fpmu.gov.bdfpmu.gov.bd/agridrupal/sites/default/files/institu assessm final repo… · food and...

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Florence, 8 May 2009

NATIONAL FOOD POLICY CAPACITY STRENGTHENING PROGRAMME

Technical Report

Institutional Assessment of the Food Planning and Monitoring Unit (FPMU)

Prof. Donato Romano Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of Florence, Italy

International consultant to FAO

and

Mr. Ahbab Ahmad National consultant to FAO

Field Document Serial Number _______

Institutional Assessment of the FPMU Donato Romano – Ahbab Ahmad

ii Technical Report

Table of Contents

ACRONYMS ............................................................................................................................................................... V

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ................................................................................................................................. VII

1. INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................... 1

2. METHODOLOGY FOR CONDUCTING THE INSTITUTIONAL ASSESS MENT ............ 2

2.1. PRINCIPLES TO CONDUCT THE INSTITUTIONAL ASSESSMENT ............................................................... 2 2.2. THE ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK: THE ORGANIZATION AS AN OPEN SYSTEM .................................... 3 2.3. FOUR STEPS FOR CARRYING OUT THE ASSESSMENT ............................................................................... 5 2.4. THE TWO DIMENSIONS OF THE INSTITUTIONAL ASSESSMENT ............................................................... 8 2.5. TECHNIQUES USED IN THE ASSESSMENT ................................................................................................... 9

2.5.1. Outputs assessment .......................................................................................................................... 9 2.5.2. Human resources assessment ....................................................................................................... 9 2.5.3. Stakeholder analysis ........................................................................................................................ 9 2.5.4. SWOT analysis ................................................................................................................................ 10

3. PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT: DELIVERY OF ANALYTICAL OUTP UTS AND ADVISORY SERVICES ........................................................................................................................................ 10

3.1. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE ON FPMU PERFORMANCE ......................................................................... 12 3.2. ASSESSMENT OF FPMU OUTPUTS AND SERVICES ................................................................................ 14

3.2.1. Current situation ............................................................................................................................ 14 3.2.1.1. Focus on outputs produced on a regular basis .............................................................. 14 3.2.1.2. Assessment of outputs delivered on a regular basis ................................................... 17 3.2.1.3. Overall output assessment ...................................................................................................... 17

3.2.2. Proposed changes .......................................................................................................................... 18 3.2.2.1. Output policy revision, Option #1 ...................................................................................... 19 3.2.2.2. Output policy revision, Option #2 ...................................................................................... 23

4. CAPACITY ASSESSMENT: INTERNAL ORGANIZATIONAL AND MA NAGERIAL STRUCTURES AND CAPACITIES ................................................................................................................ 25

4.1. FPMU ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE .................................................................................................... 25 4.1.1. Current situation ............................................................................................................................ 25

4.1.1.1. Structure .......................................................................................................................................... 25 4.1.1.2. Staffing ............................................................................................................................................ 26 4.1.1.3. Functions......................................................................................................................................... 27

4.1.2. Proposed changes .......................................................................................................................... 28 4.1.2.1. Functions......................................................................................................................................... 28 4.1.2.2. Structure .......................................................................................................................................... 29 4.1.2.3. Organization .................................................................................................................................. 30

4.2. SKILLS , COMPETENCIES AND HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT...................................................... 31 4.2.1. Current situation ............................................................................................................................ 31

4.2.1.1. Capacities ....................................................................................................................................... 31

Donato Romano – Ahbab Ahmad Institutional Assessment of the FPMU

Technical Report iii

4.2.1.2. Recruitment rule/job descriptions ....................................................................................... 31 4.2.1.3. Personnel management ............................................................................................................ 32

4.2.2. Proposed changes .......................................................................................................................... 32 4.2.2.1. Capacity development interventions ................................................................................. 32 4.2.2.2. Recruitment rule/job description revisions ..................................................................... 34 4.2.2.3. Personnel management ............................................................................................................ 34

4.3. STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP/PROCESS MANAGEMENT ............................................................................... 35 4.3.1. Current situation ............................................................................................................................ 35

4.3.1.1. Values (culture) and vision (leadership) .......................................................................... 35 4.3.1.2. Internal relationships ................................................................................................................. 35 4.3.1.3. Coordination and control mechanisms ............................................................................. 36 4.3.1.4. Incentives ........................................................................................................................................ 37

4.3.2. Proposed changes .......................................................................................................................... 38 4.3.2.1. Values (culture) and vision (leadership) .......................................................................... 38 4.3.2.2. Internal relationships ................................................................................................................. 39 4.3.2.3. Coordination and control mechanisms ............................................................................. 39 4.3.2.4. Incentives ........................................................................................................................................ 41

5. INTER-INSTITUTIONAL LINKAGES AND INSTITUTIONAL POSI TIONING ............. 42

5.1. INTER-MINISTERIAL COORDINATION AND COLLABORATION .............................................................. 42 5.1.1. Current situation ............................................................................................................................ 42 5.1.2. Proposed changes .......................................................................................................................... 45

5.2. INSTITUTIONAL POSITIONING ..................................................................................................................... 45 5.2.1. Current situation ............................................................................................................................ 45 5.2.2. Proposed changes .......................................................................................................................... 47

6. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ................................................................................ 48

REFERENCES .......................................................................................................................................................... 52

ANNEXES

ANNEX 1 - Terms of Reference ................................................................................................. A-1 ANNEX 2 - FPMU Capacity Development Plan......................................................................... A-5 ANNEX 3 - Questionnaire Used for the FPMU Outputs Assessment ....................................... A-36 ANNEX 4 - Questionnaire Used for the FPMU Human Resources Assessment ...................... A-41 ANNEX 5 - FPMU SWOT Matrix ............................................................................................ A-47 ANNEX 6 - Fact Sheets on FPMU Outputs .............................................................................. A-48 ANNEX 7 - Synopsis of Input Data Sources for Analytical Outputs ........................................ A-75 ANNEX 8 - Current Mandate of FPMU .................................................................................... A-76 ANNEX 9 - FPMU Structure as per G.O No Kha-M/pro-1/1277/98-/211 of 4

March 1998 ............................................................................................................ A-84 ANNEX 10 - Current FPMU Structure (as per April 2009) ...................................................... A-85 ANNEX 11 - Proposed FPMU Mandate ................................................................................... A-86 ANNEX 12 - Proposed FPMU Structure ................................................................................... A-93 ANNEX 13 - Human Resources Inventory ................................................................................ A-94 ANNEX 14 - Comparison Between the Current Recruitment Rules and the Proposed

Recruitment Rules (Submitted to MoFDM in 2008)........................................... A-97


iv Technical Report

ANNEX 15 - Joining and Release Dates of Director Generals and Research Directors at FPMU ................................................................................................................ A-101

ANNEX 16 - Transfers Across FPMU Directorates of FPMU Research Staff ....................... A-102 ANNEX 17 - Comparison between the 2008 recruitment rules proposal and the new

recruitment rules proposal ................................................................................. A-103 ANNEX 18 - Proposed Job Descriptions ................................................................................ A-106 ANNEX 19 - FPMU 2009-2010 Interim Workplan ................................................................ A-124 ANNEX 20 - FPMU 2009-2010 Monitoring Framework ....................................................... A-126 ANNEX 21 - List of Stakeholders interviewed for the Stakeholder Analysis ......................... A-131 ANNEX 22 - Roadmap for the Improvement of FPMU Performance and Sustainability ....... A-132


Technical Report v

ACRONYMS

ACR Annual Confidential Report

BARC Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council

BARI Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute

BBS Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics

BRAC Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee

BRRI Bangladesh Rice Research Institute

CDP Capacity Development Plan

DAE Department of Agricultural Extension of the Ministry of Agriculture

DAM Department of Agricultural Marketing of the Ministry of Agriculture

DGF Directorate General of Food

EWTC Early Warning Technical Committee

FAC Food Access

FAV Food Availability

FPMC Food Planning and Monitoring Committee

FPMU Food Planning and Monitoring Unit of the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management

FPWG Food Policy Working Group

FSCN Food Security, Consumption and Nutritional Analysis

FSCNTC Food Security, Consumption and Nutrition Technical Committee

FUN Food Utilization and Nutrition

GoB Government of Bangladesh

HKI Hellen Keller International

IA Institutional Assessment

MDG Millennium Development Goals

MIC Management, Information and Communication

MISM Monitoring and Information System Management Division of the Directorate General of Food

MMFO Market Monitoring and Food Operation Policy

MoA Ministry of Agriculture

MoFDM Ministry of Food and Disaster Management

MoHFW Ministry of Health and Family Welfare

MoWCA Ministry of Women and Children Affairs

NFP National Food Policy


vi Technical Report

NFPCSP National Food Policy Capacity Strengthening Programme

PARS Policy Advisory, Research and Statistical Analysis

PMEW Production Monitoring and Early Warning

PoA Plan of Action (of the National Food Policy)

PRSP Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper

RBM Result-based Management

ROACH Results-oriented Approach to Capacity Change

SMART Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic, Time-bound

SNTC Safety Nets Technical Committee

SWOT Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (analysis)

TA Technical Assistance

TAT Technical Assistance Team of the NFPCSP

TOR Terms of Reference

TRT Thematic Research Teams (under NFPCSP Phase I), currently Thematic Teams (TT)

TT Thematic Teams (under NFPCSP Phase II), previously Thematic Research Teams (TRT under NFPCSP Phase I)


