2014 ANNUAL PROJECT PROGRESS REPORT

Transcription

1 Strengthening the Resilience of Rural Livelihood options for Afghan Communities in Panjshir, Balkh, Uruzgan and Herat Provinces to manage Climate Change-induced Disaster Risks 2014 ANNUAL PROJECT PROGRESS REPORT UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

2 DONORS PROJECT INFORMATION Project ID: (NIM) Duration: June Strategic Plan Component: Growth is inclusive and sustainable, incorporating productive capacities that create employment and livelihoods for the poor and excluded CPAP Component: Increased opportunities for income generation through promotion of diversified livelihoods, private sector development, and public private partnerships ANDS Component: Economic growth is accelerated to reduce vulnerabilities and poverty, strengthen the resilience of the licit economy in its multiple dimension. Total Project Budget: $10,000,000 Annual Budget 2014: $271,000 Implementing Partner: The Ministry of Agriculture Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL) Responsible Agency: MoEW, NEPA, MRRD Project Manager: Samsor Alam Chief Technical Advisor: Not Applicable Responsible Assistant Country Director: Mamunul Haq Khan COVER PAGE: Consultation meeting with deputy governor of Herat Province in project design and formulation phase

3 ACRONYMS ANDMA ANDS APR CCA CDCs DDA EWS FAO GEF GoIRA LDC LDCF M&E MAIL MEW MoF MRRD MoWAs NABDP NAPWA NEPA NGO NPP NTA PDP PMU SOPs TORs UNDP PB Afghanistan National Disaster Management Authority Afghanistan National Development Strategy Annual Progress Report Climate Change Adaptation Community Development Councils District Development Assembly Early Warning System Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Global Environment Facility Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Least Developed Country Least Developed Countries Fund Monitoring and Evaluation Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock Ministry of Energy and Water Ministry of Finance Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development Ministry of Women Affairs National Area-Based Development Programme National Action Plan for the Women of Afghanistan National Environmental Protection Agency Non-Governmental Organization National Priority Program National Technical Assistance Provincial Development Plan Project Management Unit Standard Operating Procedures Terms of Reference United Nations Development Programme Project Board

4 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY... 1 II. RESULTS:... 3 Output: Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities... 3 A. Result 1: Enhanced awareness and climate change integration in development framework and planning... 3 EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR... 3 B. Result 2: Rural income and livelihood opportunities for vulnerable communities enhanced and diversified... 5 EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR: C. Result3: Productive infrastructure improved... 7 EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR: III. GENDER SPECIFIC RESULTS... 8 IV. PARTNERSHIPS... 8 V. ISSUES... 9 VI. RISKS VII. LESSONS LEARNED VIII. FUTURE PLAN IX. ANNEXES A. Annex 1: FINANCIAL TABLE B. ANNEX 2: EXPENSES BY OUTPUT C. ANNEX 4: RISK LOG D. ANNEX 5: ISSUE LOG... 15

5 I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities in Panjshir, Balkh, Uruzgan and Herat Provinces to manage climate change-induced disaster risks project is initiated based on Afghanistan s National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA). The project will support the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS). It will achieve the following results: Develop the capacity to integrate climate change risks and impacts in routine development plans at national, provincial and community level, strengthen climate resilient livelihoods, and improve irrigation infrastructure. It builds on and is complementary to a number of on-going baseline initiatives including the National Area- Based Development Programme (NABDP) and the National Solidarity Programme (NSP), among others. The implementing partner of this project is the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock (MAIL). The design and formulation of the project took 14 months (March 2013 to May 2014), the technical adviser was intensely involved in developing a strategy and vision for the project. This required working closely with MAIL, donors, implementing partners and other stakeholders to create a direction for the project that would be supported by a diverse group of stakeholders. MAIL signed the project document in April 2014, with so many challenges in the early phase which resulted in the delay of activities implementation. These delays were due to presidential elections, identifying implementation arrangement, and arranging payments modality for expenditure under fully NIM project. Moreover, the project was further delayed because of Presidential decree which banned all government bodies from recruiting new staff even under National Technical Assistance (NTA) contract. According to project document and agreement between the UNDP and MAIL the recruitment of Project Management Unit (PMU) staff was planned to be carried by the UNDP, in accordance to their rules and regulations. However, H.E Mr. Rahimi decided to revise the implementation arrangement and annual work plan (AWP), based on which, MAIL was to manage the recruitment under National Technical Assistance (NTA) model. Subsequent and continuous revisions of the project plan during the initial phase and implementation of fully NIM model for MAIL (as this was a new experience) were key reasons for stagnant implementation. In early phase project was only able to recruit Project Manager in late September and selected technical staff after competitive recruitment process. Vacancies were announced in MAIL and jobs.af websites. In November the project advertised provincial positions online on MAIL and jobs.af websites. Soon after the inauguration His Excellency the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Dr. Ghani put a ban on recruitment in all government agencies. Project processed the applications and selected the team members but the project could not provide them the contracts. The project will bring provincial teams on board when government agencies resume recruitment 1 P a g e

