 7 Ministries and the Council for Administrative Reform (CAR), oversees the annual programming of resources mobilized under Seila, ensures that annual work plans and budgets are consistent with the reforms, authorizes the annual allocation of resources to 7 Ministries and 17 provinces, and reviews performance to ensure that policy lessons are formulated and forwarded to the relevant policy making bodies of the Royal Government; primarily the NCSC, the CAR and the Council of Ministers. Since the establishment of the NCSC, technical and financial resources mobilized under Seila for national level support to decentralization have been almost exclusively directed to the work of the NCSC Sub-committees and core Ministries to assist in the formulation of the regulatory framework and the design and implementation of national training programs for C/S Councils. Through the programming of resources, the development of work plans to support national level efforts and strategic workshops, considerable attention is focused on ensuring that effective dialogue is maintained between Ministries and between the national and provincial authorities to promote consensus between the policy makers and those responsible for much of the policy implementation.

23. Partnerships at the Province Level: The devolution of greater authority to the provinces is both fundamental to the success of decentralization and inherent to the deconcentration reform process. This implies an enhanced role for the provinces in promoting partnerships to support the reforms and similar to the national level includes inter- and intra-governmental partnerships as well as partnerships with agency programs. Provincial governors have been delegated considerable authority by the NCSC for managing the implementation of the regulatory frameworks and thus must ensure both effective coordination and partnerships between line departments and effective partnerships between the central Government and the newly elected local governments. In partnership between the NCSC and the STF, the provincial management structures under the Governor that are required to support these efforts are being established and/or realigned consistent with the institutional roles defined under the reforms. The existing Provincial Rural Development Committee (PRDC), chaired by the Governor, continues as a forum for horizontal dialogue within the provincial administration with increased focus on the reforms. The existing PRDC Executive Committee (ExCom), also chaired by the Governor and including the Directors of core Provincial Departments, continue to manage execution of the reforms at provincial level through annual work plans and budgets which in 17 provinces are financed primarily through resources mobilized under Seila. To promote partnerships in support to the reforms between the provincial administration and the international and national agencies at provincial level, Local Development Forums have been established with increased focus on the decentralization reforms and support to C/S Councils. With the top priority given to training of C/S Councils in 2002, only 3 months after the local elections, partnerships with over 50 agencies in Seila-supported provinces have been secured at province level resulting in the participation of 120 IO/NGO staff in the training programs for C/S Councils.

24. Partnerships at the District Level: While not a level for budgeting purposes, the Districts have an increasingly strategic role as the lowest level of the State in the provision of enhanced public services to the C/S Councils and the local population. Under the partnership framework, the district is considered as the appropriate level for aligning provincial and local plans to maximize the use and predictability of limited resources. The District Planning Integration process, piloted under Seila since 1998, has now been formally adopted by the Ministry of Planning and the NCSC in the planning regulations that apply to both the province and commune. On an annual basis in September/October, a workshop is organized in each district to align commune development plans with provincial development plans and national programs. Attended by authorities from each commune/sangkat, representatives from provincial departments and all agencies operating within the district, priorities and programs are reviewed and discussed and agreements reached on the allocation of resources and activities for the following year. In 2001 alone, over 10,000 agreements were secured for support to locally identified priorities through these workshops enhancing the partnership between government, agencies and commune authorities.

25. Partnerships at the Commune Level: As a newly elected, local government, C/S Councils will be expected to promote local partnerships with a range of service providers, private sector, civil society associations and communities. Under the C/S Council, a Planning and Budgeting Committee, with a man and a woman as members, will be established to promote partnership between villages and the Council in the formulation of the commune development plan and budget and subsequent involvement in implementation of activities. Local information strategies and structuring relationships with local associations in the commune as well as with government and non-government service providers must be incorporated into capacity building efforts for both C/S Councils and those providing core support services.

26. All of the technical and financial resources mobilized under Seila are annually programmed through the structures and mechanisms described above with an increasing knowledge of the overall domestic and external resources available at various levels. The resources are then systematically transferred to institutions responsible for implementation. In strengthening the concepts, systems and structures at all levels, the partnership framework promoted by Seila is being mainstreamed within governance resulting in improved horizontal and vertical relationships, a more balanced approach in resource allocations across institutions and territories and more efficient use of the limited resources available to support both governance and development objectives necessary for poverty reduction.