Technical Report vii

Executive summary

The National Food Policy Capacity Strengthening Programme (NFPCSP) entered its second phase on 1st January 2009. The first activity carried out by the NFPCSP after the inception of Phase II was an institu-tional assessment of FPMU carried out by two consultants. According to the Terms of Reference, the consultants were expected to undertake a performance assessment and a capacity assessment. Then, based on the assessments’ findings, the consultants were expected to pro-vide a set of actionable recommendations for improving FPMU performance and sustainability, to be trans-lated into three specific outputs, namely: (1) a short-term/medium-term capacity development plan, (2) a proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability, and (3) some recommendations on institu-tional/organizational changes. This document comprehensively reports on the main findings of the FPMU Institutional Assessment (IA). The general objective of the IA is the assessment of the FPMU current ability to pursue its institutional ob-jectives, aiming at identifying existing gaps and/or bottlenecks in FPMU operations and designing suitable interventions to enhance such ability. In short, the IA aims at providing the analytical background for im-proving FPMU performances and sustainability, identifying needed technical assistance interventions by NFPCSP and/or actions to be implemented by other institutions, primarily the Government of Bangladesh. The IA of FPMU has been carried out through four steps which represent a logical sequence in getting an understanding and assessing the organization’s capacity and performances. a) Outputs assessment: a systematic and comprehensive survey of existing outputs (both products and ser-

vices) delivered routinely as well as on ad-hoc basis by FPMU has been conducted through a question-naire administered to the Director General and to the Research Directors/Deputy Chief of the four FPMU Directorates. Then, these preliminary results have been participatory validated interviewing each FPMU research staff and carrying out two plenary consultations with FPMU and NFPCSP Thematic Advisory Team (TAT). Finally, each output has been analyzed and assessed in terms of its contents, contribution by the NFPCSP-TAT, links with the data sources, potential overlapping with in-house as well as other’s outputs, and outreach effectiveness.

b) Human resources assessment: a systematic and comprehensive survey of FPMU human resources (both

research staff and support staff) actually present as well as currently abroad for long-term training has been conducted through a questionnaire administered to the Director General and to the Research Direc-tors/Deputy Chief of the four FPMU Directorates, and interviewing each FPMU research staff. Finally, the tentative future FPMU structure and preliminary results in terms of adequacy of personnel technical and managerial skills, FPMU operating procedures, time allocation to the various activities, and difficul-ties in delivering have been participatory validated carrying two plenary consultations with FPMU and NFPCSP-TAT.

c) Stakeholder analysis: A stakeholder analysis was carried out to gather and analyze qualitative informa-

tion from stakeholders other than the FPMU and NFPCSP-TAT to determine whose interests should be taken into account in streamlining the activities of the NFPCSP Phase II. Twenty key informants have been interviewed in order to get a feedback about their knowledge on FPMU and NFPCSP activities, their expectations and interests, their positions, and the importance they attach to FPMU activities. Also the main findings of the stakeholder analysis have been participatory discussed and validated through a consultation with FPMU research staff and NFPCSP-TAT.

d) SWOT analysis: Finally, the main findings of the previous analyses have been used to participatory assess

and discuss with FPMU research staff and NFPCSP-TAT the current position of the organization in terms of FPMU internal strengths and weakness as well as external opportunities and threats it faces. The


viii Technical Report

SWOT analysis provided a clear basis for designing the changes needed to build on strengths, minimize weaknesses, take advantage of opportunities and deal with threats (cf. Annex 5). SWOT analysis results have been eventually used to formulate and develop organizational strategies, with specific reference to the capacity development of FPMU.

Following findings of outputs, human resources, stakeholders and SWOT analyses, the IA suggests a multi-pronged strategy whose rationale is twofold: (i) broadening the scope of FPMU activities (i.e. dealing with all dimensions of food security, addressing it as much comprehensively as possible), and (ii) climbing up the value added ladder (i.e. adding to the already existing monitoring abilities, more policy analysis and advise capacity). The IA identified the following six major issues as areas of intervention. A – Performance Assessment 1. Delivery of analytical outputs and services The overall conclusion of the performance assessment is that the tasks FPMU should accomplish seem over-ambitious in relation to its actual staffing. For example, taking into account only periodical outputs, the total number of outputs amounts at 27 output typologies, that is to an exorbitant total of 981 outputs per year. The mismatch between the number of deliverables and FPMU current staffing is even more striking if also non-periodical outputs are taken into account. The consequences of this state of facts is immediately reflected in the current time allocation to different activities which is characterized by scarce time available for research or policy advise activities as well as for the application of new skills/abilities on the job. A direct implication of the output analysis is the need for a revision of the FPMU output policy, whose guid-ing principles are the following: • reduce the number and/or frequency of the outputs, addressing the issue of content overlapping, • broaden the food security coverage, filling in the existing gaps in terms of data/information (namely,

consumption/nutritional data, price data, etc.), • increase the analytical content of outputs. However, the implementation of this revision is conditional upon a series of “enabling interventions” (cf. strategies S1-S3 in Annex 2) among which the most important is filling in currently vacant FPMU research positions and recruiting new staff. This means that the output policy revision can only be proposed condi-tionally upon these recruitment decisions. As a result, two options for output policy revision have been pro-posed, namely (i) hypothesizing the recruitment of vacant and new staff, and (ii) in the case those recruit-ments will not materialize. B – Capacity Assessment 2. Organizational structure The three major issues emerged in the capacity assessment with reference to FPMU organizational structure are the following: • from the functional point of view, the existence of overlap/duplication across Directorates as well as the

lack of some important topics/management functions (i.e. data management, communication, planning, monitoring, evaluation);

• from the structural point of view, a structure which reflects the above functional shortcomings; • from the organizational point of view, a non homogeneous allocation of Service responsibilities (between

Additional Director and lower levels) and a chronic under-staffing.


Technical Report ix

Function imbalances have been addressed primarily through the proposal of a new FPMU Mandate (Annex 11) that attempts to simplify/clarify the content of FPMU Mandate and gently innovate these contents with-out jeopardizing current operation capacity. This has been done through (i) re-defining/updating the FPMU mission, (ii) assigning clear responsibilities to the four FPMU Directorates, and (iii) adding/fine-tuning top-ics and functions. The FPMU mission has been re-defined around two instrumental functions (i.e. collect/store/make available data and communicate/disseminate results) and five content-oriented functions (monitor food security situa-tion and policies, contribute to the formulation and review of policies, carrying out policy-oriented research and analysis, extending policy advice to the Government of Bangladesh, and providing secretarial service). Clear responsibilities have been assigned to the four Directorates, eliminating areas of overlapping and in-cluding missing functions, through switching the topics of the three thematic Directorates from a food chain approach (i.e. production/market/consumption) to a food security approach (availability/access/utilization) and concentrating in the fourth Directorate all functions that need to be centralized because they are neces-sary to the overall operation of FPMU (e.g. management, information and communication). The FPMU organizational structure should also change in order to consistently reflect the FPMU Mandate revision. Moreover, in order to address the chronic FPMU under-staffing it is needed to fill in currently va-cant positions and, considering the current FPMU workload, to increase the number of permanent positions (cf. Annex 12). 3. Human resources management The capacity assessment shows that, despite FPMU research staff is highly motivated, it still show some skills/competence gaps, namely in the area of technical/analytical capacities, food policy monitoring capaci-ties, result-oriented managerial capacity, and information and communication skills. Strengthening the analytical capacity of FPMU research staff is the most important objective of the Capacity Development Plan (Annex 2). According to it, an array of different training activities (on-the-job, short courses, internships, study visits, and long-term training abroad) will be used to develop analytical as well as managerial, information, and communication skills Moreover, a proposal for the revision of Recruitment rules (cf. Annex 17) as well as a series of Job descrip-tions for different positions (cf. Annex 18), according to the new organizational structure, have been pre-pared. Finally, some proposals for addressing personnel management issues have been made, namely: • recruitment of new staff: as a short-term solution, it is suggested to consider recruiting the required new

expertise (i.e. the data base manager, the network/website specialist and the librarian) taking advantage of the request for filling in research officer vacant positions already submitted by FPMU to the GoB in year 2008;

• management of transfers/leaves: it should be ensured a continuous research staff presence at FPMU no less than 9 units and future transfers of people across Directorates should be avoided or at least reduced;

• management of the phase after retirement of the current DG; it is recommended to take all needed actions for ensuring take over by another FPMU permanent staff; referring to this issue, suitable options are (i) an extension of the current DG’s appointment or (ii) assigning the responsibility as acting DG to one of the FPMU professionals.

4. Process management Managing internal relationships in general do not pose serious problems at FPMU, and even less so after the last assignment of the responsibility as acting Research Directors of the Food Security, Consumption and


x Technical Report

Nutritional Analysis (FSCN) and Production, Market, and Early Warning (PMEW) Directorates to the two non-permanent FPMU officers. However, this decision has been made only at DG level, without a formal endorsement by the MoFDM Secretary. In order to render the task allocation more stable and prevent poten-tial conflicts (always possible when a given decision is not sanctioned by the authority who has the formal power to do so), it is recommended to adopt any action to have as soon as possible a formal acknowledge-ment of this at MoFDM level, through a formal decision by the MoFDM Secretary. The situation that results from the capacity assessment with specific reference to FPMU management is that of an organization characterized by too heavy administrative/bureaucratic workload, enormous pressure caused by ad-hoc requests, work priorities determined by emergencies, no clear assignment of tasks/responsibilities, limited accountability, weak data management system, and inefficient in-house data exchange/use. The analysis clearly shows that the improvement of coordination and control mechanisms can be pursued either indirectly or directly. In the former case the issue can be addressed through actions that will be im-plemented to pursue primarily other objectives but have a positive feedback on FPMU management, such as the Mandate revision, the adoption of new Job descriptions, the reduction of workload through the revision of output policy, and improving individual managerial capacity through result-based management training. Directly addressing the issue of a more effective result-based management of FPMU activities implies the enhancement of managerial capacity at institutional level, implementing coordination and control mecha-nisms of FPMU activities. This means adopting an effective planning, monitoring, and evaluation system. A preliminary FPMU Workplan and a Monitoring Framework have been prepared in a participatory manner during the consultants’ second mission. The proposed 2009-10 Workplan (Annex 19) is a proposal to be tested as a management tool. The natural complement to the 2009-10 Workplan is its Monitoring Framework (cf. Annex 20). Both the Workplan and the Monitoring Framework represent only proposals for adoption over the fiscal year July 2009-June 2010 that should be tested by FPMU using it in monitoring and evaluat-ing the organization’s activities (i.e. in preparing the Activity Report, the Target and Progress Report, and the Pending Activities Report). 5. Inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration The network of FPMU relationships is largely consistent with the its Mandate and, broadly speaking, with the country needs in the field of food security. There are, however, a few areas where improvements are possible, namely: • make a more widespread and effective use of information technologies in managing data exchange with

data providers in partner Ministries as well as within FPMU; • try to be more timely in calling for meeting of technical committees led by FPMU staff and to enhance the

TTs’ rate of attendance of both FPMU staff and representatives of partner Ministries; • make more consistent the thematic organization of TTs and that of FPMU: the proposed reorganization of

FPMU around three thematic Directorates (cf. Annex 12) will address this issue. But this also calls for a reorganization of the TTs, which should be reduced to only three teams, merging TRT-B (Physical and So-cial Access) and TRT-C (Economic Access) into a single Food Access Thematic Team.

