democratic governance thematic trust fund · 2.3 global activities 50 2.3.1 oslo governance centre...

United Nations Development Programme

D E M O C R AT I C G O V E R N A N C EThematic Trust Fund

2007Annual Report

United Nations Development Programme Democratic Governance GroupBureau for Development Policy304 East 45th Street, Tenth Floor, New York, NY 10017 USA

www.undp.org

2007 Annual Report 1

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS 3

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 4

INTRODUCTION 8

1. OVERALL FEATURES AND THEMATIC TRENDS 11

2. OPERATIONAL REPORTING 17

2.1 Country office activities 172.1.1 Fostering inclusive participation 19

2.1.1.1 Civic engagement 192.1.1.2 Electoral systems and processes 222.1.1.3 E-governance, independent media

and access to information 262.1.2 Strengthening responsive institutions 28

2.1.2.1 Parliamentary development 282.1.2.2 National, regional and local governance 322.1.2.3 Justice 34

2.1.3 Grounding democratic governance in international principles 372.1.3.1 Human rights 372.1.3.2 Gender equality 412.1.3.3 Anti-corruption 43

2.2 Regional activities 47

2.3 Global activities 502.3.1 Oslo Governance Centre 502.3.2 Annual Global Democratic Governance Practice Meeting 532.3.3 DGTTF evaluation 532.3.4 2nd generation DGTTF Web application 542.3.5 Portuguese version of the 2007/2008 Human

Development Report 54

3. OVERALL CHALLENGES AND LESSONS LEARNED 56

4. CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE PLANS 59

5. INTERIM FINANCIAL REPORT 61

ANNEX A. 2007 DGTTF COUNTRY AND REGIONAL PROJECTS 62

ANNEX B. DGTTF SUPPORT OF ACTION 2 COUNTRY-LEVEL IMPLEMENTATION 78

ANNEX C. DGTTF RESOURCES ALLOCATED FORGLOBAL ACTIVITIES AND PROJECTS IN 2007 79

2 Democratic Governance Thematic Trust Fund

BOXES

Box 1. How DGTTF defines ‘innovative’ and ‘catalytic’ 9

Box 2. Lessons learned in civic engagement 20

Box 3. Enhancing government and CSO partnerships for poverty reduction in Lao PDR 20

Box 4. Capacity-building for free and fair elections in Bhutan 23

Box 5. Lessons learned in e-governance, access to information and independent media 26

Box 6. Increasing government transparency and accountability through electronic access to information in Bulgaria 27

Box 7. Lessons learned in parliamentary development 29

Box 8. Strengthening the parliament’s legislative and oversightcapacities in Kazakhstan 30

Box 9. Lessons learned in national, regional and local governance 32

Box 10. Civil service reform in Azerbaijan 33

Box 11. Lessons learned in justice 34

Box 12. Access to justice in Niger 35

Box 13. Lessons learned in human rights 38

Box 14. Strengthening the participation of indigenous peoples and Afro-Ecuadorians in public policies in Ecuador 39

Box 15. Action 2 joint programme: Delivering on human rights as one 40

Box 16. Lessons learned in gender equality 41

Box 17. Support to development of local governance frameworks with inclusion and participation of women, youth and minorities in Somalia 43

Box 18. Lessons learned in anti-corruption 45

Box 19. Strengthening ethics and integrity in the health sector in Mongolia 45

Box 20. Snapshots from the Oslo Governance Centre’s key achievements in 2007 51

Box 21. Formative assessment of the Oslo Governance Centre 52

TABLES, GRAPHS AND FIGURES

Table 1. DGTTF gross cash receipts by donor and by year ($) 12

Table 2. DGTTF allocations for field projects: 2004–2007 12

Table 3. DGTTF projects and allocations by country group (2007) 13

Table 4. 2007 DGTTF resources for country and regional projects by service line 18

Graph 1 Contributions received by BDP TTFs in 2007 10

Graph 2. Total contributions to the Global Window of DGTTF: 2001–2007 11

Graph 3. Number of DGTTF projects by service line: 2003–2007 17

Figure 1. DGTTF resources allocated by country group (2007) 13

Figure 2. DGTTF resources allocated by region (2007) 14

Figure 3. DGTTF resources allocated by service line (2007) 18

Table of contents


APR(s) Annual Project Report(s)

BCPR Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery

BDP Bureau for Development Policy

CO(s) Country Office(s)

CPAP Country Programme Action Plan

CSO(s) civil society organization(s)

DFID UK Department for International Development

DGG Democratic Governance Group

DGP Democratic Governance Practice

DGP-Net Democratic Governance Practice Network

DGTTF Democratic Governance Thematic Trust Fund

ECIS Eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States

EOI(s) expression(s) of interest

HQ headquarters

HURLITALK Human Rights Policy Network

ICT(s) information and communications technology(ies)

LAC Latin America and the Caribbean

LDC(s) least developed country(ies)

LIC(s) low income country (ies)

LPAC Local Project Appraisal Committee

MDG(s) Millennium Development Goal(s)

MYFF multi-year funding framework

NGO(s) non-governmental organization(s)

OECD/DAC Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Development Assistance Committee

OGC Oslo Governance Centre

ProDoc(s) Project Document(s)

PSU Policy Support Unit

PTL Practice Team Leader

RB(x) Regional Bureau(x)

SL Service Line

SURF Sub-Regional Resource Facility

SWAp sector-wide approach

TOR terms of reference

TRAC target for resource assignment from the core

UN United Nations

UNDP United Nations Development Programme

UNDP NY United Nations Development Programme Office New York

Note on text: Unless specified otherwise, all “$” figures are U.S. dollar amounts

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS


The Democratic Governance Thematic Trust Fund (DGTTF) was created in 2001 topromote a thematic focus around UNDP’s Democratic Governance Practice (DGP). Its main function is to provide Country Offices with discretionary funds to exploreinnovative approaches and address issues in politically sensitive areas where the useof core funds may prove more problematic and slow. DGTTF was designed to allowrapid disbursement and to attract funding from donors interested in democraticgovernance. From 2002 to 2007, DGTTF disbursed $70 million for a total 572 one-yearprojects in the field. Additional funding was provided for the Oslo Governance Centre(OGC) and other global activities.

In its seven years of operation, DGTTF has been successful as a venture capital fund1

promoting innovation in an area of development where it is both extremely importantto make progress and notoriously hard to do so. The successful innovations have almostalways led to major programmes of reform and capacity-building, supported not onlywith UNDP core funding but even more often by other donors and the governmentsconcerned. DGTTF has positioned UNDP at the forefront of strengthening the linksbetween democratic governance, poverty reduction and achievement of the Millenni-um Development Goals (MDGs).

Overall trendsDGTTF progressively expanded its donor base from 2001 until 2006, but experienced adip in donor support in 2007. 2007 can be seen as a transition year during which bothUNDP and donors were waiting for the results of the DGTTF evaluation to determine the future of the fund. In addition, some donors, like Austria and Spain contributedthrough the Country Window given the nature of their earmarking instead of throughthe Global Window of the DGTTF. Donors contributing to the Global Window of theDGTTF in 2007 were the Governments of Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and Portugal. Their contributions included both flexible allocations and specificthematic and geographical earmarking. The annual contributions amounted to$14,419,883 in 2007.

■■ DGTTF proved instrumental in fostering innovative projects that have led tolarger programmes and projects aimed at making major improvements indemocratic governance. As in previous years, almost all UNDP Country Officesreported that DGTTF helped foster strategic partnerships, and 60 percentindicated that additional resources were mobilized because of seed moneyDGTTF provided.2

■■ DGTTF continued to focus on the regions and countries with the greatestneeds, particularly least developed countries (LDCs), non-LDCs in Africa, andlow-income countries (LICs). In 2007, the trust fund distributed 68 percent of its total allocations in the field for the year to projects in LDCs, LICs and otherAfrican countries.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1 DGTTF evaluation report 2008 (www.undp.org/governance/ttf.htm)2 These additional resources mobilized include government funding, donor contributions and UNDP TRAC resources. This confirms the finding by the evaluation

team that “half the projects mobilized additional funds to scale up the innovation piloted by DGTTF” between 2001 and 2007.

http://www.undp.org/governance/ttf.htm


■■ Gender equality has been integrated effectively into UNDP’s democraticgovernance agenda through strategic use of DGTTF. One third of the 2007projects included a gender component among their key activities.3 Improvinggender equality and enhancing women’s empowerment cut across variousdemocratic governance service lines, whether through elections and parlia-mentary development projects enhancing women’s political participation indecision-making or through legal mechanisms in justice and human rightsinterventions, notably raising awareness aboutgender-based violence.

■■ DGTTF strengthened UNDP Country Offices’ work inthe area of human rights by providing crucial sup-port for awareness-raising and advocacy for theinclusion of vulnerable and marginalised people inthe development processes, notably indigenouspeople, minorities, people living with HIV/AIDS,women migrant workers, street children, victims of human trafficking and persons with disabilities.Also, DGTTF supported the strengthening of nation-al human rights institutions, developed capacity ofhuman rights defenders, provided assistance for the review of police and prisonmanuals, the promotion of corporate social responsibility and the developmentof effective mechanisms to tackle domestic violence against women.

■■ In the area of justice, DGTTF support increasingly promoted channels ofcommunication between the justice system and the public at large and focusedon improving accessibility and quality of justice services. Most rule of law andjustice projects in this area took place in Africa and Latin America and theCaribbean. In terms of regional trends, projects in Africa increasingly movedtowards more innovative approaches both in promoting integrated approachesto justice service delivery, thereby acknowledging the interdependence of the provision of services by independent justice institutions, and in movingtowards sector wide approaches as the most effective aid modality. There wasalso a trend to strengthen the capacity of justice sector institutions to improvethe quality in justice service delivery and in broadening the outreach of legalassistance and awareness raising initiatives, whereas in Latin America and theCaribbean justice projects particularly focus on citizen security issues based on a bottom up community approach. The use of UNVs in the implementationof access to justice projects has proved very successful in increasing outreach ofjustice services to the most disadvantaged.

■■ DGTTF supported nine projects on parliamentary development: more thanhalf (five) in Africa and one in every other region.4 These projects have providedsupport for catalytic parliamentary development strategies, promoted the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) in the work ofparliaments and strengthened the capacity of parliamentary support services.These projects have also led to larger programmes, in some cases supported bythe UNDP Global Programme on Parliamentary Strengthening.

3 Between 2002 and 2007 half of the DGTTF projects addressed gender issues, according to the DGTTF evaluation.4 The five regions where DGTTF operates are: Africa, Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Eastern Europe and the CIS, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

”“With the help of DGTTF funding, the first

roundtable on labor migration in Uzbekistanwas an icebreaking activity which openlydiscussed the main challenges in the sphere ofwomen labor migrants’ rights.

—Izzatulla Baltaev, Project Manager, UNDP Uzbekistan


■■ The majority of DGTTF electoral assistance projects in 2007 were implementedin Asia and the Pacific. Although global demand for electoral assistance remainshighest in Africa generally speaking, the increased use of DGTTF as a modalityfor electoral assistance in Asia and the Pacific corresponds to two trends,notably the use of DGTTF funds to support (i) new democracies and transitioncountries; and (ii) countries where multiple post-transition elections have beenheld but challenges of inclusive participation remain. The projects focusedprimarily on voter education, capacity development of electoral managementbodies and enhancing citizens’ participation in the electoral process, notably ofwomen, socially excluded communities and persons with disabilities.

■■ Global demand for DGTTF anti-corruption projects in 2007 shifted significantlyfrom Europe and the CIS, Asia and the Pacific and Latin America and theCaribbean to Africa and the Arab States. Africa has increased its programmingin anti-corruption as a result of the entry into force of the UN Conventionagainst Corruption (UNCAC) and the need to improve investment climate andattract official development investment (ODI). In the Arab States region, theregional Programme on Governance (POGAR) has popularized anti-corruptioninitiatives. These projects were instrumental in promoting national policyframeworks to fight corruption based on international standards, galvanizingdonor support for anti-corruption initiatives, and strengthening commissionsand agencies that promote public transparency and accountability. DGTTF alsosupported anti-corruption CSOs to enhance their involvement in policy-makingand their capacity to monitor.

■■ DGTTF supported more civic engagement projects than in the previouseditions. These projects supported the establishment of enabling environmentsfor CSOs, the promotion of policy dialogues between citizens and policymakers and the development of leadership skills. In 2007, DGTTF supported sixprojects in this service area spread out evenly across four regions: Africa, theArab States, Asia and the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

■■ Furthermore, global demand for e-governance and access to information

projects has continuously increased between 2002 and 2007. DGTTF supportede-governance projects to effectively and efficiently deliver basic services andinformation to citizens and to foster citizen participation in decision-makingprocesses. It also focused on improving the legal and regulatory environmentfor access to information and strengthening the capacity of independent andpluralistic media. In 2007, DGTTF supported six projects in this service areaspread out evenly across four regions: the Arab States, Asia and the Pacific,Eastern Europe and the CIS, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

■■ Finally, DGTTF continued its support for the area of public administration

reform and decentralization and local governance. DGTTF supported capacitydevelopment and modernization of the civil service, strengthening of econom-ic and social policies, and implementation of decentralization processes, includ-ing capacity development for local government. In 2007, DGTTF supported 15projects in this service area spread out across four regions: Africa, Asia and thePacific, Eastern Europe and the CIS, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Executive summary


Operational highlightsIn 2007, the Global Window of DGTTF supported projects at the country, regional andglobal levels. DGTTF resources were allocated to support 96 field projects5 throughthe six democratic governance service lines. As in previous years, the Justice andHuman Rights service line was in the highest demand in 2007, both in terms of number of projects and resources allocated. DGTTF supported 31 projects under thisservice line: two at the regional level (in the Arab States and Latin America and theCaribbean) and 29 at the country level. As in 2006, the service line for Decentraliza-tion, Local Governance and, Urban and Rural Develop-ment, was second in demand. DGTTF supported a total of 19 projects6 under this service line in 2007: two regionalprojects in Latin America and the Caribbean and 17 country-level projects. Public Administration Reform andAnti-Corruption, was third with a total of 17 projects (com-pared with 13 last year), followed by Parliamentary Devel-opment, with 11 country-level projects; Electoral Systems,with nine country-level projects; and E-governance andAccess to Information, with one regional project and eightcountry-level projects.

Of the $10,975,562 allocated for field projects in 2007, thelargest amount went to justice and human rights projects($3,839,562, or 35 percent of the total), followed by decentralization and localgovernance ($2,006,000, or 19 percent); public administration and anti-corruption($1,775,000, or 16 percent); electoral systems and processes ($1,250,000, or 11percent); parliamentary development ($1,250,000, or 11 percent); and e-governanceand access to information ($855,000, or 8 percent).

The Global Window of DGTTF also supported five regional projects, four of whichwere prioritized and carried out by the Regional Bureau for Latin America and theCaribbean (RBLAC): i) the Strategic Short-Term Political Analysis and ProspectiveScenarios for Improved Governance in Latin America (also known as PAPEP), ii) Democratic Dialogue, iii) Knowledge Products for Decentralized Governance, andiv) Youth Leaders for Good Governance. The fifth regional project, ”Arab Youth andHuman Rights Portal and CD” was implemented by the Regional Bureau for ArabStates (RBAS). Furthermore, DGTTF funded the activities of the Oslo GovernanceCentre, the 2007 Annual Global Democratic Governance Practice Meeting “MakingDemocratic Governance Practice Deliver on the New Strategic Plan”, the 2ndgeneration DGTTF Web application and the in-depth evaluation of DGTTF. As it didin 2006, DGTTF channelled funds for the Portuguese translation of the 2007/2008

Human Development Report entitled ‘Fighting climate change: Human solidarity in adivided world’.

5 Field projects refer to regional and country level projects. In 2007, 91 projects were implemented at the country level and 5 regionally.6 The total number of projects supported through this service line in 2007 was smaller than in 2006 (25 projects).

”“With support from DGTTF, the UNDP CO seized

the opportunity to provide critical assistance for the ongoing constitutional review process [in the Maldives] which lays the foundation for a more democratic society.

—Rae-Ann Peart, Programme Manager, UNDP Maldives


Significant strides have been made over the past few decades towards a more democraticworld. Still, far too many democratic deficits remain. These occur whenever too muchpower is concentrated in too few hands, or when basic public services fail to function orreach people in remote areas. The deficits arise when certain groups are denied access tothe political process because they cannot vote or join political parties, or when the rule oflaw is not consistently applied, impunity prevails, and access to justice is denied.

In almost every context, democratic deficits weaken societies by reinforcing inequities.So while it is essential to help countries meet the basic prerequisites of democratic governance, such as participation in political processes through periodic elections, it isequally critical to support their capacity to ensure the meaningful participation of all citizens, including the most vulnerable and marginalized.

UNDP’s work on democratic governance is inspired by the UN mandate to tackle thevarious expressions of human poverty and to work for the advancement of the voicelessand disempowered. Recent country experiences and much academic research has doc-umented that it is perfectly possible to achieve economic growth without democraticgovernance, but many experiences and much research also document that it is not pos-sible—neither conceptually nor in practice—to seek and sustain comprehensive gainsin human development as defined by UNDP without democratic governance.

Human poverty—the flip side of human development—is the lack not just of economicopportunities, but also of capacities, capabilities, rights and choices. ‘Inclusive growth’requires a human rights–based approach to development that also firmly focuses onthe crucial empowerment dimension of human development. From UNDP’s perspective,what matters in economic growth is not just its magnitude, but also its quality, legiti-macy, effectiveness and inclusiveness.

UNDP is one of the largest providers of democratic governance technical cooperationglobally. Most expenditure involves non-core resources, with an average of 43 percentgenerated at the country level. The urgency behind achieving the Millennium Develop-ment Goals (MDGs) has helped renew interest in strengthening state capacity to deliverservices and heightened the focus on the quality, responsiveness, accountability andtransparency of the public sector to manage the delivery of goods and services to thepoor. Reaching the MDGs requires political will: achieving the goals by 2015 is not justabout technical choices, but perhaps primarily, it depends on whether the poor havepolitical power and a voice in the political decisions that affect their lives and livelihoods.

DGTTF is one of the important tools UNDP has at its disposal to foster democratic governance. It was created in 2001 with two objectives: i) to better align UNDP’s global,regional, and country programmes around its major practice area (democratic gover-nance); and ii) to mobilize donor resources for thematic priorities as a new, quick fund-ing alternative to traditional project-by-project co-financing. In the last six years, DGTTFhas supported innovative and catalytic projects strengthening democratic governanceat the global, regional, national and local levels through the following six service lines of

7 United Nations, Executive Board of the United Nations Development Programme and of the United Nations Population Fund: Second Multi-Year Funding Framework,2004–2007, New York, 13 August 2003, DP/2003/32

INTRODUCTION


the Multi-Year Funding Framework (MYFF),7 UNDP’s integrated results framework, in theperiod 2001-2007:

■■ SL 2.2: Parliamentary Development;

■■ SL 2.3: Electoral Systems and Processes;

■■ SL 2.4: Justice and Human Rights;

■■ SL 2.5: E-Governance and Access to Information;

■■ SL 2.6: Decentralization, Local Governance, and Urban/Rural Development; and

■■ SL 2.7: Public Administration Reform and Anti-Corruption

Overall, DGTTF has provided funding to 572 projects in its five target regions: Africa, the Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, Eastern Europe and the CIS, and Latin America andthe Caribbean.

DGTTF is managed by the Democratic Governance Group (DGG) in UNDP’s Bureau forDevelopment Policy (BDP) in New York. DGTTF is the largest thematic trust fund (TTF)managed by BDP. As noted in Graph 1, of the $37,110,761 in contributions received by the TTFs in 2007, DGTTF received 39 percent, followed by the Energy and Environ-ment Thematic Trust Fund (38 percent); the Poverty Reduction Thematic Trust Fund (11 percent); the Information and Communication Technologies Thematic Trust Fund (8 percent); the HIV/AIDS Trust Fund (3 percent); and the Gender Trust Fund.

Box 1. How DGTTF defines ‘innovative’ and ‘catalytic’

Innovative projects are those which:

■■ Are able to resolve a critical democratic governance issue, leading to substantial improvements insome aspect in democratic governance.

■■ Address issues that are recognized as critical by the government and other donors or partners.

■■ Constitute an initiative never attempted before in the country concerned, either in the problemsaddressed or the approach taken.

■■ Are potentially risky. DGTTF projects are not necessarily a guaranteed success. Although it is expectedthat a proper risk analysis will be undertaken, the DGTTF project is expected to be riskier or less certainof success than a ‘traditional’ project. It would not be surprising if there was some reluctance on thepart of the government or other governance institutions to fund such an initiative without pilot testingor proven results.

■■ Successfully position UNDP as a key player in democratic governance in terms of ‘pushing the frontier’based on country experience.

Catalytic projects are those which:

■■ Have a high likelihood of receiving support from government or other governance institutions(including other donors) for scaling up or following up, if the project is successful.


In 2007, UNDP’s Executive Board endorsed the new Strategic Plan (2008–2011) to guidethe organization’s work in the coming years. In democratic governance, UNDP will focus on three key results areas: inclusive participation (ensuring the roles of political parties, trade unions, civil society, and voluntary associations; well-functioning electoralsystems and processes; and expanding access to information, independent media ande-governance); responsive institutions (supporting parliamentary development, publicadministration reform and economic governance, decentralization and local gover-nance; and responsive and efficient justice systems and institutions); and internationalprinciples (grounding democratic governance in the core values of human rights, genderequality and anti-corruption). In 2007, the Democratic Governance Practice alreadystarted aligning its work to these three key results areas. As in last year’s DGTTF AnnualReport, an effort has therefore been made to report on the operational activities ofDGTTF in 2007 in line with this new framework.

This annual report covers the main features, activities, results, lessons learned and futuretrends of the trust fund’s Global Window in 2007. The Global Window supports projectsand activities at the country, regional, and global levels.8

This report is divided into five sections. The first section provides a general analysis ofthe features and characteristics of DGTTF projects and activities during 2007, reviewingmain achievements and challenges. That section also provides a snapshot of some ofthe trends observed during the past years of the trust fund operations. Section 2 focus-es on the operational side of DGTTF at the country, regional and global levels in 2007.Section 3 covers overall challenges and lessons learned, including the results of the in-depth DGTTF evaluation. Section 4 offers some concluding remarks and a description ofthe future plans of DGTTF. Section 5 provides an interim financial report. The annexesinclude more detailed information on all projects financed in 2007.

Introduction

8 Contributions from donors to DGTTF are made through three different ‘windows’: the Global, Regional and Country windows. This report focuses exclusively onthe Global Window of DGTTF, managed by the Democratic Governance Group (DGG) at UNDP Headquarters. Projects and activities supported by the Regionaland Country Windows are received by specific country or regional programmes, and the fund’s recipient offices are responsible for reporting to the donors.

0

3,000,000

6,000,000

9,000,000

12,000,000

15,000,000

39%DemocraticGovernance

TTF

38%Energy and

EnvironmentTTF

1%Gender

TTF

BDP Thematic Trust Funds

US $

8%ICT for

DevelopmentTTF

11%Poverty

TTF

3%HIV AIDS

TTF

14,419,883 14,380,999

170,286

3,032,281

4,032,691

1,074,621

GRAPH 1. CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED BY BDP TTFS IN 2007


In 2007, the Global Window of DGTTF supported 96 fieldprojects9 through six of UNDP’s democratic governanceservice lines. As in previous years, DGTTF also providedfunding to five regional projects: four in the Latin Americaand the Caribbean region focused on improving demo-cratic governance analytical methodologies, knowledgesharing, leadership development and dialogue amongstakeholders, and one project in Arab States for advocacyon human rights and active citizenship. Finally, DGTTFfunded several key global initiatives, such as the activitiesof UNDP’s Oslo Governance Centre, the 2007 DemocraticGovernance Global Practice Meeting, the in-depth evalua-tion of the trust fund, and the continued revamping of the DGTTF Web application. DGTTF has also been used tochannel funds for the Portuguese translation and printingof the 2007/2008 Human Development Report.

An overall analysis of the resources and activities under-taken in 2007 shows the following key features:

DGTTF progressively expanded its donor contributions

from 2001 until 2006, but experienced a 25 percent dip

in donor support in 2007. As seen in Table 1 and Graph 2,annual contributions more than doubled from $9,158,854in 2001 to $19,167,540 in 2006, but then dropped10 to$14,419,883 in 2007. 2007 can be seen as a transition yearduring which both UNDP and donors were waiting for theresults of the DGTTF evaluation in 2008 to determine thefuture of the fund. UNDP, in particular, was waiting forthese results before initiating further outreach to increasecontributions and/or diversify the donor base. In additionand given the nature of their earmarking, some donors,like Austria and Spain contributed through the CountryWindow instead of through the Global Window of the DGTTF. Donors in 2007 were the Governments of

OVERALL FEATURES AND THEMATIC TRENDS1.

9 Field projects refer to regional and country level projects. In 2007, a total of 91 projects were implemented at the country level and five projects at the regional level: four in Latin America and the Caribbean and one in Arab States.

10 In comparison with the preceding year (2006), the following donors provided no funds for the Global Window in 2007: Austria, France, Spain and Statoil.

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

9,158,854

13,827,953

11,687,641

16,717,669 17,193,713

19,167,540

14,419,883

0

5,000,000

10,000,000

15,000,000

20,000,000

25,000,000

US$

GRAPH 2. Total contributions to the Global Window of DGTTF: 2001–2007


Section 1: Overall features and thematic trends

Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, andPortugal (see Table 1). An agreement was also signed withone new donor, Estonia, whose contribution will bereflected in the 2008 official contributions statement.

As in earlier years, the Government of Norway was the

largest contributor to DGTTF in 2007. Since the initiallaunch of DGTTF in 2001, Norway has contributed a totalof $63,375,231, which is equivalent to 62 percent of totalcontributions. Moreover, the contributions from Norwaycontinue to be un-earmarked: a designation that consider-ably facilitates the objectives of supporting innovative and catalytic projects, improves flexibility in the allocationof funds, and reduces complexity in DGTTF’s resource

management. Contributions from other sources includedboth flexible allocations and specific thematic andgeographical earmarking. Sixteen percent of the totalcontributions were earmarked in 2007, a decline in sharefrom 24 percent in 2006.

The demand for funds slightly decreased in 2007, but

still greatly exceeded the funds available. As shown inTable 2, a total of $22,726,000 was requested and$10,975,562 subsequently approved for 96 field projects atthe regional and country levels in 2007. The lack of fund-ing to meet demand continued in the current fundingcycle (2008), as the recently approved allocations repre-sent approximately half of the requested resources.

2001

302,755

2,277,152

6,578,947

9,158,854

2002

983,284

4,314,485

8,530,184

13,827,953

2003

2,263,979

229,885

9,193,777

11,687,641

2004

120,337

3,001,914

2,222,222

764,331

10,108,865

500,000

16,717,669

2005

604,595

722,589

781,250

573,668

3,614,458

8,902,077

1,995,076

17,193,713

2006

628,141

1,265,493

1,825,377

355,450

2,409,639

9,132,420

500,000

2,551,020

500,000

19,167,540

2007

1,440,922

600,000

600,000

10,928,961

850,000

14,419,883

TOTAL

1,353,073

302,755

1,265,493

4,972,172

3,783,164

1,529,118

17,701,935

994,216

63,375,231

3,345,076

2,551,020

1,000,000

102,173,253

DONOR

AUSTRIA

FINLAND

FRANCE

GERMANY

ITALY

LUXEMBOURG

NETHERLANDS

NEW ZEALAND

NORWAY

PORTUGAL

SPAIN

STATOIL**

TOTAL

TABLE 1. DGTTF GROSS CASH RECEIPTS BY DONOR AND BY YEAR ($)

* Funding for programming in a particular year includes income received in previous years as well as in the programming year. ** Norway’s largest oil company. It merged with another company in 2006 to become Statoil Hydro.

CASH RECEIPTS IN $*

2004 2005 2006 2007

Requested Approved Requested Approved Requested Approved Requested Approvedfunds funds funds funds funds funds funds funds

$19,429,698 $7,423,000 $22,141,200 $12,584,000 $27,040,000 $12,281,000 $22,726,000 $10,975,562

38% 57% 45% 48%

YEAR

DEMAND/SUPPLY

AMOUNT (US$)

PERCENTAGE OFPROJECTS FUNDED

TABLE 2. DGTTF ALLOCATIONS FOR FIELD PROJECTS: 2004–2007

DGTTF continued to focus on the regions and countries

with the greatest needs. According to DGTTF guidelines,70 percent of the funds are intended for field projects(regional and country levels) and 30 percent for globalprojects. The fund’s guidelines also require that resourceallocation favour the 70 countries classified as LDCs, non-LDCs in Africa, and LICs. DGTTF divides field projectallocations into three groups: group 1 is composed ofcountries in the LDCs and Africa; group 2 comprises LICs; and the remaining UNDP programming countries

constitute group 311. The number of approved projects ingroup 3 (42 projects) is similar to group 1 (44 projects), but in terms of resources allocated the average amount ofeach project in group 1 (LDCs and Africa) and group 2(LICs) is considerably larger than of projects in group 3(other countries) (see Table 3 and Figure 1).

Geographic distribution is heavily favouring Africa. Out of $10,975,562 allocated to field projects in 2007,$4,914,562 (45 percent) was approved for projects in


57%

11%

32%

US $

Group 3:All other

countries

Group 2:LICs

Group 1:LDCs and

Africa

0 10 20 30 40 50 60

11 According to the DGTTF Guidelines, 60% of the resources at the field level should be allocated to Group 1, 30% to Group 2 and the remaining 10 % to Group 3.

