PACA Steering Committee Meeting-Communiqué

Transcription

1 PACA Steering Committee Meeting-Communiqué 17-18February 2015 Nairobi, Kenya The sixth PACA Steering Committee (SC) meeting was held on February 2015 in Nairobi, Kenya. The Subcommittees met on17 February to pre-review major agenda items and make recommendations to the business session of the Steering Committee. The Technical Subcommittee (TSC) discussed technical issues arising from country situation analysis and other country level activities in the five pilot countries as well as the revised M&E Framework and Baseline Methodology. The TSC also reviewed concept notes on additional pilot country engagement and a regional workshop on revamping the groundnut value chain in West Africa through aflatoxin control. The Budget, Finance and Administration Subcommittee (BFA) reviewed and discussed progress of implementation of previous recommendations and the 2014 budget and actual execution. It also reviewed and approved the 2015 budget and work plan of the secretariat. The BFA also provisionally approved 2016 budget and work plan. The full SC met on 18 February to discuss the recommendations made by the subcommittees on various technical and budgetary issues as well as review and discuss PACA s implementation progress on pilot country, regional, and continental activities. The Steering Committee gave guidance to the PACA Secretariat. Additional details are provided in the short summary below. Day I: 17 February The Technical Subcommittee met on the morning of 17 February The TSC chair, Dr. Ranajit Bandyopadhyay, opened the meeting by welcoming and thanking members for their attendance. The Subcommittee reviewed and discussed the various regional and country level activities undertaken by the Secretariat and partners. These included the Africa Aflatoxin Information Management System, the Country-led Situational Analysis, and review of National and Regional Agriculture Investment Plans. The Subcommittee endorsed the two regional reports for eastern and southern Africa (Malawi, Uganda and Tanzania) and western Africa (Gambia and Senegal). The TSC also reviewed, discussed and endorsed PACA s engagement with Nigeria as the sixth pilot country. The BFA Subcommittee met in the afternoon of 17 February 2015 to review and discuss various issues concerning budgets and administration. Dr. Abebe Haile Gabriel, chair of PACA SC and BFA opened the meeting with a welcoming remark followed by review and adoption of

2 meeting agenda. The BFA deliberated on PACA s final 2014 Budget versus Actual Expenditures (reforecast and original), 2015 PACA Work Plan and Budget, draft 2016 Work Plan and Budget, as well as the PACA Secretariat Staff transition plan and made several recommendations for Steering Committee approval. The meeting closed with provisional approval of the documents presented. Day II: 18 February The full Steering Committee started its deliberation on 18 February 2015 with a welcoming remark by the Chair of the SC. The morning session consisted of reviews and discussions on the implementation progress of actions and recommendations from the 5 th PACA SC meeting in August 2014, as well as the refined Mid-Term Operational Plan (MTOP) and revised M&E framework presented by the Secretariat. The SC commended the Secretariat s capacity to implement the many activities and made several recommendations captured below. The afternoon session started with reports from the two Subcommittees. This was followed by review and discussions of the 2015 Work Plan and Budget aligned to the MTOP presented by the Secretariat. The Secretariat also presented the 2016 Work Plan and Budget for provisional approval. Among other discussions, the SC also discussed a funder engagement outline proposed by the Secretariat to secure resources for implementing the MTOP, for the next five years. SC Terms of Reference and rotation and PACA Partnership Platform Meeting recommendations were also discussed during this session. The SC reviewed and discussed on the various issues mentioned above and gave guidance and recommendations. Decisions, Outcomes and Next Steps The SC took the following key decisions, and identified a range of detailed next steps. Key decisions and meeting outcomes included the following. Updates on Actions of the 5 th SC Meeting and PACA Secretariat Implementation Progress Report The Secretariat presented updates on all actions since the last SC meeting and its implementation progress. The SC commended the Secretariat for the good work and made several recommendations. The SC agreed that the Secretariat should engage with Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), private sector, and other international institutions for a holistic approach to aflatoxin control on the continent. In addition, the SC requested that the Secretariat mainstreams gender in all its activities in 2015 and beyond. The Secretariat should involve gender, health and other specialists in some of its planned workshops and meetings where they can come and educate participants. Communiqué of Sixth PACA Steering Committee Meeting, February 2015 Page 2