6 Since the initial phase of the project, the project management team has building consensus with relevant departments of MAIL to facilitate meaningful engagements that could build trust, strengthen relationships and contribute to achieve better outcomes. The project team is also engaged with stakeholders to develop action plans, coordination plan, and annual work plan to be implemented in close coordination with the partners in In order to enable management to clarify roles and responsibilities, levels of authority and to identify supervisory and reporting lines, the project manager in close coordination with HR department reviewed the project s organizational structure. This exercise was instrumental to determine information flow within the project and to ensure sustainability and accountability for achieving project goals and objectives. Currently the project is operating from a provisional office. The project team has identified a permanent space for office in Pamir building at MAIL. The office space need some renovation to be well prepared for the official operation. Needs for renovation have been identified and the Request for Quotation (RFQ) has been developed and advertised in local media outlets. Further information and updates on renovations process will be shared in future reports. 2 P a g e

7 II. RESULTS: Output: Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities A. Result 1: Enhanced awareness and climate change integration in development framework and planning A.1 Indicator 1: Five Community Development Plans integrated climate change risks in their plans A.2 Indicator 2: 20 Mail, NEPA, MRRD, Farmers and pastoralists trained on climate risk information and response A.3 Indicator 3: Climate Change scenarios developed in agriculture sector for Panjsher province For this particular output the projects was unable to progress towards its target because of implementation arrangements, elections and ban on recruitment by the president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the project was only able to hire Project Manager and select technical staff after intensive search. Moreover, project team has been building consensus with the stakeholders to develop Annual Work Plan (AWP), action plans which would be implemented in close coordination with the partners in EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR During 2014, a total of USD 12,452 was spent for this output. 3 P a g e

8 Below is a snapshot of where Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities is in relation to its annual targets after Q4 Table 1 Enhanced awareness and climate change integration in development framework and planning 2014 BASELINE 2014 ANNUAL TARGETS Q3 Q ACTUAL COMMENTS Zero Five Community Development Plans integrated climate change risks in their plans Not achieved Implementation arrangement, the presidential elections and on-going political issues, delayed project implementation Zero 20 Mail, NEPA, MRRD, Farmers and pastoralists trained on climate risk information and response Not achieved Implementation arrangement, the presidential elections and on-going political issues, delayed project implementation No climate change scenarios exist in the country detailed gap analysis to develop climate change scenarios in Panjsher Not achieved Implementation arrangement, the presidential elections and on-going political issues, delayed project implementation 4 P a g e

9 B. Result 2: Rural income and livelihood opportunities for vulnerable communities enhanced and diversified B.1 Indicator 1: 25 women trained in selected communities in financial management, bookkeeping and accounting in Panjsher province B.2 Indicator 2: 3 Women s self-help groups created in Panjsher province B.3 Indicator 3: 20 hectares of degraded rangelands restored and rehabilitated During the early phase of the project, the major focus was on reorganizing the implementation arrangement, approval of the project documents, arranging payments for expenditure and the recruitment, this posed delay in the implementation of the planned activities. The project was only able hire project manager, identify office space and to select technical staff. EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR: 0 5 P a g e