COUNTRY GROUPNUMBER OF PROJECTS

RECEIVING ALLOCATIONSSUM APPROVED (IN $) SUM APPROVED (IN %) AVERAGE AMOUNT APPROVED

BY PROJECT (IN $)

GROUP 1: LDCs 34 5,202,562 47% 153,016

GROUP 1: NON-LDC AFRICA 10 1,057,000 10% 105,700

GROUP 2: LICs 10 1,172,000 11% 117,200

GROUP 3: ALL OTHER COUNTRIES 42 3,544,000 32% 84,380

TOTAL, ALL GROUPS 96 10,975,562 100% 114,328

TABLE 3. DGTTF PROJECTS AND ALLOCATIONS BY COUNTRY GROUP (2007)

FIGURE 1. DGTTF resources allocated by country group (2007)


Africa, followed by $1,755,000 (16 percent) in Asia and thePacific, $1,630,000 (15 percent) in Eastern Europe and theCIS, $1,526,000 (14 percent) in Latin America and theCaribbean, and $1,150,000 (10 percent) in the Arab States(see Figure 2).

DGTTF continued to prove instrumental in promoting

innovation12 at the country, regional and global levels,providing UNDP with the opportunity to engage in newareas and explore new approaches. For example, in theUnited Republic of Tanzania, DGTTF fostered politicalparticipation of persons with disabilities by providingaccess to information on the laws directly impactingmembers of this constituency and on the political systemin general. The project strengthened a more inclusivepolitical process by ensuring buy-in from high-levelpoliticians to make a more concerted effort to address theneeds of persons with disabilities. For these activities, theproject used persons with sight and hearing impairments,which was an innovative approach to directly addressprejudicial attitudes about these people’s capacities.

In Jamaica, DGTTF supported the development of acommunications programme for the National SecurityPolicy. As a result, the government’s National Strategic

Security Implementation Unit will implement an innova-tive online resource centre in 2008. This centre will be aone-stop service to access information on the NationalSecurity Policy for Jamaica, including information relatedto security and justice issues. It will provide details ofprogrammes and initiatives led by government ministriesand non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and suppor-ted by international development partners. Users will beable to search the database to find out who is doing what,where and why. The resource centre will help to identifygaps and overlaps, encourage harmonisation and trackprogress in the delivery of objectives of the NationalSecurity Policy.

DGTTF continued to empower UNDP Country Offices to

act rapidly and seize emerging opportunities, including

engaging in politically sensitive issues where the use ofcore funds proved slower or more difficult. In the Maldives,for example, DGTTF provided timely support for the constitutional review process leading up to the first democratic elections in 2008. DGTTF provided technicalsupport to the Constitutional Assembly and the referen-dum committee of the Special Majlis13 during the design ofthe public referendum on constitutional changes designedto usher in a new system of governance. The project also


0 10

15%

16%

10%

45%

14%

20 30 40 50

US $

Regi

on

Latin America and

the Caribbean

Eastern Europe

and the CIS

Asia and the Pacific

Arab States

Africa

FIGURE 2. DGTTF resources allocated by region

12 This finding is supported by the DGTTF Evaluation: “DGTTF has been successful in fostering innovative projects that have led to larger programmes and projects aimed at making major improvements in democratic governance”.

13 The Majlis is the country’s main legislative body.


raised awareness of the Special Majlis and of the popula-tion on their rights and liberties and several provisions ofthe draft constitution.

In Libya, DGTTF was instrumental in initiating capacitydevelopment cooperation with the staff of the High Judi-cial Institute (HJI). This constitutes a pioneering initiative inthis sensitive area of governance in Libya. Staff from theLibyan HJI are being familiarized with international part-ners, for example those at the HJI from Morocco, throughconsultant missions and other forms of collaboration.Although limited in scope, the project created momentumfor greater cooperation between HJI and UNDP.

DGTTF provided a platform for UNDP Country Offices to

mobilize resources and build strategic partnerships on

the ground. As in previous years, almost all UNDP CountryOffices reported that DGTTF helped them foster strategicpartnerships, and 60 percent indicated that additionalresources were mobilized because DGTTF provided seedmoney. For example, in Cameroon, the $225,000 fromDGTTF allowed UNDP to reach out to other donors andmobilize additional resources for the fight against corrup-tion; this resulted in a $2 million programme ‘CHOCCameroon: Change Habits—Oppose Corruption’ for aninitial period of three years. In line with the Paris Declara-tion, the development partners in Cameroon agreed toharmonize and work together in a coordinated approachunder an OECD/DAC-Govnet pilot project on harmoniza-tion of donor efforts. UNDP took the lead coordinating role in Cameroon, and all 11 financial partners and thegovernment signed the programme in 2007. In addition tothe government, the programme also collaborates closelywith civil society organizations (CSOs) and the privatesector. Both actors are key partners of the programme andwill be involved in its implementation as members of thesteering committee.

DGTTF projects were instrumental in enhancing

women’s political participation in decision-making and

in raising awareness about gender-based violence. Onethird of the 2007 projects included a gender componentamong their key activities. For example, in Benin DGTTFsupported preparatory meetings for the establishment ofthe observatory of women’s quotas and sensitized thepopulation about the importance of active women’sparticipation in political processes at all levels in thecountry. Improving gender equality and enhancingwomen’s empowerment cut across various democraticgovernance service lines, whether through elections andparliamentary development projects enhancing women’spolitical participation or through legal mechanisms in

justice and human rights interventions. Gender equalityhas been integrated effectively into UNDP’s democraticgovernance agenda through strategic use of DGTTF.

Over time, demand has continuously risen in the area ofhuman rights, including in 2007. DGTTF continued tostrengthen UNDP Country Offices’ work in this area byproviding crucial support for awareness-raising and

advocacy for the inclusion of vulnerable and marginalisedpeople in the development processes, notably indigenouspeople, minorities, people living with HIV/AIDS, womenmigrant workers, street children, victims of human traffick-ing and persons living with disabilities. Also, DGTTFsupported the strengthening of national human rightsinstitutions, developed capacity of human rights defen-ders, provided assistance for the review of police andprison manuals, the promotion of corporate social respon-sibility and the development of effective mechanisms totackle domestic violence against women.

In the area of justice, DGTTF support increasinglypromoted channels of communication between the justicesystem and the public at large and focused on improvingaccessibility and quality of justice services. Most rule of lawand justice projects in this area took place in Africa andLatin America and the Caribbean. In terms of regionaltrends, projects in Africa increasingly moved towards more innovative approaches both in promoting inte-grated approaches to justice service delivery, therebyacknowledging the interdependence of the provision ofservices by independent justice institutions, and in movingtowards sector wide approaches as the most effective aidmodality. There was also a trend to strengthen thecapacity of justice sector institutions to improve thequality in justice service delivery and in broadening theoutreach of legal assistance and awareness raisinginitiatives, whereas in Latin America and the Caribbeanjustice projects particularly focus on citizen security issuesbased on a bottom up community approach. The use of

”“DGTTF funds really serve as seed money to

get more donors into the programme and helpthe programme to be conducted in a morecohesive way.

—Jean-Claude Nwaha, Assistant Resident RepresentativeProgramme, Head Governance Unit, UNDP Cameroon


UNVs in the implementation of access to justice projectshas proved very successful in increasing outreach of justiceservices to the most disadvantaged.

DGTTF supported nine projects on parliamentary devel-

opment: more than half (five) in Africa and one in everyother region. These projects have provided support forcatalytic parliamentary development strategies, promotedthe use of information and communications technologies(ICTs) in the work of parliaments and strengthened thecapacity of parliamentary support services.

The majority of DGTTF electoral assistance projects in2007 were implemented in Asia and the Pacific. Althoughglobal demand for electoral assistance remains highest inAfrica generally speaking, the increased use of DGTTF as amodality for electoral assistance in Asia and the Pacific cor-responds to two trends, notably the use of DGTTF funds tosupport (i) new democracies and transition countries; and(ii) countries where multiple post-transition elections havebeen held but challenges of inclusive participation remain.The projects focused primarily on voter education, capaci-ty development of electoral management bodies andenhancing citizens’ participation in the electoral process,notably of women, socially excluded communities andpersons with disabilities.

Global demand for DGTTF anti-corruption projects in 2007shifted significantly from Eastern Europe and the CIS, Asiaand the Pacific and Latin America and the Caribbean toAfrica and the Arab States. Africa has increased its program-ming in anti-corruption as a result of the entry into force ofthe UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) and theneed to improve investment climate and attract officialdevelopment investment (ODI). In the Arab States region,the regional Programme on Governance (POGAR) has popularized anti-corruption initiatives. These projects wereinstrumental in promoting national policy frameworks tofight corruption based on international standards, galvaniz-ing donor support for anti-corruption initiatives, andstrengthening commissions and agencies that promotepublic transparency and accountability. DGTTF also sup-ported anti-corruption CSOs to enhance their involvementin policy-making and their capacity to monitor.

DGTTF supported more civic engagement projects than in the previous editions. These projects supported theestablishment of enabling environments for CSOs, thepromotion of policy dialogues between citizens and policymakers and the development of leadership skills. In 2007,DGTTF supported six projects in this service area spreadout evenly across four regions: Africa, the Arab States, Asiaand the Pacific, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Furthermore, global demand for e-governance and access

to information projects has continuously increasedbetween 2002 and 2007. DGTTF supported e-governanceprojects to effectively and efficiently deliver basic servicesand information to citizens and to foster citizen partici-pation in decision-making processes. It also focused onimproving the legal and regulatory environment for accessto information and strengthening the capacity of inde-pendent and pluralistic media. In 2007, DGTTF supportedsix projects in this service area spread out evenly acrossfour regions: the Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, EasternEurope and the CIS, and Latin America and the Caribbean.

Finally, DGTTF continued its support for the area of publicadministration reform and decentralization and localgovernance. These areas have been merged under theUNDP strategic plan into one service area on national,

regional and local governance. DGTTF supportedDGTTF supportedcapacity development and modernization of the civilservice, strengthening of economic and social policies, andimplementation of decentralization processes, includingcapacity development for local government. In 2007,DGTTF supported 15 projects in this service area spreadout across four regions: Africa, Asia and the Pacific, EasternEurope and the CIS, and Latin America and the Caribbean.



In 2007, the Global Window of DGTTF supported projectsat the country, regional and global levels. This sectiondescribes the main activities and examines key outcomesof these projects in the different areas of democraticgovernance.14

2.1 Country Office activities Although the funds for field projects were allocated by service lines in 2007, this report regroups the projectsunder UNDP’s three new democratic governance key result areas in line with the new UNDP Strategic Plan(2008–2011): i) projects that foster inclusive participation(i.e., civic engagement; electoral laws, processes andinstitutions; e-governance, media and access toinformation); ii) projects that strengthen responsiveinstitutions (i.e., national, regional and local governance;

legislatures and regionally elected bodies; and justicesystems) and iii) projects that promote UN principles (i.e., human rights, gender equality and anti-corruption).15

As in previous years, service line 2.4, Justice and HumanRights, was in the highest demand in 2007, both in termsof number of projects and resources allocated. Of a total of 96 field16 projects, 31 were approved under this serviceline, representing allocations of $3,839,562 (35 percent of the total). This was followed, as in previous years, byservice line 2.6, Decentralization, Local Governance, andUrban and Rural Development, with a total of 19 projects,representing allocations of $2,006,000 (19 percent).Service line 2.7, Public Administration Reform and Anti-Corruption, was third with a total of 17 projects,representing allocations of $1,775,000 (16 percent) (seeGraph 3). Over time, the demand for justice and human

OPERATIONAL REPORTING2.

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

2.2 Parliamentary Development

2.3 Electoral Systems and Processes

2.4 Justice and Human Rights

Num

ber o

f Pro

jects

2.5 E-Governance and Access to Information

2.6 Decentralization, Local Governance and

Urban/Rural Development

2.7 Public Administration Reform and Anti-Corruption

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

GRAPH 3. Number of DGTTF projects by service line: 2003–2007

14 The primary sources of information for this section are periodic progress reports and Annual Project Reports (APRs). The annex at the end of the documentoutlines reported outcomes of all the field regional and country-level projects.

15 Starting in 2008, UNDP work on democratic governance, and therefore DGTTF allocations, will be reported under these three key result areas (inclusive partici-pation, responsive institutions, UN principles). In particular, this will imply a change in reporting activities in the areas of anti-corruption and human rights,which will be divided from the public administration reform and justice activities.

16 This number includes 91 country-level projects and five regional projects.


rights projects and e-governance and access to infor-mation projects has continuously increased, whilst thedemand for projects in the other service lines remainedrelatively stable.

The top three service lines in 2007 mentioned above werefollowed by electoral systems and processes ($1,250,000,or 11 percent); parliamentary development ($1,250,000, or11 percent); and e-governance and access to information($855,000, or 8 percent) (see Table 4).

Section 2: Operational reporting

2.2 Parliamentary Development

2.3 Electoral Systems and Processes

2.4 Justice and Human Rights

2.5 E-Governance and Access to Information

2.6 Decentralization, Local Governance and Urban/Rural Development

2.7 Public Administration Reform and Anti-Corruption

19%

16% 11%

11%

35%8%

FIGURE 3. DGTTF resources allocated by service line (2007)

SERVICE LINE TOTAL FUNDSREQUESTED ($)

TOTAL FUNDSAPPROVED ($)

PERCENT OF TOTAL FUNDS APPROVED

2.2 PARLIAMENTARY DEVELOPMENT 2,605,000 1,250,000 11%

2.3 ELECTORAL SYSTEMS AND PROCESSES 2,625,000 1,250,000 11%

2.4 JUSTICE AND HUMAN RIGHTS 7,150,000 3,839,562 35%

2.5 E-GOVERNANCE AND ACCESS TO INFORMATION 2,425,000 855,000 8%

2.6 DECENTRALIZATION, LOCAL GOVERNANCE AND URBAN/RURAL DEVELOPMENT 3,969,000 2,006,000 19%

2.7 PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION REFORM AND ANTI-CORRUPTION 3,952,000 1,775,000 16%

TOTAL 22,726,000 10,975,562 100%

TABLE 4. 2007 DGTTF RESOURCES FOR COUNTRY AND REGIONAL PROJECTS BY SERVICE LINE


2.1.1 Fostering inclusive participation

2.1.1.1 Civic engagementCivic engagement cuts across all service lines under theUNDP Multi-Year Funding Framework (2004–2007). In thenew UNDP Strategic Plan (2008–2011), the support forcivic engagement figures more emphatically as a separateoutcome area. Civic engagement as a service area coverspolitical parties, private-sector organizations and civil soci-ety organizations (CSOs). CSOs are non-state actors whoseaims are neither to generate profits nor to seek governingpower; they include NGOs, voluntary associations andtrade unions. Civic engagement facilitates the involvementof all people, especially vulnerable groups in public policyprocesses and in holding governments to account. Overthe last decade there has been a considerable increaseboth in the number of CSOs and in the scope of theiractivities. CSOs are playing an increasingly influential rolein setting and implementing development agendas acrossthe globe. UNDP aspires to create enabling environments

for CSOs, ensuring legitimate engagement in key policyprocesses. In 2007, DGTTF supported six civic engagementprojects: in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malawi,Mozambique, Saudi Arabia and the Latin America andCaribbean region. These projects supported the free operation of CSOs, the promotion of policy dialoguesbetween citizens and policy makers and the developmentof leadership skills.

For example, DGTTF provided catalytic support for theestablishment of a legal framework on CSOs in the LaoPDR by raising awareness on the importance of civicengagement in poverty eradication and by providing tech-nical support for the drafting of a CSO decree based oninternational best practices (see Box 3). Also, DGTTF sup-ported national policy dialogues on important publicissues in Malawi such as education and agriculture byorganizing debates and a public interest campaign broad-casted nationwide. In Mozambique, DGTTF strengthenedCSOs to engage in policy dialogues by providing training

Opening of a four-day workshop for 50 young Saudi men to enhance their leadership skills to establish a community of practice and contribute to the achievement of the MDGs, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia



Box 3. Enhancing government and CSO partnershipsfor poverty reduction in Lao PDR

The constitution of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic enshrines the principle of people’s participationin governance. Adopted in 1991, the constitution further provides for mass organizations—such as tradeunions, women and youth groups—to protect the rights of their respective members and take part in thecountry’s development. However, while the Constitution recognizes the operation of such CSOs, most ofthem lack the necessary legal capacity to do so.

The government took the initiative to explore the means by which CSOs may be supported to work along-side state authorities to deliver services that can help the country attain the MDGs and reduce poverty.Constraints to such a partnership included a lack of awareness among legislators and government officials,at all levels, about the relevance of CSOs in national efforts to reduce poverty. The absence of a legal andregulatory framework was another limitation.

on evidence-based advocacy, so CSOs could conduct evidence-oriented surveys in order to enhance their abilityto interact with the government. Through the proactiverole taken by CSOs in this evidence-based advocacy,Mozambique has been regarded as a role model in foster-ing the engagement of civil society in policy design andmonitoring in the region. Consequently, in December2007, a regional workshop was held in Mozambiqueinvolving 38 CSO members and government representa-tives from 12 countries in Southern and Eastern Africa.

Furthermore, DGTTF has been instrumental in the devel-opment of leadership skills in Saudi Arabia, through thetraining of 150 young women and 50 men on MDG issues,and in the Caribbean through the training of youth leadersfrom political parties, youth groups, universities and otherCSOs (see Section 2.2). The focus on leadership develop-ment is a new emerging area for DGTTF. These activitieshave existed in the past as components of projects, but arenow more explicit in the DGTTF portfolio of projects.

Box 2. Lessons learned in civic engagement

Dialogue processes will only be successful if they pay due attention to power structures and power ‘holders’.It is important to engage policy/decision-makers, including high-ranking officials, as soon as possible inthose processes. The participation of decision-makers is essential to develop ownership of the dialogue expe-rience and the outcomes reached. To improve this engagement, it is very important that policy makers devel-op a greater understanding of the key purpose and potential outcomes of dialogues and how such processesand approaches, when properly used, can help tackle development challenges through innovative and win-win solutions, and thus strengthen democratic governance and prevent violent conflicts. (UNDP RBLAC)

As trusted and impartial partners, UNDP Country Offices can play major roles in the facilitation of dialoguebetween the central government structures and civil society, such as rural populations. (UNDP Malawi)

CSOs are key to holding the Government accountable for its use of taxpayers’ contributions and donor budg-et support, notably in terms of demand for quality services. (UNDP Mozambique)


Box 3. continued

The notion of CSOs delivering services to citizens in collaboration with the government was innovative andsensitive in the Lao context. DGTTF funds allowed the UNDP Country Office in the Lao PDR to engage withthe government in a constructive manner and to address this existing governance challenge.

The Public Administration and Civil Service Authority (PACSA), part of the Prime Minister’s Office, wasUNDP’s main government counterpart for this project. DGTFF funds supported PACSA to take the lead indrafting a decree to provide CSOs with a legal framework and the possibility to officially register. An officialCSOs Decree Drafting Committee was set up. It conducted a review of the current legal and regulatoryframework in order to draft appropriate legislation. UNDP, together with Concern Worldwide, was also ableto bring in the International Centre for Not-for-Profit Law to provide technical assistance to ensure thedecree would be based on international best practice and would have a positive impact on the emergingcivil society in the Lao PDR. Together with Concern Worldwide and Vietnam Assistance for the Handi-capped, UNDP created a strong alliance of development partners supporting the government in the draft-ing process of the CSO decree. The government worked on the draft decree for almost a year. Its endorse-ment is expected in the course of 2008.

The DGTTF funds gave the government the opportunity to fast track discussions on civil society participa-tion in service delivery. The project provided a platform for engagement between legislators and represen-tatives of women’s-based professional and social organizations. Further, the project gave provincial and localgovernment officials the opportunity to better understand the potential role of civil society in public servicedelivery. The project also organized high-level awareness-raising workshops for government officials andlegislators on the importance of CSOs, on how they can partner with CSOs and how to make informed deci-sions. Following these consultations, which were carried out in collaboration with other development part-ners, the government started to show a new political commitment to giving CSOs a role in service delivery.

Furthermore, the project had a strong South-South cooperation focus. Among the development partners,the Government of Vietnam supported a delegation of Lao government officials to undertake a study tourto Vietnam, providing them with initial exposure to the concept of government-social organization part-nership for public interest purposes. Government officials from Vietnam also made available technicalexperts to provide initial counsel to their Lao counterparts. Concern Worldwide provided support for a delegation of Lao PDR government officials to travel to Cambodia and Thailand to review respective legis-lation adopted in regard to the operation of CSOs. The UNDP Country Office in the Lao PDR also organiseda study tour to China, and Concern Worldwide and the Lao Union of Science and Engineering Associationjointly organized two national capacity-building workshops for select groups of organizations in the LaoPDR. This allowed mutual exchange of experience between South-South countries in enhancing publicparticipation in democratic processes.

The work undertaken in support of the emerging civil society in the Lao PDR was a major achievement in2007. In sum, the DGTTF project contributed to greater people’s participation in local development byenhancing government partnership with CSOs. It generated awareness among government officials on therole of CSOs. The elaboration and adoption of legislation will provide an important regulatory frameworkthat will enhance the operation of CSOs and in turn help to reinforce limited government resources in serv-ice delivery. The project capacitated CSOs to support government service delivery in the public interest.Strengthening the capacity of social organizations will create additional opportunities for women toengage in advocacy, policy change and service delivery.


2.1.1.2 Electoral systems and processesHistorically, support for electoral systems and processestended to be event-driven, i.e., focused on a particularupcoming election. In recent years, UNDP has adopted alonger-term capacity-development perspective byembracing and actively advocating for an electoral cycleapproach. This approach emphasizes a process-based, asopposed to event-based, approach to electoral assistancewhich engages different actors depending upon where acountry is in its electoral cycle. Key entry points includebuilding professional electoral management bodies,strengthening electoral dispute resolution bodies anddeveloping effective legal frameworks, as well as pro-moting meaningful civic participation and more cost-effective operations to ensure credible elections. DGTTFhas advanced UNDP efforts in this area by providingsupport to electoral institutions, political parties, CSOs and the media; in 2007, DGTTF funded eight projects inthis service area.

While the overall trend of electoral assistance projects continues to show Africa as the highest-demand regionoverall, in 2007 there was a significant shift upwards in thenumber of DGTTF projects located in Asia and the Pacific.The increased use of DGTTF as a modality for electoralassistance in that region corresponds to two trends: use of DGTTF as a modest but important catalyst in newdemocracies and transition countries (such as Bhutan andTimor-Leste) and use of DGTTF as a targeted tool to facili-tate greater consolidation of the democratic process inother contexts where multiple post-transition electionshave been held but challenges of inclusive participationremain (Cambodia, Indonesia and Pakistan). Overall in2007, the projects focused primarily on voter education,capacity development of electoral management bodiesand enhancing citizen participation in the electoralprocess, notably of women, socially excluded communitiesand persons with disabilities.


Awareness raising session on the elections for women in Pakistan


Box 4. Capacity-building for free and fair elections in Bhutan

DGTTF supported the emerging democratization process in Bhutan. Once an absolute monarchy, thecountry has completed the transition to a democratic constitutional monarchy initiated by the former king,Jigme Singye Wangchuck, with the devolution of executive powers as far back as 1998 and with the draft-ing of the country’s first written constitution in 2001. That constitution was based on the principles ofdemocratic governance with the separation of legislative, executive and judicial powers. At the time this report was being compiled, the Himalayan nation of Bhutan was the world’s youngest democracy:following the country’s first ever democratic elections, its first democratically elected government tookoffice in March 2008.

DGTTF played a pivotal role in this process by supporting the government to organize the elections. DGTTFprovided support for civic education, promoting transparent and accountable governing institutions andstrengthening a vibrant and independent media. Specifically, the institutional and human capacity of theElection Commission of Bhutan (ECB), established in 2005, needed strengthening in order to carry out itsresponsibilities during the first ever parliamentary elections. The project trained electoral officers/staff onelection management and supported the procurement of electoral equipment. The project helped the ECB tomeet its main objective: to create anenvironment conducive to free and fairelections, so that all Bhutanese womenand men who were eligible and interest-ed could take part in elections.

As elections were a new experience forBhutan, the ECB had an enormous taskof educating and training citizensthroughout the country on the electoralprocess. The project supported theprinting and dissemination of votereducation materials. A notable exampleis the Bhutan Voter Guide, which helpedcreate a greater awareness and under-standing of the electoral process amongall voters, yet particularly amongwomen, youth and people in remoteareas. The project also supported voterand civic education through the massmedia. Documentaries on democracy and elections were produced and aired on national TV; story linesoften focused on how democracy can impact on village life and villagers’ participation in local and nationaldecision-making. UNDP also supported the development and production of a radio series after the elections. The series featured a fictional cast of characters that people can relate to, and it used humour tomake the series entertaining.

Bhutan held mock elections in April and May 2007, to familiarize voters with the concept of a parliamen-tary democracy and practicalities of a voting process, including the use of the electronic voting machines.All these steps helped strengthen the possibility of free and fair elections.

This small nation of 646,851 people now has 318,465 registered voters and two political parties that contested for the legislature’s 47 seats. For the National Assembly election, in March 2008, voter turnoutwas very high, at 79.4 percent, testimony to ECB’s successful efforts with support from UNDP and otherinternational partners.

Bhutanese citizens cast their vote in a polling station in their country’s first elections



In Cambodia, DGTTF supported civil society groups to

engage with the National Election Committee (NEC)

to assist in the delivery of voter information slips toregistered voters. Previously only commune councils andvillage chiefs delivered such slips, thereby creating scopefor a highly politicized process. This new cooperationhelped to build trust in the electoral process. The distribu-tion of the voter information notices brought to light someof the problems associated with the NEC’s voters’ register.For example, it became clear during the distributionprocess that there were discrepancies between people’sidentity documents and their names on the voters’ regis-ter; similarly, observers became aware that the registermight include ghost voters. This discovery has led to theNEC’s current voter register clean-up exercise.

In a number of countries, for example in Bhutan andTimor-Leste, DGTTF provided support to electoral institu-

tions and processes and strengthened donor support andstrategic partnerships around these processes. InIndonesia, the pilkada study on local direct electionsproved catalytic to engage in more comprehensivesupport for the forthcoming national elections in 2009.The pilkada study identifies and recommends ways toimprove the conduct of local elections in key areas such asadministration, voter registration, contestant registrationand campaigning, oversight and dispute resolution. Thepilkada study’s recommendations have been incorporatedin the electoral assistance framework for the forthcomingelections in 2009, and the Government of Indonesia hasinvited UNDP Indonesia to facilitate the coordination ofinternational assistance. Key donor agencies haveindicated their interest to participate in the UNDPframework of electoral assistance for the 2009 election.

Interview undertaken for the pilkada study on local elections in Indonesia: (left) Yusak Farchan,researcher at the Center for Electoral Reform (CETRO) and (right) Ahyar Ahmad Ridwan, Chief of the

Election Commission of Binjai municipality, North Sumatra province


Woman studying the Voter Guide while waiting to cast her vote in the National Council Elections. Bhutan, 2007.

Furthermore, DGTTF was instrumental in sensitizing

national stakeholders on the participation of vulnerable

groups in the electoral process. In several countriesDGTTF promoted more inclusive political processes byenhancing the participation of disadvantaged groups inthe electoral process. This allows a greater number of indi-viduals to choose their representatives, recognize thatthey have a stake in the elections and hold their electedrepresentatives accountable. In other countries, DGTTFadvocated for greater participation of women in the elec-toral process as voters and candidates (see Section 2.1.3.2).Also, UNDP Tanzania used DGTTF to foster the politicalparticipation of persons with disabilities through aware-ness-raising and providing information on the laws directlyimpacting them. The project has ensured buy-in fromhigh-level politicians to make a more concerted effort toaddress the needs of person with disabilities. The Bunge(the Tanzania parliament) is currently discussing themodalities to institutionalize the use of sign language in itsoperations and a number of relevant laws and policies

have already been translated into Braille. In Armenia,DGTTF increased the accessibility of precincts for voterswith disabilities through the construction of ramps next toseven regional polling stations located in school buildings.

Finally, with the support of DGTTF several Country Officessupported the drafting and distribution of civic education

manuals, such as the “Bhutan Voter Guide”, the Armenian“Alphabet of law” manual with a section on electoralrights, and the Honduran manual “Women make a differ-ence in decision-making bodies”. Such civic educationmaterials increase the understanding of electoral process-es and encourage young, disadvantaged and women vot-ers to take part in the elections.