6. Institutional positioning The stakeholder analysis as well as the output and performance analyses suggest that the overall strategy for pursuing the objective of improving FPMU performances and sustainability can be summarized as follows: “one step aside, one step forward”, that is broadening the scope of FPMU activities dealing with all dimen-sions of food security, and re-focusing FPMU outputs towards more policy-oriented analysis and advise. Shortly, this means re-positioning FPMU where its comparative advantage actually lies vis-à-vis potential competitors.


Technical Report xi

With specific reference to the issue of where FPMU should be placed within the GoB (emerged during the stakeholder analysis), the consultants do not have a clear preference, because both options (i.e. keep FPMU within the MoFDM or moving it in a coordinating body of the GoB) have both pros and cons. Therefore, this issue is left to FPMU and higher level decision makers for consideration and discussion. What is clear, however, is that in both options strengthening the links with partners Ministries is a pre-requisite for a more effective operation of FPMU. The main outcomes of the IA are summarized in the “Roadmap for the improvement of FPMU perfor-mance and sustainability” (Annex 22). Per each of the above issue, the Roadmap proposes some actions, which are differentiated according to the institution/organization responsible for implementing them (i.e. MoFDM, FPMU, and NFPCSP). By and large, the MoFDM is required to endorse and/or take necessary actions for institutional and organization changes, the FPMU to initiate/follow-up those actions to the MoFDM as well as implementing immediately actionable changes, and the NFPCSP is required to support proposed institutional changes as well as the implementation of actions through capacity development ac-tivities. Guidance on how to implement those actions is provided by a set of key outputs produced during the institu-tional assessment whose relationships with the TORs’ outputs is as follows:

IA TORs’ outputs IA key outputs

#1 – A short-term/medium-term capacity develop-ment plan

• FPMU Capacity Development Plan (Annex 2)

#2 – A proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability

• Interim 2009-2010 FPMU Workplan (Annex 19) • FPMU Monitoring Framework (Annex 20)

#3 – Recommendations on institutional/ organiza-tional changes

• Proposals for FPMU output policy revision (cf. section 3.2.2)

• Proposal for FPMU Mandate revision (Annex 11) • Proposal for a new FPMU organizational structure (cf. section 4.1.2)

• Proposal for a new FPMU organogram (Annex 12) • Proposal for a new FPMU Recruitment rule (An-nex 17)

• Proposal for FPMU job descriptions (Annex 18) Within this general framework, three actions require top priority by the MoFDM Ministry and, broadly speaking, by the GoB, namely: a) approval of new FPMU Mandate (and the consequent re-organization of FPMU structure and organo-

gram), b) filling in currently vacant positions (including the data base manager, the network/website specialist and

the librarian expertise) and recruitment of new staff according to the proposed new organogram/job de-scriptions), and

c) manage the phase after the retirement of current FPMU DG (expected as early as the end of December 2009) in order to ensure the take over by another FPMU permanent staff.

These actions have already been brought to the attention of the MoFDM Minister and Secretary by the con-sultants, with positive reactions. It is warmly recommended that both the NFPCSP staff and the FPMU DG will follow up.


Technical Report 1

1. INTRODUCTION

The National Food Policy Capacity Strengthening Programme (NFPCSP), which is jointly imple-mented by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the UN and the Food Planning and Monitoring Unit (FPMU) of the Ministry of Food and Disaster Management (MoFDM), entered its second phase on 1st January 2009. The first activity supported by the NFPCSP, as a bridge between completion of Phase I and the inception of Phase II, was an institutional assessment (IA) of FPMU carried out by two consultants. The IA of FPMU plays a crucial role in NFPCSP – Phase II overall strategy. It represents, in fact, the hinge linking NFPCSP Phase I and Phase II activities and provides the analytical content for streamlining NFPCSP activities under Phase II. The general objective of the IA is to assess the FPMU current ability to pursue its institutional ob-jectives, aiming at identifying existing gaps and/or bottlenecks in FPMU operations and designing suitable interventions to enhance such ability. In short, the IA aims at strengthening FPMU capacity through technical assistance interventions by the FPMU and/or by implementing actions by other institutions, primarily the Government of Bangladesh (GoB). According to the Terms of Reference (cf. Annex 1), the Consultants were expected to undertake the following tasks:

A – Performance Assessment: the consultants will assess current FPMU performance with respect to: A.1 - Delivery of analytical outputs and advisory services; A.2 - Inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration; B – Capacity Assessment: the consultants will identify and assess the key factors underlying FPMU’s current

and future performance with a particular focus on: B.1 - Internal organizational and managerial structures and capacities B.2 - Institutional positioning and inter-institutional linkages.

Then, based on the findings of the performance and capacity assessments, the Consultants were ex-pected to provide a set of actionable recommendations for improving FPMU performance and sus-tainability, which should be translated into the following specific outputs:

• Output#1: A short-term/medium-term capacity development plan; • Output#2: A proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability; • Ouput#3: Recommendations on institutional/organizational changes potentially needed in the longer run.

The consultancy was broken down into two missions. The first mission (13th January – 18th Febru-ary 2009) was devoted to the performance and capacity assessments of the FPMU and formulation of FPMU Capacity Development Plan (Ouput#1).1 The second mission (27th March – 17th April 2009) was devoted to the completion of the institutional assessment and delivering the other two outputs (i.e. Output#2 – A proposal for monitoring FPMU activities, and Ouput#3 –Recommendations on institutional/organizational changes).

1 The reader specifically interested in activities devoted to develop FPMU capacity is referred to Annex 2, where the Capacity Development Plan, delivered at the end of the first mission, is reported.


2 Technical Report

This document is a Technical Report which comprehensively conveys the main findings of the insti-tutional assessment of FPMU, summarizing the adopted methodologies (section 2), the outcomes of the performance assessment (section 3), capacity assessment (section 4) and institutional positioning assessment (section 5).2 Each section first assesses the FPMU current situation and then offers some proposals for institutional/organizational changes to enhance the FPMU capacity to effectively de-liver outputs and services. Finally, the main conclusions and recommendations are summarized in section 6.

2. METHODOLOGY FOR CONDUCTING THE INSTITUTIONAL ASSESSMENT

Broadly speaking, capacity can be defined as the ability of people, organizations and society as a whole to manage their affairs successfully. A similar definition is the one reported by EuropeAid (2005: 5) and adopted in the institutional assessment (IA) of the FPMU: “Capacity is the organiza-tion’s ability to perform tasks and produce outputs, to define and solve problems, and make in-formed choices”.3 The IA of a given organization is a central element of preparing and implementing any kind of in-tervention targeted to that organization. Assessing capacity is therefore a prerequisite for deciding how donor support to capacity development should be implemented4.

2.1. Principles to conduct the institutional assessment

The IA of the FPMU has been based on a set of principles that shape the adopted methods of work. Some of these principles (e.g. comprehensiveness, independence and participation) are set by the TORs; others (e.g. adopting a systemic, step-wise, and pragmatic approach) stem out from the expe-rience of last decade or so of institutional and capacity assessment all over the world (cf. DFID, 2003; Boesen and Therkildsen, 2004; EuropeAid, 2005). The institutional assessment, in order to be effective, should be: • comprehensive, that is it should analyze all aspects of the functioning of the organization at hand

as much comprehensively as possible; • independent, that is it should be as much unbiased as possible, not adopting ex-ante the stake of

any stakeholder, whether they are nationals or foreigners (e.g. the donor);

2 The first two assessments adopt an inward-looking viewpoint (referring to A.1 and B.1 tasks in the TOR), while the third one is more outward-looking, focusing on FPMU relationships with other institutions/organizations (thus covering A.2 and B.2 tasks of the TOR).

3 Comparing this definition with the TOR for the institutional assessment of FPMU, it is clear that the two components reported in the TOR, namely the “performance” assessment (i.e. output and service delivery) and the “capacity” assess-ment (organizational structure and managerial capacities) are both included in the adopted definition of capacity assess-ment as defined by EuropeAid (2005). In this methodological section we will refer to the term “capacity” in the latter, broader meaning.

4 “Capacity development” is the process by which people and organizations create and strengthen their capacity over

time. Support to capacity development, which is the core of the NFPCSP, is the inputs and processes that external actors – in this specific case FAO – can deliver to catalyze or support capacity development of persons, an organization, or a network of organizations (i.e. in this specific case the FPMU and other organizations that have a say in implementing the Bangladesh NFP).


Technical Report 3

• participatory, that is the ownership of the capacity development options could be acknowledged such that the emerging strategy would more likely be successful;

• systemic, that is it should acknowledge that a given organization is embedded in a context and, as a result, the organization must be considered as an open system interacting with such a context;

• step-wise, that is a zooming-in approach is required, starting from the more general and then fine-tuning the analysis coming back iteratively to the same components of the system in subse-quent steps, e.g. making first an inventory of the system components, then validating them parti-cipatory, and eventually performing their assessment;

• pragmatic, that is it should be acknowledged there are constraints in setting the objectives/targets of any capacity development effort and therefore, instead of assuming an “ideal” outcome, its better to be realistic and stick to what is feasible in the relevant time frame.5

To be successful, capacity development efforts must, of course, be targeted on those factors that are most critical in enhancing performance. This requires a detailed understanding of what organiza-tional capacity is, what it is good for, and how it changes. The adopted results-oriented approach to capacity change (ROACH, cf. Boesen and Therkildsen, 2004) is a helpful tool for thinking analyti-cally and operationally about capacity and capacity development. Below, we shall briefly present the three cornerstones of ROACH6: • organizations can conveniently be understood and analyzed as open systems; • a focus on specific organizational outputs (services, products) is useful in understanding organi-

zations and their changes; • both the “functional-rational” and “political economy” perspectives must be applied in under-

standing how organizational capacity is shaped and reshaped over time.