10 Below is a snapshot of where Strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options for Afghan communities is in relation to its annual targets after Q4 Table 2 Rural income and livelihood opportunities for vulnerable communities enhanced and diversified 2014 BASELINE 2014 ANNUAL TARGETS Q3 Q ACTUAL COMMENTS Zero 25 women trained in selected communities in financial management, bookkeeping and accounting in Panjsher province Not achieved Implementation arrangement, the presidential elections and ongoing political issues, delayed project implementation Zero 3 Women s self-help groups created in Panjsher province Not achieved Implementation arrangement, the presidential elections and ongoing political issues, delayed project implementation Zero 20 hectares of degraded rangelands restored and rehabilitated Not achieved Implementation arrangement, the presidential elections and ongoing political issues, delayed project implementation 6 P a g e

11 C. Result3: Productive infrastructure improved C.2 Indicator 2: At least two community based small-scale reservoir is surveyed and designed (Panjsher and Balkh provinces) Once again the rearranging implementation arrangements, elections and ban on recruitment by the president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, this projects output was delayed and the project was unable to progress towards achieved the planned target. The project was only able to select technical staff after intensive search and built consensus with the stakeholders to develop action plans which would be implemented in close coordination with them. EXPENSES FOR THE YEAR: 0 Table 3 Productive infrastructure 2014 BASELINE 2014 ANNUAL TARGETS Q3 Q ACTUA L COMMENTS Zero At least two community based small-scale reservoir is surveyed and designed (Panjsher and Balkh provinces) Not achieved Implementation arrangement, the presidential elections and ongoing political issues, delayed project implementation 7 P a g e

12 III. GENDER SPECIFIC RESULTS Project has incorporated a number of gender specific activities to ensure that woman s needs are represented and addressed. The project impact is gender sensitive and coordinates closely with the Ministry of Women Affairs in Kabul and at the provincial level. Project outcomes and outputs have been designed to involve and benefit both women and men. The project will report gender based result in future, when actual implementation will be initiated in the ground. IV. PARTNERSHIPS The key implementing partners of this project is MAIL and the key responsible partners are the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD), and the Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW). The oversight of the project is the responsibility of the Project Board (PB). The PB is composed of high level representatives from MAIL, NEPA, MRRD, MoEW, UNDP, and other relevant GoIRA Ministries as appropriate. The responsibility of the PB is to see that project activities lead to the required outcomes as defined in the project document. The PB oversees project implementation, approve work plans and budgets as supplied by the Project Manager, approve any major changes in project plans, approve major project deliverables, arbitrate any conflicts which might arise, be responsible for the overall evaluation of the project. All of the partner agencies will engage communities in development activities that strengthening the resilience of rural livelihood options of Afghan communities. Implementation through Community Development Councils (CDCs) with the facilitation of local NGOs will ensure local ownership of the activities. Continued engagement with local political structures (Shuras, community leaders, CDCs) by the Implementing Agency will enhance security and community ownership. To ensure that the project makes an equitable difference on the ground, the project will also coordinate activities closely with the Ministry for Women Affairs (MoWAs) in Kabul and at the provincial level. During 2014, project continued to partner with national and international institutions to achieve project objectives. 8 P a g e

13 V. ISSUES Implementation arrangement: Initially the plan was that UNDP will recruit the Project Management Unit (PMU) based in Kabul under UNDP regulations, rules, policies and procedures to coordinate operations and manage the project. However, H.E Mr. Rahimi requested that MAIL will recruit PMU through the implementation of National Technical Assistance (NTA) policy and the UNDP approved the request. The ongoing consultation to redesign the implementation arrangement before and after the approval affected the launch of the project and resulted in delays in implementing project. Fund Mobilization for Project: Project agreement required MAIL to open its own bank account for disbursement of all project related payments. However, as per the Ministry of Finance (MoF) decision MAIL could not open account with commercial banks, therefore, MAIL requested UNDP to make payments implementing NIM modality. This arrangement took considerable time and delayed the implementation of the project. This issue will be lingering in 2015, the process of arranging payments for expenditures will have an impact on the implementation and will slow down the delivery Presidential Election: The 2014 Presidential and Provincial Council elections had an impact on the project delivery because of the anticipated changes to the leadership of many GOA ministries following the elections. Project could only hire the project manager and selected other team members in Kabul and could not have the full team on board the project because the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan issued a decree which put a ban on new recruitment within government agencies. Applicants applications has been processed and have selected team members, MAIL will issue their contracts once MAIL s new leadership assumes his work. 9 P a g e