Box 5. Lessons learned in e-governance, access toinformation and independent media

In order to make a community-based e-centre sustainable and useful for local communities, locally relevantcontent has to be developed and made available at the centre. This means that the content should be in the local language, not English, and based on local needs—for example, information on agriculture bestpractices and health issues. It is also important that the community owns the centre, which means that theplanning, maintenance and overall management of the centre should be made by a forum that is evolvedfrom the community itself. The dissemination of locally relevant best practices and indigenous technologiesthrough the centre can help build trust and ownership by the community. (UNDP Bangladesh)

In rural communities, where people are not yet familiarized with ICTs, it is important to start with simple

Information access points on education, health and other social services, which can be expanded andimproved gradually. In other words, “Think big, act small”. To ensure the technical capacity of the users andexperts supporting such computerised applications, training procedures must be clear and simple, and mustbe tailored according to the technical level of the audience. (UNDP Moldova)

Usually, citizens are reluctant to try e-services, due to the low level of awareness about new technologiesand a preference for traditional (face-to-face) communications with public institutions. In order to support e-governance development, it’s important to develop policies, standards and a legal framework for e-government at the national level and to team-up with multiple partners to deliver effective e-services,notably the private sector, academics and NGOs. (UNDP Slovakia)

Targeting young audiences is a good investment in terms of capacity development since they are morereceptive to new information than older audiences. (UNDP Syria)

2.1.1.3 E-governance, independent media andaccess to information

Over the years, global demand for e-governance, access toinformation and independent media projects has continu-ously increased. UNDP’s work in this service area promotestransparency and accountability of governing institutionsand enhances participation of citizens in governanceprocesses. The innovative use of information and commu-nications technologies (ICTs), the promotion of access toinformation and the strengthening of independent mediaprovide meaningful opportunities to overcome the com-plex challenges in achieving the MDGs. DGTTF supports e-governance projects to effectively and efficiently deliverbasic services and information to citizens in developingcountries and to foster citizen participation in decision-making processes. It also focuses on improving the legaland regulatory environment for access to information andstrengthening the capacity of independent and pluralisticmedia. In 2007, DGTTF supported six projects in this service area in four regions: three in Eastern Europe andthe CIS, one in the Arab States, one in Asia and the Pacific,and one in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Five DGTTF projects facilitated, through the use of

new ICTs, access to public information and government services at the local, regional and national level. InBangladesh, DGTTF supported the establishment of community e-centres and trained local “infomediaries”, i.e.,people who act as the interface between the technologyand the end users of the local communities in order to: i) provide services available at the centre; and ii) run theday-to-day operations of the centre. In Cuba, the DGTTFproject developed the capacity of six municipalities byintroducing ICTs as a means to provide public services,notably information on public housing. Furthermore,DGTTF supported the design of local public administrationWeb sites in Moldova together with the creation of ICT-based access to information points within local publicadministrations. In addition to these local initiatives,DGTTF promoted the use of e-governance at the regionallevel in the Slovak Republic and at the national level inBulgaria. The project in Bulgaria increased governmenttransparency and accountability through better access togovernment-held information (see Box 6).


Box 6. Increasing government transparency and accountabilitythrough electronic access to information in Bulgaria

In a bid to improve transparency, the Bulgarian government adopted in 2000 the Access to Public Informa-tion Act (APIA). In 2002, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted Recommendation(2002)2 on access to official documents, which introduced minimum freedom of information (FOI) standards for member-states, of which Bulgaria is one. Most countries that recently adopted FOI laws introduced a commission or mechanism to support their implementation. The Bulgarian governmentdeveloped a national e-government strategy and the National Programme for Transparent Governmentand Prevention of Corruption. Yet surveys conducted in 2006 showed no substantial development inawareness of the freedom of information rights.

The DGTTF project supported the innovative use of information technology toimprove implementation of the APIA through better supply of and demand for gov-ernment-held information. Specifically, the project supported Bulgarian nationalinstitutions to fulfil their obligations under the APIA by effective use of the Internetas a cheap and efficient way to provide information, especially since Internet use inBulgaria has grown by over 400 percent since 2000. Impressive as this is, Bulgarialags behind the average rate of Internet penetration among other European Unioncountries—28.5 percent compared with 51.6 percent. The support from the projectis therefore still relevant as the country continues to improve Internet access.

To map out what areas needed strengthening, the project supported the assessmentof 411 public institution Web sites with regards to the obligations from APIA to pub-lish certain categories of information—lists of regulations, descriptions of informa-tion resources available, statutory acts, and name and contact details of the sites’information departments. The results, which were included in the annual reportAccess to Information in Bulgaria 2006, indicated that the majority of public Web sitessurveyed did not meet their obligations under APIA.

The project, executed by Access to Information Programme Foundation in partnership with the Ministry of State Administration and Administrative Reform, developed a model FOI Web site to provideaccess to information in government institutions. The site www.aip-bg/model serves as a guide for civilservants on the type and quantity of information they should publish on their Web sites. The model Website was presented to district and municipal officials in six regions around the country. Based on outcomesof the meetings, recommendations were made to legislators for specific amendments to APIA. Trainingprogrammes were also finalized with the project partners to build the capacity of civil servants on theelectronic provision of public information.

Another key component of the project encouraged Bulgarian citizens to effectively exercise their right to information by using the opportunities for electronic access to public information. The project raisedmassive awareness in national and local media by printing 300 publications, broadcasting 97 radio and TVspots on FOI issues, and publishing 12 monthly FOI newsletters and disseminating them to 1,200 electronicsubscribers. The project also organized a national information campaign on the ‘right to know’ public infor-mation and developed/disseminated posters, newsletters, a Web site, leaflets and other promotional mate-rial. In addition, a Right to Know Day and an awards ceremony were initiated for information activists.

The project thus contributed to increasing the government’s transparency and accountability in an innova-tive way; promoting e-governance services; facilitating interaction between the state and citizens; andenabling the effective exercise of the right to information. Finally, the project contributed to policy align-ment in the area of access to information and could serve as a pilot model for other countries.

http://www.aip-bg/model



In terms of media development, DGTTF supported aseries of national debates among 190 young journalists in Syria on the attainment of the MDGs. The debates,conducted through a forum, brought together print, TV,photography and illustrative journalists to discuss thecountry’s MDG-related challenges. The project also trained50 journalists to report on development work and laid the ground work for a network that aims to educate thepublic on the MDGs. As a result of all these efforts, youngjournalists developed advocacy materials to educateschool children on the MDGs.

Finally, and under the e-government for developmentpartnership with the Government of Italy, DGTTF launcheda $1 million programme in the Former Yugoslav Republicof Macedonia to strengthen the country’s tax system and tax collection, while continuing to support work on e-procurement in Jordan and e-accounting in Albania.

2.1.2 Strengthening responsive institutions

2.1.2.1 Parliamentary developmentUNDP’s assistance in the area of parliamentary developmentseeks to strengthen the role of parliaments in democraticgovernance. Over the years, DGTTF has been instrumentalin enhancing the oversight, legislative and representativefunctions of parliaments. In 2007, DGTTF supported nineprojects in this service area: five in Africa and one in everyother region. The weight of Africa reflects a corporate trendin UNDP: more than half of its parliamentary strengtheningprojects (around 30 out of 60) are located in Africa. TheDGTTF projects in 2007 have provided support for catalyticparliamentary development strategies, promoted the use ofICTs in the work of parliaments and strengthened thecapacity of parliamentary support services.

Presentation on Canadian parliamentary practices for MPs of the National Federal Council of the United Arab Emirates


Box 7. Lessons learned in parliamentary development

In countries with two-chamber parliaments, it is not optimal for technical and financial partners to dividetheir efforts so that each partner supports one of the chambers exclusively. The two chambers almost alwayshave common problems and needs, which means they require similar types of training. A coordinated andintegrated approach is normally more efficient to obtain behavioural changes and make progress on sub-stantive and procedural issues. (UNDP Mauritania)

The needs of a young parliament are enormous. Considering the broad and varied needs, the intervention ofmultiple technical and financial partners is desirable, but the parliament should take the lead in coordinatingthe assistance provided to avoid overlap. The designation of a permanent focal point in the parliament forcoordination purposes of all projects is a best practice and could ensure the sustainability of the achieve-ments. (UNDP Guinea-Bissau)

In terms of parliamentary development, it is useful to collaborate with some of the most developed parlia-ments in the world, to establish new partnerships and to learn from their best practices. To strengthen therole of parliaments, it is important to develop the research capacity and availability of data and to supportwomen MPs in their activities. (UNDP United Arab Emirates)

In 2007, DGTTF seized the opportunity to provide supportfor the development of catalytic parliamentary develop-

ment strategies in Chad, Comoros and Mauritania. InChad, the parliamentary development strategy has gener-ated renewed interest among Chad’s traditional donors to co-finance UNDP support to the National Assembly.Similarly in Mauritania, several donors, notably Spain, theEU and the World Bank, have expressed interest to cooper-ate and follow-up on the parliamentary developmentstrategy in 2008.

In addition, DGTTF has strengthened the capacities ofparliaments, notably through the use of ICTs in Comoros,Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania and Paraguay. In Comoros, theproject collected all laws adopted by the parliament from1979 to 2005 and created a Web site (www.auc.km) topublish them. The project also created 53 e-mail addressesof parliamentarians (33) and legislature staff (20), with alladdresses ending with auc.km. In Guinea-Bissau, DGTTFsupported the establishment of a multi-media centre forparliamentarians and staff of the parliamentary adminis-tration to train them in the use of ICTs and for general use. In Paraguay, the parliament’s budget commissionsestablished a new system with budget information forcontrol and evaluation purposes.

Furthermore in 2007, DGTTF has been instrumental inenhancing the capacities of Members of Parliament

(MPs) and other staff on substantive and proceduralissues in Chad, Kazakhstan, Mauritania and the UnitedArab Emirates and in providing legislative support in theMaldives and Sao Tome and Principe. For example, in theMaldives, DGTTF provided technical assistance to assistthe Constitutional Assembly during the drafting, reviewand finalization of the country’s Constitution. The projectalso created awareness through media interviews andpublic lectures on the provisions included in the draftConstitution. In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), DGTTFsupported several trainings for MPs of the Federal NationalCouncil on their day-to-day responsibilities and functions,and on the national MDG report to sensitize them aboutthe importance of aligning national development policieswith the MDGs. Furthermore, the project establisheduseful cooperation between the Federal National Council(FNC) of UAE and parliamentarians from Australia andCanada. As a result of this DGTTF intervention, the FNC has decided to provide additional funds to continue morecapacity-development activities in 2008.

http://www.auc.km



Box 8. Strengthening the parliament’s legislativeand oversight capacities in Kazakhstan

As a young independent state, Kazakhstan faces numerous challenges in its efforts to build a democraticsociety. One of these challenges used to be the parliament’s lack of legislative capacity. The idea to establishthe Institute for Parliamentary Development in Kazakhstan dates back some 10 years. At that time, however,such an entity did not receive support from either the parliament or the government. Some MPs and staffdoubted its potential and did not believe it would be possible to setup an effective institute during that termof the legislature. The government also argued that the existing Institute of Legislation established under theMinistry of Justice could serve both the parliamentarians and the ministerial departments, despite the poten-tial conflict of interest.

In 2006, DGTTF supported the parliament to institutionalize the Chamber of Public Experts. This body is composed of 25 representatives of NGOs, trade unions and the academic community and has since beenrenamed the Public Chamber. DGTTF assisted the chamber to perform its duties by providing financial sup-port for the organization of regular working meetings. The chamber was recognized as a best practice in theCentral Asia at a regional meeting on localizing the MDGs through improved local governance and civicengagement. Its creation and work compensated partially for the parliament’s lack of legislative capacity.

However, the Institute of Legislation established under the Ministry of Justice continued to be the main leg-islative service for both the parliament and the government. It became clear that using these experts withinthe government led to a conflict of interest between the legislative and executive branches when initiatingand processing draft laws. Therefore, the establishment of the Institute for Parliamentary Developmentbecame critical in the country’s reform efforts. Building on previous successful cooperation, the parliamentasked UNDP to provide assistance in establishing the Institute for Parliamentary Development. A new DGTTFproject was approved for 2007 to support parliamentary efforts to improve efficiency and strengthen thelegislative and oversight capacities of the parliament by supporting the establishment of the Institute for Parliamentary Development.

DGTTF funds helped develop the concept of the institute. Together with leading national experts, the projectcarried out the background analytical work and reviewed national policies, government and donor pro-grammes. It conducted an institutional mapping and human resource needs assessment for setting up theInstitute for Parliamentary Development. The draft concept paper was discussed in four major regional work-shops (in Almaty, Karaganda, Ust-Kamenogorsk and Uralsk) conducted for local authorities and academicand NGO leaders. In addition, the idea of establishing the institute was continuously discussed in e-forumsand mass media to raise public awareness and to ensure participation. This helped generate support for theconcept paper, which was later updated and approved by the parliament in 2007.

To share international experience, a study tour to Prague, Czech Republic for members and staff of thenational parliament, as well as for the members of the Public Chamber, was organized in March 2007. Thetour was comprehensive and fully met its objectives. The delegation members met with their colleaguesfrom the Czech parliament, representatives of the parliamentary institutes and parliamentary libraries of theCzech and Slovak Republics, and faculty members from Prague’s Charles University. The study tour allowedthe delegation to exchange views, analyze and broadly discuss the trends and problems of the institute’sestablishment and consider the further development of similar bodies. It also familiarized participants withthe participatory approach in parliamentary decision-making. The study tour resulted in improved under-standing of the role of an analytical parliamentary infrastructure in enhancement of the legislative and over-sight functions of parliament.


Box 8. continued

In November 2007, the parliament and UNDP co-organised a high-level international conference, Parliamen-tary Development in Kazakhstan: Current Status and Perspectives. The main objectives of the conferencewere to discuss the issues of parliamentary development in Kazakhstan, to consider the role of the parlia-mentary institute in the legislative process, and to analyze the role of analytical and expert bodies in parliamentary development. Participants included MPs and top governmental officials from Kazakhstan,Malaysia, Japan, and the Czech and Slovak republics; international and national experts; and more that 25representatives of diplomatic missions. The conference resulted in a comprehensive set of recommendationsfor further development of the institute and for strengthening its role in parliamentary development. Theconference discussions were broadly covered by the national mass media.

Two pilot Web portals were developed and published in two separate Kazakhstan regions through theUNDP/DGTTF project. The portals, aimed at promoting dialogue between civil society and local representa-tive bodies, were conveyed to the region’s maslikhats (representative assemblies) to ensure sustainability oftheir use and administration. Newly elected members of the oblast, city and rayon maslikhats were trained touse the portals. Officials from other regions requested the replication of these portals in their areas.

To develop effective ways of interaction between the parliament and the mass media, a workshop for jour-nalists accredited by the parliament on media coverage of the parliament’s activities was conducted in October 2007. Leading national and international experts from Kazakhstan, the United Kingdom (includingBBC News journalists) and the Russian Federation conducted the training. They also shared the best nationaland international experience of the journalists’ work on reporting on parliamentary activities and providedpractical hands-on training through a case-based simulation and team-based exercises. All these activitiesresulted in strengthened capacity of the local mass media.

With support from DGTTF and other local and international partners, the Institute for Parliamentary Develop-ment was finally established in November 2007. Thanks to DGTTF resources as well as successful cooperationwithin the project funded by DGTTF in 2006, the project has attracted additional funds from such interna-tional organizations as the British Embassy in Kazakhstan and the OSCE Centre in Astana. In addition, DGTTFwas broadly acknowledged in Kazakhstan not only as a source of funds, but as an instrument to address themost critical problems in a timely and proactive manner. Thus, successful implementation of the DGTTF-funded projects in 2006 and 2007 led to the idea of initiating another DGTTF project aimed at building dialogue between the ruling and other political parties to improve transparency of lawmaking and to ensurelegislative and regulatory environment conducive to democratic governance and MDG promotion. Throughits focus on strengthening national ownership, DGTTF projects in Kazakhstan managed to enhance the levelof partnership from shared responsibility with national stakeholders to shared funds. In February 2008, thefirst cost-sharing agreement was signed between UNDP Kazakhstan and the Institute for ParliamentaryDevelopment for implementation of joint activities.



Box 9. Lessons learned in national, regional and local governance

Coaching is an effective method of capacity development and transfer of skills where the entry level capacityis either absent or very low because coaching enables better retention of learning. (UNDP Afghanistan)

People show a remarkable interest in participating in the municipal planning processes. The inclusion of thepopulation in the decisions of public investment allocations by the municipal authorities often directs theinvestments to a significant number of infrastructure projects responding to major needs and structural gapsin the provision of local services. (UNDP Burundi)

Once the normative framework of the decentralization process is completed, the business sector and citizensraise their expectations for obtaining viable, efficient and more valuable public services from municipalauthorities. However, many local authorities lack sufficient economic, administrative and manpower capacity,due to their relatively small size, to effectively carry out the increased number of tasks placed upon them, alimitation that may adversely affect the quality and accessibility of public services delivery to citizens andhence the overall development in rural and remote areas. This trend may be further exacerbated with thestart of a second stage of fiscal decentralization, which envisages greater financial and managementresponsibilities of local government units. As a consequence, existing development disparities betweenmunicipalities in terms of access and quality of services provided to citizens will widen, thereby raisingscepticism as to the benefits of the ongoing decentralization reform. This risk has been widely recognized bynational authorities, international organizations and development partners. Inter-municipal cooperationthrough different forms (outsourcing, joint administration, joint public enterprises, etc.) has been identifiedas an innovative solution/practice that can alleviate some of the impediments that under-capacitated/smallmunicipalities face in performing decentralized competencies. UNDP can provide advisory support for theelaboration of laws on inter-municipal cooperation. (UNDP FYR Macedonia)

2.1.2.2 National, regional and local governance

Under the new UNDP Strategic Plan (2008–2011), theservice area of national, regional and local governance is amerger of the areas of public administration reform anddecentralization and local governance. UNDP’s work in thisarea centres on supporting effective, transparent andresponsive public service delivery and management.Running a government is largely about ensuring that basicservices like health, education and energy get to thosewho need them. This requires efficient and fair publicadministrations—nationally, regionally and locally—with a solid civil service and equitable economic and socialpolicies. In this regard, UNDP also promotes effectivedecentralization and urban and rural development withspecial emphasis on improving the living conditions of thepoor, women, minorities and other vulnerable groups. In2007, DGTTF supported 15 projects in this service area:five in Africa, four in Eastern Europe and the CIS, four inLatin America and the Caribbean and one in Asia and thePacific. In terms of global demand, national, regional andlocal governance was the second biggest service area,only preceded by human rights with 17 projects.

DGTTF provided instrumental support for the develop-

ment of capacities and modernization of the civil service

in Afghanistan and Azerbaijan. For example, in Afghanis-tan DGTTF supported the use of ‘coaching and mentoring’techniques, which unlike traditional classroom training are ‘on-the-job’ learning processes that enable betterretention of learning. Coaching and mentoring provesuseful for jobs that require dealing with a wide variety ofsituations (as do those in public management) and for jobswhere guided practice is important. The project has duringthe first year of implementation been highlighted by theGovernment of Afghanistan as a positive new and uniqueinitiative from the international community in the effort tofurther develop capacity of Afghan civil servants. InAzerbaijan, DGTTF strengthened the operational capaci-ties of the newly-formed Civil Service Commission throughstrategic capacity-building and key civil service reforms(see Box 10).

Furthermore, DGTTF provided essential support for thestrengthening of economic and social policies in Albania,Bolivia, Botswana, El Salvador, Kyrgyzstan, Namibia, Nigeriaand Latin America and the Caribbean. For example, in


Box 10. Civil service reform in Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan, which obtained independence in 1991, is a country in transition to democracy. The governmentis committed to development through a governance reform that will align it with European Union standardsand other internationally recognized indicators. The main objectives of the implemented reforms are to builda responsive public administration system, to provide citizens the highest state guarantee of human rightsand to accelerate integration into the international community. The DGTTF project strengthened the opera-tions of the president’s newly-formed Civil Service Commission through strategic capacity development. The Commission’s primary objectives are to standardize and monitor policies across the civil service, includ-ing the selection of human resources on a competitive basis and the professional development and socialprotection of civil servants. The project is an immediate response to the government’s prioritization of goodgovernance and its request for support in strengthening the Civil Service Commission.

The DGTTF project supported the capacities of the Civil Service Commission by, notably, creating a Web site(www.csc.gov.az) that provides information on civil service entry procedures and allows for online applica-tions. The Web site was promoted through a public launch that helped to familiarize people with the site. The project also supported the training of five staff members of the Civil Service Commission at the UNDP-supported E-Governance Academy in Estonia. In addition, staff members attended local training courses onhow to conduct interviews for entry into the civil service. The project helped to generate awareness of theservices offered by the commission by issuing and widely disseminating brochures outlining entry proce-dures into the civil service. Over 50 human resources and other specialists from state entities were trained innew recruitment and general management issues.

DGTTF funds also supported the following civil service reforms: i) preparation of the overall civil servicereform strategy; ii) improving access to comprehensive, up-to-date legal information on the civil service byproducing a collection of all normative and legal acts intended for use by human resource managers in statestructures; iii) incorporating elements of the civil service reform (performance appraisal and a code of ethics)in the newly approved anti-corruption strategy; iv) organizing and overseeing competitive merit-basedrecruitment examinations for 3,700 people applying for positions in 25 government entities; v) the creationof an examination hall for civil service entry tests to allow a shift from paper to computer-based exams; andvi) institutionalizing gender-disaggregated statistics on entry into the civil service.

Public sector reform has been resisted for a long time in Azerbaijan due to bureaucratic conservatism andvested interests. With DGTTF support, the Civil Service Commission has been able to effectively implementreforms in this area and initiate unprecedented breakthroughs in making public-sector recruitment fairer andmore transparent. It is hoped that the achievements will be replicated at the regional level. The project alsosupported the initiation of a civil service reform strategy that has triggered the shift from a bureaucratic Sovi-et-era system to a modern public sector that emphasises service delivery, transparency, performance andclient focus. For the first time, gender-based statistics regarding civil service personnel have been institution-alized, and they are now maintained by the Commission.

The catalytic nature of the project has been demonstrated in several ways. For example, over 20 central bod-ies have joined the new recruitment system; more international partners (such as Germany) have supportedor are considering supporting (Norway) civil service reform in Azerbaijan; the Civil Service Commission plansto scale out the new recruitment system to the local level; and the scope of the reforms is expected toexpand beyond the recruitment process and implement a new code of ethics for civil servants and a per-formance appraisal system.

http://www.csc.gov.az



Box 11. Lessons learned in justice

Joint trainings for speaker judges and journalists can be very successful because i) mass media representa-tives get familiar with the duties and responsibilities of the speaker judges and ii) the personal and profes-sional relations established during the trainings enable an improved relationship between the media and thejudiciary. The court system will become more transparent and journalists more knowledgeable in this area.(UNDP Georgia)

The lack of socio-economic activities for detainees in the prisons diminishes their chance of reintegration insociety and enhances the risk of a second offence being committed. Many detainees in prison are not detainedfor criminal offences, but for civil affairs (such as an unpaid debt) which are mistakenly classified as a criminaloffence by the judicial police. To prevent these practices, access to justice projects should also intervene at thelevel of the judicial police. The use of national UNVs in the implementation of access to justice projects hasproved very successful in increasing outreach of justice services to the most disadvantaged. (UNDP Niger)

Educating prisoners about their rights and duties and providing them information about the status of theircases allows them to feel more confident in the judicial process. This helps reduce tensions between prison-ers and penitentiary personnel, and among prisoners themselves. The penitentiary administration valuesthese benefits because they reduce stress on the prison guards and the chief warden. (UNDP Niger)

Bolivia DGTTF supported the realization of five nationalperception surveys about i) direct tax on hydrocarbons,ii) conflicts between the regional and national

governments, iii) income, and iv) the new ‘PoliticalConstitution of the State’ (two surveys). These surveys onthe new ‘Political Constitution of the State’ contributed to abetter understanding of the national perception of thepolitical situation and informed the decision-making bythe Ministry of the Presidency. In Nigeria, DGTTF organizeda governors’ retreat on fiscal policy in November 2007, atwhich political leaders were sensitized on the need to useresults-based budgeting and fiscal operations. Some 100high-level government officials attended the retreat; theywere drawn from the five participating states of AkwaIbom, Cross River, Kano, Lagos and Ondo. Five papers werepresented by experts on fiscal policy reforms in Nigeria.The focus of the retreat was to raise awareness amongpolicy makers to promote a pro-poor fiscal policydevelopment.

Finally, DGTTF was instrumental in supporting

decentralization processes, including capacity

development for local government in Burundi, theCentral African Republic, The Former Yugoslav Republic ofMacedonia (TFYR), Tajikistan and Latin America and theCaribbean. For example, in the Central African Republic(CAR), DGTTF supported the decentralization process bypromoting South-South cooperation with a study trip toBurkina Faso for CAR’s High Commissioner for

Decentralization and six mayors from CAR to exchangeexperiences. The project also strengthened the capacitiesof CAR’s association of mayors and the High Commissionerfor Decentralization with office furniture and ICTs. In TFYR,some local authorities lack sufficient economic, adminis-trative and manpower capacity to effectively carry out theincreased number of tasks placed upon them. To avoidadverse effects on the quality of public services delivery tocitizens, DGTTF was instrumental in developing the agree-ment on inter-municipal cooperation to alleviate theburden on municipal administrations and enhance theiroverall performance in public service.

2.1.2.3 Justice Access to justice is a vital part of UNDP’s mandate toreduce poverty and strengthen democratic governance.Within the broad context of justice reform, UNDP’s nichelies in supporting justice and related systems so that theywork for those who are poor and disadvantaged. DGTTFhas provided catalytic support for justice reform, capacitydevelopment of formal and informal justice systems andpromoted access to justice. Consistently, justice andhuman rights has been the largest service line in thepreceding reports. Under the new UNDP Strategic Plan(2008–2011), justice and human rights are organisedunder different key result areas and support to justicecontinues to be a salient segment in DGTTF’s portfolio.


Box 12. Access to justice in Niger

Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world; ranked near the bottom of the Human Development Index(174th out of 177 countries). In this context, the modern justice system faces tremendous challenges todeliver effective and fair services to the country’s 13 million people. There is a general lack of material andhuman resources; for example, the right to defence is hard to realize because there are only 100 lawyers, allbased in the capital, in a country twice as large (geographically) as France.

In 2003, UNDP facilitated a number of consultations with the Ministry of Justice and technical and financialpartners to develop a justice reform programme, initiated by the Danish International Development Agency(DANIDA) and later led by the French Development Agency. The justice reform has led to the establishmentof several new jurisdictions inside the country to bring the justice system closer to the people. However, thedistance between the citizens and the justice system still remains considerable. A majority of Niger’spopulation is illiterate, and most people are unaware of their rights and how the judiciary functions. Thepopulation is also hampered by a linguistic barrier because the justice system operates in French, which isnot most residents’ native language.

In general, people feel quite disoriented when they arrive in a justice building searching for a public servicesuch as a birth certificate, a nationality paper or a criminal record. The judges are often dismissive of or evenhostile to these wandering clients and justice seekers. In this context, swindlers have made it their businessto gravitate around the main jurisdictions and to take advantage of the people’s ignorance to extort themand to attempt to bribe judges and prosecutors.

Furthermore, the justice system struggles with overcrowded prisons. Many of those incarcerated have yet tobe prosecuted, due to poor coordination between the judiciary and penitentiary administrators, and as aresult have been locked up beyond the legal limits on pre-trial detention for petty or criminal offences. Withso many prisoners, it is not surprising that 40 percent of the Ministry of Justice’s budget is allocated to justfeeding inmates.

In 2006, DGTTF initiated a project on access to justice to address some of these problems through twostrategies: i) the establishment of reception desks in all the main jurisdictions and ii) the recruitment of nationalUN volunteers (UNVs) to provide legal assistance to prisoners. In 2007, DGTTF continued support for the project.

In its implementation period of 18 months, since June 2006, the project established 11 reception desks andstaffed these with 13 young legal graduates recruited by the Ministry of Justice in the context of their civilservice. They were trained to welcome justice seekers, inform them about the available services and guidethem in the main court buildings. Since their arrival, the corrupt practices of swindlers have dwindled andthe judges have found more time to concentrate on their work. The project raised awareness about the exis-tence of these services through a country-wide sensitization campaign, supported by DGTTF, through theradio and TV. The Ministry of Justice has committed itself to taking over this system by including the opera-tional costs in the national budget in the coming years.

In addition, the project recruited 16 other UNVs (all young legal graduates as well) and assigned them to legalclinics operated by the national human rights association ‘ANDDH’ in eight regions of the country to work inclose collaboration with the local judiciary and the penitentiary administration. Aside from providing day-to-day legal assistance in the legal clinics for justice seekers, the UNVs provided three types of services in the mainprisons of the country: legal and human rights education, face-to-face advice on individual cases, and psycho-logical and moral support. In some jurisdictions, the UNVs drafted model forms to request releases on bail forpre-trial detainees or conditional liberty for convicted prisoners.

In 2007, the UNVs sensitized approximately 6,500 inmates on their rights and duties, and advised about 3,600detainees on their individual cases. One result was that more than 1,000 individuals held in pre-trial detention


In 2007, DGTTF supported 11 country-level projects inAlgeria, the Central African Republic, Costa Rica, Georgia,Haiti, Jamaica, the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Madagascar,Niger, Sudan and Uruguay. As that list makes clear, mostprojects in this area took place in Africa and Latin Americaand the Caribbean.

In several countries, DGTTF provided crucial support to pro-

mote channels of communication among the judiciary

and the public at large and focus on improving accessibili-

ty and quality of justice services, notably in Algeria, Geor-gia, Haiti, Jamaica and Niger. For example, in Georgia DGTTF

has been instrumental in strengthening media reporting onthe judiciary and promoting a dialogue between the courtsystem and the mass media by training the Speaker Judgeinstitution (i.e., the justice’s spokesperson institution) and 37 journalists on effective communication skills. The projectalso enhanced transparency of the court system andincreased public awareness by conducting a country-widePR campaign under the slogan ‘Let’s Strengthen the JusticeSystem in Georgia Together’. Projects such as the ones inHaiti and Niger moved towards more innovative approach-es both with regard to promoting integrated approaches tojustice service delivery; acknowledging the interdepend-


Box 12. continued

obtained provisional liberty, thereby greatly reducing the scope of illegal pre-trial detention in Niger. All stake-holders of the project appreciated its results, with the prisoners themselves appreciative of the moral supportand legal assistance. One of the lessons learned is that educating prisoners about their rights and duties andproviding them information about the status of their cases allows them to feel more confident in the judicialprocess. This helps reduce tensions between prisoners and penitentiary personnel, and among prisoners them-selves. The penitentiary administration values these benefits because they reduce stress on the prison guardsand the chief warden.