2.2. The analytical framework: the organization as an open system

To carry out an IA, it is necessary to focus on the organization in its own context. No organization functions without constantly being influenced by the context, and at the same time influencing it.7 This open systems approach shown in Figure 1 has proved valuable as a framework for institutional assessment. Any organization (or a unit within an organization) is viewed as a system consisting of interacting and interdependent elements embedded in a context from which the organization obtains inputs or resources, uses the input to organize production processes, and produces outputs.

5 This means to have clear in mind that some activities can be realized before the end of NFPCSP support, while some others require a longer time frame. This is explicitly acknowledge in the FPMU Capacity Development Plan.

6 The ROACH approach fits well with the programmatic aid approaches (sector-wide approaches and budgetary aid linked to overall poverty-reduction strategies) currently being adopted by most development agencies (cf. Lusthaus et al., 1999). Such approaches focus strongly on ownership as a condition for success. The ROACH approach is based on the key assumption that organizational capacity development and change are overwhelmingly a domestic matter, enabled or constrained mainly by a broad range of endogenous factors (we disregard structural constraints arising from links to the global economy). This key assumption is strongly supported by evidence.

7 Like organisms, organizations are in a constant exchange with the environment: raw materials enter, products and waste leave, staff come and go, information and money flows in and out over the multiple open boundaries which to-gether delimits the organization as a system.


4 Technical Report

Source: EuropeAid, 2005.

Figure 1. The organization as an open system Organizational survival and growth depend on adapting to and influencing the changing environ-ment, as well as on producing outputs that are valued by external stakeholders – which again enables the organization to obtain resources (either from selling in the market or getting resources from a government or another source). The context provides incentives to the organization, stimu-lating it to act in certain manners. Some incentives foster productivity, growth and capacity devel-opment, others foster passivity, decline or even closure. Capacity is inside the boundaries of an organization. But the capacity is shaped and influenced by the context. In principle, the open systems model indicates the key factors and dimensions to ad-dress to assess capacity. In practice, some may be more relevant than others, and it is useful to pro-ceed in a stepwise fashion. Contrary to what intuition and tradition may prescribe, it is strongly recommended not to start look-ing directly at the capacity of the organization.8 In fact, focusing on the organization may work rea-sonably well in relatively stable environments well-known to analysts, and in relation to relatively well-functioning organizations functioning in fairly competitive markets or within fairly clear and well-working external legal frameworks, and with relatively consistent incentives. However, for public sector organizations in developing countries, this is rarely the case. Therefore, it would be better to initially consider the organization as a “black box”: investigate what it produc-es, the context in which it produces, and the inputs it can obtain – and only then, at last, go into the box and look at the nuts and bolts.

8 Traditionally, the first question asked is: what is the structure of the organization, how does the organizational chart

look like? Next, questions about staffing levels, mission and development plans often follow. Valid as these questions are – at a certain stage – they often lead to a capacity assessment that never looks beyond the narrow boundaries of the organization.


Technical Report 5

2.3. Four steps for carrying out the assessment

Step 1: Focus on the outputs The outputs are the direct products and services of an organization and the immediate effect of or-ganizational performance. Outputs contribute to outcomes, which again contribute to ultimate im-pact, a familiar result-chain (Figure 1). While development assistance and poverty reduction as such would be primarily concerned about outcomes and impact, the focus on capacity makes it important to focus on the immediate effect of organizational performance: the products and services. They are not within full control of the organization – nothing really is – but they are under a much higher lev-el of control than outcomes and impact. As a first step, therefore, it is useful to assess the quality and quantity of the existing outputs (prod-ucts, services) of the organization, and recent trends in quality and quantity. Outputs are good indi-cators for capacity. Existing output levels will also reflect an initial capacity which most often de-velops incrementally and gradually, not in great leaps. Also, assessment of outputs brings focus on often relatively tangible results of performance. It thus fosters, from the very outset, a performance-orientation focusing on results (i.e. ROACH approach) which can help to avoid that capacity development support ends up focusing on inputs or activities like training and technical assistance (cf. OED-WB, 1996), without defining appropriate output in-dicators demonstrating enhanced performance.9 Step 2: The context Structural and institutional context factors outside the boundaries of the organization will influence it, as will the actions of other organizations and individuals. Some factors and actors in the context may be influenced by the focal organization, while others – notably structural and institutional fac-tors – can only be appreciated in the short-term (e.g., a fall in world market prices, social or gender inequality structures, etc.). Elements of the context that should be focused upon are the following: • structural factors: they are beyond the influence of individuals and short-term decision making

(e.g. the history of state formation, the relation between the economic structures and the state structures, natural and human resources, social and ethnic structures, demographic changes, geo-politics, migration, etc.);

• institutions: they are resilient social structures formed by norms and regulations (i.e. the so-called “rules of the game”, cf. North, 1991) which provide solidity and meaning to social life. They can be formal or informal, and are by definition slow to change (e.g. norms for exertion of power and authority, socially embedded norms that define how things are done, norms governing reciprocity in exchanges, etc.;

• organizations: they are groups of players (i.e. individuals) who come together for a common pur-pose or to achieve specific objectives. Individuals and organizations pursue particular interests, including the political elite, civil servants, civil society organizations, the military, the judiciary etc. Donors are also agents pursuing their own agenda.

9 That is, capacity development support should not be defined as a TA-team, or training – but as the specific changes in outputs which the capacity development support will enable the organization to deliver on a sustainable basis.


6 Technical Report

These sets of factors – structures, institutions, organizations and individuals – all interact dynami-cally and interdependently. The context of structural and institutional factors shape present capacity and provides drivers of change as well as constraints to change, which organizations and individuals – each in their manner – will respond to, in addition to respond to each other. Individuals and organ-izations, and their capacity, are embedded in a context of institutional and structural factors.10 Not taking institutional ad structural factors into account is likely to either make capacity development fail, or to generate unnecessary levels of resistance – or, most likely, both. Step 3: Inputs or resources The inputs consist of funds, staff, technology, materials, services and knowledge from all sources, including from development agencies. Obviously, their supply influences capacity and capacity change options. Inputs are acquired outside the organization (and can therefore be seen as part of the context), but they are of course only useful when brought inside, and they are the tangible elements of an organization’s capacity. Analyses of capacity constraints often point overwhelmingly to “lack of funds”, “lack of transporta-tion”, “lack of skilled staff”, etc. – in short, to lack of the right inputs. Limited resources do impose limitations to what can be done.11 If ambitions are higher than what resources allow, then either am-bitions must be reduced or funding increased. But matching ambitions and resources is rarely the only problem, and providing the funds is rarely the solution that will increase capacity on a sustain-able basis. Several additional issues should be explored before any “lack of inputs”-type argument is accepted: • a comprehensive overview of all funds (recurrent and capital) available to the organization with

indication of the revenue sources is critical to get before any conclusions can be drawn; • a mismatch between goals and resources often goes hand in hand with poor use of the few re-

sources available. More resources will by itself not address such poor use; • low funding is often made worse by inflexibility in the formal budget, which typically allocates

too much for salaries compared to other operational expenses; • formal salaries may be low, but some staff may get considerable allowances and perks which off-

sets the poor basic salary; • high levels of uncertainty about if and when inputs become available may reduce work planning

and task assignments to largely symbolic exercises – no matter what the level of funding is.

10 Both structural and institutional factors may seem to be abstract, and since they by definition are beyond short-term influence, it may sometimes appear as an intellectual exercise of little practical value to analyze these factors. But failing to do so may be the first reason for capacity development and capacity development support to fail, and most evalua-tions identify the poor attention to the context as the key explanation for capacity development support to be ineffective.

11 An analysis ending here has several potential weaknesses: It conveniently places the blame on some forces outside the

organization, and it is a very uncontroversial and sometimes highly visible apparent cause of malfunctioning. Which all is very true – with the added problem that it leads to the conclusion that the solution to capacity development support is to provide what is lacking, namely more funds. This is precisely what donors have, and they also have a license to spend these funds.


Technical Report 7

Step 4: Looking inside After circling around the “black box”, looking at the outputs, the context and the inputs, it is of course important to go inside. Organizational capacity is shaped and conditioned by factors inside and outside organizational boundaries, but it resides in the organization or organizational network, and it needs to be broken down into elements. Organizational theory provides several useful ways of doing this, one of which is presented in Figure 2.


Figure 2. Inside the black box All boxes are important, but in this context two boxes in the model deserve special comments. The leadership box is a hub connecting the other five boxes. Some may question the central role and in-fluence of top management in the model, but it is their responsibility to deal with factors that con-strain capacity and to realign relationships between the boxes. There is also ample evidence of the great importance of leadership in poorly institutionalized public-sector systems. Moreover leader-ship is important if major capacity development initiatives and other organizational change meas-ures are to succeed. The rewards box deserves special mention because organizational capacity and performance depend significantly on staff motivation. The formal system of salaries, wages, bonuses and the like form part of the organization’s rewards or incentives system An organization’s informal reward system is, however, also important because a formal reward system does not guarantee that people will feel and act as if they are rewarded.12 In each of the six boxes, a formal system (what exists on paper) and an informal system (what people actually do) operate side by side. Neither system is any better than the other. Diagnosing the formal system is partly based on the organization’s statements, charts and reports, and partly on the extent to which this fits in with the context that the organization is operating in. Diagnosing the in-

12 This brings issues such as personal growth and satisfaction in social relationships, the prestige and recognition asso-ciated with working for an organization, professional pride and service to one’s community or country to the fore. Such informal aspects of reward systems in government organizations are often of prime importance.


8 Technical Report

formal system is obviously more complex, and seeks to validate if there is an appropriate fit be-tween the formal and the informal systems.