14 VI. RISKS Democratic transformation of power MAIL and UNDP anticipated changes to the leadership of MAIL and other ministries appointees of the President after the 2014 elections. Such leadership changes included organizational change, there was the possibility of suspending the project implementation. However, this risk was mitigated through close communication and establishing rapport with the senior leadership of the ministry. Security: Security concerns posed a challenge in the initial phase of the project and had its impact on project which resulted in delays affecting the timeline of the project. In initiation phase UNDP staff movements to the MAIL were effected for short period of time but movements were resumed later on in elections period. This risk was mitigated undertaking daily monitoring of media and information sources to increase awareness of trends in security. VII. LESSONS LEARNED Some of the key lessons learnt can be listed as follows: Understanding project would have helped in developing a clear roadmap and checking its feasibility from the very beginning to ensure adequate preparation and contingencies are in place for smooth implementation of the project, this could have avoided delays caused by altering implementation arrangements and arranging payments for expenditure; Need to recruit more women at the professional level and the need for some flexibility in revising the terms and conditions of specific positions in view of the difficulty to recruit suitable women candidates; There is need to establish strategic alliances with partners especially with the key implementing partners including the Ministry of Women Affairs; their support can be valuable factor for the successful implementation of the project s activities; Development and design of a flexible approach with a scope for flexibility to merge necessary improvements that may come-up during the implementation process and developing internal manuals with flexibility of adjusting NIM and DIM modalities. 10 P a g e

15 VIII. FUTURE PLAN Inception workshop: In early January 2015, the project team will convene an inception workshop to enable the Project Team to understand and take ownership of the project s goal, objective and outcomes, as well as to finalize preparation of the first Annual Work Plan for 2015 on the basis of the project's Logical Framework as per the approved project documents and NIM guideline. Recruitment of staff and operationalization of provincial offices: In next quarter, all required staff including international consultants as per the approved HR plan will be deployed to carryout project activities as per the AWP. Provincial offices will also be operationalized. Induction Workshops: Project core team will have monitoring visits to provincial offices to organize a one day induction workshop so the provincial project team understand project goals and objectives. Survey of irrigation infrastructures: Project will conduct need assessment and survey of irrigation infrastructure according to plans detailed in project document. 11 P a g e

16 IX. ANNEXES A. Annex 1: FINANCIAL TABLE 12 P a g e

17 B. ANNEX 2: EXPENSES BY OUTPUT 13 P a g e

18 C. ANNEX 4: RISK LOG # Description 1 Reorganizing implementation arrangement Date Identified April/June 2014 Type Program Impact & Probability The risk prevented the project to launch on time and failure to rearranging could have further delayed project launch Countermeasures / Management response Owner Submitte d by Status Approved MAIL request UNDP/MAIL Resolved Probability: High 2 Security concerns posed a challenge throughout 2014 Continues Environmental Project activities delayed occasionally Probability: Medium Undertaking daily monitoring of media and information sources to increase awareness of trends in security UNDP/MAIL Resolved 14 P a g e

19 D. ANNEX 5: ISSUE LOG ID Type 1 Organizational/Strategic Date Identified Description Status/Priority June 2014 Reorganizing implementation arrangements Resolved/High Status Change Date July 2014 Author 2 Organizational Sep 2014 Ineffective office space Resolved/Medium March 2015 Project Manager 3 Procurement/ Finance October 2014 Payments for expenditures Temporarily Resolved/High Sep 2014 Project Manager 4 HR October The recruitment of staff is pending due to ban on recruitment by the President of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ongoing/High Project Manager 15 P a g e