According to the judges, the DGTTF project significantly improved the quality of defence of detainees. In publicaudiences, detainees now feel more confident to express themselves and defend their rights. They have alsointroduced more requests than in the past for release on bail, conditional liberty or restitution of goods. TheUNVs have created open channels of communication, a crucial development to help reduce conflict and misun-derstandings among the prisoners, the penitentiary administration and the judiciary.

Lastly, from the perspective of thenational human rights association, thepresence of the UNVs in the prisonshas offered greater insight into thefacilities’ conditions and made it fareasier to monitor and report humanrights violations.

Given these results, all stakeholderspleaded for a continuation of the project activities beyond its initial 18months time period. UNDP pledgedTRAC funding to continue its supportuntil September 2008, after which agradual take-over is planned by theMinistry of Justice and several bilateraldonors that have already expressedinterest in the project.

A national UNV providing legal assistance in the prison of Tahoua in Niger


ence of the provision of services by independent justiceinstitutions and in moving towards sector wide approachesas the most effective aid modality — see particularly theproject in Niger where several donors collaborate in sup-porting the justice reform process. In Haiti, DGTTF con-tributed substantially to the development of a national poli-cy on justice with the participation of civil society. Forinstance, the project translated in Creole and published theconclusions of a forum on justice reform and disseminatedthis document widely for discussion among national andlocal stakeholders; governmental authorities, judicial actors,the media and CSOs.

Furthermore, DGTTF supported projects to improve the

quality in justice service delivery and in broadening

outreach of legal assistance and awareness raising

initiatives, notably in the Central African Republic,Madagascar, Niger, Sudan and the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya.For example, in Madagascar DGTTF supported theestablishment of legal clinics for the poor. Similarly inNiger, DGTTF proved instrumental in promoting access tojustice by applying an integrated approach through thesupport to legal clinics, the establishment of receptiondesks in courts and the provision of legal assistance by UNvolunteers in all main prisons (see Box 12). In the LibyanArab Jamahiriya, DGTTF facilitated South-South cooper-ation between the Moroccan and Libyan High JudicialInstitutes to conduct a capacity-assessment study and to

formulate a training plan for the staff of the Libyaninstitute’s Department of Research and Studies.

As has been the trend over several years, the three justiceprojects in Latin America and the Caribbean (Costa Rica,Jamaica and Uruguay) focused on citizen security issues

based on a bottom-up community level approach. Forexample, in Jamaica DGTTF evaluated the responsibilitiesof all ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) inaccordance with the national security policy and suppor-ted the establishment of focal points in each MDA onsecurity issues and delivery at the community level. Also,DGTTF facilitated consensus of all MDAs on a mechanismto monitor and evaluate the national security policy at acommunity level.

2.1.3 Grounding democratic governance ininternational principles

2.1.3.1 Human rightsOver the years, DGTTF has given a prominent place tohuman rights in its overall envelope. Human rights addsignificance to the agenda of development because theydraw attention to the issues of accountability and partici-pation, two of the most important factors driving thedelivery of development benefits to all people. They alsolend legal and moral legitimacy and a sense of social jus-tice to the objectives of human development.

Training for high ranking officers of the National Police of Nicaragua



In 2007, DGTTF supported 17 country-level projects in thefield of human rights—more projects than in any otherservice area. Demand was evenly distributed across all theregions, with five in Eastern Europe and CIS, four in LatinAmerica and the Caribbean, three in Africa, three in Asiaand the Pacific, and two in Arab States. In addition, DGTTFfunded 12 Action 2 projects aimed at developing thecapacity of UN Country Team staff to integrate humanrights into their work and to facilitate the development ofjoint programmes to support the strengthening of nation-al human rights protection systems.

DGTTF provided crucial support for awareness-raising and

advocacy for the inclusion of vulnerable and marginalised

people in the development processes in Croatia, Ecuador,India, Romania, Senegal, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbek-istan. For example, in Ecuador DGTTF promoted the effec-tive participation of indigenous peoples and Afro-Ecuadori-ans in the formulation of national public policies (see Box14). In India, DGTTF developed and disseminated a bookleton the human rights of persons living with HIV. In Romania,the DGTTF project supported the creation of a dialoguebetween the state administration and representatives of

vulnerable groups that suffer from discrimination, especiallythe Roma, women and persons living with disabilities. Theproject raised awareness about the need to include thesevulnerable groups in the formulation of public policies. InUzbekistan, DGTTF supported a country-wide media cam-paign to raise awareness about discrimination of womenand labour migrants and to promote their rights.

In Turkey, DGTTF was instrumental in producing a toolkiton best practices of linking human rights to pursue MDGsat the local level. The project contributed to the efforts—of civil society, think tanks, academics and anti-povertyadvocates—to change how the country’s political leadersand local opinion leaders are discussing poverty at locallevels. The DGTTF project in Turkey allowed for UNDP topartner with other UN agencies (notably UNICEF andUNFPA) in a concerted effort to increase the conceptualiza-tion of poverty as a matter of unrealized human rightsobligations of the state towards its citizens. Throughout2007, a year in which a national election was held, theproject and its partners in the pilot cities constantly advo-cated for a rights-based approach to poverty reductionthrough workshops, seminars and media events within the

Box 13. Lessons learned in human rights

If developmental shortcomings are seen within the normative framework of international human rightscommitments, enhancing the capacities of local governance actors—notably city councils—to monitor andsupport the realization of the MDGs also benefits their capacity to monitor human rights issues. (UNDP Turkey)

To promote the realization of the rights of persons living with disabilities to take an active part in economicand social activities, basic rehabilitation courses for visually and hearing-impaired people and vocational

training aimed at promoting their self-employmentare good initial steps. These have to be complemen-ted by further interventions aimed at capacitydevelopment of voluntary associations of personsliving with disabilities in ensuring sufficient supportservices, promoting employment and their activeengagement in other social and economic activities,and conducting advocacy campaigns to raiseawareness and solicit additional support from thestate and other development actors in the country.(UNDP Turkmenistan)

For the protection of the rights of the migrantworkers, a regional-based approach would be mosteffective. The situation of both female and malemigrant workers should be addressed by UNDP in itsinterventions. (UNDP Uzbekistan)

Workshop on women migrant workers in Uzbekistan


Box 14. Strengthening the participation of indigenous peoplesand Afro-Ecuadorians in public policies in Ecuador

DGTTF supported the production of two innovative MDG reports in Latin America: possibly the first MDGreport on people of African descent anywhere in the world and one of the few MDG reports on indigenouspeoples. Ecuador is a multicultural and multiethnic country, as is recognized in its Constitution. Thirteennationalities and 14 different indigenous peoples live in its territory and represent between 6 and 40 percentof the total Ecuadorian population, depending on the source of the estimates. The Afro-Ecuadorian popula-tion represents between 5 and 10 percent of the total population. Ecuador was ranked 89th in the lastHuman Development Index; UN agencies explain this low ranking to a large extent by inequality and exclu-sion, especially for indigenous peoples and Afro-Ecuadorians. Members of both groups have substandardaccess to public services and government assistance in comparison with the majority population.

Seventy percent of Afro-Ecuadorians are considered poor according to the criterion of basic needs satisfac-tion. The poverty and the exclusion of Afro-Ecuadorians and indigenous peoples restrict their opportunitiesto take part in decision-making processes regarding their own development. Although the MDGs concern allpopulations, the elaboration of Poverty Reduction Strategies in Ecuador lacks effective participation ofindigenous and Afro-Ecuadorian CSOs. As emphasized by the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues,the fight against poverty of indigenous people needs human rights–based approaches to development. Thesame counts for Afro-Ecuadorian communities.

Ecuador has ratified all main human rights treaties, including the International Convention on the Eliminationof all forms of Racial Discrimination and the Convention 169 of the International Labour Organisation onindigenous people. In addition, the country’s most recent constitution, from 1998, recognizes a series of col-lective rights for indigenous peoples and Afro-Ecuadorians. Hence, there is a strong framework for humanrights already existing in Ecuador upon which further development programming can be based.

In 2006, UNDP in collaboration with a UN inter-agency technical working group initiated i) a process toestablish a consultative and advisory permanent council of the UN and indigenous organizations, peoplesand nationalities in Ecuador and ii) a participatory process to draft the first MDG report on indigenous peo-ples in Ecuador. DGTTF provided instrumental support in 2007 to take these initiatives forward and expandthem to the Afro-Ecuadorian community.

More specifically, in 2007 DGTTF supported a UN inter-agency event that brought together 50 nationalindigenous leaders to prepare the Ecuadorian indigenous peoples delegation to the May 2007 fifth sessionof UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. The project also organized participative workshops withindigenous and Afro-Ecuadorian leaders for the elaboration of their respective MDG reports. Furthermore,the DGTTF project:

■■ supported the formulation of two key policy documents, the Political Platform of Afro-EcuadorianPeople and the Proposal of Afro-Ecuadorian representatives to the National Constituent Assembly;

■■ supported an inventory of Afro-Ecuadorian organizations through consultations in several provinces;

■■ published the MDG report on Afro-Ecuadorian peoples (and will soon publish the MDG report onindigenous peoples in the country); and

■■ raised awareness about indigenous rights and cultural diversity by broadcasting a national TV spotand radio programmes in the context of the election process to the Constituent Assembly.


context of this project and through other complementarymeans. Non-UN partners, including the bar association,were also involved in this effort.

Furthermore, DGTTF provided assistance for thepromotion of international human rights standards invarious countries (Chile, Iran, Jordan, Mauritius, Nicaragua,Papua New Guinea and Venezuela) and in the Arab Statesregion. For example, in Mauritius DGTTF supported theformulation of a draft national action plan for the promo-tion of human rights education in primary and secondaryschools. The project also undertook an assessment ofpolice and prison manuals and made recommendations tostrengthen that sector’s human rights dimension. InNicaragua, DGTTF contributed to the design of models forintervention in domestic violence cases in a participatoryapproach with high-ranking police officers. In the ArabStates region, DGTTF supported the creation of content fora Web site in Arabic on human rights (see Section 2.2).

Finally, DGTTF was instrumental in strengthening the

national human rights institution of Sierra Leone (HRCSL).DGTTF provided initial programme support to the HRCSLto address critical human rights issues such as domesticviolence, undue delay in judicial trials and poor prisonconditions. The project also strengthened the HRCSL by providing training for its commissioners and staff onthe prerequisites of a credible national human rightsinstitution and supported the development of a frame-work for a five-year strategic plan as a pillar for resourcemobilization for the HRCSL. The project also publicized therelevance of the HRCSL nationwide as a national institu-tion for the promotion and protection of human rights inSierra Leone and provided furniture and equipment tostrengthen its operational capacities.

In addition to the projects cited above, and as mentionedpreviously, DGTTF was used to fund a selected number ofAction 2 projects (see Box 15).


Box 15. Action 2 joint programme: Delivering on human rights as one

The Action 2 Global Programme is an inter-agency initiative to build the capacity of UN Country Teams(UNCTs) to support national human rights promotion and protection systems and strengthen linkagesbetween UN operational activities and the normative work of the UN human rights mechanisms. Theprogramme provides integrated support to UNCTs, including advisory services, learning resources, training,knowledge-sharing and seed funding for joint programming and capacity-building. A major achievement ofAction 2 has been the development of a new inter-agency Common Learning Package on a HumanRights–based Approach (HRBA) to Development Programming. Drawing on the experiences of different UNagencies, it represents a new global standard for the application of HRBA. This Common Learning Packageprovides a compendium of workshop modules, learning resources and methodological tools.

DGTTF was instrumental in supporting Action 2 activities in 12 countries, namely Botswana, Chile, Colombia,The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the Lao PDR, Moldova, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, theRussian Federation, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, and Sierra Leone. Activities supported by Action 2 areaimed at developing the capacity of UN Country Team staff to integrate human rights into their work and tofacilitate the development of joint programmes to support the strengthening of national protection systems,including through the deployment of human rights advisers to UNCTs.

For example, in Sierra Leone, Action 2 supported the mapping and assessment of the UNCT and governmentprogramming with a HRBA lens and developed materials to improve capacities for reporting to the UNhuman rights treaty bodies. In Colombia, Action 2 piloted a sub-national approach that has resulted in thefirst regional joint programme on rights-based development among the 11 UN agencies working in theimpoverished Soacha district. Also, in the Russian Federation the UNCT planned joint activities including afilm festival, seminars, talk shows on youth and human rights and two round tables on e-accessibility andrights of persons with disabilities.

A strategic review of the Action 2 Global Programme is under way to assess the impact and future options tofurther integrate human rights within the UN system in the context of the overall UN reform process.


2.1.3.2 Gender equalityOver the past two decades, the status and role of womenhave profoundly changed in most of the world’s countries,with progress being recorded in, for example, narrowinggender gaps in education and health. Women have alsoentered the labour force in unprecedented numbers. Yeteven so, progress remains slow and uneven and womencontinue to be under-represented in formal decision-mak-ing structures in most societies. Although women areincreasingly active in community support systems, genderdisparities persist in public positions at all levels: local,national, regional and global. Women’s representation innational parliaments is above 25 percent in only 16 coun-tries in the world. In 2007, DGTTF supported 13 projects ongender equality: ten in Africa, two in Asia and the Pacific,and one in Latin America and the Caribbean. Part of the rea-son for the preponderance of gender equality projects inAfrica might be related to the increased focus on and advo-cacy for Resolution 1325 of the Security Council on women,peace and security and its actuality in conflict and post-conflict countries, such as Liberia, Rwanda and Somalia.

DGTTF projects provided increasing support for thepolitical participation of women in decision-making

processes in Benin, China, Honduras, Gambia, Lesotho,Liberia, Somalia, Thailand, Togo, and Zimbabwe. Forexample, in Benin the DGTTF project established focalpoints for gender and equity in three cities and severalministerial departments of the government. In addition,the project organized preparatory meetings on theestablishment of the observatory of women’s quotas,which will be composed of civil society actors, notablywomen-based networks, and which will act as a lobby inall issues concerning women: legally binding quotas forwomen, women elections and women appointments.Indeed, in several countries DGTTF was instrumental inadvocacy efforts to introduce quotas for women in thepolitical sphere. For instance, in Gambia, the DGTTFproject organized several meetings and a forum forpolitical parties, national assembly members and otherstakeholders on quotas for women and other genderissues. The project also supported a country-wide publicsensitization campaign on the social benefits of havingwomen in key decision-making positions. A positive

Box 16. Lessons learned in gender equality

Despite the documented success of workshops on leadership training for politically active women in villages,a more sophisticated system of impact indicators should be developed—for example, to look at the impactat the village level of having women leaders and what has been the result on the livelihoods of villages, andwomen in particular, of having women village heads. (UNDP China)

To increase the participation of women in politics and to sensitize the public on gender issues, UNDP canorganize meetings between gender and media experts to brainstorm on the design of a media campaign.The involvement of media during the project implementation is strongly recommended, especially if theproject wishes to address sensitive agendas with the public. (UNDP Thailand)

To call attention to the devastating effects ofsexual and gender-based violence (SGBV),powerful groups in society, such as the mili-tary, can contribute to sensitize the popula-tion if the military is known to be disciplined,close to the community, and respected. Thearmy can conduct mass campaigns againstSGBV and reach out to its members, commu-nities, and opinion leaders. This should becomplemented by national civic educationprogrammes organized by the authorities.(UNDP Rwanda)

Women leadership training in China: sharing stories on political participation


outcome of these efforts was the increased percentage ofelected female councilors in the local governmentelections in 2008: 15 elected women councilors against 6 in 2002. Also, for the first time, four of these women wereelected as deputy chairpersons of their councils. Mean-while, a quota of 30% has been stipulated in a draftwomen’s bill, which will be tabled at a sitting of thenational assembly in 2008. To strengthen the capacity ofwomen in politics, the DGTTF project in Honduras produc-ed a manual on the political participation of women titled‘Women make a difference in decision-making bodies’. In Thailand, the DGTTF project carried out a broad mediacampaign to open and sustain public debate on genderequality and women’s political participation. The projectaired a radio programme once a week for four months onwomen in politics, hosted by a former senator. Also, publicservice announcements were aired on TV and on the radioand an episode of a popular TV comedy focused onillustrating women’s ability to promote their rights.

In addition, DGTTF enhanced the participation of women

based CSOs in the ongoing peace process in Côte d’Ivoire.In the city of Bouaké, the project organized a symposiumwhere women based CSOs from Côte d’Ivoire and Sierra

Leone exchanged their experiences on their role in peaceprocesses. The project also strengthened the capacity of theMinistry of Family, Women and Social Affairs and supportedsensitization efforts on UN Security Council Resolution 1325on women, peace and security through different media(press conferences, radio interventions, TV spots, postersand leaflets). Furthermore, the project supported thedrafting and validation of a national action plan for theimplementation of Resolution 1325.

Moreover, in Rwanda DGTTF supported the organizationof a workshop for judges, public prosecutors and thepolice on the investigation, prosecution and adjudicationof sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV). The projectalso organized training for the Rwanda defence forces inthe area of SGBV, which was extremely innovative becauseit targeted the military in-country, those in cadet schools,and those preparing to go on peace missions in Darfur(Sudan). This innovation has been lauded by other donorssuch as the UK Department for International Development(DFID), which have gone on to fund the establishment ofSGBV desks at the Rwandan Ministry of Defence’sheadquarters and in the country’s five provinces.


Training on effective governance and leadership by women in Benin


Box 17. Support to development of local governance frameworks with inclusionand participation of women, youth and minorities in Somalia

Somalia has been without an effective national government for the past 17 years. Instead, many Somalis consider traditional and religious authorities to be their source of governance, especially in rural areas. Thesesystems tend not to favour equal political and managerial responsibilities for women. As Somalia undertakesstate-building efforts, DGTTF stepped in to promote early action on political inclusion of women, youth andminorities in local governance. The project strengthened advocacy groups and supported community partic-ipation in drafting local governance policies and legal frameworks, and supported the recognised govern-ment in their reform efforts.

As a first step, the project supported the Ministry of Women Development and Family Affairs to develop awomen’s empowerment bill to submit to the parliament. This bill endorsed the affirmative action principlefor women’s empowerment, notably women’s participation in political and public office. The process involvedextensive consultations with the parliamentary human rights and gender committee.

In addition, DGTTF provided funds for the initial activities of the Joint Programme on Local Governance andService Delivery, which led to the Puntland government issuing a decree instituting a 30 percent quota forwomen in local district councils (old and new). Moreover, the project supported the Puntland Ministry ofLocal Government and Rural Development to undertake a huge and extensive campaign through localmedia and through visits on the ground to sensitize people on the decentralization process. This advocacycampaign stressed the need to establish viable local governments for the improvement of service deliveryand sensitized people about the Puntland government’s policy to increase women’s participation in decision-making at all levels. The exercise received the buy in of prominent sub-clan leaders, women and youthgroups as well as the members of existing administration structures. Furthermore, the project organized athree-day workshop for human rights groups in Baidoa to equip them with the tools and materials toadvance their advocacy agenda for women’s participation in the decision-making process.

The project entered into an agreement with the Puntland Ministry of Local Government and Local Develop-ment to increase the representation of women in district councils. Four new districts, namely Alule, Bargal,Jariban and Ufeyn, now have a total of 44 women councillors, which represents over the 30 percent quotamandated by government policy. An additional six existing district councils (Beyla, Bocame, Galdogob, Galkayo, Qardho and Talex) increased women’s representation to comply with the 30 percent quota. Each of these districts has added eight women councillors. Of all the district councils formed during this project period, the number of women complies with the 30 percent quota. At the same time, the women in thesedistrict councils have members serving as heads of at least one committee per district.

2.1.3.3 Anti-corruptionSince its inception, DGTTF has supported anti-corruptionprojects with the objective of promoting more transparen-cy and accountability in the public sector, with the ulti-mate goal of strengthening the fight against poverty andto support the achievement of the MDGs. In 2007, mostDGTTF anti-corruption projects were carried out in Africaand the Arab States. This represents a shift from the previ-ous year, when 50 percent of the anti-corruption projectswere implemented in Eastern Europe and the CIS region,33 percent in Asia and the Pacific and 17 percent in LatinAmerica and the Caribbean. Currently, no study or map-

ping has been carried out to determine why this shift hasoccurred, but some trends have been nonetheless notice-able. Successful reduction of corruption is one of therequirements for accession into the European Union (EU).As a result, most EU accession candidate countries in thepast several years have made reduction of corruption a pri-ority. Once they enter into the union, however, the sameconditionality ceases to exist—hence a reduction in pro-gramming in this area. In the Arab States region, theregional Programme on Governance (POGAR) has popular-ized anti-corruption initiatives in the region. Africa hasincreased its programming due to the UN Conventionagainst Corruption (UNCAC) and the need to improve



investment climate and attract official developmentinvestment (ODI). In 2007, the anti-corruption projectswere instrumental in promoting national policy frame-works to fight corruption based on international stan-dards, galvanizing donor support for anti-corruption initia-tives, and strengthening commissions and agencies thatpromote public transparency and accountability. DGTTFalso supported CSOs that focus on anti-corruption byenhancing their involvement in policy-making and boost-ing their monitoring capacity.

In 2007, DGTTF played an essential role in generating

donor support for anti-corruption initiatives inCameroon and Swaziland. In Swaziland, for example,DGTTF supported the adoption of a National Anti-Corruption Strategy and initiated the development of animplementation plan for the strategy with all stakeholders.A strong partnership has been established between allsectors of society, the public sector, the private sector, andCSOs, as well as UNDP, the United Nations Office on Drugsand Crime (UNODC) and other development agencies.UNDP is currently in discussion with a number of donorsto set up a joint programme in supporting anti-corruptionin the country.

Furthermore, DGTTF has been instrumental in improving

anti-corruption legislation, supporting national policy

frameworks to fight corruption, and/or furthering the

implementation of UNCAC in Burkina Faso, Cameroon,Mongolia, Swaziland and the Caribbean. In Barbados,

DGTTF supported a project with a regional dimension topromote the ratification of UNCAC in Caribbean nations.The project organized a consultative meeting, co-hostedby UNDP and UNODC, as a follow up to a previous 2006UNODC sponsored regional consultation that sought tosensitise Caribbean countries about UNCAC. The ratifica-tion rate of UNCAC in Caribbean countries is low, with only5 countries having ratified the convention so far. The needfor ratification — and the urgency of ratification — relatesto the fact that Caribbean countries lie between drug-producing and drug-consuming countries. They are vulnerable to corruption related to transiting drugs andcrimes and also related to the cash-based tourist industry.The ability of the states to respond to corruption is alsolimited because of the limited resources due to their relatively small size.

The consultative meeting was attended by about 14 coun-tries from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). Most ofthose countries do not have government agencies withexclusive mandates to fight corruption. A number of toolswere introduced at the consultative meeting, including thelegislative guide to UNCAC, a pre-ratification checklist, aself-assessment checklist, CARICOM model legislationagainst corruption, and a regional tool kit being producedby UNDP/SURF Trinidad.

In Mongolia, DGTTF supported the strengthening ofethics and integrity in the health sector by developing

and promoting benchmarks of transparency and

Workshop on the modernization of the public service: transparency and control in Djibouti


Box 19. Strengthening ethics and integrity in the health sector in Mongolia

Supported by DGTTF, UNDP has gone a long way in assisting the Government of Mongolia to implement the2006 Prevention of Corruption Act, with a focus on building and strengthening the capacity of the anti-cor-ruption agency and other stakeholders. While the need to support the national programme for combatingcorruption is of paramount importance, a need was also identified to initiate targeted integrity actions at thesectoral level, in particular in those sectors that are crucial for the country’s achievement of the MDGs. Withinthis context, the Ministry of Health (MoH) was the first to express interest in tackling accountability andintegrity issues, thereby demonstrating political commitment.

Surveys conducted in the ministry revealed a variety of deficiencies in staff members’ professional behaviour.In addition, there was a lack of responsiveness to clients’ needs, which reduced client satisfaction with healthcare services. Reports of informal payments by clients also revealed some ethical conduct problems. All thesefactors affected performance in the health sector and threatened progress in achieving the MDGs.

A code of conduct for medical personnel already existed, but it was largely ignored or unknown to staff.UNDP therefore decided to assist the MoH in addressing critical integrity shortcomings. The project aimed toachieve two main outputs: i) to increase transparency and accountability of the MoH and selected healthorganizations by identifying current constraints and bottlenecks and develop mechanisms to address them;and ii) to promote the ethics and integrity of staff through open discussions, training, raising awarenessabout the code of conduct and complaints handling.

The project started in 2006. However, given that a one-year timeframe was too short, a second proposal wassubmitted for the DGTTF 2007 to continue with this successful pilot. Starting with a survey and focus groupdiscussions on how corruption was perceived in the ministry—by both staff and clients—the project assistedin the development and adoption of a set of benchmarks of transparency and accountability. The ministerapproved the benchmarks in June 2007. The project reviewed bureaucratic procedures and practices on pro-curement, finance, personnel and recruitment. It provided support to the workings of the ethics committeeto ensure integrity and ethics principles are applied in practices of the MoH and health organizations.

The project prepared options for introducing an incentive system for ethical conduct by doctors and medicalstaff. The practice of licensing and granting special permissions to health professionals and institutionsimproved and became more transparent through the newly established e-licensing centre. The MoH Web sitedeveloped by the project improved access to information, including on approved laws, regulations and pro-cedures by the public, clients and the medical professionals. The MoH issued a decree to strengthen themandate, rules and procedures of the ethics committee to allow its effective functioning, including proce-dure for conducting inquiries.

Box 18. Lessons learned in anti-corruption

The fight against corruption should be a national effort. All stakeholders should agree and commit to activelyparticipate in the fight against corruption through a partnership of the public sector, the private sector, CSOs,UNDP, UNDOC and other development agencies. (UNDP Swaziland)

CSOs need institutional support; otherwise it is difficult to expect them to play a vital and efficient role aswatchdogs in the fight against corruption. At the same time, it is necessary to continue to cooperate andsupport the government in order to move the anti-corruption agenda forward. (UNDP Burkina Faso)



Box 19. continued

Training manuals and guidebooks on ethics were designed and ethics issues introduced in performancereviews. The project printed and disseminated the code of ethics for health professionals and a guidebookamong health professionals and the public. It helped to produce an information kit for members of the ethicscommittee and subcommittee members as well as the ethics committee’s annual reports for 2006 and 2007.

Intensive training of its members strengthened the operations of the MoH’s ethics committee. Five out ofseven health training centres adopted the new curriculum on medical ethics. Access to information and com-munication within the ministry and between the ministry and the population improved and information ismore easily available. The procedures for complaints handling were streamlined, including provisions onwhistleblower protection.

A total of 20 pilot hospitals and health centres volunteered to implement project components at the servicedelivery level and apply the new benchmarks for human resource and financial management, with reportedimprovements as to how citizens were received and treated.

While the project cannot claim to have eradicated all integrity deficits in the health sector, it clearly achievedtangible results. The project initiated a number of innovative approaches for enforcing standards of account-ability, transparency and ethics within the health sector. Integrity and ethics issues have become part oflabour contracts and internal rules of health organizations. The assessment of the salary scheme and work-load of health professionals assisted the MoH by proposing options for labour norms and incentive schemesthat were ultimately endorsed by the Cabinet. The e-licensing centre enables an increased number of healthcare workers to apply for renewal of their licenses and take tests online. The success of this project supportsthe need for sectoral approaches to combating corruption and underlines the cross-cutting nature of anti-corruption as reflected in the new UNDP Strategic Plan 2008-2011. As a best practice, the project also gener-ated great interest from other UNDP Country Offices in the region.

DGTTF funds have proven to be a critical tool in promoting innovative practices in democratic governance.Within a relatively short span of time (two years), the Mongolian MoH has introduced many new elements andset an example to other ministries and agencies on how a national integrity system can be strengthened with astrong political will and technical support from a donor agency. The project supported activities to disseminatelessons learned and best practices in the MoH with other ministries. UNDP is considering replicating the experi-ence of this project at other agencies; some of them will be implemented with support from DGTTF.

The success of the project was influenced by several factors:

■■ a survey at the outset of the project provided clear indications on what the project’s priority focusshould be;

■■ high-level and influential MoH staff were fully dedicated to the project and successfully helped manage the project throughout its cycle;

■■ a willingness within the ministry to achieve the goals set by the project; and

■■ a supportive Civil Service Council that provided the ministry the necessary space to pilot some newinitiatives in terms of adapting the code of ethics and reviewing incentives and performance appraisalstandards for their staff.


accountability (see Box 19). In Swaziland, DGTTFsupported the development of a national anti-corruptionstrategy, and in Cameroon DGTTF contributed to anenabling environment to draft an anti-corruption law.

Finally, DGTTF was instrumental in strengthening commis-

sions and agencies that promote public transparency and

accountability and supporting anti-corruption CSOs inBurkina Faso, Cape Verde, Congo, Djibouti, the Philippines,Swaziland and Tunisia. For example, in Burkina Faso theDGTTF project allowed UNDP to engage with the main government institution responsible for the fight against cor-ruption (HACLC) on a technical level for example throughtraining on the UNCAC. The project also supported i) the2006 report on the state of corruption in Burkina Faso,which was produced by a network of anti-corruption CSOs,and ii) a critical analysis of the state of implementation ofUNCAC, the African Union’s convention on preventing andcombating corruption, and the ECOWAS17 protocol on thefight against corruption. These publications facilitated dia-logue between all stakeholders, notably the governmentand the donor community, and also furthered the imple-mentation of UNCAC in Burkina Faso.