2.4. The two dimensions of the institutional assessment

The real difficulties begin when seeking the causes for present levels of performance, and the con-straints to and drivers of capacity development. Getting beneath the surface of organizations is very complex due to the fact that organizations have a visible and formal appearance, but they also have informal and hidden aspects which are crucial for performance.13 Therefore, the open-systems approach must not be interpreted as if organizations only seek to meet officially stated goals, and that these are fairly specific; that staff and external stakeholders agree on these goals and wish to pursue them; and that formal rules, structures and processes inside the or-ganization determine performance. From this viewpoint, poor performance is often interpreted as “a lack of functional rationality”.14 But, as experience has shown, such a limited approach is normally ineffective on its own in the context in which capacity development takes place in developing coun-tries.15 The “functional-rational” dimension of organizational analysis must therefore be supple-mented by what can be labeled as the “political economy” dimension of organizations (Table 1).

Table 1. The two dimensions of organization analysis


13 Not everything is written down or can be read out of reports, accounts and plans, and not everything is shown to “out-siders” – not necessarily because it would damage the organization, but because it would be considered inappropriate or simply irrelevant.

14 This is often translated into a lack of proper planning, of detailed job-descriptions, of an appropriate structure, of proper workflows, of well-structured management meetings or of specific skills – in short, a lack of everything that can be considered the hallmark of a healthy, efficient organization.

15 It overlooks several thorny, and often informal or hidden issues, such as the power-relations in and around organiza-

tions, the pursuit of other interests than those related to the particular task, and the conflicts over mandates, influence and resources. Informal processes and structures, and informal relationships among key stakeholders, go unnoticed. The influence of external factors and agents is underplayed. Finally, the focus on perceived deficiencies overlooks what ac-tually works in the organization and why this may have its own, albeit often shrewd rationality.


Technical Report 9

It is important to stress that both analytical dimensions are needed. Organizations cannot function without power being exerted, nor without a dose of instrumental order and organizational rationali-ty. Likewise, organizations cannot function without informal norms and rules interacting with for-mal ones.16

2.5. Techniques used in the assessment

The IA of FPMU has been carried out through four steps which represent a logical sequence in get-ting an understanding as well as assessing the organization’s capacity and performances.

2.5.1. Outputs assessment

A systematic and comprehensive survey of existing outputs (both products and services) delivered routinely as well as on ad-hoc basis by FPMU has been conducted through a questionnaire (Annex 3) administered to the Director General and to the Research Directors/Deputy Chief of the four FPMU Directorates. Then, those preliminary results have been participatory validated interviewing each FPMU research staff and carrying out two plenary consultations with FPMU and NFPCSP Thematic Advisory Team (TAT). Finally, each output has been analyzed and assessed in terms of its contents, contribution by the NFPCSP-TAT, links with the data sources, potential overlapping with in-house as well as other’s outputs, and outreach effectiveness (cf. section 3 for an analysis of the performance assessment findings).

2.5.2. Human resources assessment

A systematic and comprehensive survey of FPMU human resources (both research staff and support staff) actually present as well as currently abroad for long-term training has been conducted through the analysis of FPMU staff CVs complemented by a questionnaire (Annex 4) administered to the Director General and to the Research Directors/Deputy Chief of the four FPMU Directorates, and interviewing each FPMU research staff. Finally, the tentative future FPMU structure and prelimi-nary results in terms of adequacy of personnel technical and managerial skills, FPMU operating procedures, time allocation to the various activities, and difficulties in delivering have been partici-patory validated carrying two plenary consultations with FPMU and NFPCSP-TAT (cf. section 4 for an analysis of the capacity assessment findings).

2.5.3. Stakeholder analysis

A stakeholder analysis has been carried out to gather and analyze qualitative information from stakeholders other than the FPMU and NFPCSP-TAT to determine whose interests should be taken into account in designing the capacity development activities and streamlining proposals for FPMU reform. Knowing who the key actors are, their knowledge, interests, positions, alliances, and impor-tance related to the proposed interventions allows decision makers to increase support for the pro-posed interventions.

16

Assuming that staff coming to work will only care for the official goals of their organization without concern for their own interests is naïve anywhere in the world; assuming the opposite – that their choices are only determined by their rational and narrow pursuit of own interests (career, power, money, status, liberty, etc.) is cynical and mistakenly over-looking that human beings are also, to varying degrees, altruistic, and seeking self-realization putting their professional skills to good use.


10 Technical Report

Twenty key informants have been interviewed in order to get a feedback about their knowledge on FPMU and NFPCSP activities, their expectations and interests, their positions, and the importance they attach to FPMU activities (cf. section 5). Also the main findings of the stakeholder analysis have been participatory discussed and validated through a consultation with FPMU research staff and NFPCSP-TAT.

2.5.4. SWOT analysis

Finally, the main findings of the previous analyses have been used to participatory assess and dis-cuss with FPMU research staff and NFPCSP-TAT the current position of the organization in terms of FPMU internal strengths and weakness as well as external opportunities and threats it faces. The SWOT analysis provided a clear basis for designing the changes needed to build on strengths, minimize weaknesses, and take advantage of opportunities and deal with threats. Methodologically, the SWOT analysis can be supported by steps, techniques and directions that al-lows for interactive, participative and creative strategy development. In that way, SWOT can be seen as a complement to the established soft operational research methodologies (i.e. participative and interactive) and can easily form the basis for most strategy developing processes. The core of any SWOT analysis is the construction of the SWOT matrix (Figure 3, and specifically cf. Annex 5 for the FPMU SWOT matrix), where the information belonging to each factor is outlined in the ap-propriate cell. SWOT analysis results have been eventually used to formulate and develop organizational strategies with specific reference to the capacity development of FPMU.17

Internal Strengths (S) Weaknesses (W)

External

Opportunities (O)

• … • … • … • …

• … • … • … • …

Threats (T)

• … • … • … • …

• … • … • … • …

Figure 3. The SWOT matrix

3. PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT: DELIVERY OF ANALYTICAL OUTPUTS AND ADVI-

SORY SERVICES

FPMU is expected to deliver quite a lot of outputs (papers/reports as well as services) either on a routinely basis (i.e. periodically delivered at predefined dates) or on ad-hoc basis (i.e. delivered non-periodically, usually on demand of different branches/agencies of the GoB or development part-

17 The interested reader is referred to the FPMU Capacity Development Plan for details on how this approach has been developed and applied in the specific case of FPMU.


Technical Report 11

ners), as shown by the output inventory whose results are summarized in Table 2. The topic coverage of those outputs is quite comprehensive, covering important aspects of the Na-tional Food Policy and being relevant for monitoring its implementation, and largely consistent with the current FPMU Mandate (cf. section 4.1.1). Table 2. FPMU output inventory FPMU functions Periodical (routinely) Non-periodical (ad-hoc)

Administration • Activity report (M) • Target & progress report (M) • Pending activities report (F) • FPMU section in the MoFDM Annual report (Y) • FPMU Coordination meetings (M) • FPMU Directorates coordination meetings (M)

• Compiling/drafting the MoFDM Annual report (on average four times in 10 years)

• Other administrative activities (e.g. revision of the recruitment rule)

Secretariat • FPMC working papers (ex-ante) (B) FPMC minutes, follow-up (ex-post) (B)

• Contributing to the Parliament question time replies

Coordination • Leading the EW Technical Committee (B) • Leading the Food Safety, Consumption and Nutri-

tion Technical Committee (Q) • Leading to the Safety Net Technical Committee (Q) • Participation to NFPCSP bodies (e.g. Steering

Committee, Research grant panel) • Activities related to the implementation of the NFP-

PoA (e.g. TRTs, FPWG)

• Participation to meetings and Committees (e.g. price assess-ment, etc.)

Policy advice to GoB

• Technical advisory notes, on-demand and pro-actively

Input/briefing to development partners

• Providing data to development partners (e.g. export data to compile the FAO’s World Grain Statistics)

• Providing background info • Providing data • Commenting on documents

Research • FPMU research under non-NFPCSP initiatives

• FPMU contribution to others’ research

• Formulation of research proposal to development partners

• Input to formulation and monitor-ing of NFPCSP research activities (e.g. TOR review)

Monitoring/data analysis

• NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y) • Database on food security (Y) • Consumption monitoring report (Y) • Food Budget Report (Y) • Production monitoring report of amon/boro (H) • Costs of production amon/boro/wheat (Q) • BGD food situation report (Q) • Market monitoring report (M) • Stockflow tables (M) • Border price monitoring (M) • Foodgrain outlook (F) • Food situation (F) • Food scenario (F) • Early Warning (F) • Food situation (D) • Procurement (D)

• Inputs to monitoring activities of other bodies/agencies (e.g. PRSP-II, MDGs)

Note: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily.


12 Technical Report

3.1. Historical perspective on FPMU performance

Only a few of those outputs have been delivered since FPMU establishment in 1980. In fact, the his-tory of FPMU (Box 1) shows that a distinctive feature throughout its life has been the FPMU ability to develop relationships with international agencies/development partners interested in carrying out analytical works in the field of food security and food policy in the country. This feature on one hand allowed the exposition of FPMU staff to an international environment and provided opportunities for analytical works that otherwise would have hardly been possible in a pure domestic environment. On the other hand, however, it did not provide the organization with the required long-term perspective necessary to develop its own corporate output policy. In other words, most of the outputs produced by FPMU over the years largely mirrored the focus of the project/program FPMU was temporarily involved in. Only recently, with the inception of NFPCSP – phase I (whose objective were specifically to en-hance FPMU institutional capacity to deliver analytical outputs and advisory services), FPMU be-gan to strengthen its own capacity to produce analytical outputs on a regular basis. As shown in Ta-ble 3, where the periodical (i.e. regularly delivered) analytical outputs currently delivered by FPMU are listed along with their date of first publication, half of those outputs have been initiated (or are about to be published) over the last two years. Box 1. A short history of FPMU 1972-1979: The Liberation War aftermaths and the need for establishing the FPMU

The Liberation War left the country economically devastated and the ability to face hunger/famine episodes was very low. The big 1974 famine, recurrent food shortages in the ‘70s plus a severe drought in 1979 called for a structural/strategic intervention. In its “Bangladesh: Food Policy Is-sues” (Report no. 2761-BG, released by the WB-South Asia Programs Dept. on December 19, 1979) the World Bank launched the idea of establish-ing a Food Policy and Monitoring Unit.