Education

27. Over the past 12 months, MOEYS and its development partners have taken a number of significant steps to gradually operationalize partnership arrangements for education sector development. Operational arrangements for education partnerships have taken a tighter, more formal nature, with the formulation of the Education Strategic Plan (ESP) in March 2001 and subsequently, the more detailed Education Sector Support Program (ESSP) was reviewed by Government/MOEYS, donors and NGOs through a joint process, incorporating task forces and review groups made up of partner representatives in late June 2001. This process culminated in a high level Education Round Table, which broadly endorsed the specific program components, financing arrangements and ESSP work plan. This process has provided a foundation for a shared understanding and agreement on program priorities, financial planning and management arrangements and key capacity building requirements.

28. As part of this operationalization, partners have recognized the need to strengthen individual and mutual capacities to be effective education partners. Within Government, there has been an initiative to establish an education finance monitoring committee (EFMC) between MOEYS and MOEF, to provide policy oversight and guidance on financial planning, management and monitoring within the sector. Within MOEYS, the high level policy and planning group (PPG) has been reinforced through the establishment of a technical and capacity building coordination group (TOBOG) and financial planning coordination group (FPCG). Selective technical assistance has been provided to facilitate the planning and operations of these groups.

29. The donor and NGO community have also taken steps to strengthen partnership capability. The education sector working group (ESWG) has been reorganized and some technical assistance is being provided to facilitate its functioning, especially for ESSP annual review planning and regular sector performance monitoring. At the same time, the NGO community has established a formal NGO education partnership (NEP) to facilitate policy and strategic dialogue with Government and donors on education sector development.

30. MOEYS has also recognized the need to broaden partner consultations, including the private sector, civil society and other groups. As part of ESSP review processes in 2001, MOEYS hosted a Governor’s Education Forum, designed to familiarize Governors and National Assembly representatives with proposed reforms. This information exchange has been extended to civil society and community groups through provincial forums and radio and newspaper information programs in late 2001 and early 2002. Senior MOEYS policy makers have also made specific presentations and progress reports to the media, National Assembly, Council of Ministers and the international community to communicate development in the sector.

31. A central thrust of the education reforms is the priority for capacity building for decentralization of the financing and management of the education reforms, through Government’s own systems rather than parallel ones. Partners have responded positively in a number of ways, including the introduction of mixed budget support and investment modalities consistent with ESSP priority programs. Donor and NGO support for capacity building at central, provincial, district and cluster/community levels has also been mobilized, within an agreed ESSP capacity building framework and action plan formulated in late 2001/early 2002.

32. Partners recognize that effective sector development and systematic planning requires predictability in resources availability for the sector. As a first step, partners jointly prepared and reviewed an education medium term expenditure plan (MTEP) as part of the ESSP 2001 review and appraisal process. In consultation with MOEF, the MTEP has been further elaborated into detailed forward financial projections for priority programs, within both the recurrent and capital budget frameworks. Budget implementation will be a central concern for partners in the ESSP 2002 review.

33. In particular, partners recognize that strengthening sector and program performance monitoring is critical to enable education partnerships to move forward. As part of this process, MOEYS with donor support, is currently finalizing a capacity building plan for monitoring and evaluation to be incorporated in a revised ESSP framework by mid 2002. As part of this joint monitoring process, a common policy action matrix was jointly agreed by partners in early 2002, as a basis for policy monitoring on an annual basis. This matrix has been supplemented by the formulation of a set of sector and program performance targets and indicators that will be the basis of the education sector performance review in September 2002.

34. Another key milestone in the education partnership process is the gradual harmonization of individual donor program review missions with the annual ESSP review process. A number of donors have already taken steps to harmonize these arrangements for 2002. This will provide an opportunity to incorporate specific program and project review findings and lessons learned into the broader sector performance review process. In addition, specific reviews of donor and NGO financed pilot innovations and institutional support programs will be incorporated into a capacity building performance report as part of ESSP 2002 review.

35. Partners also recognize that education sector development needs to respond to and enable broader institutional and financial reforms. A number of planned initiatives include active partner involvement in the MOEF led financial reform initiative, significant inputs into the public expenditure review (PER) exercises in mid/late 2002 and an education decentralization study, linked to broader MOI led reforms. As part of ESSP implementation, priority programs include introduction of selective staff performance incentives within the broader national public administration reform (NPAR) framework. All these initiatives are designed to form effective partnerships with other Government ministries, provincial authorities, commune councils and civil society groups.