2.2 Regional activitiesIn 2007, DGTTF supported five regional projects, four ofwhich were prioritized and carried out by the RegionalBureau for Latin America and the Caribbean (RBLAC): i) the Strategic Short-Term Political Analysis and Prospec-tive Scenarios for Improved Governance in Latin America(PAPEP), ii) Democratic Dialogue, iii) Knowledge Productsfor Decentralized Governance, and iv) Youth Leaders forGood Governance. The fifth regional project, Arab Youthand Human Rights Portal and CD, was implemented by theRegional Bureau for Arab States.

The first of the regional projects funded through DGTTF in 2007 was Strategic Short-Term Political Analysis and

Prospective Scenarios for Improved Governance in Latin

America (PAPEP). This initiative began with preparatoryassistance in 2005 and converted into a project in 2006. Ithas been developed as an instrument of knowledge gen-eration and policy advice to strengthening the capacity ofnational decision makers to assess political risks, preventand manage political and socioeconomic crisis as well asnew challenges to democratic governance, and to applypolitical analysis and prospective scenario methodologies.In 2007, the project prioritized the capacity-building

component and worked in collaboration with FLACSO todeliver a training seminar and an online workshop for gov-ernment, civil society and UN staff. It also provided techni-cal assistance, produced political analysis to key strategicactors, developed a political analysis toolkit that was usedin the training programme and worked on coordinatingactivities on the ground with other regional projects. The knowledge management and sharing component of the project was also considerably developed: the project’s website is now available and fully operational at www.papep.org and displays numerous documents,including national analysis and regional updates on trendsin development and democratic governance.

The PAPEP project responds to demands from nationalactors (governments, parliaments and political parties,among others) and the international community (interna-tional cooperation agencies, development organizationsand academia) for analytical instruments conducive to better understanding of both short- and medium-termpolitical processes. Other underlying factors are thosestakeholders’ stated desire to better identify scenarios andtrends that can be favourable to deal with current demo-cratic governance challenges.

PAPEP’s main objective is to contribute to the strengthen-ing of Latin America and the Caribbean’s democratic gover-nance, particularly in countries facing difficult governancesituations. PAPEP has contributed to UNDP strategic repo-sitioning with national and international partners; more-over, its products have been positively received and usedby national actors and the international community in allcountries involved. Governments, political actors and civilsociety have confirmed their interest in continuing withthe project’s work aimed at increasing training of nationalactors and the dissemination of its knowledge products.

In 2007, interest in PAPEP´s Working Group on DemocraticGovernance was demonstrated by the participation in aregional meeting of 50 key political actors and leaders—former presidents, ministers and vice ministers, presiden-tial advisors, political party leaders, legislators, politicaladvisors, etc.—from Latin American and Caribbean coun-tries. The meeting aimed at fostering debate in the regionby discussing and identifying challenges and strategies fora democratic governance agenda for Latin America andthe Caribbean. The participants welcomed the contribu-tions based on extensive research and analysis andacknowledged that further dissemination efforts shouldbe made to engage more key actors such as journalists

17 Economic Community of West African States

http://www.papep.org



and opinion leaders. A report ‘Contributions to an Agendaon Democratic Governance in Latin America’ is being pre-pared and will be published in 2008. Representatives fromseveral international organizations, such as Mercosur andthe Organization of American States, also participatedactively along with UNDP and other UN agencies.

In countries experiencing tensions, PAPEP has become akey instrument to UNDP and national actors because itprovides an analytical basis to facilitate dialogue processesor policy options favouring agreements or negotiated exitsto crisis situations (for instance, in Bolivia). In other coun-tries where a dialogue process regarding long-term devel-opment decisions is unfolding, as in Panama, PAPEP hasserved as an instrument of political analysis as well as anevaluation tool for UNDP, thereby contributing to efforts toreach consensus on a national development agenda.

During 2007 PAPEP´s national teams were consolidated inArgentina, Bolivia, Honduras and Nicaragua, and furtherdeveloped in Panama and Uruguay in cooperation with National Human Development Report teams. Newdemands were made, beginning with exploratory work inEl Salvador to assess the feasibility of developing a PAPEPteam on political analysis.

The second regional project, on Democratic Dialogue,

was created in 2001 with the objective of building the fieldof democratic dialogue as a tool for strengthening democ-racies and preventing conflicts in Latin America and theCaribbean. After an initial phase of knowledge compilationand identification of best practices, the regional projectorganized its activities and support to countries in theregion into three main pillars: i) capacity-building, ii) tech-nical assistance, and iii) knowledge creation and inter-change. In conjunction with the ongoing consolidation ofan articulated network of active practitioners in the fieldand the community of practice developed by the projectsince its inception, which has brought together like-mind-ed institutions such as the Carter center, the continuousimprovement of the project’s communication strategy hasbeen essential in providing timely and valuable support inthese three areas. The project has served several countriesin the region, including Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia,Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Mexico, Nicaragua and SaintKitts and Nevis. With the publication of the Handbook onDemocratic Dialogue aimed at dialogue practitionersworldwide in March 2007, the regional project has beenemphasizing the creation/development of capacities notonly throughout the region but also globally (for more

information on the project’s achievements in 2007, see theprojects’ table in Annex A).

Based on the handbook supported by DGTTF, the projectwill launch in 2008 the first online course on democraticdialogue in partnership with UNDP’s Virtual DevelopmentAcademy and the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recov-ery (BCPR). In addition to the virtual course, the projecthas been and will be very active in building capacities inthe region through on-site training and learning processesfor both Country Offices and leaders in the region. Basedon its support network and accumulated experience, theproject aims to further improve its responsiveness, effec-tiveness and quality in responding to national dialogueinitiatives through UNDP Country Offices. Such supportimplies assessment, capacity-building, technical support,design, facilitation, systematization and evaluation of dialogue initiatives.

Thirdly, the project Knowledge Products for

Decentralized Governance focused on strengtheninglocal governance to address the increased responsibilitiesof local authorities in key areas for the achievement of theMDGs. In 2007, the project operationalized the LAC Work-space and made it available in Spanish and in English;18

the number of visitors and information requests is steadilyincreasing. Furthermore, the project supported the incor-poration of knowledge products in several Country Offices’decentralized governance strategies, notably regardingurban security and civic culture in Cuatitlan Itzcalli (Mexi-co) and governance assessments in six provinces in Hon-duras and two municipalities in El Salvador. The projectalso organized a short certificate course in Cuatiltan Itzcallito develop capacities of local staff, police and other strate-gic actors of the city (150 trainees in total). In addition, theproject organized four short certificate courses on citizensecurity and civic culture in collaboration with the BrazilCountry Office for public servants and police officers fromseveral states and municipalities.

Finally, the project participated in two internal knowledgefairs. One was held at the Democratic Governance Practiceannual retreat in Bratislava (Slovak Republic) in June 2007.Displayed at the retreat were 31 knowledge products indemocratic governance to advance the UNDP Strategic Plan(2008–2011). The products developed and presented by thisproject, a toolkit on governance for the achievement of theMDGs and a toolkit on urban security and civic culture,received top honours (first and second place) during theselection of the 2007 most innovative knowledge product.

18 See www.lac-workspace.undp.org.co (registration required).

http://www.lac-workspace.undp.org.co


The second fair was held during the Regional Representa-tives’ meeting in Cartagena (Colombia) in May 2007, atwhich were displayed 25 knowledge products on develop-ment, management and UN coordination. As a result, 17knowledge exchange agreements19 were signed by 14countries and four knowledge products were selected toreceive resources and technical assistance for their adapta-tion to a regional scale. The winning products were theoutreach campaign developed by the Bolivia CountryOffice to disseminate the Human Development Reportand the MDG localization toolkit developed by theEcuador Country Office.

The fourth regional project, entitled Youth Leaders for

Good Governance, was designed to mobilize Caribbeanyouth and build on their existing talent. This initiative wasthe first of its kind in the Caribbean region. It sought topromote sustained dialogue and engagement on criticalgovernance issues with the ultimate aim of encouragingtransformation of governance arrangements at the eco-nomic, political, social, institutional and constitutional levels in the Caribbean region. Young persons were target-ed because they represent 30 percent of the region’s population (World Bank, 2003) and by nature have signifi-cant energy, talent and resolve and are the future of their

countries. The six-month project resulted in a cadre ofyoung leaders with enhanced skills to participate in and have a real impact on governance. They have beenmotivated to be change agents in their communities,encouraged to demand accountability and action fromtheir governments, and given assistance in becomingactive participants in national and regional developmentissues that are key to reducing poverty.

A total of 36 youths—21 female and 15 male—from 14countries in the region participated in the programme.They represented Anguilla (1); Antigua and Barbuda (2);Barbados (2); Belize (1); Dominica (2), Grenada, Carriacouand Petit Martinique (2); Guyana (4); Jamaica (5); Montser-rat (1); St. Kitts and Nevis (2); St. Lucia (2); St. Vincent andthe Grenadines (3); Suriname (4); and Trinidad and Tobago(5). Participants represented indigenous groups, tradeunions, political parties, different ethnicities, the disabilitycommunity and rural as well as urban areas.

Participants in the project first benefited from a four-dayworkshop with intense learning on Caribbean governancechallenges, transformative leadership, advocacy and participation in policy development, and gender and gov-ernance. At the end of the workshop participants were

Launch of the handbook on democratic dialogue

19 Agreements made between different participants at the fair to cooperate and exchange knowledge in a particular area after the fair.


aware that despite the many differences in the regionthere were indeed similarities. There was also the recogni-tion of the need to work as a group of young people insolidarity to make changes at both the local level andregional levels. Participants learned several fundamentallessons, including the fact that governance is not aboutparty politics but about participation of all members in thesociety. This principle was to be applied to their communi-ties and their organizations. They also were urged to rec-ognize that change does not come overnight and thateach of them can make a difference once they developproper strategies, are precise in their advocacy, and buildupon their networks.

Participants all expressed confidence in their ability tomove forward and participate in the online component ofthe course, which models UNDP’s Virtual DevelopmentAcademy approach. This online networking is an initialstep in the establishment of a first ever regional network

of young people dealing with governance issues in theregion, which will extend beyond the life of the project. It isexpected that online networking will facilitate continuousengagement and communication among participants.20

A key reason for the project’s success is a partnershipestablished with the University of the West Indies, the old-est and most reputable tertiary level education institutionin the region; the university worked closely with UNDP todesign and develop the training modules. In addition to itsclose linkage to academic institutions in the region, theproject has worked in synergy with other regional initia-tives to develop modules based on the knowledge accu-mulated by the regional projects and fits into CARICOM’syouth development strategy for the region.

The fifth regional project was implemented by the Region-al Bureau for Arab States (RBAS) and was titled Arab Youth

and Human Rights Portal and CD. This DGTTF projectsupported the creation of content for a Web site in Arabicon human rights and active citizenship (www.resp-act.net),a site that uses simple language and formats such as FAQsand tables that make it much easier to understand. Eventhough the portal was still in its beta version and not for-mally launched as of June 2008, it already has more than200 members—the majority active Arab youth eager toparticipate in online discussions and collaborative projectson human rights–based development. Several activitiesare planned for 2008, including at least two regional youthcamps. The activities will be based on the content createdwith DGTTF support.

2.3 Global activitiesIn 2007, the Global Window of DGTTF funded the activitiesof the Oslo Governance Centre, the Annual GlobalDemocratic Governance Practice Meeting (‘Making theDemocratic Governance Practice deliver on the newStrategic Plan’), the elaboration of the 2nd DGTTF Webapplication, a comprehensive strategic evaluation ofDGTTF, and the Portuguese translation and printing of the2007/2008 Human Development Report.

2.3.1 Oslo Governance CentreThe overarching purpose of the work of the OsloGovernance Centre (OGC)21 is to position UNDP as a leaderin promoting democratic governance, both as an end initself and as a means to achieve the MDGs.

20 The Web site that facilitates this networking is www2.sta.uwi.edu/undpyouth/21 See www.undp.org/oslocentre/


http://www.resp-act.net

http://www.undp.org/oslocentre


Box 20. Snapshots from the Oslo GovernanceCentre’s key achievements in 2007

Governance assessments and indicators outreach. Three events were organized by OGC’s GovernanceIndicators project: i) a global governance indicators workshop hosted by OGC and InWEnt (Capacity BuildingInternational) for 22 UNDP Country Offices, national counterparts and donors on methods and processes forassessing democratic governance at the national level; ii) a regional governance indicators workshop inBangkok (Thailand) facilitated by OGC and the Regional Service Centre for 15 UNDP Country Offices andexperts on methods and processes for assessing democratic governance, with a particular focus on the Asiaand the Pacific region; and iii) the Bergen seminar on governance assessments, organized by OGC and theChr. Michelsen Institute in Bergen (Norway), for more than 80 participants representing UNDP CountryOffices, partner governments, bilateral donors, CSOs and academics. The seminar focused on governanceassessments in the context of the Paris Declaration. It complemented ongoing OECD/DAC discussions on thisissue by providing an international forum to bring in the voices of developing country partners as well as toexpand the focus of governance assessments beyond donor-driven approaches, thus emphasizing theimportance of nationally driven governance assessments22.

Conflict and governance. OGC contributed to the design and delivery of the 10th JPO workshop ongovernance and conflict prevention, held in Bangkok (Thailand) in November 2007. Twenty-seven juniorprofessional officers (JPOs) participated in the workshop, which was organised by the UNDP JPO ServiceCentre in Copenhagen (Denmark), with the objective of providing participants with a better understandingof the conceptual and practical linkages between governance and conflict prevention. In collaboration withUNDP DGG in New York, OGC also organised a workshop in Oslo on local government in post-conflictsettings, bringing together UNDP staff and national counterparts from countries emerging from armedconflicts to discuss challenges and opportunities for improving the capacities of local governments indelivering services and strengthening decision-making at the local level.23

Fellowship programme. In 2007, three papers were produced by UNDP staff participating in the fellowshipprogramme. Serge Yapo from UNDP Côte d’Ivoire wrote about the role of local governance to foster humansecurity in post-conflict contexts. Jing Li from UNDP China wrote about developing a monitoring frameworkfor the Chinese version of the MDGs through governance indicators. Finally, Paola Pagliani from UNDP Serbiaexamined the use of the inter-agency communication for development methodology, based on nationalMDG targets to empower socially excluded groups in Serbia.24

Democratic governance training online. In July 2007, an online project was launched consisting of a menu of courses covering three of UNDP’s main service areas in democratic governance: human rights, anti-corruption, and gender and governance. Courses on i) access to information; ii) civic engagement; iii) electoral systems and processes; iv) public administration reform; v) parliamentary development; vi) justice systems; vii) local governance and decentralization; viii) and governance and conflict preventionwere produced throughout 2007 and will be launched in 2008. All courses are self-paced and will beavailable on the OGC and the UNDP’s Learning Resources Centre Web sites. The online project wasdeveloped collaboratively by UNDP’s Learning Resources Centre, OGC and UNDP colleagues.25

HuriTalk26. The year 2007 saw a growing membership of HuriTalk UN wide. As well as the regular service ofqueries, consolidated replies and monthly updates provided by HuriTalk, in 2007 a new ‘Insights’ series

22 For more on the governance indicators project, see: www.undp.org/oslocentre/flagship/governance_indicators_project.html23 For more information, see OGC’s Web page on governance and conflict prevention: www.undp.org/oslocentre/overview/governance_conflict_prevention.html24 All of the papers are posted on the OGC Web site: www.undp.org/oslocentre/flagship/democratic_governance_fellowship_programme.html25 For more information on learning and capacity development, see: www.undp.org/oslocentre/overview/learning_capacity_development.html26 See: www.undp.org/oslocentre/flagship/huritalk.html

http://www.undp.org/oslocentre/flagship/governance_indicators_project.html

http://www.undp.org/oslocentre/overview/governance_conflict_prevention.html

http://www.undp.org/oslocentre/flagship/democratic_governance_fellowship_programme.html

http://www.undp.org/oslocentre/overview/learning_capacity_development.html

http://www.undp.org/oslocentre/flagship/huritalk.html



Box 20. continued

initiative entitled ‘Civil Society Voices on Human Rights and Development’ was launched. This initiative, witharticles from CSOs in Argentina, Peru, Benin and Kenya aimed to inspire and encourage members in applyinga human rights-based approach (HRBA) in their work and to promote an understanding of what thisapproach entails in practice. HuriTalk also launched an e-discussion from May to June 2007 on “How tostrengthen engagement with the international human rights machinery?”The e-discussion focused on twoof the main pillars of the international human rights machinery: Treaty Bodies and Special Procedures. Itexplored how development actors could support national actors to engage with these mechanisms; andhow they can most effectively use their processes and recommendations to impact national policy andcountry programming. It received a large number of responses from diverse regions, types of countries andUN agencies. Based on the input received during the course of the e-discussion, HuriTalk began drafting a‘Web-based Guide’ on how to engage with the human rights machinery.27

Primer and portal on human rights and MDGs. Following the 2006 HuriTalk discussion on human rights andthe MDGs, two complementary tools have been designed to support development practitioners to effectivelylink human rights and the MDGs. The Primer “Human Rights and the MDGs- Making the Link” provides aconceptual overview of the links between human rights and the MDGs and explores the key questions thatpractitioners face in this area. The Web portal: HuRiLink (www.hurilink.org) is an online tool that includesinformation and observations on the experiences and challenges that practitioners face when striving to linkhuman rights and the MDGs in their work. It features lessons learned, common challenges, tools and resources.

Missions to Country Offices and Regional Centres. It is not the primary role of OGC to provide direct supportto UNDP Country Offices, but rather to offer knowledge products and/or support through the Regional ServiceCentres. However, in some cases OGC is being specifically requested to offer support or to participate inmissions, and to support particular initiatives of a strategic importance. In 2007 some of the outreach involvedmissions to Madagascar on land issues, Tunisia on national ownership of governance indicators, Zambia on itsgovernance assessment process, Afghanistan on the justice system, China on measuring governance, Egypt oncivil society strengthening, Mozambique on communication for empowerment, Cambodia on anti-corruptionand The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia on public governance surveys.

27 See: www.hurilink.org/hrmachinery/28 The Global Programme is the backbone of UNDP’s work. It connects UNDP’s 135 Country Offices, six Regional Centres and three Thematic Centres, enabling

them to work together more collectively and coherently across the world. It is the channel that enables UNDP to learn from experience on the ground andapply it to global policy debates, while helping our developing country partners through our Country Offices to interpret, draw from and contribute to globaland regional initiatives. In September 2008, UNDP will be seeking approval for the fourth Global Programme from its Executive Board.

Box 21. Formative assessment of the Oslo Governance Centre

A formative assessment of OGC will be undertaken in 2008. This evaluation is primarily a strategic, forward-looking assessment to provide lessons and recommendations to BDP and DGG in particular for positioningand improving OGC in promoting democratic governance for human development. The evaluation willinform the strategic positioning (reinforce and/or change the present mandate) of a thematic centre like OGCin the context of the new UNDP Strategic Plan (2008–2011), the BDP change management process and theGlobal Programme28 being prepared for presentation at the September 2008 meeting of UNDP’s ExecutiveBoard. The evaluation will build on the findings of the GCF-III evaluation being presented to the ExecutiveBoard in June 2008, and the DGTTF evaluation (finalized in May 2008).

http://www.hurilink.org

http://www.hurilink.org/hrmachinery


As a global UNDP thematic facility, OGC has a special focuson addressing new and emerging areas of democratic gov-ernance and in developing the capacity of UNDP’s front-line staff to address these new challenges. OGC’s workfocuses on knowledge management and the developmentof knowledge products; policy advice and technical support to Country Offices; partnership development;capacity development; and advocacy and outreach. Itworks with leading policy and research institutions in different parts of the world.

In 2007, OGC continued to strengthen its work on ‘flagship’activities like the Governance Indicators project, communi-cation for empowerment as part of the access to informa-tion’s broader agenda, the Fellowship Programme, the UN-wide Human Rights Policy Network (HuriTalk), and theBergen Seminars. OGC also hosted several workshops andseminars in Oslo (Norway) and participated in planningand implementation of others elsewhere, with participantscoming from UNDP Country Offices, other UN agencies,research institutions, CSOs and bilateral donors.

2.3.2 Annual Global Democratic Governance Practice Meeting

Another important global activity funded by DGTTF in2007 was the Annual Global Democratic Governance Practice Meeting, held in Bratislava, Slovak Republic in June 2007. The practice meeting focused on the followingtheme: Making Democratic Governance Practice Deliver on the New Strategic Plan. Building upon the experiencederived from previous years, and a series of planning meet-ings leading up to the event, the 2007 event aimed to:

■■ generate a better understanding of the UNDPStrategic Plan (2008–2011), specifically the three key results areas for the democratic governancepractice—facilitating inclusive participation,strengthening responsive and accountable govern-ing institutions, and grounding democratic gover-nance in international principles;

■■ elaborate the content of each of the three keyresults areas under democratic governance, alignand prioritize initiatives at the global and regionallevels, and discuss how to implement the three clusters of work in support of the larger democraticgovernance practice;

■■ consider DGTTF’s organizational and managerialstructure in the context of ongoing UN reforms; and

■■ deepen teamwork, staff motivation, and profession-al development by strengthening the core group ofthe democratic governance community of practiceacross the entire UNDP.

The meeting included a mix of activities in plenary andsmaller workgroups to present and discuss the future direc-tion, organization and priorities of UNDP and the Bureau forDevelopment Policy; to consider global-regional alignmentof priorities; and to foster learning through the conduct of apolicy analysis workshop. For the second year in a row, theannual meeting included a knowledge fair designed to facil-itate knowledge exchange among regions. The last day ofthe event opened up to external partners through a half-day moderated session discussing issues surrounding chal-lenges to pursuing the ‘delivering as one’ reform agenda.Partners from various UN agencies participated, includingUNODC, the Office of the High Commissioner on HumanRights, the UN Capital Development Fund, Austrian Devel-opment Cooperation, and internal stakeholders from theJoint UN Office in Cape Verde and the UNDP DominicanRepublic Country Office.

2.3.3 DGTTF evaluationDGTTF was evaluated in 2007, based on OECD/DAC criteriaof effectiveness, sustainability, relevance and efficiency,and in accordance with the guidelines and standardsaimed at ensuring the independence of the process andoutcome. The main objectives of the evaluation were to:

■■ assess the results achieved by DGTTF against its objectives;

■■ assess the relevance of the fund and its strategic positioning vis-à-vis other similar fundswithin UNDP;

■■ assess the efficiency of the fund’s managementprocesses; and

■■ distil important lessons learned and identify areasfor improving the results, approach and processes.

The evaluation team’s primary data collection includedinterviewing more than 100 persons from UNDP’s NewYork office as well as Regional and Country Offices, donors,counterparts from governance institutions and beneficiar-ies of the projects. The team also conducted a survey(May–June 2007) of members of UNDP’s democratic gover-nance network; analysed all Annual and Mid-Term ProjectReports; and carried out eight country cases studies.


Overall, the results of the evaluation indicate that DGTTFhas been successful as a ‘venture capital fund’, promotinginnovation in an area of development where it is bothnotoriously hard to make progress and extremely impor-tant to do so. The successes have often been characterizedby the involvement of the counterpart governance institu-tions in the design of the innovation and by an implemen-tation period longer than DGTTF’s one year. The successfulinnovations have almost always led to major programmesof reform and capacity development, supported not onlywith UNDP core funding but even more often by otherdonors and the governments concerned.

The greatest weakness of DGTTF identified has been thatUNDP in general and the Democratic Governance practicein particular, the Regional Service Centres and CountryOffices, as well as DGTTF’s donors, could have learned muchmore from successful and unsuccessful projects, if appropri-ate procedures and mechanisms had been put in place.

A key underlying recommendation is that DGTTF can play an even more important role as a sponsor ofinnovation in democratic governance, as well as assuringalignment of UNDP results across democratic governanceinterventions. That objective would best be achieved bytaking advantage of UNDP’s multi-donor status, reputationfor objectivity and good relations with governments andgovernance institutions, as well as an increased level ofsupport from its donors across the range of interventions.This would entail a redesign of DGTTF to reflect thefindings of the evaluation as well as opportunitiespresented by the UNDP Strategic Plan (2008–2011) tofurther integrate and innovate in democratic governanceareas of focus.

2.3.4 2nd generation DGTTF Web application

In 2002, UNDP developed an open source Web-basedapplication to access the database of Thematic Trust Funds(TTFs) and to facilitate the day-to-day responsibilities ofthe DGTTF Management Team. That applicationunderwent a significant revision in 2006, reflectingchanges in the DGTTF’s workflow and management. Theresulting application now serves as the main instrumentfor management, oversight and reporting of DGTTFactivities each year. A large number of lessons weregleaned from this process, and in 2007 DGTTF

management initiated another round of revisions toenhance the user experience and make the fund’soperations smoother for all stakeholders. The revisions,which are likely to be ongoing throughout much of 2008,have a twofold purpose: i) the Web tool is being updatedto reflect the organizational changes and keep DGTTF inline with the new UNDP Strategic Plan (2008–2011), and ii) the Web tool’s interfaces and features are beingenhanced to make the client experience more user-friendly. The efficiency gains achieved from theseenhancements will allow the management team to devotemore time to client service and substantive project issues.With an increase in client awareness of DGTTF and itsoperating principles and strategies, it is expected thatthese changes will result in more consistent and timelyreporting from Country Offices and a decrease in theamount of administrative intervention required as aproject moves through the workflow steps prior toimplementation.

2.3.5 Portuguese version of the HumanDevelopment Report 2007/2008

Since 1990, UNDP has commissioned an independentteam to prepare Human Development Reports (HDRs) andsupported their annual publication and promotion. HDRshave become an essential toolfor policy makers, develop-ment professionals, NGOs, academics, and the public ingeneral. The Government ofPortugal has been supportingthe translation of the reportinto Portuguese for more than a decade. Since 2005, Portugal’s support to thisprocess has been channelledthrough DGTTF.

The Portuguese translationand printing of the HDR makesthe report more accessible toLusophone audiences. The seven Portuguese-speakingcountries extend across four continents—Angola, CapeVerde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, and Sao Tome andPrincipe in Africa; Timor-Leste in Asia; Brazil in SouthAmerica; and Portugal in Europe—and have a combinedpopulation of more than 200 million people.


29 Both the full text and the executive summary can be downloaded for free from the HDRO/UNDP Web site http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr2007-2008/chapters/portuguese/.

http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr2007-2008/chapters/portuguese


In 2007, some 3,500 Portuguese-language copies of theHuman Development Report 2007/2008 on climatechange (‘Fighting Climate Change: Human solidarity in adivided world’) were printed and distributed in thoseseven countries, along with 2,000 copies of its executivesummary.29

Launched two weeks before the Bali conference on climatechange, the 2007/2008 HDR made a big impact on theinternational debate on the topic, urging political leadersand people in wealthy nations to acknowledge theirhistoric responsibility for the problem and to initiate deepand early cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. More broadly,the report argues that climate change challenges theentire human community to undertake prompt and strongcollective action to put the world on a sustainable carbonemissions pathway.

The Portuguese-language version of the report waslaunched in Brasilia (Brazil) on 27 November 2007. Theevent was attended by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lulada Silva; Kemal Dervis5 , UNDP administrator; and KevinWatkins, lead author of the report and the director of theHDR Office.

The report was also launched that same day in Lisbon(Portugal). João Gomes Cravinho, Portugal’s secretary ofstate for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, and ManuelCorreia, president of the Portuguese Institute of Supportto Development (IPAD), chaired the event, which wasattended by governmental representatives, NGOs,academics, representatives of several CSOs, and media. Onthe same day in the afternoon, the report was alsopresented to the Portuguese parliament and theCommission for Municipalities, Environment, and SpatialPlanning. Portuguese UNDP officials Isabel Maria MedalhoPereira and Pedro Conceição presented the report at bothevents. The latter was recorded by the parliament’s cableTV channel and broadcast in Portugal several times duringthat week. More generally, media coverage of the report inPortugal has been very prominent and widespread: radio,TV and newspapers covered the launch and the mainmessages of the report.


In 2007, DGTTF projects faced several challenges withimplementation, ranging from administrative problems todifficult operational conditions due to armed conflict orother exceptional circumstances. As mentioned in Section2.3.3, DGTTF was evaluated in 2007.30 This year’s analysisof the 96 Annual Project Reports (APRs) submitted forregional and country-level projects support the challengesand lessons from the DGTTF evaluation. The mainchallenges and lessons are as follows:

Innovative and catalytic projects1. Linking together innovation with catalytic impact

through DGTTF is very much in line with the

UNDP Strategic Plan’s assertion that “UNDP will

not support small-scale projects with no country-

wide impact.” It is worth noting, however, thecorollary of the opening sentence in the DGTTFevaluation: half the projects were not, as they aresupposed to be, innovative. There is a generalperception on the part of some CO staff, regionalPolicy Advisors and New York–based Policy Advisorsthat too many projects are not truly innovative. Toooften DGTTF funds have been used to carry outprojects that could be labelled ‘governance’ but arenot particularly strategic or innovative and have notmobilized additional funds. Steps are being takenby the Allocation Commission to ensure that onlytruly innovative projects will be selected from 2008onward. Clearer and more stringent standards forinnovation have been shared with COs and arebeing applied henceforward. All 2008 projects thatreceived excellent or very good scores (49 percentof the total number of applications) from the BDPpolicy advisors have been approved by theAllocation Commission. They made up $13.4 millionout of the $16 million available for CO projects.

2. Successful innovative and catalytic projects play

an important role in positioning UNDP in the

donor community and in defining its relationship

with governance institutions. In about one quarterof the projects reviewed in the country studies bythe DGTTF evaluation team, the CO has been able to

take on a leadership role in some major democraticgovernance projects as a result of successfulinnovative DGTTF projects. In some cases theseprojects have addressed politically sensitive issues.