3 The Secretariat should ensure PACA s visibility in countries and this can be achieved through various means. When developing a communication strategy, the Secretariat should learn from other continental initiatives experience on developing a communication and advocacy strategy. The Secretariat s work and scientific studies should be packaged well and disseminated to different audiences. Overall, the SC requested that the Secretariat review and adjust its reporting timeline to correspond to the AUC reporting calendar. And, the Secretariat should ensure that all economic impact assessments, currently being undertaken in pilot countries, are uniform. The economic losses should show the impact on GDP in the form of percentage to GDP. During the fifth SC meeting, the SC approved recruitment of five additional staff within the Secretariat as well as six Country Officers. While reviewing the 2015 Work Plan and Budget, the SC realized the importance of having the Knowledge Manager, one of the approved positions, hired urgently. It was agreed that Country Officers will also be hired immediately through Meridian Institute on a case by case basis. These will be full time positions embedded within government institutions in each pilot country. The current staff s transition to the AUC has been initiated since In order for a smooth transition to the AUC and to avoid disruption of the current work, the transition has been delayed until the end of PACA Pilot Country and Regional Activities The PACA SC considered the PACA Secretariat s proposal to add one more pilot country, and endorsed the proposal to add Nigeria. Nigeria was at the top of the next tier of countries considered for pilot country. In an attempt to improve the balance in the geographic distribution of the pilot countries, and considering the extent of the aflatoxin issue in Nigeria, based on earlier studies, the SC endorsed the decision. The SC reviewed the concept note presented by the Secretariat and recommended that the Secretariat should engage the Nigerian government within the next 6 weeks in order to receive written commitment to become a PACA pilot country. The Secretariat should try to fast-track Nigeria s engagement in order to possibly review the NAFSIP in At the regional level, the ECOWAS regional agriculture investment program will be reviewed this year. The ECOWAS commission has reassured the SC that it will ensure the inclusion of aflatoxin issues in the reviewed RAFSIP. The SC recommended that the Secretariat leverage the ECOWAS review of NAFSIPs in the region for phase 2 of its implementation. The Secretariat should also ensure that aflatoxin is addressed in the COMESA regional RAFSIP that is currently being finalized. For better collaboration, the Secretariat should create Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) between PACA and Regional Economic Communities and initiate the process at the end of the first quarter Communiqué of Sixth PACA Steering Committee Meeting, February 2015 Page 3

4 In 2015, the Secretariat, in collaboration with various stakeholders, is organizing a regional workshop on Revamping the groundnut value chain in West Africa through aflatoxin mitigation. The SC recommended that the Secretariat organize a similar workshop on the maize value chain in the East and Southern African region. PACA Mid-Term Operational Plan (MTOP) and 2015 Budget The Secretariat presented the MTOP based on the refined strategic direction and the 2015 Work Plan and Budget. The SC reviewed, discussed and endorsed the MTOP and the final 2015 Work Plan and Budget. The SC requested that the Secretariat revise the 2015budget and future budgets to separate the overhead and program budget. The incoming Secretariat staff as well as the Country Officers should be included in the staff capacity building training budget. PACA M&E Framework The PACA Secretariat, through consulting firm Khulisa, refined its M&E Framework based on the newly refined strategic direction. The SC reviewed the draft M&E Framework and recommended for the Framework s timeline correspond to PACA s funding cycle while considering an evaluation in A task force was formed in order to narrow the M&E indicators. The team comprises of IITA (Chair), BMGF, and AMREF. The Secretariat should also cost the baseline study. In addition, the SC recommended that PACA s theory of change be revised, in collaboration with the M&E developers, to reflect the current strategy. The Knowledge Manager will be responsible for PACA s M&E. PACA Draft 2016 Work Plan and Budget and Fund Raising for 2016 and Beyond The Secretariat presented the 2016 Work Plan and Budget for provisional endorsement and discussion on possible funding gap in The SC and Secretariat acknowledged a funding gap in The Secretariat and key funding partners have begun to identify resources to support the PACA 2016 Work Plan and Budget. The AUC has a procedure that would enable it to adopt the 2016 PACA Budget during the budgeting cycle that starts in March 2015 and allow the PACA Secretariat until December 2015 to fill the budget gap. The SC believes that it is important that the Secretariat secures predictable funding for at least the next five years and recommended that PACA engage a donor engagement and resource mobilization consultant. It was agreed that the consultant be based at the Secretariat for a continuous short term support in resource mobilization. The Secretariat is requested to present the refined 2016 Work Plan and Budget during the next SC meeting. PACA Governance and SC Membership The PACA Steering Committee serves terms of three years, with the option of serving two consecutive terms. However, the SC Terms of Reference does not clearly state the rotation process for SC members. An Ad Hoc Committee comprising of PanAAC, Consumer Communiqué of Sixth PACA Steering Committee Meeting, February 2015 Page 4

5 International, and AMREF was formed to refine and propose recommendations on the SC TOR, SC member rotation process and schedule, and SC membership procedures. The recommendations will be presented at the next SC meeting. Recommendations from PACA PPM 2014, PACA PPM 2016 and Next SC meeting The Secretariat presented the recommendations from the PACA PPM 2014 and progress made to date. The SC requested that the Secretariat align the PPM recommendations, the activities of the Secretariat, and activities of other stakeholders in order to avoid duplication. They also requested that the Secretariat develop a strategy for implementing and monitoring the PPM recommendations through various mechanisms. The Secretariat should report on the implementation progress of the PPM 2014 recommendations at the PPM The second PACA PPM is scheduled to be held on October 2016in one of PACA s pilot countries. The Secretariat should develop a concept note for the PPM 2016 as soon as possible. The next SC and Subcommittee meeting will be held in September The specific date and location of the SC meeting will be announced soon. Communiqué of Sixth PACA Steering Committee Meeting, February 2015 Page 5