Actually, the establishment of a Food Policy and Monitoring Unit was not only recommended, but it was one of the conditions for extending credit #11 to the Government of Bangladesh. The purpose was primarily to monitor the use of the World Bank loan (and of any other financial flow tar-geted to food security and agriculture). This explains why the Food and Fertilizer Planning and Monitoring Unit (FFPMU), as it was called by the Government of Bangladesh, was established within the Agriculture Division of the Planning Commission. 1980-1985: Getting on move: the early years of FPMU and the midwifery role of USAID

The FFPMU started its operations in 1980 as a non-permanent unit of the Planning Commission. As such its financing was outside the Government Budget and its operations required an ad-hoc (i.e. project-based) grant provided by USAID. The core of FFPMU activities was the monitoring of agricultural production and of public food operations, as dictated by the then mainstream approach to food security (i.e. food availability).

In 1983 the Planning Commission went through a radical reorganization that established a permanent Food and Fertilizer wing that quite ununders-tandably left out the FFPMU. Thanks to the midwifery role of USAID, the FFPMU then moved to the Ministry of Food, assuming the current deno-mination of Food Planning and Monitoring Unit (FPMU). It was still a non-permanent unit, and its budget was provided on an ad-hoc basis, i.e. by a series of sanctions that extended the FPMU operations every year during since July 1985 to 1989. The decision of transforming the FPMU in a per-manent policy and research unit of the Ministry of Food took place in 1989. This made possible the survival of the FPMU and being financed from the revenue budget of the Government of Bangladesh. 1989-1994: Building a stock of research-based knowledge: The Bangladesh Food Policy Project (BFPP)

The Bangladesh Food Policy Project (BFPP), implemented during 1989-94 by FPMU in collaboration with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and financed by USAID, aimed at providing research-based information to enable several policy changes in the Bangladeshi food sector. The FPMU contributed mainly at the field level with the BFPP researchers and carried out the responsibilities of technology transfer from the BFPP to the Government of Bangladesh in the domain of food policy.

This project made possible to build a stock of research-based knowledge on the food security issue in Bangladesh and contributed a lot in building awareness in the political arena as well in the society at large about the magnitude and the challenges of food security in the country. Instrumental to this was start producing and disseminating in 1994 a FPMU “Monthly Food Situation” bulletin received a wide acceptance inside the policy arena for the following 15 years and a food security database.


Technical Report 13

Box 1 (contd.). A short history of FPMU 1997-2002: Linking food-based research to food security management: The Food Management and Research Support Project (FMRSP) and Early Warning and Food Information System (EWFIS) programme

A couple of new projects were implemented in late ‘90s by the FPMU aiming at linking the results of the studies carried out over the previous decade with the management of food security in the country.

The Food Management and Research Support Project (FMRSP) of the Ministry of Food began in 1997 and ended in 2001. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) collaborated with the FPMU along with three subcontractors: the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), the University of Minnesota and the International Science and Technology Institute (ISTI). At the heart of the project were four major policy activities: advisory services to the Government, training, research and dissemination. A large number of publications arose from this project.

The second project was actually a programme of the Government of Bangladesh, the Early Warning and Food Information System (EWFIS) pro-gramme (1999-2002). It intended to provide a comprehensive appraisal of the food situation in the country and to advise on policies and actions required to strengthen food security. It was operated and managed by the FPMU. The programme gave rise to a series of ad hoc publications.

Again, as five years earlier, the implementation of the projects was marked by a major institutional transformation of the FPMU. In 1998, the Gov-ernment of Bangladesh approved the restructuring of FPMU, extending its mandate towards more ambitious food security objectives and increment-ing accordingly the number of in-house researchers and staff. 2005-2008: Implementing a comprehensive food security for all: The National Food Policy Capacity Strengthening Programme (NFPCSP) – phase I

This new programme, financed by the European Commission and USAID and implemented jointly by the FPMU and FAO, aimed at contributing to an effective implementation of the new National Food Policy (NFP) – whose approval, in August 2006, was a condition for the operation of the Pro-gramme – which comprehensively addresses all dimensions of food security, i.e. improve food availability, enhance physical, social and economic access to food, and ensure safe and nutritious food.

The Programme had two organizing principles: (i) build upon existing structures, commitments and organizations, and (ii) support initiatives that strengthen coordination between institutions (including civil society) which are relevant to the implementation of the NFP and other related strategic policies (e.g. Poverty Reduction Strategy, PRSP).

Consequently, the Programme was made by two components: (i) strengthening the capacity of the members of the Government of Bangladesh institu-tions to contribute to effectively implementing the NFP and its Plan of Action (PoA), and (ii) expanding civil society’s capacity to conduct quality research on food security, and establishing an effective platform for dialogue between government policy officials and civil society researchers to better inform the elaboration and implementation of the NFP and its PoA.

The Programme acknowledged that strengthening the capacity of FPMU was instrumental to achieve an effective implementation of NFP, and the FPMU central role in planning, monitoring and assessing the implementation of NFP and of its PoA was strongly re-affirmed within the Government of Bangladesh and in the broader context of civil society.

Table 3. Analytical outputs regularly produced by FPMU Title Date of first publication

NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y) July-August 2009a Database on food security (Y) June 2005 Consumption monitoring report (Y) exp. 2009b Food Budget (Y) 1983 Production monitoring report of amon/boro (H) early 1990s Costs of production amon/boro/wheat (Q) 1985 BGD food situation report (Q) 1989c Market monitoring report (M) before 1995 Stockflow tables (M) 1995 Border price monitoring (M) 1995 Foodgrain outlook (F) August 2008 Food situation (F) March 2007 Food scenario (F) June 2008 Early Warning report (F) October 2008 Food situation (D) May 2008 Procurement (D) May 2008 Note: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily. a FPMU is committed by a FPMC decision to publish the first issue by that date. b There are plans for publishing the first issue by the end of this year, but no commitments. c Originally published monthly as FPMU Food Outlook; switched to the current format in 1993.


14 Technical Report

3.2. Assessment of FPMU outputs and services

3.2.1. Current situation

3.2.1.1. Focus on outputs produced on a regular basis

The FPMU currently produces 16 analytical outputs that are published on a regular basis (cf. Tables 2 and 3). Although not exhaustive of the whole production of FPMU outputs, which includes also the delivery of very important services such as extending policy advice to the GoB or providing se-cretarial or coordination services to different inter-ministerial committees, those outputs represent the core of the organization’s analytical production. Therefore, a special attention is devoted to those outputs in this section, which briefly describes their contents.18 NFP-PoA monitoring report (Y)

This report, whose first issue is expected to be published by July-August 2009, will report on the monitoring of the National Food Policy Plan of Action implementation. It is expected to report on the progresses towards achieving the National Food Policy objectives, also commenting/analyzing the evolution of selected indicators/information from the Plan of Action matrices. Database on food security (Y)

The Database on food security is a statistical yearbook that represents the most comprehensive source of data on the Bangladesh food situation. It reports, with emphasis on foodgrains, data on the domestic food production, domestic procurement, import and on public food distribution system. It is evident that those data reflect the usual interest of the Government of Bangladesh for ensuring a high degree of food security through the actions of public procurement and distribution of food. Usually price data are rarely present (except OMS and procurement prices) as well as data on food consumption (unless, as in 2003 edition, HIES data are available). It is supposed to be a yearly pub-lication, but since inception only four issues have been published (the last in 2003); the next issue is expected to be published in the first half of 2009. Consumption monitoring report (Y)

This brand new report is expected to be published for the first time before Summer 2009. It will re-port on food consumption patterns of a sample of rural households as derived by first hand data ga-thered by FPMU officers on the occasion of their field visits to assess the domestic production of foodgrains. An attempt will be made for analyzing some candidate determinants on rural house-holds’ food consumption, like access to land, education, employment status, and income level. Food budget (Y)

The Food budget is a table reporting at least once a year (usually in July, i.e. at the beginning of the fiscal year), but often updated 2-4 times a year, of the national food budget, that is the breakdown of 18 The assessment of these outputs and the overall assessment of FPMU outputs (i.e. including service delivery, which is largely provided on ad-hoc basis) will be summarized in the next two sections.


Technical Report 15

foodgrains availability in the country (opening stocks, domestic production, import, public pro-curement and public distribution. Estimates for the current year and the actual figures of the three preceding years are reported per each fiscal year. The purpose is essentially to monitor the food situ-ation in the country in order to provide guidance for the MoFDM operations. Production monitoring report of amon/boro (H)

The Production monitoring report of amon/boro is the result of the assessment made twice a year (in correspondence of the two main production seasons) by tri-partite (FPMU-BBS-MoA) assess-ment missions in the field to collect primary data for estimating domestic production of most impor-tant foodgrains before the harvest. It therefore reports on the adopted survey methods and produc-tion forecasts, comparing them with previous year estimates. Moreover, different sources estimates are compared in order to reach a consensus on the expected domestic production. The purpose is essentially paddy and wheat production monitoring for decision to be made in the FPMC. Costs of production amon/boro/wheat (Q)

The Costs of production of amon/boro/wheat are produced by FPMU as background papers to the FPMC for the fixation of the procurement price of main foodgrains. They are produced three times a year in correspondence of the main growing seasons of paddy and wheat. They serve as a basis for discussion in the FPMC, also comparing their outcomes with the costs of production computations provided by other branches of the GoB (e.g. DAE-MoA), in order to get a clear picture for assessing the profitability of main foodgrain production according to given procurement prices at farm gate. Bangladesh food situation report (Q)

The Bangladesh food situation report synthesizes quarterly the latest information on the situation of food in Bangladesh. It gives a short overview of the state of affairs, followed by sections on the pro-duction outlook, Government actions, food aid, commercial imports, international prices, domestic foodgrain prices and public food operations. In every issue, sections on hot topics are added as re-quired. This is an important document for policy makers, as well as international agencies and de-velopment partners who use it as a reliable source of information on the evolution of food security in the country. Market monitoring report (M)

The Market monitoring report reports monthly the average wholesale and retail prices of rice in some Dhaka markets (e.g. Mohanmadpur, Kawran Bazar) gathered directly by FPMU officers who also report the opinions about the price evolution interviewing businessmen/shoppers. Border price monitoring (M)