3. Many of the successful innovative and catalytic

projects have involved early consultations with

the government. Such projects have resulted fromdiscussions between government and UNDP, andalso the donor community in some cases, wellbefore the expressions of interest (EOIs) have beencalled for. However, staff at some COs avoid suchconsultations until after their project proposals havebeen approved by the Allocation Commissionbecause they fear disappointing their governmentor governance institution counterpart.

Projects’ one-year time limit4. The one-year time limit and fixed schedule often

result in projects not being as effective as they

might be in terms of testing an innovation and

laying the basis for scaling up. This was by far themost common complaint of the staff responding tothe 2007 survey and the CO staff visited during thecountry studies. Half of the Annual Project Reports(APRs) indicated ‘progress below target’; seventyfive percent of those attributed limited success to the time constraints. Forty percent of thoseresponding to the survey said that they were unableto complete their projects in one year. Because of delays, in particular in obtaining governmentapproval (about one third of APRs reporting‘performance below target’ give this as the mainreason), the activities of the average project mustbe implemented in the last five months of the year.

Funding for individual projects 5. Many think that the funding actually allocated

to the individual projects is too small to test

innovations that might be catalytic. Few projectsreceive the funding the applicants believe isnecessary for the project to succeed in meeting itsobjectives. As stated previously, most do not

OVERALL CHALLENGES AND LESSONS LEARNED3.

30 The DGTTF Evaluation Report is available at www.undp.org/governance/ttf.htm

http://www.undp.org/governance/ttf.htm


achieve their targets. The average size of approvedprojects in 2007 was $112,000—less than half theaverage application size ($236,000)—and theaverage size of approved projects has been fallingover time. Instead of fully funding fewer, perhapslarger projects that might be more truly innovativeand catalytic, the selection process has favouredgiving three quarters of CO applicants somesupport, often in the form of a smaller budget (andtherefore a smaller project) than they applied for.DGTTF management has already responded to thefunding issue by fully funding projects. All 2008projects that received excellent or very good scoresfrom the BDP Policy Advisors have been approvedby the Allocation Commission for full funding.

6. Many COs have responded to the partial funding

issue by topping up with TRAC funds or by

obtaining funding from other sources, usually

from other UN agencies. One third of all projectshave had supplemental funding. Some add thefunding in a second year, thus expanding theproject in terms of time of implementation. DGTTFcan therefore be regarded as a means throughwhich additional funds are mobilized for theinnovation the fund supports as well as, potentially,to scale up the innovation.

Sharing experiences7. A more effective sharing of experiences would

raise the quality of projects. Only 15 percent ofthose responding to the staff survey of the DGTTFEvaluation said there was significant sharing of theirexperiences with other COs, while only 12 percentsaid they benefited from such experiences. Few COstaff contacted in the country studies reported thatthey had learned of experiences from other COsthat might have helped them to identify opportu-nities in their own countries. Hardly any CO staffinterviewed during the country studies mentionedthe Oslo Governance Centre (OGC) as a source ofinformation, ideas or analysis of governance issues,even though OGC runs training courses for CO staffand OGC’s reports are available online. Many stafftold the team that OGC could play a stronger role inassembling, analysing and disseminating DGTTF-funded project experience. In response to this need,the Democratic Governance Group (DGG) work planfor 2008 has allocated resources to ensure a moresystematic codification and sharing of lessons and knowledge.

8. The knowledge management problems are

exacerbated by a failure to systematically evaluate

individual DGTTF projects. The APRs were notdesigned as evaluation documents, even thoughthey do request evaluative data from projectmanagers; instead, they are mainly reports onprogress to date. Moreover, the APRs lack objectivitysince they are prepared by the project officers. Insome cases the data are misleading. For example,despite the data noted above (point #4) on

‘performance below target’, APRs report that 83 per-cent of project outcomes were achieved. Somewhatillogically, APRs also report that 54 percent of out-puts were achieved. The APRs show that althoughover 90 percent of the APRs report that the projectswere catalytic, only one quarter actually attractedmore funds for additional activities. Even thisinformation on lessons learned, which the teamfound to be useful, is not very accessible to otherCO staff. Furthermore, such evaluations as areundertaken by Policy Advisors do not seem to havebeen widely shared. CO staff could use part of theDGTTF budget for the project to carry out evalua-tions of their projects, but they almost never do.

Support from regional Policy Advisors9. Staff in COs said they would like more support

from regional Policy Advisors to identify, prepare

and implement DGTTF projects. The staff in COstend to be well informed about their countries’governance problems, but many lack the experienceneeded to identify potentially innovative interven-tions that might make a difference. Many would alsoappreciate help in preparing projects, monitoringtheir implementation and addressing issues arisingduring implementation. There is a general percep-tion on the part of CO staff that the regional Policy

”“DGTTF can play an even more important

role as a sponsor of innovation in democraticgovernance […] by taking advantage of UNDP’smulti-donor status, reputation for objectivity andgood relations with governments.

— DGTTF Evaluation Report


Advisors do not have enough time to provide themany COs they are asked to serve with all the help needed.

Flexible timing for applications10. Some staff in COs and some of those who

responded to the survey feel that DGTTF should

have greater flexibility to respond to opportun-

ities when they arise and not only in accordance

with the current fixed schedule. The evaluationteam was given a number of examples of oppor-tunities that the COs were unable to respond tobecause of the fixed schedule for applications forDGTTF funding. Such instances often followed theelection of more reform-minded governments.

DGT TF as a source of ‘market’ information11. DGTTF can be a very useful device for measuring

changing demand for various aspects of demo-

cratic governance globally and regionally.

Efficiency12. Staff in COs, Regional Bureaux and at UNDP NY

in general support the current selection process.

Few in the COs complained about the AllocationCommission in New York selecting the projects tobe funded by DGTTF. Some did complain about the timing of the requests for expressions of interest(EOIs), coming as they do at the end of the year,which is a busy time administratively for allconcerned.

13. There were, however, many CO complaints about

the administrative burden of DGTTF projects.

Most of those contacted in the country studies complained about having to prepare a full ProjectDocument (ProDoc), a Mid-Term Report, and an APRat the end of the year for such small projects. At thesame time, however, the evaluation team foundmisconceptions about the true extent of the currentadministrative requirements. For example, manywere not aware of the fact that they need not pre-pare a full ProDoc if the DGTTF project is linked toan existing project—although it should be addedthat linking to another project could dilute the innovative nature of the DGTTF project. Moreover,the various documents can be prepared online andthe documentary requirements are much less exten-sive than used to be the case. It should be addedthat some staff in Country Offices agreed that allthis documentation is important and necessary and understand that many of the documentaryrequirements are those of UNDP, and are not uniqueto DGTTF.

Section 3: Overall challenges and lessons learned


The results of the recently concluded evaluation helpsUNDP position more effectively this important thematicfunding facility. Highlights of the proposed managementresponse to the DGTTF evaluation, discussed in this section, touch upon key issues.

Building on opportunitiesStrengthened focus on innovation. UNDP, and specificallythe management of the Democratic Governance Group,welcomes the recommendation to use DGTTF to positionUNDP as a supporter of innovation in its partner countries.

Building on efforts to re-emphasize innovation as the primary criteria for DGTTF funding at the launch of the2008 edition, DGG management in succeeding editionswill i) further fine tune how innovation in democratic governance can be defined, ii) recognize the diversity of contexts and countries in which UNDP is working, and iii) highlight stronger examples from actual DGTTF pro-jects. DGTTF will be positioned to demonstrate to governments, civil society and donors that UNDP is aninnovator in democratic governance at the country level,willing and able to test innovations that have the potentialto result in breakthroughs in the area of democratic gover-nance. In addition, the 2009 guidelines will introduce asection on risk management. If DGTTF will be engaging inmore difficult and sensitive interventions, COs should beprepared to take what might be perceived to be short-term risks in their relationships with governments in orderto reduce the longer-term risks associated with a failure toimprove democratic governance.

Flexibility and responsiveness. Consistent with the origi-nal intention, a key DGTTF priority will continue to be theprovisions of flexible resources to respond to emergingcountry demands in democratic governance. A proposalfor allocation to Regional Service Centres, which will bederived from the 30 percent component of the Global Window, is consistent with this intention. This proposalalso builds in the capacity for better knowledge manage-ment and monitoring and evaluation (M&E), which is elaborated in the next paragraph.

Emphasis on knowledge codification and cross-regional

learning. DGG agrees with the evaluation team’s recom-mendation to strengthen the learning from both success-ful and unsuccessful (or even failed) projects. DGG willrespond at three levels, by i) integrating this role as part of

the Oslo Governance Centre (OGC) mandate; ii) ensuringresearch capacity at DGG headquarters to undertake moresystematic research analysis and monitoring of DGTTFprojects; and iii) allocating resources at the regional levelto fulfil this function. The lessons from DGTTF projects will be communicated and widely disseminated using arange of vehicles, including: i) annual DGTTF reporting and improved annual reports, including case studies; ii) DGPNet discussions on lessons learned; iii) dedicatedsessions at the annual global practice meetings and otherappropriate regional fora; iv) participation in internationalconferences on democratic governance, and v) publica-tions on innovation in democratic governance.

Build M&E systems. Recognizing DGTTF’s inherentweakness in M&E, DGG management will integrate arequirement to evaluate at least 10 percent of totalprojects funded per year, starting with projects funded in2005. Project budgets would need to factor in costs ofevaluation, estimated at 5-10 percent of total expenses. Inaddition, DGG management will work on establishing anappropriate development results framework for DGTTF,clarifying outcome targets, indicators and benchmarks.This will be consistent with the UNDP Strategic Plan(2008–2011) DRF and the new Global Programme.

Non-earmarking. DGG management supports the recom-mendation to encourage non-earmarking of contributionsto DGTTF. Non-earmarking is the most effective way forDGTTF to fulfil its goals of being responsive and fosteringgenuine innovation on the ground.

CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE PLANS4.

”“Generally speaking, the results of the evaluation

indicate that DGTTF has been successfulas a venture capital fund promoting innovationin an area of development where it is bothextremely important to make progress andnotoriously hard to do so.

—DGTTF Evaluation Report


Timing of call for proposalsThe DGTTF evaluation recommended timing changes: twocalls for EOIs each year, a single call in the middle of theyear, or one of those options plus having some fundingunallocated so that emerging opportunities can beresponded to quickly at any time during the year. DGGmanagement believes that a single call in the middle ofthe year would be sufficient and would reduce the end-of-year pressure on staff and likely improve the quality ofproposals. Continuing to have a single call makes sense,especially in the light of the proposal to allocate some flexible funding to the Regional Service Centres.

Clarification on regional allocationsTo assure responsiveness to emerging opportunities andenhance knowledge generation and technical support, it isproposed to establish annual allocations to the six newlyconstituted Regional Service Centres. In 2008, roughly$1.75 million is available from the Global Window (onethird of total available for use at the global level) to sup-port the Regional Service Centres. Based on the principleof equal support to all regions, an amount of $291,667 foreach of the six centres will be made available. The baselinecriteria for use of the regional allocation are:

■■ focus on demonstrating innovation in areas ofdemocratic governance that have particularregional significance;

■■ provide flexibility in responding to emergingdemands in democratic governance by CountryOffices in the region; and

■■ allow regional policy advisers to play a stronger rolein codifying lessons learned, best practices andimprove knowledge management (for scaling up to global exchange and to feed back in to policyadvise), as well as M&E of country projects

Looking forwardDGG has an ambitious agenda for the second generationof DGTTF programming. It recognizes an importantresponsibility to shape DGTTF as a funding mechanismthat encompasses not only the grant-making functions inresponse to country demand, but at the same time theneed to be able to balance this with a stronger anticipa-tion of global issues that affect national interventions. Thevision for the second-generation DGTTF is one that retainsand strengthens the response to demand and countryinnovation (the current model) but at the same time factors in all the other global thematic programmes indemocratic governance that shape the ‘supply’ of UNDPservices in this practice (global advocacy). The link thatbridges both country innovation and global advocacy willbe knowledge, which will loop from the country to theglobal and back to the country level.

Section 4: Conclusions and future plans


INTERIM FINANCIAL REPORT5.2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 TOTAL

TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS 9,158,854 13,827,953 11,687,641 16,717,669 17,193,713 19,167,540 14,419,883 102,173,253

LESS: 5% GMS 5,108,663

TOTAL FUNDS AVAILABLEFOR PROGRAMMING(2001–2007)

97,064,590

LESS: EXPENDITURE(2001–2007) 18,479,095 12,019,994 8,630,871 14,156,965 14,219,971 15,768,153 83,275,049

BALANCE AVAILABLE FORPROGRAMMING 2008 13,789,541

GOVERNANCE OPEN THEMATIC TRUST FUND: GROSS CASH RECEIPTS BY YEAR (IN US$ AS OF DECEMBER 31)


ANNEX A: 2007 DGTTF COUNTRY AND REGIONAL PROJECTS

APPROVED BUDGET

COUNTRY TITLE PROPOSED OUTCOMES REPORTED RESULTS

$80,000 Lao PDR Enhancinggovernmentpartnershipswith socialorganisations for povertyreduction

Strengthen civil societyparticipation in local andnational development

Organized high level awareness-raising workshops with experts from China, Vietnam,Cambodia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka on the importance of civil society organizations (CSOs) in the country, which currently do not have any official status.Organised a study tour to China for government officials, one MP and other key actors toreview the regulatory framework and exchange experiences. Following these consulta-tions, the government has started to show a new political commitment to giving civilsociety a role in eradicating poverty and service delivery. As a result of the workshops, anofficial CSO Decree Drafting Committee has been set up. UNDP, in partnership with others,gave technical assistance to ensure that the decree is based on international best practicesand has input from CSOs in the Lao PDR.

$95,000 Malawi Promoting forafor public debate

Raise public awareness andincrease informed public par-ticipation in discussions ofnational interest, with partic-ular attention to governance,human rights and the MDGs

Brought national policy dialogue on important issues (fertilizer coupons, education, etc.)to the citizens of Malawi for their review and participation. Held two debates that werebroadcasted nationwide to promote dialogue between citizens and policy makers. Held a public interest campaign. Supported a national seminar on the right to develop-ment during the international human rights day.

$150,000 Mozambique Strengthen CSOs’capacity for aneffective andconstructive participation inMDGs planning

Support CSOs to participatemore effectively in policy dia-logue with government; andimprove the level and qualityof participation of communi-ties, civil society and the private sector in local gover-nance and service delivery

Provided a platform for CSOs to engage more effectively in policy dialogues that were formerly a domain of the State, by, among other measures, giving the access to best practices and tools that enable CSOs to put forward the needs of the population in policy-making and service delivery. Held two workshops for 32 participants from CSOs to expandevidence-based advocacy; Trained 27 trainers from all provinces in Mozambique who willassist CSOs nationwide to conduct evidence-oriented surveys in order to inform their work.Developed a communication strategy that will help CSOs to improve the quality of docu-ments they submit to the development observatories.

$100,000 RBLAC Capacity-build-ing for youthleaders for goodgovernance

To build capacity of youthleaders to assume a pro-active role across theregion in fostering good andinclusive governance

Developed four modules for a youth governance training programme in collaboration withthe University of the West Indies. The modules can be downloaded from the project's Website www2.sta.uwi.edu/undpyouth. Organized two face-to-face workshops for 36 youthleaders from political parties, youth groups, universities and other CSOs.

$100,000 RBLAC Democratic Dialogue: Pro-moting multi-stakeholder con-sensus buildingas a tool forstrengtheningdemocratic governance

Build capacity, create knowledge and interchangein the field of democraticdialogue

Launched, disseminated and distributed the Handbook on Democratic Dialogue worldwidein a print version and through the project’s Web site (www.democraticdialoguenetwork.org).In Bolivia, organized i) a workshop on negotiation and effective communications skills for 25 constituent women and technical advisors of the Assembly (in partnership withUNIFEM), ii) two conflict resolution trainings for 27 officials of the Vice-ministry ofCoordination with Social Movements and Civil Society (in partnership with FundaciónUnir), iii) a workshop on human communications at the Institute for Democratic CapacityBuilding for 16 members of Fundación Unir. In Mexico, designed a Capacity-BuildingProgram for Facilitating Democratic Dialogues and initiated a process to strengthen mech-anisms for national democratic dialogue, involving civil society, and to strengthen theircapacity to network. Convened the Generative Reflection Workshop in collaboration withthe Carter Center in Atlanta (USA) to assess the impact of democratic dialogues, bringingtogether 36 experts to reflect on how to improve the understanding and measurement of the impact of democratic dialogues, which resulted in useful guidelines and lay the foundation for the development of a democratic dialogue assessment methodologyIn Guatemala, i) produced and e-published a paper to systematize the impact of the multiparty dialogue process at the local level to develop shared departmental agendas;and ii) organized workshop on the role of political parties in policy-making and implemen-tation and the use of multi-stakeholder dialogue to support these processes, with 30 participants including politicians, analysts, officials and representatives from Bolivia,Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua and the Netherlands.

$50,000 Saudi Arabia Youth developmentand leadership

Enhance participation ofyouth and women in nationaldevelopment through strategies, policies and programmes targeting them

Developed the leadership skills of 150 young women and 50 men through two workshopsand two trainings on leadership. Eighty of those trained became in turn national trainers of other youth. Promoted through an open dialogue forum the awareness of MDGs, devel-opment and leadership for around 200 young people. These workshops and forums gener-ated recommendations on youth, national priorities, challenges and opportunities.

Civic engagement

http://www.democraticdialoguenetwork.org


APPROVED BUDGET


$100,000 Armenia Enhance citizenparticipation in electoralprocesses

Promote a democratic culture and enhance citizen participation in electoral processes

Conducted two rounds of community-based discussions with over 1,600 participantsbefore and after May 12, 2007 parliamentary elections in Armenia, which improvedcitizens’ understanding of electoral procedures and their responsibilities. Produced apublic service announcement on electoral complaint procedures, aired during theMay 12 parliamentary elections and through national and local TV stations during thePresidential Elections period (February 19, 2008). Produced the ‘Alphabet of Law’ civiceducation manual in cooperation with the American Bar Association for high schoolteachers that included major component on electoral rights. Presented suggestions forimprovement of the electoral processes in the “Voices of the People” report. The sugges-tions arose from the community-based discussions and were discussed with represen-tatives of the parliament, government and donor community. Supported a town hallmeeting on youth civic engagement and participation in electoral processes. Contributedto increased accessibility of precincts for voters with disabilities through construction oframps next to seven regional polling stations located in school buildings.

$150,000 Bhutan Capacity-buildingfor free and fairelections

Enhance institutional andhuman capacity of theElection Commission

Supported the printing and dissemination of voter education material, for example theBhutan Voter Guide. Procured electoral and office equipment for district election offices.Strengthened the capacity of the Election Commission through study visits and handson training during the local elections in India, which has contributed to the successful

conduct of the National Assembly elections, held in March 2008.

$105,000 Cambodia Strengtheningpartnerships for improvedelection processes

Improve enabling environ-ment and strengthen management capacity forfree and fair elections atnational and local levels

Supported civil society groups to engage with the National Election Committee to assistin its delivery of voter’ slips to registered voters, i.e., notices of polling information.Previously only commune councils and village chiefs delivered the slips, creating scope fora highly politicized process. Produced voter education materials to improve the public'sunderstanding of the importance of the voter information notice. Posters were producedand posted in communes throughout the country that explained the purpose of voterinformation notices; these notices indicate where individuals should go to vote but arenot a replacement of voter identification documents.

$80,000 Indonesia Analysis for theadvancement ofIndonesia’s localelections (pilkada)

Better understand the problems and challenges inlegal, institutions, as well astechnical and administrativeaspects of organizingand conducting pilkada(local direct elections)

Elaborated the Pilkada Study Report based on data collected by CSOs to propose policyrecommendations for the improvement of the conduct of direct local elections in nearlyhalf of the 500 regions in Indonesia in 2008.

$100,000 Mali Support toenhanced partici-pation in theelections of 2007

Enhance the efficiency of governing democratic institutions

Supported the political parties to be effectively represented in polling offices in accordance with the code of conduct which they subscribed. Supported civil society toparticipate in the election process. Enhanced the capacity of the media to report extensively on the election process.

$100,000 Pakistan Strengthen elec-toral processes to ensure greaterparticipation in Pakistan

Strengthen electoral processes and institutions toensure greater participation,particularly of women andthe poor

Increased awareness at grassroots level of women and members of socially excludedcommunities about electoral participation. Increased voter registration of women andsocially excluded people and improved their membership and role in political party activities

$300,000 Timor-Leste Support to the Timoreseelectoral cycle

Support for the NationalElection Commission

Supported the National Election Commission by training staff and providing all necessaryequipment for the operation of their district offices. Produced voter education materials incollaboration with the National Election Commission on the role of the commission andthe electoral process.

$220,000 UnitedRepublic ofTanzania

Enhancing thecapacity of persons with disabilities inTanzania foreffective politicalparticipation and action

Improve access to infor-mation on political processesand laws for persons withdisabilities and parliamen-tary endorsement to institu-tionalize sign language as amode of communicationwithin the parliament

Translated selected laws in Braille and disseminated them to key stakeholders. Developeda strategy to institutionalize sign language in parliament, now finalised and endorsed byparliament. Organized a country wide sensitization and advocacy campaign with multiplemedia (fliers, information booklets, t-shirts, drama and newspaper articles). Purchasedspecialized equipment on behalf of implementing partners.

Electoral assistance


Annex A. 2007 DGTTF country and regional projects

APPROVED BUDGET


$120,000 Bangladesh Enhancing accessto information andgovernment services throughCommunity-basede-Centres (CeC)

Contribute to advancingdemocratic governancethrough enhancing people'saccess to information

Developed a framework for sustainable telecenters and piloted CeCs in two areas. Trained50 infomediaries from various organizations. Developed a training manual. Conducted atraining on free/open source software for 50 participants. Developed and disseminated 75 minutes of animated content on agriculture, 500 pages of legal audio content and 75minutes of video content on local best practices.

$75,000 Bulgaria Increasing government transparency andaccountabilitythrough electronicaccess to information

Systemically and compre-hensively demonstrate inBulgaria the innovative useof ICT benefits and improvethe implementation of theAccess to Public InformationAct (APIA) through bettersupply of government-heldinformation

Assessed 411 public institution Web sites on how they publish information and the resultswere included in the annual report Access to Information in Bulgaria 2006; and dissemi-nated the report widely. Developed a model Web site to provide access to information ingovernment institutions; the site (www.aip-bg/model) also contains information thatinstitutions are obliged to publish. Built the capacity of civil servants on the electronicprovision of public information, finalized training programmes with project partners.Presented the model Freedom of Information (FOI) Web site to district and municipal officials around the country (six regions). Based on outcomes of the meetings, made recommendations to legislators concerning FOI advocates' amendments to APIA. Printedmore than 300 publications on FOI issues and broadcast nearly 100 TV and radio spots.Published and disseminated 12 monthly FOI newsletters to 1,000 electronic subscribers.Organized national public awareness campaign on the ‘Right to Know’ public information.Developed and disseminated posters, newsletters, Web site, leaflets and other promotion-al material. In addition, organized a Right to Know Day and awards ceremony for informa-tion activists.

$90,000 Cuba Support thegovernment inmanaging thepopulation's accessto public housingpermits and infor-mation in six muni-cipalities in Cuba

Enhance access to information in public housing services

Purchased ICT for six municipalities for the improvement of public housing services. Due to unforeseen changes in rules and regulations in Cuba for development projects in2007, the project incurred significant delay and has been extended in 2008.

$120,000 Moldova Electronic publicservices at local level

Assist Moldova in developingand piloting a new moderntool of local governance(online) to ensure local publicadministrations (LPAs) operate in a more effectiveand transparent manner

Designed a national framework to establish information access points (IAPs) withinlocal public administrations. Elaborated Web pages for eight pilot LPAs and implement-ed technical solutions for IAPs’ establishment and functioning. These eight LPAs nowhave capacities to administer IAPs and citizens have improved access to information atthe local level.

$100,000 SlovakRepublic

Support to localpartnerships inKosice region

Support local communities inwidening access to publicservices that are provided bythe Kosice self-governingregion

Developed four pilot electronic services that give free access to information such as locallegislation. Created the IT platform that enables the analysis of e-governance services andtrained service staff involved. Prepared seven information access points for public use andorganizations hosting the access point confirmed their commitment. Informed local com-munities of the services offered by the IT platform and how to use them; in addition, dis-tributed an information brochure and user guides. Established linkages with key partners.

$75,000 Syria Empowering youngjournalist inachieving theMillenniumDevelopment Goals(MDGs)

Empower young journaliststo actively participate in thedevelopment process andachievement of the MDGs

Supported a series of national debates among 190 young journalists on the attainment ofthe MDGs in Syria. The debates, conducted through a forum, brought together print, TV,photography and illustrative journalists to discuss the country's challenges towards theMDGs. Trained, in conjunction with the Global Media Forum, 50 journalists to report ondevelopment work and progress on the MDGs. In addition, laid ground work for a networkthat aims to educate the public on the MDGs. As a result of all these efforts, young jour-nalists developed advocacy materials to educate school children on the MDGs; the materi-al will be disseminated at the start of the school year in 2008.

E-governance, independent media and access to information

http://www.aip-bg/model


APPROVED BUDGET


$100,000 Afghanistan Public sectorcapacity devel-opment throughcoaching andadvisory servicesin Afghanistan

Strengthen governmentinstitutions at national andsub-national levels to gov-ern and ensure the deliveryof quality public services byimproving their capacities toperform core functions, suchas project design, finance,human resource manage-ment and procurement

Supported the deployment of coaches and advisors to provide on-the-job training tosenior and middle-level civil servants in selected ministries; limited capacity in publicservice continues to be a fundamental challenge to development in Afghanistan.Recruited 15 coaches (five funded by DGTTF) and deployed them in various ministrydepartments to support the government in strengthening financial management, procurement, human resources, policy formulation and project management.

$100,000 Albania A programme forthe consolidationof democracyand the estab-lishment of aninclusive marketeconomy inAlbania

Conduct a comprehensivediagnostic study for thelegalization of the informaleconomy (Phase 1)

Completed a diagnosis of how the Albanian economy and its institutional frameworkfunctions and the impact of ongoing reforms. The project helped the government accumulate the knowledge necessary to optimize its policy design, which will begin inthe project’s second phase.

$80,000 Azerbaijan Civil ServiceReform

Strengthening the opera-tional capacities of thenewly-formed Civil ServiceCommission (CSC) throughstrategic capacity-buildingand key civil service reform

Created and promoted a Web site (www.csc.gov.az) that provides information on civilservice entry procedures and opportunity for online applications. Trained five staffmembers of the CSC at the UNDP-supported E-Governance Academy in Estonia. Locallytrained CSC staff members on conduct of interviews for entry into civil service andwidely distributed brochures outlining entry procedures. Trained over 50 humanresources and other specialists from state entities in new recruitment and general management issues. Supported the preparation of the Civil Service Reform strategy.Helped improve access to the comprehensive up-to-date legal information on civil serv-ice by producing a collection of all normative and legal acts intended for use by humanresource managers in state structures. Conducted three waves of competitive recruit-ment examinations for 3,700 people applying for positions in 25 government entities.Created an examination hall for civil service entry tests to allow the shift from paper tocomputer-based exams. Institutionalized gender-disaggregated statistics on entry intothe civil service. Equipped the Civil Service Commission with furniture and computers.

$100,000 Bolivia Support for the creation ofthe PublicAdministrationObservatory

Promote efficiency and equity in the provision ofpublic services

Supported trimestrial political analysis of the economic situation and short-term andmid-term scenarios to facilitate decision-making for key actors, notably the Ministry ofthe Presidency, representatives of political parties and members of the ConstituentAssembly. Realized five national perception surveys about i) direct tax on hydrocarbons,ii) social conflicts between the regional and national governments, iii) income, andiv) two surveys on the new Constitution. Organized two workshops with the participa-

tion of the vice-ministry of decentralization, officials of the programme for institutionalreform and the vice-ministry of transparency and the fight against corruption, in orderto analyse the institutional vision regarding the implementation of the Public Adminis-tration Observatory. Due to the volatile situation in eastern part of the country, theproject incurred some delay in its implementation and has been extended in 2008 tofinalize the activities.

$100,000 Botswana Capacitystrengtheningfor district developmentplanning forpoverty reduction inBotswana

Improve capacity for designing and implement-ing poverty reduction strate-gies; improve capacity tomonitor poverty reductionprogrammes in accordancewith the MDGs; and informthe review of the DistrictPlanning Handbook.

Trained all district planners and policy makers (over 100) on how to use and adaptUNDP MDG tools and techniques for needs assessment and costing; Audited 16 districtreports on MDG needs assessment to ensure consistency and reliability. Developedinformation leaflets and brochures on MDGs targeting political leaders, public servants,civil society and local level planning structures. Completed nationwide MDG awarenesscampaign.

$175,000 Burundi Support localgovernance inthe province ofRutana

Promote democratic governance

Established six municipal commissions. Trained 69 ‘hill councils’ in planning strategiesand principles Elaborated and made available seven training handbooks and tools.Trained five trainers in planning strategies and principles. Trained 280 actors in prepar-ation of annual investment plans. Supported the elaboration of a statute on financialdevolution of resources. Supported the elaboration of two municipal developmentplans. Supported the elaboration of two annual investment plans. Initiated a system forself-monitoring and evaluation.

National, regional & local governance

http://www.csc.gov.az



APPROVED BUDGET


$170,000 CentralAfricanRepublic

Strengthen thecapacities forlocal governance

Prepare local authorities and decentralized structuresfor better management,resource planning, and participation of all actors atthe local level

Organized two workshops on local governance (at Bambari and Bangui) for approxi-mately 100 representatives of local authorities. Organized a study trip to Burkina Fasofor the high commissioner for decentralization and six mayors from the interior part ofthe country to exchange experiences. Strengthened capacities of radios in rural areas asa means to promote civic engagement at the local level. Organized a study trip to Nigerto exchange experiences for the heads of three local radio stations. Strengthened thecapacities of the association of mayors and the high commissioner for decentralizationby providing furniture and ICTs.

