Acronyms & Abbreviations

Background

On behalf of the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC), the Cambodian Rehabilitation and Development Board of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (as the mandated aid management agency of Government) will update and revise the Strategic Framework for Development Cooperation Management (2006-2010) during the latter part of 2012 and the first half of 2013.

The working title for this revision is the Development Cooperation and Partnerships Strategy, which will be effective for the period 2014-2018. This outline document is to be presented for discussion at the 26 September 2012 GDCC meeting in order to:

• Share information on the outline of the proposed structure, policy priorities and content of the strategy.
• Seek inputs on structure and content based on the different perspectives and needs of Government and development partners.
• Prepare for broader strategy development dialogue and consultations, including to jointly identify and agree specific areas of interest/focus.

Approach to be taken in formulating the strategy

A substantial amount of time has already been dedicated to analysis and review in the two years since the 2006-2010 SFDCM and Harmonisation-Alignment-Results (H-A-R) Action Plan lapsed. The presentation of this outline document to the GDCC is, however, the first step towards translating this lesson-learning into a coherent framework for revising and producing the Development Cooperation and Partnerships Strategy.

To date, the following exercises have contributed to the body of evidence that informs this on-going initiative:

• Evaluation of the Paris Declaration (2010)
• Monitoring of the Paris Declaration (2011)
• Revision of the Guidelines of the Functioning of the TWG (2011)
• Country Systems study (2011)
• CRDB/CDC papers on Managing for Development Results & JMIs (2012)
• ODI study on new development partnerships and resource flows (2012)
• Reports of TWG Network meetings (2010/2011/2012)
• TWG reports to the Eighteenth Meeting of the GDCC (April 2011)

Many of these studies and papers were summarised and analysed for their key content in the 2011 Development Effectiveness Report, which will serve as the principal reference document for strategy development. In addition to the available documentation, CRDB/CDC will seek further inputs and validation to the strategy development exercise through a series of consultations. These will take place with central agencies and line ministries, TWGs, development partners and national stakeholders (including NGOs and private sector representatives) during 2012 and 2013. The final strategy document will be presented for review prior to seeking formal Government approval during the final quarter of 2013.

The proposed structure and content of the Strategy is as follows:

I.   Introduction

This section will briefly describe:

• Motivation for developing the new strategy, elaborating on the concept of development effectiveness: (i) achieving results; (ii) focusing on capacity, systems and sustainability); (iii) strengthening broad-based partnerships for effective development.
• Analysis of broad context in which strategy is produced, including the evolving national priorities identified in NSDP MTR, lessons from Paris Declaration implementation, the Busan global framework and the international consensus on partnering for development.
• Forward-looking opportunities and challenges to be reflected in the strategy formulation (country systems development, capacity - physical, institutional and human capital - to support Cambodia’s continued economic growth and development, regional integration, risks such as climate change adaptation).

II.   Development Cooperation: Analysis of Opportunities and Challenges

This section of the Strategy document will feature a more detailed discussion of development cooperation and partnership issues that must be taken into consideration in the formulation of a new strategic framework. Based on consultations during the formulation process, a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats/Risks) will be undertaken to understand more fully the issues to be addressed in future work as well as to make explicit the assumptions that are being made with regard to successful implementation of the Strategy. Other inputs to the review and Strategy formulation will include:

• Evidence of the Paris Declaration evaluation and monitoring exercise (and the requirement to continue to focus on relevant priority actions).
• Rapid growth and evolving public investment needs (regional and ASEAN integration).
• ODA as a continuing major share in overall public investment (NSDP figures showing requirements) but with a changing profile.
• Busan and our own experience on priorities, partnership, implementation arrangements, monitoring etc.
• Need to review (and revise) dialogue architecture to ensure a results-focus, meaningful partnership and inclusion of all relevant development actors.
• Ensuring policy consistency (e.g. with major reform programmes) to ensure effective use of ODA in developing public sector institutions and services.
• Accommodating a diversity of partnerships and perspectives (use of bilateral consultations and reviews).

Based on the evidence presented and the priority issues to be taken into account during strategy formulation, this section will conclude with a discussion of the principles for developing, implementing and monitoring the strategy.