The Border price monitoring report is published monthly, but reports the situation of border prices in two sub-periods of two weeks each in selected entry points in the country gathered directly by FPMU officers who are in contact with custom officers. It compares the level of domestic prices of rice in selected border districts (e.g. Comilla, Brahmanbaria, Chuadonga, Chapai Nawabganj) with that of Indian rice at the border as well as in the Indian neighboring districts. Stockflow tables (M)

The Stockflow tables are the most important tool for planning and monitoring the public food pro-


16 Technical Report

curement and stock situation. It reports the monthly projection of government stock, procurement, import, and offtake of rice and wheat during a given fiscal year. Foodgrain outlook (F)

The fortnightly Foodgrain Outlook is intended to provide a brief, easy-to-read update on most re-cent developments in domestic and international foodgrain markets and public foodgrain manage-ment operations that can be used by policy-makers, development partners and other food security stakeholders as an immediate reference for short term planning and decision making. The Outlook sheds light on changes in domestic prices and imports of rice and wheat, as well as on international price movements and market prospects of the two commodities. It also summarizes the performance of internal foodgrain procurement activities (during relevant periods) and major distribution pro-grams under the Public Food Distribution System. Food situation (F)

The Food situation report, published fortnightly in Bengali, is intended to make relevant informa-tion available to the policy makers and associated stakeholders for making better food grain man-agement in the country. It provides arrays of information such as domestic and international food grain production, public food grain stock, internal food grain procurement, public and private im-port, rice export and public food grain distribution, domestic and international prices of food grain and so on. In each of this element, a brief note is provided highlighting the ways things are moving including future scenarios. Food scenario (F)

The Food scenario report, published fortnightly in English, is the shorter counterpart of the Food situation report for non-Bengali speaking users. As its companion, it is intended to make relevant food security information available to the policy makers and stakeholders. However, it comprises only a subset of the information included in the Food situation report, namely domestic food grain production, internal food grain procurement, public and private import, and public food grain distri-bution. Very brief comments are reported on the provided data. Usually, no info on prices as well as future scenarios (despite the name of the publication) is reported. Early Warning report (F)

The Early Warning report is a publication recently launched by the FPMU which hardly maintains what its title promises. In fact, it structure has not reached a final format. Even more important it does not report the most common EWIMS indicators, including only some information on the situa-tion of foodgrain production (but with a time frame – annual data – inconsistent with the publication intended frequency – fortnightly). Food situation (D)

The Daily Food situation report is intended to be the daily update to the policy makers on the evolu-tion of the food security situation. It contains data on the evolution of the public stock situation, prices in Dhaka, import, internal public procurement, position of ships in ports, international prices, estimated forecasts of import prices, letter of credit situation, public distribution. As easily unders-tandable, it is quite a diverse set of information, only some of them change daily.


Technical Report 17

Procurement (D)

The Daily Procurement Monitoring is just a table where the situation of public procurement of the major foodgrain (paddy/rice or wheat, according to the season) is reported, with a breakdown at dis-trict level.

3.2.1.2. Assessment of outputs delivered on a regular basis

The first conclusion that can be drawn from the assessment of analytical outputs regularly delivered by FPMU is that they are probably too many as compared to the current FPMU staff (cf. section 4.1.1.2): the number of those outputs amounts at 16 different formats or 882 issues per year. Second, in terms of contents, the outputs are characterized by non-trivial overlaps of topics which cluster around two main typologies of data/information (Annexes 5 and 6): at production level mainly output quantities are reported, while at market level only procurement (domestic and interna-tional) and distribution data are reported. At the same time, there are some important gaps in terms of data/information (Annex 7). Generally speaking, data/information on food utilization are largely missing. Specifically, most outputs do not report data/information on food consumption, nutrition, farm-gate prices, and real prices (both wholesale and retail). This assessment is also confirmed by the stakeholder analysis (cf. section 5.2.1). In fact, many stakeholders emphasized the overlapping of contents of many FPMU outputs as well as between FPMU outputs and the ones produced by other agencies and branches of the GoB. Selected exam-ples are the data on market prices and public stocks (which are published daily by the MISM-DGF) and the assessment of the costs of production of major foodgrain crops (which are published on line by the DAE-MoA and are also computed by the DAM-MoA). Furthermore, most stakeholders stressed that while monitoring and compiling statistics is an ability that other branches of the GoB have developed over last years (taking advantage of a much larger organization size19 and of the possibilities offered by information and computer technologies), more policy analysis and advise on food security issues is desperately needed to make better-informed policy decisions. Moreover, stakeholders also emphasized that FPMU is the right place where to carry out this kind of analytical work within the GoB.

3.2.1.3. Overall output assessment

The mismatch between the number of deliverables and FPMU current staffing is especially striking if other outputs (that is non-analytical, and non periodical) are taken into account. For example, tak-ing into account only periodical outputs (i.e. the left hand side of Table 2), the total number of out-puts amounts at 27 output typologies, that is to an exorbitant total of 981 outputs per year.

19 In fact, MISM-DGF, DAE-MoA and DAM-MoA have a sensibly larger staff, usually spread across all districts of Bangladesh, which ensures them a comparative advantage in primary data gathering as compared to the limited FPMU capacity in doing so.


18 Technical Report

The overall conclusion is that the tasks FPMU should accomplish seem over-ambitious in relation to the actual staffing (cf. section 4.1.1) as proven by the current time allocation to different activities (Figure 4).

Figure 4. Time allocation at FPMU Specifically, Figure 4 shows the following: • scarce time (only 18% of total) remains for research or policy advise activities; • virtually no time is left for new skills/abilities application on the job; • the mismatch between outputs and human resources results in very little time for output prepara-

tion: on average only 1.44 person-day are devoted to the preparation of a given output.20 This situation affects the ability of FPMU to develop and sustain a long term strategic vision and to build upon achievements, and may eventually impair capacity development efforts.

3.2.2. Proposed changes

A direct implication of the output analysis is the need for a revision of the FPMU output policy. The three guiding principles of such a revision, according to the results of the output assessment, are the following: • reduce the number and/or frequency of the outputs, • broaden the food security coverage, filling in the existing gaps in terms of data/information

(namely, consumption/nutritional data, price data, etc.), • increase the analytical content of outputs.

20 This ratio has been computed considering only periodical (i.e. delivered according to pre-determined deadlines) out-puts referring to administrative, coordination and monitoring outputs (cf. Table 2). If also other categories of outputs are considered, and especially if non-periodical (i.e. ad hoc) outputs are included, the resulting ratio is even lower.

Administration (periodical)

19%

Administration (non periodical)

5%

Secretariat (periodical)10%

Secretariat (non periodical)

5%

Coordination11%

Policy advise to the GoB8%

Inputs to development partners

11%

Research10%


21%


Technical Report 19

However, the implementation of this revision is conditional upon a series of enabling actions21 among which the most important is to fill in currently vacant FPMU research positions and the re-cruitment of new staff according to the proposal for an increase in the number of FPMU sanctioned posts (cf. section 4.1.2). This means that at the moment the output policy revision can only be proposed conditionally upon these recruitment decisions. As a result, we will propose two options, namely: a) option #1, which is conditional to the recruitment of vacant and new staff, and b) option #2, in the case those recruitments will not materialize.

3.2.2.1. Output policy revision, Option #1

In the case vacant position will be filled in and new staff will be recruited, most of the current ana-lytical outputs can be retained (Table 4). A rationalization of the supply of current existing outputs will be pursued, that is only three titles will disappear, because of their merging with already exist-ing outputs. For example, instead of having two monthly reports on food prices (i.e. the Market Monitoring Re-port and the Border Price Monitoring Report) they will be merged into a single Price Monitoring Report, increasing also its analytical content. The same applies to the merging of the Food Scenario and the Food Situation, both fortnightly, one in Bengali the other in English, into a single Food Sit-uation monthly in English. Finally, the Food Situation daily should be transformed into a brief which instead of reporting the same data that are already made available to policy makers by the MISM-DGF, should gradually focus on the analysis of daily data, highlighting major facts that are relevant enough to be brought to the attention of policy makers. In conclusion, the major revisions refer to changes in: • the output contents, which will be more analytical and broader in food security scope, • the output titles, which will better reflect the new contents, and • output frequency, which will be generally reduced as appropriate. Table 4. Output policy revision, Option #1 Current title (frequency-language) Action New title (frequency-language) NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y-ENG) Start publication NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y-

ENG) Database on food security (Y-ENG) Keep it, with revisions:

• include food consumption and nutritional status data

• extend other food item coverage • include more comprehensive food

price data • upload tables on the FPMU web-

site as excell tables • add more thorough comments in

the presentation section

Food security yearbook (Y-ENG)

21

The output policy revision is indeed part of a broader strategy aiming at developing a more effective FPMU commu-nication capacity (cf. Capacity Development Plan strategy S3), which includes the development of the FPMU website (where all outputs which do not require a clearance by the GoB should be uploaded), the enhancement of FPMU out-reach ability and the development of more advanced individual communication skills for FPMU staff.