$75,000 El Salvador Strengtheningthe capacities ofconsumers andregulatory entities

Support mechanisms, strate-gies and programmes thatpromote a higher participa-tion of the private sector inhuman development

Analysed consumers' situation and perceptions, thereby establishing a baseline for theConsumer Protection Agency to measure its effectiveness and strengthen its role.

$75,000 FormerYugoslavRepublic ofMacedonia

Inter-municipalcooperation forefficient servicedelivery

Promote inter-municipalcooperation as an effectiveapproach to deliver publicservices and to support good governance for development

Developed the agreement on inter-municipal cooperation and submitted it for adoption by municipal councils. Carried out a comprehensive registration of the realestate of the taxpayers on territory of Brvenica and Caska (the pilot municipalities), in order to update taxpayers’ database. Organized a campaign to educate citizens on tax registration processes. Conceptualized IT solutions to enable easy transfer of data.

$130,000 Kyrgyzstan Transparentmunicipalfinances throughimproved localstatistics

Develop socio-economic indicators based on the MDGsand other strategic docu-ments; support increasedbudget transparency andbetter development planningin favour of vulnerablegroups; and build the capacity of local authoritiesin statistical literacy, localdata collection and analysis.

Reviewed local statistical methods for gaps and inconsistencies and recommended a set of indicators. Organized a total of eight roundtable discussions with various stakeholders to facilitate agreement on core local socio-economic indicators for self-governance. Organized data review, collection and verification in accordance withestablished indicators. Facilitated the integration by national counterparts of indicatorsinto inter-governmental finance, local budgeting and planning.

$80,000 Namibia Poverty reduc-tion throughalternative landtenure system

Reduce poverty throughalternative land tenure

Conducted community land information profiling and initial environmental impactstudies; also, alternative urban design solutions were investigated and presented to key role players for their input. Selected community activators and volunteers (18),trained them on issues of gender, HIV/AIDS and the environment, enabled them totrain trainers to determine community development needs, and provided them withskills for facilitation, needs prioritization and project proposal formulation. Facilitatedexchange visits to other urban areas in the country to expose role players on differentliving conditions. Facilitated learning from the Brazilian examples through interactionsand by viewing videos and supported visits to different types of housing developmentsin Windhoek and methods of urban planning for future settlements. Organized variousmeetings and workshops to address the issue of shortage of habitable settlements forthe urban poor; the town council and the Ministry of Regional and Local Government,Housing and Rural Development showed commitment to strengthen ongoing andplanned development activities. Achieved consensus on the development plan basedon a block system where the internal individual plots will be arranged by groups ofpeople living in particular Block Erf (Plot). Purchased two low-cost brick makingmachines from Brazil for the town council of Okahandja for the use by residents ofOshetu Informal Settlement Area, applying alternative and cheaper methods ofhousing construction.

$150,000 Nigeria Strengtheningpro-poor fiscalpolicy capacity atstate level

Boost responsive andaccountable public spendingand increase awareness andknowledge among the topbureaucrats to implementpro-poor fiscal policies, thuspositively affect the attain-ment of the MDGs

Organized a governors’ retreat for 100 high-level government officials from five partici-pating states (Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Kano, Lagos and Ondo) to sensitize them on theneed to use results based budgeting and results-based fiscal operations. Five paperswere presented by experts on fiscal policy reforms in Nigeria—in essence, the retreatraised awareness on the pro-poor fiscal policy development approach and processes.

National, regional & local governance (continued)


APPROVED BUDGET


$100,000 RBLAC Strategic Short-TermPolitical Analysisand ProspectiveScenarios forImprovedGovernance

Strengthen democratic governance mechanismsthrough capacity-building ofnational actors on politicalanalysis and scenario building techniques

Published the project's Web site (www.papep.org) with numerous documents. Printed 2,000 copies of the first publication produced by the initiative.

$69,000 RBLAC Knowledgeproducts fordecentralizedgovernancestrategies

Support LAC sub-nationalactors to follow-up and helpadvance the MDGs with localgovernance innovativemethodologies and tools

Operationalized the LAC workspace and made it available in Spanish and in English (see www.lac-workspace.undp.org.co, registration required)—the number of visitorsand information requests is steadily increasing. Supported the incorporation ofknowledge products in several CO decentralized governance strategies, notably an‘Integral Policy and Master Plan on Urban Security and Civic Culture’ in CuautitlanItzcalli (Mexico), in governance assessments in six provinces in Honduras and in twomunicipalities in El Salvador. Organized a short certificate course in Cuautiltan Itzcalli to develop capacities of local staff, police and other strategic actors of the city (150trainees in total). Organized four short certificate courses on citizen security and civicculture in collaboration with the Brazil CO for public servants and police officers fromseveral states and municipalities.

$130,000 Tajikistan Building nationalcapacities forimplementationof poverty alleviationstrategies

Enhance partnershipsbetween governments, civil society and the privatesector in local developmentplanning and the implemen-tation of projects

Trained district authorities and jamoat (local self-governing bodies) representatives in11 pilot districts on the designing of development plans; the draft district developmentplans are being elaborated in three districts, based on local priorities. Conducted sever-al roundtables in the 11 districts to share progress in implementation; putting the plansin place helped local government improve public services delivery. District officers weretrained in planning, budgeting and financial management through various workshops,including one for 220 representatives of the 11 pilot districts; NGOs and other keystakeholders also attended the trainings. A total 100 local council deputies attended afive-day training session on decentralization, civic participation and planning; the offi-cials will use the skills obtained to assist in creating more transparency and interactionof decision makers and community members.

National, regional & local governance (continued)

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APPROVED BUDGET


$95,000 Chad Strengtheningcapacities of theparliament

Strengthen capacity of theMPs and the parliamentaryadministration

Developed, validated and edited a strategic development plan for the parliament.Supported a system to archive all documents of the parliament. Organized a trainingfor the staff of the documentation centre. Provided a high-speed Internet connec-tion (V-Sat) to the parliament.

$70,000 Comoros Support tostrengthen thecapacity of theAssembly of theUnion (the parlia-ment) for greaterinvolvement in the attainment of MDGs

Assess the needs of theAssembly of the Union

Trained the presidents of the three main parliamentary commissions, the secretary-general of the assembly and his assistant in needs assessments. Produced a reporton previous support to the assembly and on strengths and constraints for furthersupport and organised a workshop to validate the reports. Collected all laws adopt-ed by the assembly from 1979 to 2005 and created a Web site (www.auc.km) topublish them. Created 53 e-mail addresses, all ending with auc.km, for the MPs (33)and the assembly staff (20).

$250,000 Guinea-Bissau

Strengthening the capacities ofthe parliamentwith ICTs

Strengthen the capacities of the parliamentarians and the parliamentaryadministration

Established a multi-media centre for the parliamentarians and the parliamentaryadministration and trained them in the use of ICTs. Created a documentation centreand legislative library, which provides specific services to parliamentarians.

$70,000 Kazakhstan Strengtheninglegislative andoversight capacitiesof the parliamentby supporting the

establishment ofthe Institute forParliamentaryDevelopment

Strengthen the parliamentto perform its functionsmore effectively at both central and regional levels

Supported the establishment of the Institute for Parliamentary Development (IPD).Strengthened the capacity of CSOs in legislative processes through i) four regionalworkshops for 40–50 participants apiece—the participants represented all 14oblasts (provinces) of the republic, leading to development of the IPD concept andthen its establishment; and ii) two pilot Web portals developed and published intwo oblasts within the project to promote dialogue between civil society and localrepresentative bodies. These were conveyed to the oblast maslikhats (representativeassemblies) to ensure sustainability of their use and administration. Newly electedmembers of the oblast, city and rayon maslikhats were trained on the use of theaforementioned Web portals.

$90,000 Maldives Support to the constitutionalreview process inthe Maldives

Enhance the capacity ofnational institutions andstakeholders to develop,manage and engage in theconstitutional review process

Provided technical assistance to assist the Constitutional Assembly during thedrafting, review and finalization of the Constitution, which was finalized except the

last chapter on transitional arrangements. Gave technical assistance to the referen-dum committee of the Special Majlis during the design of the public referendum todetermine the system of governance for inclusion in the Constitution. Conducted aseminar for the entire Special Majlis to discuss and raise awareness on rights and liberties. Created awareness through media interviews and public lectures of theprovisions included in the draft Constitution.

$100,000 Mauritania Strengthen thecapacities of theparliament

Improve the quality of parliamentary work

Organized a round of trainings for senators on general topics and with specific sup-port during the budgetary session. Supported elected women to assume leadershiproles in the two chambers. Supported the drafting of important working documents,notably i) a guiding note on ICT in the Senate, ii) a manual for senators, and iii) a parliamentary development strategy for the two chambers.

$75,000 Paraguay Paraguayan budget processstrengthening

Enhance the budget appro-val, control, and evaluationprocess and a dialogueamong key stakeholders

Established new systems for budget information, control and evaluation for parliamentary budget commissions. Produced a report on gender budget analysis.

$150,000 Sao Tomeand Principe

Institutional support to theParliament

Strengthen public institu-tions in their reform and toassure transparent and equalapplication of the law

Drafted the text of four law proposals to be submitted to the National Assembly foradoption. Organized seminars and conferences for over 60 parliamentarians andparliamentary staff. Organized three debates with the participation of parliamen-tarians, parliamentary staff and sectoral high-ranking officials (in justice, publicadministration and education).

$50,000 United ArabEmirates

Strengthening thecapacity of the newFederal NationalCouncil in the UAE

Enhance responsiveness of the MPs to demands from the government andthe public and strengthenoversight functions

and engagement with civil society

Organized two trainings for 40 MPs on the ‘preparation and management of theparliamentary portfolio’ and ‘drafting and formulation of the parliamentary questionand answer sessions’ as part of a more comprehensive learning programme for MPsbased on a needs assessment completed in 2007. Familiarized MPs with the secondUAE MDG report during another training session emphasizing the importance toalign all national development policies with the MDGs. Established cooperationbetween parliamentarians from the Federal National Council (FNC) and from Canadaand Australia; two former speakers of the Canadian and Australian parliamentscontributed to specialized workshops to enhance capacity of the members of theUAE FNC. Supported the drafting of a FNC code of conduct for MPs.

Parliamentary development

http://www.auc.km


APPROVED BUDGET


$100,000 Algeria Women andaccess to legaland judicialinformation

Enhance access of womenand vulnerable persons to legal and judicial information

Strengthened capacities of pilot orientation centres in tribunals and courts of threeAlgerian cities to assist women and vulnerable people. Developed and disseminatedinformation tools on women’ rights and access to justice. Trained trainers and CSO leaders in human/women rights. Sensitized and mobilized senior government officialson women’s access to justice. Facilitated consultative dialogue on the amendments tothe family code.

$447,562 Central AfricanRepublic

Support the judicial systemand promotehuman rights forlegal security inthe interest ofdevelopment

Improve access to justice inthe rural zones of Kemo, laNana Gibizi, l'Ouham etl'Ouham Pende

Equipped four tribunals with office desks, furniture, registers, information technologyand generators. Expanded the national human rights NGO (Association of WomenJurists in Central Africa) in four ‘prefectures’. Trained village chiefs and new membersof the national human rights NGO in human rights standards. Equipped four townhalls with metallic cupboards and registers for birth, marriage and decease. Purchasedcars for travelling judges and motocross cycles for the clerks of four jurisdictions.Rehabilitated two tribunals.

$80,000 Costa Rica Bringing thepieces together:Towards a nation-al multisectoralsecurity, violenceprevention andpromotion ofpeace strategy

Strengthen institutionalcapacities to enhance thescope and improve theresponse of the Ministry of Pubic Security

Evaluated the institutional capacities of the Ministry of Public Security to improve itsfunctioning. Realised a national survey on citizen security and additional research atthe cantonal level. Identified processes of interinstitutional coordination in the area of citizen security. Created and strengthened networks of community security and violence prevention. Supported socio-economic integration of youth to prevent theirinvolvement in violence and delinquent behaviour. Implemented a capacity-strength-ening programme for young entrepreneurs. Supported the enrolment of youth andadolescents in the National Network for the Prevention of Violence and Delinquency.

$175,000 Georgia Support to thejustice system inGeorgia

Strengthen the institutionalcapacity of the justice sectorto improve access and trans-parency of the court system

Organised 10 training sessions on human rights for 165 magistrates to enhance theirawareness of international human rights standards and the interpretation of currentnational legislation. Supported the publication and dissemination of the book ‘GuidingSuggestions and Recommendations on Problematic Issues of Criminal Court Practice’.Organised three trainings on effective communication skills for the Speaker Judge insti-tution and 37 journalists to enhance reporting on the overall functioning of the judiciaryand to promote a dialogue between the court system and mass media in the interest oftransparency. Established a media monitoring service aimed at capacity-building ofspeaker judges and courts press-centres. Provided IT equipment to three magistratecourts to enhance access to information in remote regions of Georgia. Conducted a widePR campaign through TV, radio, outdoor billboards, posters, electronic monitors in Tbilisiand other means under the slogan ‘Let's Strengthen the Justice System in GeorgiaTogether’ to increase public awareness and enhance transparency of the court system.

$100,000 Haiti Support to civilsociety in theconsolidation of the rule of lawin Haiti

Ensure an inclusive and participative justice reform process

Translated and published the conclusions of the 2006 extraordinary forum on citizenparticipation in the crafting of the national policy on justice and disseminated thisdocument widely for discussion among national and local authorities, judicial actors,the media and CSOs. Published a pact for the reform of justice formulated by theforum for justice reform, created in 2001 to i) inform citizens on the proposals and toobtain their buy-in, and ii) inform public authorities on the proposals in order toensure coherence between justice policy and citizens needs. Organized the eighthforum on corruption, titled ‘There is no legal security due to corruption in the judici-ary’, and subsequently drafted a discussion paper and printed 5,000 copies of it for discussion at local workshops with CSOs, magistrates and other actors in the justicesystem—and then fed back the results of the local workshop in a national workshopwhere new laws on the independence of the judiciary were also presented.

$90,000 Jamaica Support tonational securitystrategy imple-mentation

Increase the capacity of thegovernment and of targetedcommunities to attain amore peaceful, secure andjust society

Evaluated the goals and responsibilities of all ministries, departments and agencies(MDAs) in accordance with the national security policy. Supported the selection of representatives for each MDA on security issues. Facilitated consensus of all MDAs on amechanism to monitor and evaluate the national security policy. Organised fact-find-ing missions in multiple parishes to develop a national communications programme.Carried out a national knowledge, attitude and practice study on national security.

$100,000 Libyan ArabJamahiriya

Capacity devel-opment of theHigh JudicialInstitute

Contribute to the overallmodernization process of the justice sector

Conducted a capacity assessment with regional expertise from the High JudicialInstitute of Morocco, reviewing legal frameworks, identifying strengths and weak-nesses and articulating entry points for cooperation and improvement. Contracted aprofessional international organization to provide specialized technical services to theDepartment of Research and Studies of the High Judicial Institute. Conducted aresearch capacity assessment and formulated a training plan for the staff of the depart-ment. Formulated a plan to conduct training of trainers, to assist staff of the HighJudicial Institute in using the latest techniques and adult learning methodologies.

Justice



APPROVED BUDGET


$200,000 Madagascar Support to theestablishment oflegal clinics forthe poor

Improve access to justice Organised a feasibility study on the establishment of legal clinics; this included a list-ing of the usual legal complaints in Madagascar. Facilitated the signing of severalimplementation agreements with the main project partners: NGOs, the Ministry ofJustice, chiefs, the police and the courts. Equipped and staffed the legal clinics.Supported the production of audio-visual material and organised cultural events topromote the respect of human rights. Conducted trainings on communication andmediation skills and legal assistance techniques for the NGO members, jurists andpara-jurists. Sensitized local authorities on the role of legal clinics. Ensured mediaattention in newspapers and on the radio on human rights. Produced a film on legalclinics and human rights. Trained journalists from different parts of the country.

$175,000 Niger Support access to justice

Support the reforms in thejudicial sector

Equipped 11 reception desks in the main courts of the country and supported theirstaff (13 civil servant-jurists) to improve access to information on the judicial system;these individuals guide clients and help people with any questions regarding the judi-cial system. Elaborated a guide for these civil servants on how to perform their dutiesfollowed by a five-day training. Produced an information spot on the 11 receptiondesks in three different languages (Haoussa, Djerma and French) that was broadcast10 times on national TV. Supported 16 national UNV jurists, who sensitized approxi-mately 6,500 inmates on their rights and duties, and who advised an additional 3,600detainees on their individual cases in 2007; as a result, a total of 1,091 detainees heldin pre-trial have obtained a provisional liberty in 2007. Organized radio broadcasts incollaboration with the national human rights association (ANDDH) in every region ofthe country on legal issues and the justice system. Supported the internship of eightstudents in the legal clinics of ANDDH during 2.5 months to assist the UNV jurists and do research on human rights in rural areas for the Law Faculty of the University of Niamey. Organized a three-day training for 38 clerks (one per prison) on how to use and fill in different registers, and equipped every prison with seven registers.Supported several meetings with all the actors of the penal chain in every region ofthe country. Supported the Bar of Niamey with legal materials and IT technology forthe professional training of 15 lawyer interns. Organised a training on gender and howto assist victims of gender-based violence for judicial actors and produced and printed600 copies of a guidebook on legal proceedings for women in collaboration with theNigerien Women Jurists Association (AFJN). Provided an Internet connection to theConstitutional Court. Organized two trainings of six days each for 80 members of thenational security forces on the respect of human rights in their mandates, in collabora-tion with the Danish Institute for Human Rights (IDDH). Strengthened the Departmentof Human Rights in the Ministry of Justice with material support.

$150,000 Sudan Promoting accessto justice andfostering a culture of human rights inSouthern Sudan

Promote access to formaland traditional systems ofjustice and to foster a culture of human rights and respect for the rule oflaw in Southern Sudan

Organized awareness programmes on constitutional and legal rights of women andgender-based violence. Supported regular meetings involving rule of law institutions,traditional leaders, civil society groups and UN agencies to discuss progress and chal-lenges in issues related to the rule of law. Provided stationery to courts, police andprison departments. Refurbished customary and county courts and provided legalmaterials. Established justice and confidence centres to conduct human rights and civilsociety trainings. Supported the Southern Sudan Human Rights Commission withtraining, materials and equipment.

$70,000 Uruguay Support to thedesign andimplementationof security policies

Develop institutional capacity for the design and implementation of security policies

Institutionalized local roundtables on community and citizen security. Facilitatedexchange of experiences between officials of the Ministry of the Interior and policeofficials from Chile, Argentina, and Brazil concerning internal control mechanisms topromote transparency and accountability of the police service. Organized a seminartitled ‘Police for Internal Affairs of Mercosur’. Provided technical assistance and elabo-rated a draft law for the creation of a National Directorate for Internal Affairs.

Justice (continued)


APPROVED BUDGET


$70,000 Chile Consensus building for leg-islative changeconcerningamnesty in Chile

Consolidate democraticreform by focusing on com-pliance with human rights

Organised a successful seminar to exchange best practices on amnesty laws.Commissioned five working papers evaluating the amnesty law in Chile and includingproposals for reform. Initiated a national debate on the proposals to reform theamnesty law. The project has been extended in 2008 to allow for more time to handlethis democratic governance challenge with the necessary sensitivity to make progress.

$150,000 Croatia Persons with disabilities

Develop social policies with broad participationand target vulnerable

social groups

Supported a system for children and adults with physical/intellectual disabilities tolive in foster families. De-institutionalised 15 children and placed them in trained fos-ter families. Created two new mobile teams for psychosocial support which providedprofessional support to 51 children and their foster families. Trained 40 teachers inskills for working with students with special educational needs. Trained four teachersin training for trainers sessions. Set up mobile educational teams in three primaryschools. Carried out research of the needs and strengths of 600 persons with disabili-ties and published the report. Organised eight workshops for 100 persons with dis-abilities in order to develop individual professional plans. Initiated the award for theemployer of the year 2007 for persons with disabilities. Carried out a legislation reviewwith gap analysis and drafted a report for the newly elected parliamentary Committeefor Human Rights and the Rights of National Minorities. Consulted with civil societyrepresentatives and three MPs, which resulted in amendments to the law ratifying theUN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the law on foster care andthe law on social welfare being proposed to the parliament. Presented video produc-tions of/about persons with disabilities in three mainstream film festivals (Dubrovnik,Motovun and Stubica/Tabor). Broadcast a video clip on the right to work on national(public) TV for three months. Enhanced media attention to the issue of employment ofpersons with disabilities.

$80,000 Ecuador Strengtheningthe participationof indigenouspeoples andAfro-Ecuadoriansin public policies

Ensure the effective participation and incorpora-tion of indigenous and Afro-Ecuadorian views andrights based perspectives innational public policies,including the National MDG Strategy

Organised a UN inter-agency event for the preparation of Ecuador indigenous people’sdelegation to the May 2007 fifth session of UN Permanent Forum on IndigenousIssues, i.e., a day workshop for 50 national indigenous leaders, with the participationof Nina Pacari, Member of the UNPFII. Organised participative workshops withindigenous and Afro-Ecuadorian leaders for the elaboration of MDG reports, thepolitical platform of Afro-Ecuadorian people, and an agreement for Afro-Ecuadorianrepresentatives to the National Constituent Assembly. Elaborated an inventory of Afro-Ecuadorian organizations through consultation in several provinces. Publishedthe MDG report on Afro-Ecuadorian peoples and will publish the MDG report onindigenous peoples later in 2008. Broadcast a national TV spot and radio programmespromoting indigenous rights and cultural diversity, including in the context of theelection process to the Constituent Assembly.

$60,000 India Strengtheninghuman rights forHIV in India

Support the creation of anenabling environment forenhanced community partic-ipation towards a multi-sec-toral response to HIV/AIDS

Initiated four legal aid clinics in partnership with State AIDS Control Societies and networks of people living with HIV in four districts in the states of Tamil Nadu andAndhra Pradesh. A booklet on the human rights of the people living with HIV has beendeveloped and disseminated.

$50,000 Iran National capacity-buildingfor the promo-tion and protec-tion of humanrights for greateraccess to justice

Enhance access to justiceand the rule of law in accordance with interna-tional human rights precepts

Conducted several training workshops throughout the country on various humanrights issues, including women’s rights and the rights of the child. Provided humanrights centres at various universities with library resources such as books, documents,computers and Internet links to so as to improve services available for human rightsstudents. Supported students’ human rights hubs at various universities to undertakehuman rights promotional and advocacy activities. Established legal aid clinics at thethree partner universities and also at the Iranian Bar Association and Organization forDefending Victims of Violence. These legal aid clinics provided free expert legal advi-sory services to over 3,000 people in 2007. Supported the strengthening of humanrights defenders networks in various parts of the country by provision of training andsupport material. Supported the project partners to attend the session of the UNHuman Rights Council in Geneva (March 2007) and to participate in human rightsworkshops and trainings at the International Institute of Human Rights in Strasbourg,France, and also in human rights training workshops in the Philippines and Malaysia.

$75,000 Jordan Launching theUN GlobalCompact inJordan

Mainstream legal rights andobligations in accordancewith international andnational norms and standards.

Organised a high level launch of the UN Global Compact in Jordan, which included anawareness-building workshop on corporate social responsibility and the GlobalCompact. Supported the formulation of position papers on the Global Compact principles. Established the Local Global Compact Network.

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APPROVED BUDGET


$100,000 Mauritius Human rightscapacity-buildingand mainstream-ing programmein support ofMauritius’national humanrights strategy

Enhance the prominence of human rights in thenational agenda, the policiesand practices

Initiated a survey on the nature, the extent and the cost dimension of domesticviolence. Supported the formulation of the National Action Plan on Violence AgainstWomen in consultation with the Ministry of Women's Rights and several NGOs.Initiated a situation analysis of street children. Formulated a draft National Action Plan for the promotion of human rights education in primary and secondary schools.Undertook an assessment of the prison training curriculum and formulated concretepolicy and managerial recommendations, which are under review and being considered by the Prime Minister's Office/Home Affairs Division. Organised a two-daytraining of trainers in collaboration with the OHCHR to capitalize on i) the assessmentmentioned above and ii) the inspection mission of the UN Sub-Committee for thePrevention of Torture. Initiated the drafting of a Prison Officer's handbook in consulta-tion with all key stakeholders. Undertook an assessment of the current police officer'straining curriculum and formulated recommendations to strengthen the human rights dimension.

$112,000 Nicaragua Development ofan inter-institu-tional municipalmodel for inter-vention in casesof domestic andsexual violence

Support national institutionsfor the promotion and protection of human rights,in particular in the national police

Designed models to ensure follow-up on domestic violence cases and to allow foranalysis at the municipal level of domestic violence in collaboration with the nationalpolice, municipal councils and civil society. Organised a five-day workshop for thenational police, which high-level officials attended, to examine different models forintervention in domestic violence cases (according to specific themes) and to developthe above-mentioned models.

$220,000 Papua NewGuinea

Bougainvillecommunity leadership project

Implement key practicalhuman rights and peacebuilding initiatives as setforth in the BougainvillePeace Agreement (signed in2001 following civil conflict)

Conducted five community-based peace fairs to promote reconciliation and reconciled760 people. Trained 256 people in human rights, leadership, governance and life skills. Established a network of human rights training providers and helped promotechildren's rights through the distribution of a locally designed poster.

$75,000 RBAS Arab youth andhuman rightsportal and CD

Empower youth in the Arabregion by increasing theirawareness of the concepts ofhuman rights and citizenship(rights and responsibilities)and to stimulate the initiation of rights-baseddevelopment activities

Created over 1,000 pages of content and FAQs in simplified language on human rightsand citizenship. Designed a CD and the information architecture and produced the CD for use in the first training session. Placed the content online at www.resp-act.net.

$75,000 Romania Caravan for information andtraining on anti-discrimination

Support policies, legislationand implementation capacities to better protectthe rights of vulnerablegroups, including victims of human trafficking.

Organized trainings and debates in five cities on the legal framework, relevantjurisprudence and concrete modalities for combating discrimination; the participantsincluded 400 civil servants, NGO representatives, journalists, policemen and vulnerablegroups. Produced and distributed promotional and informational materials (4,000brochures, 2,000 T/shirts and 400 case folders) in three development regions with the passing of a caravan and in other locations (Bucharest and Timisoara). Producednewsletters and organized special events, such as the national launch of the caravanand the launch of the anti-discrimination online campaign. Fostered partnerships withlocal media to ensure media coverage and involved the national media as well (TV and radio). Designed and implemented an online anti-discrimination campaign andagreed on a media plan. Arranged for media buying of the online anti-discriminationcampaign and posted more than 1 million banner views on the most viewedRomanian Web sites in a time frame of six weeks.

$52,000 Senegal Strengthencapacities ofmarginalizedgroups

Strengthen capacities ofmarginalized groups toenhance taking into consid-eration human rights indevelopment programmesand policies

Strengthened the capacity in human rights of youth, women and local actors.Strengthened the local committee of human rights. Initiated local action plans for abetter integration of human rights in 16 communities in Kebemer.

Human Rights (continued)

http://www.resp-act.net


APPROVED BUDGET


$175,000 Sierra Leone Capacity devel-opment of theHuman RightsCommission ofSierra Leone(HRCSL)

Strengthen the newly established HRCSL by building up its internalorganization, management,technical and operationalcapacity to have a fully functioning and effectivecommission

Held a nationwide sensitization trip in more than 12 districts and held forums withvarious stakeholders to introduce the Human Rights Commission and explain its man-date. Sensitized communities on the recommendations by the Truth and ReconciliationCommission (TRC). Conducted induction trainings for five commissioners and oneexecutive secretary to enhance their understanding and capacity to manage theHRCSL. Conducted a nationwide situational update on human rights violations collatedto inform the HRCSL on the human rights situation throughout the country. Initiatedplans to establish human rights documentation centres throughout Sierra Leone.

$100,000 Turkey Linking humanrights to Turkey'sMDGs program

Strengthen the govern-ment's poverty reductionstrategies to incorporateMDG attainment with socialinclusion and human rightspractices at national andlocal levels

Identified and documented the practice of human rights–based MDG planning andmonitoring in four cities (Antalya, Manisa, Adana, and Diyarbakir). Produced a toolkiton best practices of linking human rights to pursue MDGs at local level. Printed anddisseminated this toolkit in the Turkish language through local governance networksand local authorities—it is available in Turkish at http://www.undp.org.tr/publicationsDocuments/Kent’Konseyleri_Kilavuzu.pdf and in draft form in English athttp://www.undp.org.tr/Gozlem2.aspx?WebSayfaNo=996. Organized workshops forthe Bar Association in Ankara and in six pilot cities with local governance actors (e.g., civil society, interest groups, special groups such as platforms for persons withdisabilities) to enhance accountability of local authorities towards MDG goals; theworkshops also built the capacities of civil society to undertake causal analysis of keypoverty challenges applying a rights-based approach. Contributed to the insertion ofsocial rights' protection in the Turkish Constitution. Documented cases and demon-strated the potential of legal activism (e.g. litigation) to pursue development goals atthe local level.