III.   Strategic goals and objectives

This section will contain a clear statement of the strategic objective (outcome), linked to the concept of development effectiveness. The (draft) overarching strategic objective / outcome and associated outputs to be elaborated in the Strategy are presented in the table below. Each of the proposed output areas will be more fully elaborated in the Strategy document and a monitoring framework, with indicators, will be fully laid out in the Monitoring and Evaluation section.

IV.   Framework and tools for strategy implementation

Taking note of the SWOT and the principles derived from the situation analysis, the main approaches and required actions to reaching each of the 3 output objectives (see above table) will be detailed. This section will therefore provide a clear statement of RGC’s policy positions and proposed actions with respect to:

• Resource mobilisation and coordination work
• Promoting ownership and alignment to achieve development effectiveness
• Use of results-based approaches (e.g. for the JMIs)
• Development cooperation management arrangements (PBAs etc)
• Guidelines for aid modalities (projects, technical cooperation, pooled funds etc)
• Dialogue structures and partnering arrangements (bilateral and multi-partner)
• Strengthening and using country systems
• Transparency and predictability in resource use
• Policy consistency (i.e. with major reform programmes and sector work)
• Risk management (based on the SWOT and identification of mitigation strategies)

V.   Institutional arrangements

As per the 2006-2010 Strategic Framework for Development Cooperation Management, CRDB/CDC, as the Royal Government’s lead coordination and resource mobilisation agency for development cooperation, will serve as the focal point for all matters related to development cooperation. The revised Strategy will articulate the roles of all other Government agencies in the same manner as for the existing SFDCM.

Dialogue arrangements – which currently comprise bilateral negotiations supplemented by the TWG/GDCC/CDCF – will also be reviewed in 2012/2013 to be included in this section of the revised Strategy. This will include a codification of arrangements and responsibilities related to the position of the Lead Development Partner Facilitator, which is currently under discussion within the development partner community.

VI.   Resourcing

Activities associated with each of the three output areas in the Development Cooperation and Partnerships Strategy will be implemented and resourced at two principal levels: (a) centrally by CRDB/CDC; (b) at sector level by line ministries and agencies. (Sub-national work and NGOs own coordination functions are not considered in this resourcing section as it is assumed that the costs of these activities will be absorbed in other programmes). The process of developing the Strategy, and identifying associated principal activity areas at an aggregate level, will enable resource estimates to be provided.

VII.   Monitoring and Evaluation

Monitoring

A monitoring framework and results chain will be developed based on the agreed outcomes and outputs associated with the Strategy. A limited number of outcome and output indicators will be selected (see draft in the table below), which can be augmented with additional annual or interim targets if necessary.

Indicators will also be selected to be consistent with those that are now being produced by the international development community as part of the post-Busan monitoring framework to be agreed globally (and which will be finalised by the time Cambodia’s Strategy is completed). The table of outputs and indicators shown below is therefore in early draft form and baselines and targets will be calculated once the final framework has been agreed.

Draft results chain (outcome, outputs and indicators only)

In almost all cases these draft indicators can be monitored using available data sources and monitoring systems, notably the Cambodia ODA Database, which has been successfully used for monitoring Paris Declaration commitments in 2008 and in 2011). Monitoring is therefore not expected to provide any significant administrative burden or require the development of new monitoring systems.

Activities, which will evolve during the course of Strategy implementation, will be discussed and agreed on an annual basis using the Partnership & Harmonisation TWG, although the Strategy itself will include a broad outline of the work to be anticipated during its 5-year timeframe. Inputs that are associated with CRDB/CDC’s coordination and facilitation functions (see resources section) will similarly be estimated and resourced as part of the on-going partnership dialogue.

Evaluation

In 2008 a mid-term review of the H-A-R Action Plan proved to be a useful exercise to complement quantitative monitoring of progress. Cambodia also participated in the global Paris Declaration evaluation exercise in 2010, which proved to be most useful in assessing progress and better understanding remaining challenges. Therefore a mid-term evaluation - or some other form of participatory qualitative review of implementation and lessons learned - may be undertaken during the second half of 2015 or the first half of 2016. The utility of such an exercise for supporting national as well as post-Busan global partnership efforts will be reviewed by Government in dialogue with the Partnership and Harmonisation TWG, taking account of factors such as timing, cost and the perceived cost-benefit of such an exercise.