36. Partners also are cognizant that medium-term policy and strategic successes need to be incorporated into longer-term sector planning. Partners are therefore collaborating effectively on integrating ESP and ESSP into long-term Education For All (EFA) action plans up to 2015. Partners also recognize that education sector developments need to be effectively integrated into broader socioeconomic development plans (SEDP) and poverty reduction strategic plans (PRSP). As a first step, partners are collaborating on the implementation of a poverty impact monitoring study for education, which will feed into the ESSP performance report to be presented as part of the ESSP 2002 review.

Health Sector

37. Development of sector-wide management capacity in the Ministry of Health is the reason for - as well as an outcome of - strengthening partnerships in the health sector. The plans for sector-wide management in the health sector dates back to 1999 when the Ministry of Health and its partners explored several options and compared the advantages and disadvantages of sector-wide approaches in health. The reasons for moving towards sector-wide approaches included the need to improve efficiency, to promote partnerships and collaboration, and to enhance government leadership in managing the resources available in the sector. In mid-2000, the Ministry of Health formally adopted the sector-wide management approach.

38. In late 2000 and early 2001, a team of senior MOH professional staff and four independent consultants conducted a comprehensive review of the health sector (Joint Health Sector Review — JSR) that examined trends in health policy and regulation, health service delivery priorities, issues with sector financing and the impact on consumer behavior and equity od health service use among the poor. The review was a key milestone in partnership development as it was co-financed by the Ministry, ADB, DFID and WHO working in close consultation with GTZ, UNICEF and the World Bank. The findings were shared and peer reviewed among all other partners active in the health sector. The JSR is now considered to be a principal evidence base for all health sector strategic planning exercises in Cambodia, including those conducted by individual donors and international agencies programming their medium-term inputs.

39. In August 2001, the Ministry mobilized a team of professional staff to work full-time - as independent consultants - in the design of the strategic plan. The costs of their activities are jointly financed by the government, WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA and GTZ. WHO also provides a long-term resident adviser — with funds from UNDP and UNFPA - to the Ministry for sector-wide management development whose inputs are complemented by several short-term consultants financed through DFID.

40. Within the period of November 2001 — January 2002, the Ministry conducted several participatory workshops to review and analyze the findings of the joint sector review in deciding on priorities and strategic options. Some of these meetings were internal, as they were arranged to get the views and perspectives of those working at the periphery. Some were participated by NGOs and external agencies but integrated with government staff including those working at health facilities.

41. Within MOH, several working groups have been set up to work on priority areas of health service delivery, quality improvement, human resource development, behavioral change, financing and institutional development. The activities of these working groups are financed by WHO, UNICEF and GTZ and in-country TA was also mobilized from the same partners including USAID-funded NGOs and MEDICAM to facilitate the various design activities. Throughout the design process, as and when needed, financial and technical assistance for related activities such as consultative workshops continue to be provided by different donors and organizations.

42. External partner agencies are updated regularly on the developments of the design process through the CoCom (the MOH Coordinating Committee of health sector partners), and through a separate meeting among donors and international organisations currently coordinated by WHO.

43. The Ministry has also tabled the need for a medium-term expenditure framework (MTEF) that will indentify the costs of, and resources available for various activities in the strategic plan. At the MOH International Relations Unit — a database has been created to record the inputs of various external agencies by program activities and location within the country. The MTEF will be a crucial tool in enabling the government and partners to jointly plan and negotiate on resource allocation decisions.

44. Likewise, the sector performance indicators and the Monitoring and Evaluation framework will provide an additional basis for coordinated planning and management of the health sector program for the next five years.

45. Concurrently, ADB, World Bank and DFID have also developed their new country program of support that pools both loan and grant funds into a joint project planned for 2003-2007. The design of various elements of this project has been matched by strategic approaches tabled through the Ministry’s sector-wide plan.

46. The current environment has been extremely conducive towards sharing of information and promoting dialogue. The partnerships are strong between the Ministry and external agencies at mid-level technical as well as among senior management and decision-makers. The leadership of the Ministry has exhibited strong ownership that effectively persuades donors and international organization to take note of and support the notion of developing a common vision for the sector. Many agencies have mobilized technical and financial assistance and many more have come into the circle to pick up the remaining gaps and shortfalls.

47. Likewise, the design process has also opened a lot of doors within the Ministry. Strong partnerships have emerged between various technical departments that used to function vertically and many activities have been conducted to enable the participation of field level personnel — right down to the health centre level — in designing the various strategies. Efforts are also being made to bring in the views of other Ministries, especially the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and the Ministry of Planning. The strategic plan for 2003-2007 will connect to the government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy in tabling a pro-poor policy for the health sector. It would be important to keep the current process of partnership alive throughout the period of implementation, monitoring and evaluation as well.

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