$50,000 Turkmenistan Social and economic integration of the visually andhearing impairedpeople

Pilot approaches for inte-grating persons with disabil-ities into economic andsocial activities

Developed a social and vocational skills programme for persons with disabilities byassessing labour market demand and vocational training needs. Trained 26 deaf/hearing impaired in joinery and 28 deaf/hearing impaired in sewing. Conducted aneeds assessment to upgrade a specialized library and enhance its capacity, includingdefining the specifications for the procurement of the equipment for recording ‘talkingbooks’. Raised public awareness related to persons with disabilities, notably throughWeb sites, online magazines, coverage of the international day of persons with disabilities in several newspapers and on television. Drafted a guide book on issuesrelated to persons with disabilities. Supported the international conference on Socialand Economic Integration of Persons with Disabilities. Organized three 6-day capacitydevelopment training programmes: i) training for managers of the Deaf and BlindSociety of Turkmenistan (DBST) (16 trainees) and training production enterprises oneffective management methods; ii) training for financial staff (18 trainees) of theDBST and affiliates on financial planning and management; and iii) training for man-agement and staff (21 trainees) of the territorial production primary organizations oneffective management of public organizations.

$100,000 Uzbekistan Promotion of therights of womenmigrant workers

Improve human rights'protection of womeninvolved in labour migrationand increase the quality ofservices (governmental andnon-governmental) forwomen migrant workers andvictims of human trafficking

Collected and analysed data on human rights' protection of women migrant workersin three regions of Uzbekistan (Namangan, Kashkadarya and Tashkent) in collabora-tion with the Tahlil Social Research Center. Supported a series of trainings on thepromotion of women labour migrants' rights in nine regions and the Republic ofKarakalpakstan for local authorities, law-enforcement officials and NGO representa-tives. Supported a media campaign throughout the country to raise awareness abouttrafficking and the violation of women labour migrants' rights, notably by broadcast-ing a soap opera on migration issues on Silk Road Radio (from September 2007 toMarch 2008). Organized two roundtables with representatives from the governmentand civil society activists in Tashkent to discuss the project's implementation andrecommend further action.

$75,000 Venezuela Living togetherand security ofcitizens

Strengthen the socialsystems for the promotionand protection of human rights

Realised a baseline study for the Ministry of Interior and Justice to support newinitiatives that allow community interventions at the local level to guarantee citizensecurity; most notably, this led to the development of three approaches i) for reducingconflict, ii) for improving access to justice, and iii) for protecting the right to security.

Human Rights (continued)

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http://www.undp.org.tr/Gozlem2.aspx?WebSayfaNo=996



APPROVED BUDGET


$150,000 Benin Support the consoli-dation of democracythrough the strength-ening of womenrepresentation inpublic and politicaldecision-makinginstances

Enhance women's politicalrepresentation.

Trained 150 women in leadership and governance in order i) to assure a strongerinvolvement in public and political decision-making instances and ii) to conducttest operations to reduce disparities between men and women in political life in the cities of Cotonou, Porto-Novo and Parakou. Promoted a framework forexchange between women leaders. Established focal points for gender and equityin three cities and the ministerial departments of the government; Sensitized thepopulation about the importance of active women participation in politicalinstances for development and reduction of poverty. Organized preparatorymeetings on the establishment of the observatory of quota.

$80,000 China Promoting women’sequal rights andparticipation in localgovernance

Contribute to China'sadvocacy efforts to improvethe position of women in the country

Supported two workshops organized by Perking University to study the CEDAWcommittee recommendations; this resulted in a high-level platform with broadparticipation. Strengthened the involvement of civil society in gender issues andthe cooperation between civil society and government bodies. Supported thetraining of over 200 female village heads in Shaanxi province to pursue genderequity in political participation. Established a network of female leaders inWeinan county.

$125,000 Côte d'Ivoire Support to the UNSecurity Council Resolution1325/2000: Women,Peace and Security

Enhance the participation ofwomen CSOs in the on-goingpeace process, raise aware-ness about Resolution 1325, and contribute to the elaboration of a national action plan for the implementation ofResolution 1325

Strengthened the capacity of the Ministry of Family, Women and Social Affairs with the recruitment of a national expert in gender, the provision of ICTequipment, and the training of 14 ministry staff. Organized a training foradministrative authorities, local councillors and CSOs in Yamoussoukro. Supportedsensitization on Resolution 1325 through different media (press conferences,radio interventions, TV spots, posters and leaflets). Drafted a national action planfor the implementation of Resolution 1325 and organised a workshop to validate the plan. Organized a symposium in Bouaké for women-run CSOs on their role in the peace process and to exchange experiences with women-run CSOs fromSierra Leone.

$50,000 Honduras Political participationof women at the local level

Strengthen representativedemocracy at the local levelto generate and implement equitable and inclusivepublic policies

Trained the national network of women trainers for the promotion of politicalparticipation and leadership of women at the local level. Produced a manual forthe political participation of women titled ‘Women make a difference in decision-making bodies’. Organised workshops to study the evaluation of the first nationalplan for equality of opportunity in order to revise it and elaborate the secondnational plan. Strengthened capacities of national actors to mainstream gender innational economic and employment policies.

$75,000 Gambia Capacityenhancement forwomen in decision-making processes

Increase the level of womenrepresented in parliamentand other political bodiesand the number of womenin decision-making positions

Developed a civic education strategy with appropriate messages adopted by keystakeholders during a workshop and subsequently conducted a nationwidesensitization campaign. Conducted 180 face-to-face community meetings and 19hours of radio and TV panel discussions. Produced drama skits and songs in locallanguages. Enhanced women representation in the local government elections.Conducted training workshops in advocacy, community leadership and confidencebuilding, which enhanced women's knowledge of the electoral process andstrengthened their ability to advocate and articulate their rights and needs; most of the trained potential candidates were selected by their parties and laterelected by their constituencies as councillors in local government elections.Organised several meetings and a forum for political parties, national assemblymembers and other stakeholders on gender issues and quota for women. Createdan inventory of information centres for women in local government authoritiesand supported them with furniture, computers and information materials inseven regions. Conducted a capacity gap assessment with international expertiseand organized a national workshop to validate the report.

$150,000 Lesotho Promoting women’sparticipation indecision making

Revive the Lesotho women'sparliamentary caucus into ajoint multi-partisan standingcommittee within thenational assembly andsenate. Build the capacity ofmedia for effective advocacyand raise awareness ongender equality in politicalleadership and decision-making.

Held a workshop that brought together women MPs across party lines; theworkshop helped forge better understanding among the MPs at a crucial timewhen their respective parties were locked in dispute and court litigation over theallocation of the proportional representation in the national assembly. Providedjournalists with tools and practical skills to seek out women's views and voices on mainstream concerns and encourage their participation in public affairs.Promoted coverage, access to and use of media by female politicians.

Gender Equality


APPROVED BUDGET


$250,000 Liberia Giving women a voice and lead-ership role indecision-makingand peace build-ing in Liberia

Contribute actions that targetchanging the national mind-set to ensure mainstreamingof gender and empowermentof women by creating a criti-cal mass to spur women'sparticipation in leadership,reconstruction and peacebuilding development

Produced and distributed 15,000 posters and 15,000 flyers containing civic educationmessages on women. Contracted 29 radio stations to air civic education messages andjingles on leadership in 15 counties. Sensitized 1,065 community dwellers (676 female)on women's participation in governance, decision-making and girls' education. Purchas-ed 10 motorcycles for use by government gender country coordinators. Conducted oneround of monitoring of activities on the field.

$220,000 Rwanda Promoting justiceand women’srights in Rwanda

Further develop women'srights and empowermentthrough enhancing thecapacities of the Ministry ofJustice, the Judiciary andother relevant institutions to respond effectively in this area

Organized with the Supreme Court a workshop—for judges, public prosecutors andpolice—on the investigation, prosecution and adjudication of sexual and gender-basedviolence. Conducted with the Rwanda Defence Forces nationwide training on preventinggender-based violence and responding to such violations (2,293 people trained in threemonths). Held an intensive 10-day training of trainers (50) for community volunteers ongender-based violence and trauma counselling; in addition, trained 100 community vol-unteers from each of the country's five districts. Held a one-week training for 44 genderfocal points from various stakeholder institutions. Trained, in conjunction with an NGOthat provides legal aid on human rights, a total of 424 local authorities in districts wherethe prevalence of gender-based violence is high.

$150,000 Somalia Support to devel-opment of localgovernanceframeworks withinclusion andparticipation ofwomen, youthand minorities

Ensure the inclusion ofwomen in decision-makingprocesses at the local level

Signed a letter of agreement with the Puntland Ministry of Local Government and LocalDevelopment to increase the representation of women in district councils; as a result, fourdistricts (namely Alule, Bargal, Jariban and Ufeyn) have a total of 44 women councillorsand six other districts increased women's representation to comply with the 30 percentquota. Supported the Puntland Ministry of Local Government and Local Development toundertake a huge and extensive campaign through local media as well as direct visits bythe local governance task force. Organized a three-day advocacy training workshop forhuman rights groups in Baidoa to promote women's participation in decision-makingprocesses. Supported the Ministry of Women, Development and Family Affairs to developa functional structure to prepare the Women's Empowerment Bill in line with the affirma-tive action principle, and to draft a gender policy briefing paper.

$40,000 Thailand Support womenin politicsthrough the constitutionalreform process in Thailand

Carry out a media campaignto open and sustain publicdebate on gender equalityand women's political participation

Organized a series of meetings between gender and media experts to brainstorm on thedesign of a media campaign to increase the participation of women in politics and tosensitize the public to gender issues; a radio programme aired once a week for fourmonths addressing issues related to women in politics hosted by a former senatorBroadcast TV and radio public service announcements to enhance public understandingon women in politics—an episode of a TV comedy demonstrated women's ability to pro-mote their rights. Trained journalists and media persons on gender issues.

$95,000 Togo Participation ofwomen in deci-sion-making andin contribution topeace

Enhance participation of women in legislative elections

Organized a training for 97 people (84 women) from 15 different political parties on thestakes of women participating in political life; the challenges of women in politics; theresponsibilities of MPs, mayors and municipal councillors; the electoral code; ethics in politics; communication techniques and women; and politics and family. Trained 33 jour-nalists of public and private media on the value and importance of women representationin public life. Organized a roundtable to exchange and share experiences on the strategiesto promote women candidatures in elections. Supported sensitization campaigns on electoral registration through 155 trainers trained by the project. Produced sensitizationmaterials—posters, folders and voters’ guide—as well as three audio visual sketches onwomen participation in French and two national languages (Ewé and Kabyè).

$95,000 Zambia Capacity devel-opment for the promotion of women’s participation indecision-makingprocesses

Promote approaches toaddressing gender issues in policy formulation, budgeting and programmedevelopment

Sensitized MPs on gender issues and the importance of a special rapporteur on gender.Drafted ToRs of the special rapporteur. Supported the government in the drafting of theCEDAW country report.

$ 125,000 Zimbabwe Promoting gender equalitythrough women’sparticipation innational budget-ary processes inZimbabwe

Strengthen women leader-ship capacity in all sectorsand all levels

Organized training for the government gender focal points, including from parastatals (a total of 90) and a study tour to Uganda to share experiences in gender budgeting.Trained CSOs in gender budgeting . Trained government finance officials. Raised aware-ness of permanent secretaries on gender budgeting and mainstreaming. Participated inthe Zimbabwe Development Strategy Paper (ZEDS), which aimed to come up with a pro-poor economic policy that includes, among other strategies, the participation of special groups and women in the process.

Gender Equality (continued)



APPROVED BUDGET


$90,000 Barbados Capacity develop-ment support tothe ratification anddissemination ofUNCAC in theEnglish speakingCaribbean

Develop capacity to supportthe ratification and dissemi-nation of UNCAC

Organized a consultative meeting, co-hosted by UNDP and UNODC, to follow up on aprevious regional consultation that sought to sensitise Caribbean countries aboutUNCAC. Fourteen countries from CARICOM attended the meeting, which took place inApril 2008 upon a temporary project extension.

$100,000 Burkina Faso Support the actionplan for the imple-mentation of thenational policyagainst corruption

Strengthen public manage-ment to ensure effectivenessand transparency

Gave technical and practical support to the main government institution responsiblefor fighting corruption (HACLC). Undertook a critical analysis of the state of implemen-tation of the various international conventions against corruption that Burkina Fasohas signed and ratified and gave recommendations on fulfilling obligations, becausethat has yet to be achieved. Contributed to transparency in public management bysupporting CSOs to play their role as watchdog—one of them, Reseau National deLutte Anti-Corruption, produced and disseminated a report on the state of corruptionin Burkina Faso for the year 2006. Trained 25 journalists in analyzing and following thestate budget.

$225,000 Cameroon CHOC Cameroon:Change Habits,Oppose Corruption

Increase the participation of citizens, civil society andthe private sector in themanagement of publicaffairs for a more efficientuse of resources

Completed draft framework law on anti-corruption. Sensitized various government,private-sector and civil society partners on the project through meetings, a pilot one-stop-shop registration and disseminating information through networks. Drafted aframework of support to anti-corruption CSOs. In order to sustain the partnership with the other donors in this OECD/DAC Gov-net pilot, this project has been extendedin 2008.

$150,000 Cape Verde Strengthening thenational capacitiesto enhance trans-parency and integrity for bettermanagement ofdevelopment programmes

Strengthen institutionalcapacities for more respon-sive governing institutions

Trained 25 financial inspectors and 45 agents from the central and local administra-tion on, among other issues, the management and monitoring of public resources,investigation techniques and public procurement. Revised the regulatory frameworkfor the intervention of the financial comptroller's office and strengthened its capacitywith ICTs.

$50,000 Congo Enhance CSOs andwomen groups infighting corruption

Strengthen capacities in thefight against corruption

Sensitized 500 key actors on the fight against corruption in four departments; thisincluded 250 civil servants, 50 representatives of the private sector, 50 media profes-sionals and 150 representatives of NGOs. Disseminated a code of conduct for publicagents. Disseminated messages on anti-corruption through six radio stations and twoTV channels.

$100,000 Djibouti Enhancing transparency andintegrity inDjibouti

Enhance efficiency andaccountability of the publicadministration

Organized a number of trainings on internal control and auditing of the public sector.Strengthened the capacity of the financial comptroller's office and other departmentsmanaging public funds, and equipped the financial comptroller's office with IT andsoftware to improve working conditions. Strengthened the capacity of civil society forthe promotion of transparency and accountability.

Anti-corruption


APPROVED BUDGET


$100,000 Mongolia Strengtheningethics andintegrity for goodgovernance inthe health sector(Phase II)

Increase transparency andaccountability of the Ministryof Health (MoH) and selectedhealth organizations throughidentifying current constraintsand development mecha-nisms to address them

Assisted in the finalization and adoption of benchmarks of transparency and account-ability requirements based on findings from a survey conducted and internationalbest practices. Provided support to the workings of the ethics committee to ensureintegrity and ethical principles are applied in practices of the health sector. Distributedthe government-issued guidebook on the code of ethics for health professionals, aninformation kit for the ethics committee and the committee’s annual report for both2006 and 2007. Established an electronic centre that made the process of licensingand granting special permissions to health professionals and institutions more trans-parent and efficient. Developed a Web site for the MoH that helped improve access toinformation for both medical professionals and the public.

$150,000 Palestine Local govern-ment integrityproject

Mobilize Palestinian civil soci-ety in promoting the UNCACwith public institutions at thelocal level in the occupiedPalestinian territory

This project could not be executed in 2007 due to the collapse of the unity govern-ment of the Palestinian Authority and the ensuing difficulties in terms of collaborationwith the national counterpart. The project has been extended in 2008.

$80,000 Philippines Citizens actionfor local leader-ship to achieveMDGs in 2015

Promote transparent andaccountable governance inmeeting the MDGs on time by2015 through the engage-ment of citizens (especiallywomen) in instituting anti-corruption initiatives

Conducted a planning workshop for CSOs and local government units during the 8thMDG Business Meeting; outputs included annual work plans that will be used as aguide for project implementation in the cities. Organized a total of 10 integrity circlesaimed at engaging more local women in decision-making through participation inpolicy-making; such circles are composed of citizen groups, and the organizers held aseries of capacity-building workshops and other key activities to strengthen them.Supported two CSOs, the Concerned Citizens of Abra for Good Governance and theIntercessors for the Philippines, to transfer/share knowledge and demonstrated tech-nical know-how to five other CSOs and five academic institutions that establishedintegrity circles.

$50,000 Swaziland Support to anti-corruptioninitiatives inSwaziland

Assist the government inimplementing the 2006Prevention of Corruption Act with a focus on buildingand strengthening the capacity of the Anti-Corruption Commission andother stakeholders

Supported the government in establishing the Anti-Corruption Commission. ProcuredIT equipment to support the setting up of the commission. Trained staff from the com-mission on hi-tech investigative techniques in money laundering, procurement fraudand assert recovery. Helped ensure that the anti-corruption strategy was validatedand adopted by all stakeholders and that implementation of the strategy had started.

$75,000 Tunisia The enhance-ment of the communicationstrategy betweenthe Comptrollerand Auditor'sOffice and theconsultative andthe legislativeinstitutions inTunisia.

Establish dialogue within the Comptroller and Auditor'sOffice and strengthen itscapacity to respond to itspartners; reinforce the capacity of parliament and its consultative institutions to use auditing findings elaborated by the Comptrollerand Auditor's Office; andstrengthen the office’s communication strategy.

Completed all preparatory work for the realization of planned activities under theproject. Drafted Terms of Reference, identified national experts to lead activities, setup a draft agenda on the various strategies and plans to disseminate outputs, and prepared the groundwork for trainings/workshops. This project has been extended in2008 to proceed as planned in consultation with the national authorities.

Anti-corruption (continued)


ANNEX B: DGTTF SUPPORT OF ACTION 2 COUNTRY-LEVEL IMPLEMENTATION

APPROVED BUDGET


$60,000 Botswana Joint UN supportfor needs assess-ment and capacitydevelopment tostrengthennational humanrights protectionsystems

Strengthen the capacity ofimplementing partners inrights-based approach todevelopment and sensitizepolicy makers, legislators andcivil society on HRBA.

Established a human rights and gender theme group. Organized preparatory meetings fora training of UNCT staff in HRBA.

$60,000 Chile Strengthening ofthe UN System’scapacities for theprotection andpromotion ofhuman rights in Chile

Consolidate democraticreform focused oncompliance with humanrights

Organised a successful seminar to exchange best practices on amnesty laws. Commission-ed five working papers evaluating the amnesty law in Chile and including proposals forreform. Initiated a national debate on the proposals to reform the amnesty law.

$59,995 Colombia Action 2 Strengthen capacity tomainstream human rights ofUN staff at the regional level.

Held trainings for UN staff and national partners on human rights law and HRBAprogramming. Developed a Web site to promote HRBA in the field. Initiated an evaluationto review the first phase and revise the strategic plan for HRBA. Began developing a joint programme.

$19,700 FormerYugoslavRepublic ofMacedonia

Don't right me off:Preventingviolence againstwomen

Enhance UN staff capacity toformulate, implement andmonitor implementation of a rights-based joint programme

Established a theme group and formulated a joint programme on ending violence againstwomen to strengthen capacity of the UNCT to develop and implement rights-based jointprogrammes and development programmes aimed at addressing violence againstwomen through joint efforts.

$40,000 Lao People’sDemocraticRepublic

Strengthening UNsupport for thepromotion andprotection ofhuman rights inLao PDR

Enhance the capacities of UNstaff and national counter-parts to address rights issuesas part of everydayprogramme developmentand implementation.

Conducted training to develop the capacities of UN Country Teams, civil society andpartner governing institutions in understanding a human rights–based approach toprogramming.

$60,000 Moldova A joint UNCT forhuman rightsprotection andpromotion

Strengthen performance ofUNCT on issues related tohuman rights, justice andgender

Established a UN Sector Group on Human Rights, Justice and Gender with clearly definedmembership, TOR and annual action plan. Carried out training on needs assessment forHRBA. Agreed on a UN common vision and recommendations vis-à-vis some governmentinitiatives (i.e. promotion of human rights education in Moldova and recommendationsfor improvement of the National Development Plan for 2008–2011). Developed TOR andaction plan for the following year.

$60,000 Nicaragua Strengthening thehuman rightssystem inNicaragua

Train UN staff in theframework of the CCA andUNDAF on HRBA analysis andprogramming.

Strengthened the Ministry of Foreign Affairs follow-up unit to coordinate inter-institutional reporting and promote human rights recommendations in the nationalpolicy agenda. Promoted the participation of state agencies and CSOs in the preparationof periodic reports for Treaty Bodies and follow up on their recommendations. IntegratedHRBA into country analysis, strategies and programming in the framework of the newUNDAF and developed joint programmes aimed at strengthening national system for theprotection and promotion of human rights. Began to plan HRBA training.

$60,000 Papua NewGuinea

Strengtheninghuman rights inPapua NewGuinea

Increase public awareness ofhuman rights throughadvocacy campaigns andhuman rights education andstrengthen institutionalcapacity to promote andprotect human rights

Created a human rights task force. Began planning HRBA training for UN staff.

Action 2


APPROVED BUDGET


$41,500 RussianFederation

Mainstreaminghuman rights inthe RussianFederation

Increase understanding andcommitment to implementhuman rights activities at thecountry level

Conducted a basic HRBA for staff members. Planned joint activities including a filmfestival, seminars and a talk show on youth and human rights, two roundtables on e-accessibility and rights of persons with disabilities, and a launch of Web site with links to human rights treaties

$60,000 Sao Tome andPrincipe

Capacity buildingand mainstream-ing of humanrights at the UNCountry Office inSao Tome andPrincipe

Increase capacity and knowledge of the UN Systemin Sao Tome and Principe forsupporting the developmentand strengthening of thenational human rights protection system.

Developed an interagency team on human rights, which was the first project to beapproved by such a large number of agencies. Carried out a capacity building training inHRBA. Conducted a gap analysis for programmatic documents. Prepared training materialson the knowledge assessment gap. Conducted introductory training with 25 NGOs on integration and monitoring of human rights.

$100,000 Senegal (firstphase)

Action 2 initia-tive to reinforcethe human rightscapacities of theUN Country Team

Strengthen domestically thecapacity for action throughtraining, while building onthe capacity of the UNCT to integrate HRBA into country assessment, plans,programmes and strengthenthe national human rightspromotion

Established human rights theme group. Conducted a UNCT capacity mapping. Developed an HRBA training kit and facilitators guide

60,000 Sierra Leone Strengtheningthe human rights protectionsystem in SierraLeone

Strengthen the capacity ofthe UNCT and key partners,and develop collaborative aid actions and joint pro-grammes to promote humanrights standards at the country level

Completed a UNCT mapping and assessment. Completed a government assessment.Developed a draft learning package in human rights. Drafted a concept paper on TreatyBody Reporting. Identified entry points for joint programming. Organised a national consultation workshop on a national reporting strategy. Organised a UNCT staff training.

Action 2 (continued)


ANNEX C: DGTTF RESOURCES ALLOCATED FORGLOBAL ACTIVITIES AND PROJECTS IN 2007

* Includes rephased allocations from 2006** Suspended in 2007

ACTIVITIES/PROJECT RESOURCES ALLOCATED (IN US$)

Oslo Governance Centre* 2,362,000

Annual Global Democratic Governance Practice Meeting 250,000

DGTTF Evaluation* 398,794

Community of Practice Justice 25,000

Portuguese Translation and Printing of the 2007/2008 Human Development Report 70,000

Making Democracy Deliver (Publication)** 74,500

DGTTF Management, Coordination and Advocacy, including 2nd generation DGTTF Web Application 254,000

Afghanistan: Mithulina Chatterjee, Raj Kamal and Orzala Ashraf Nemat

Albania: Eno Ngjela

Algeria: Mathieu Ciowela

Armenia: Anna Aghababyan and Alla Bakunts

Azerbaijan: Azer Bayramov and Jamila Ibrahimova

Bangladesh: K.A.M. Morshed

Barbados: Carrie Taylor and Paula Mohamed

Benin: Ibouraïma Yankpé

Bhutan: Sherab Zangpo, Birgit Weyss andTenzin Thinley

Bolivia: Christian Jetté and Patricia Vásquez

Botswana: Keamogetse Molebatsi

Bulgaria: Maria Zlatareva, EmilianaZhivkova and Hachemi Bahloul

Burkina Faso: Veronika Baumgartner

Burundi: Hamidou Ongoiba

Cambodia: Aamir A. Arain and Alison Hawes

Cameroon: Sophie de Caen, Jean-ClaudeNwaha and Lucas Koolschijn

Cape Verde: Oumar Diallo and Carlos Brito

Central African Republic (PRASEJ):Pascale Meric

Central African Republic (Local governance):Oumar Sako

Chad: Allassoum Bedoum

Chile: Marcela Ríos

China: Merethe Borge and LiSong Xiong

Comoros: Abdou-Salam Saadi

Congo: Emelyne Bahanda Kilonda

Costa Rica: Gerald Mora

Côte d'Ivoire: Madeleine Oka-Balima

Croatia: Jasmina Papa

Cuba: Rosendo Mesías

Djibouti: Hibo Abdillahi and Harbi Omar Chirdon

Ecuador: Michel Guinand

El Salvador: Alejandro Pacheco

Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia:

Gordana Milosevic Jurukovska

Gambia: Sirra Ndow

Georgia: Tea Kasradze

Guinea Bissau: Ricardo Godinho Gomes

Haiti: Anne-Ael Pohu

Honduras: Antonella Spada

India: Alka Narang

Indonesia: Ahmad Kusworo andBrechtje Kemp

Iran: Ahmad Salari

Jamaica: Itziar Gonzalez

Jordan: Bashir Abu Jamous

Kazakhstan: Botagoz Buralkieva

Kyrgyzstan: Mukash Kaldarov, Alexander Kashkarev and Ilima Bokoshova

Lao PDR: Ampha Simmasone, Sara van Gaalen and Jamshed Kazi

Lesotho: N.S. Bereng

Liberia: Masaneh Bayo and Elizabeth Oduor-Noah

Libyan Arab Jamahiriya: Osama Matri

Madagascar: Tiana Ravaloson and Jean Marc Andriamanantena

Malawi: Audrey Lewans, George Dambulaand Vitima Ndovi

Maldives: Rae-Ann Peart

Mali: Fatimata Traoré Ossade

Mauritania: Alessandra Pellizzeri

Mauritius: Jullien Woirin

Moldova: Aliona Niculita

Mongolia: T. Altantsetseg

Mozambique: Els Berghmans and Ventura Mufume

Namibia: Cloudina Ngavetene

Nicaragua: Jakob Tvede, Joan Peris andMaribel Gutiérrez

Niger: Dorien Deketele and Rabaha Bolho

Nigeria: Fred Frippiat

Pakistan: Shirin Gul and Farhan Sabih

Palestine: Ibrahim Bisharat

Papua New Guinea: Howard Wilson, Andrew Lepani and Freddy Austli

Paraguay: Ricardo Yorg

Philippines: Christopher E. Rollo

RBAS: Ziad Haddara

RBLAC (Democratic Dialogue): Elena Díez,Anaí Linares and Maureen Mayne

RBLAC (Knowledge products): Juan Manuel Salazar

RBLAC (PAPEP): Gerardo Noto, Caterina Colombo, Jessica Braver andFernando Calderon

RBLAC (Youth leaders): Nadine Bushell andDeodat Maharaj

Romania: Cristina Chinole

Rwanda: Christine Umutoni and Donnah Kamashazi

Sao Tome and Principe: Milú Aguiar

Saudi Arabia: Thuraya Ismail, Mayssam Tamim and Tuful Al-Okby

Senegal: Boubacar Fall

Sierra Leone: Edward Kamara and Abraham John

Slovak Republic: Natasa Matulayova

Somalia: Barbara-Anne Krijgsman and Khalif Farah

Sudan: Sue Tatten, Ganiyu Ipaye and Nelson Mbu

Swaziland: Sakinah Morris

Syria: Khalid Al-Moualem

Tajikistan: Surayo Buzurukova

Tanzania: Nora Pendeali, Diana Hendersonand Audax Rutta

Thailand: Somchai Yensabai

Timor-Leste: Carlos Dinis

Togo: Flore Ayélé Antonio

Tunisia: Samir Bouzekri and Noureddine Zaouali

Turkey: Yesim M. Oruc and Murat Yucer

Turkmenistan: Nurjemal Jalilova

United Arab Emirates: Giulia Senigaglia

Uruguay: Virginia Varela

Uzbekistan: Izzatulla Baltaev and Evgeniy Abdullaev

Venezuela: Alberto Fuenmayor

Zambia: Dellia Mwale-Yerokun

Zimbabwe: Doreen Nyamukapa

Authored by Samuel De JaegereCopy-edited by Jeff HooverDesigned by Laurie DouglasDGTTF Management: Giske Lillehammer and Pauline Tamesis

Cover photo: Hundreds of Nepali actors areperforming a special play throughout theircountry to teach voters about the ConstituentAssembly elections in April 2008. An actorexplains that registered voters get two ballots:one to vote for a candidate and one to vote fora political party.

Photo credits:cover Svetlana Plyhun/IFESpage 19 UNDP Saudi Arabiapage 22 UNDP Pakistanpage 23 Toshihiro Tanaka/UNDP Bhutanpage 24 UNDP Indonesiapage 25 UNDP Bhutan page 28 UNDP United Arab Emiratespage 36 UNDP Nigerpage 37 UNDP Nicaraguapage 38 UNDP Uzbekistanpage 41 UNDP Chinapage 42 UNDP Beninpage 44 UNDP Djiboutipage 49 UNDP Guatemala

Printed on recycled paper

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

United Nations Development Programme

D E M O C R AT I C G O V E R N A N C EThematic Trust Fund

2007Annual Report

United Nations Development Programme Democratic Governance GroupBureau for Development Policy304 East 45th Street, Tenth Floor, New York, NY 10017 USA

www.undp.org

http://www.undp.org