20 Technical Report

Table 4 (contd.). Output policy revision, Option #1 Current title (frequency-language) Action New title (frequency-language) Consumption monitoring report (Y-ENG)

Start publication Household food consumption and nutrition report (Y-ENG)

Food Budget (Y-ENG) Keep it Food Budget (Y-ENG) Production monitoring report of amon /boro (H-BAN)

Keep it, but agreeing with other participants to the monitoring exer-cise on a common methodology

Production monitoring report of amon /boro (H-BAN)

Costs of production amon/boro/wheat (Q-BAN)

Keep it, but agreeing with BBS and MoA-DAE on a common metho-dology as well as a coordination mechanism to find a consensus on costs of productions estimates


Bangladesh food situation report (Q-ENG)

Keep it, with revisions: • include food consumption and

nutritional status data as available • include crop and price forecasts

as available from the Early Warn-ing report

• include more comprehensive food price data (e.g. price in real terms)

• gradually introduce other foods data


Market monitoring report (M-BAN) Keep it, including the Border price monitoring (M) and: • focus on the parity prices • comparing parity prices with ac-

tual prices • gradually introduce other foods

prices

Price monitoring report (M-BAN)

Stockflow tables (M-ENG) Keep it Stockflow tables (M-ENG) Border price monitoring (M-BAN) Include it into the Price monitoring

report (M-BAN) -

Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Keep it Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Food situation (F-BAN) Keep it, including the Food scena-

rio (M-ENG) with the following revisions: • publish it in English • reduce frequency to monthly • include food consumption esti-

mates • include more comprehensive food

price data (e.g. price in real terms, parity prices)


Food situation (M-ENG)

Food scenario (F-ENG) Include it into the Food situation (M-ENG)

-


Technical Report 21

Table 4 (contd.). Output policy revision, Option #1 Current title (frequency-language) Action New title (frequency-language) Early Warning report (F-BAN) Keep it, with major changes:

• reduce frequency: until 2010 experiment the new format ac-cording to the three main crop seasons

• radically restructure the contents, introducing sections on weather situation, other natural factors, input use (e.g. irrigation, fertiliz-ers, etc.), crop forecast, food price behavior, marketed quanti-ties, stocks, procurement, import and public distribution)

• begin experiments of early as-sessment of crops, production and price trend analysis, water bal-ance index estimates for rain-fed crops, and crop-yield regression analysis; introduce the results of these experiments in the report

Early Warning report (Q-BAN)

Food situation (D-BAN) Keep it, including the Procurement (D-BAN). However: • major focus on the analysis of

data (instead of merely compiling tables) introducing percentage changes and graphs

• focus only on the data that are available daily (e.g. prices, stocks and imports)

Food situation brief (D-BAN)

Procurement (D-BAN) Include it in the Food situation brief (D-BAN)

-

Note: Frequency: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily; Language: ENG = English, BAN = Bengali.

Another important change in streamlining the new output policy is the adoption of a more rationale and feasible timeframe for output delivery as well as a new allocation of responsibilities among FPMU Directorates (Table 5). Of course, not all proposed changes can be accommodated at the same time. Therefore, Table 6 suggests some priorities for output policy revision over the time life of NFPCSP – Phase II, identify-ing also the type of support the project should provide. The rationale behind it is to focus immediately on outputs that are currently the most important ones in terms of response to FPMU Mandate as well as users’ appreciation, namely the NFP-PoA Moni-toring Report, the Quarterly Food Situation Report, the Fortnightly Foodgrain Outlook, and the Food situation brief daily. Next year those outputs will receive only light support by NFPCSP – Phase II (except in the case of NFP-PoA Monitoring Report, given its utmost importance), while others will enter as heavy support outputs, namely the Early Warning Report (quarterly), the Food Situation (monthly) and the Market Price Monitoring Report (monthly).


22 Technical Report

Table 5. Publication schedule and responsibility, Option #1

New title (frequency-language) Deadline Current

responsibility Proposed

responsibility NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y-ENG) End of August PARS MIC Food security yearbook (Y-ENG) End of January PARS MIC Household food consumption and nutri-tion report (Y-ENG)

Mid March FSCN FUN

Food Budget (Y-ENG) End of July MMFO FAC Production monitoring report of amon /boro (H-BAN)

• Mid June • Mid January

PMEW FAV


• End of March • End of October • Mid February

PMEW FAV


By the 3rd week of • April • July • October • January

PARS FUN

Price monitoring report (M-BAN) By the 2nd week of every month MMFO FAC Stockflow tables (M-ENG) By the 1st week of every month MMFO FAC Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Tuesday of every other week PARS MIC Food situation (M-ENG) By the 3rd week of every month MMFO FAC Early Warning report (Q-BAN) • Mid June

• End of April • Mid January

PMEW FAV

Food situation brief (D-BAN) 2:00 p.m. every day MMFO FAC Notes: Frequency: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily; Language: ENG = English, BAN = Bengali.

Table 6. Output priority matrixa, Option #1 Type of support

2009-10 2010-11 2011-12

Heavy

NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y-ENG)


Bangladesh food situation re-port (Q-ENG)

Early Warning report (Q-BAN)

Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Food situation (M-ENG)

Food situation brief (D-BAN) Market price monitoring (M-BAN)

Light




Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Early Warning report (Q-BAN) Food situation brief (D-BAN) Food situation (M-ENG)


Market price monitoring (M-BAN)

Household food consumption and nutrition report (Y-ENG)

Household food consumption and nutrition report (Y-ENG)

Note: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily. a New titles are used.


Technical Report 23

3.2.2.2. Output policy revision, Option #2

In the case no new staff will be recruited, a stronger rationalization of the current output supply is needed (Table 7), namely: • daily reports will be no longer delivered, • the proposed Consumption Monitoring Report (Y) will be included in the Food Security Year-

book (Y) • all fortnightly reports, except the Fortnightly Foodgrain Outlook, will be discontinued and the

relevant contents included into a single Food Situation Report (M). The priorities will change accordingly (Table 8). Table 7. Output policy summary, Option #2 Current title (frequency-language) Action New title (frequency-language) NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y-ENG) Start publication NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y-

ENG) Database on food security (Y-ENG) Keep it, with revisions:

• include food consumption and nutritional status data

• extend other food item coverage • include more comprehensive food

price data • upload tables on the FPMU web-

site as excel tables • add more thorough comments in

the presentation section


Consumption monitoring report (Y-ENG)

Include it into the Food security yearbook (Y-ENG)

-

Food Budget (Y-ENG) Keep it Food Budget (Y-ENG) Production monitoring report of amon /boro (H-BAN)

Keep it, but agreeing with other participants to the monitoring exer-cise on a common methodology

Production monitoring report of amon /boro (H-BAN)


Keep it, but agreeing with BBS and MoA-DAE on a common metho-dology as well as a coordination mechanism to find a consensus on costs of productions estimates

Costs of production amon/boro/ wheat (Q-BAN)


Keep it, with revisions: • include food consumption and

nutritional status data as available • include crop and price forecasts

as available from the Early Warn-ing report

• include more comprehensive food price data (e.g. price in real terms)



Market monitoring report (M-BAN) Include it into the Food situation (M-ENG)

Price monitoring report (M-BAN)


24 Technical Report

Table 7 (contd.). Output policy summary, Option #2 Current title (frequency-language) Action New title (frequency-language) Stockflow tables (M-ENG) Keep it Stockflow tables (M-ENG) Border price monitoring (M-BAN) Include it into the Food situation

(M-ENG) -

Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Keep it Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Food situation (F-BAN) Keep it, including the Food scena-

rio (M-ENG) with the following revisions: • publish it in English • reduce frequency to monthly • include food consumption esti-

mates • include more comprehensive food

price data (e.g. price in real terms, parity prices)



Food scenario (F-ENG) Include it into the Food situation (M-ENG)

-

Early Warning report (F-BAN) Include it into the Food situation (M-ENG)

-

Food situation (D-BAN) Discontinue it - Procurement (D-BAN) Discontinue it - Note: Frequency: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily; Language: ENG = English, BAN = Bengali. Table 8. Output priority matrixa, Option #2

Type of support

2009-10 2010-11 2011-12

Heavy





Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Food situation (M-ENG)

Light



Foodgrain outlook (F-ENG) Food security yearbook (Y-ENG)


Market price monitoring (M-BAN)

Note: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily. a New titles are used.


Technical Report 25

4. CAPACITY ASSESSMENT: INTERNAL ORGANIZATIONAL AND MANAGERIAL

STRUCTURES AND CAPACITIES

4.1. FPMU organizational structure


4.1.1.1. Structure

The FPMU is organized in four different Directorates (Figure 5), each one articulated in two ser-vices. This structure is the result of the only organizational change that has taken place since the es-tablishing of the FPMU in 1980 (cf. G.O. Kha-M/pro-1/1277/98-/211 of 4 March 1998). This struc-ture is very simple and largely consistent with the mission of the FPMU as outlined in the organiza-tion’s Mandate (cf. Annex 8). Broadly speaking, three Directorates have been identified adopting the traditional breakdown of the food chain – i.e. PMEW (production), MMFO (market), and FSCN (consumption) – plus a fourth Directorate (PARS) which in principle is responsible for the FPMU main outputs and statistics. It is self-evident that this structure only partially reflects the usual partition of food security in three di-mensions, i.e. availability, access and utilization (cf. section 4.1.2). According to the G.O. Kha-M/pro-1/1277/98-/211 of 4 March 1998 establishing the current FPMU sanctioned posts (Table 9), the total FPMU staff includes 30 people, i.e. 18 research staff (17 class I officers plus 1 Research Investigator) and 12 supporting staff.

Figure 5. Current structure of FPMU

Director General Co-ordinate FPMU Directorates/manage FPMU Identify and initiate work on food security issues

Keep continuous liaisons with other ministries/agencies Act as Secretary of the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC)

Represent the Secretary-MoFDM

Directorate of Production Monitoring

and Early Warning (PMEW)

A. Public procurement and

producers’ incentive ser-vice

B. Domestic production monitoring and early warning service

Directorate of Market Monitoring

and Food Operation Policy

(MMFO)

A. Market monitoring ser-vice

B. Public food operation monitoring and planning service

Directorate of Food Security,

Consumption and Nutritional Analysis

(FSCN)

A. Food security analysis service

B. Targeted food planning and nutritional analysis service

Directorate of Policy Advisory, Re-

search and Statistical Analysis (PARS)

A. Policy advisory and re-

search service B. Statistical analysis service


26 Technical Report

Table 9. Sanctioned staff positions at FPMU Officer (Class I) Officer (Class II) Supporting Staff Grand Total Director General 1 Research Directors 3 Deputy Chief 1 Additional Directors 4 Assistant Chiefs 2 Research Officers 6

Research Investigator 1 AO 2 PO 1

Steno typists 3 Off. assistant cum typist 1 Driver 1 MLSS 4

Officers (Class I) 17 Officers (Class II) 4 Staff 9

Total 17 Total 4 Total 9 Total 30

The allocation of research staff to the Directorates is as reported in Annex 9. By and large, the break down into Directorates is made at level of Research Directors,22 while the breakdown of Services is made at level of Additional Directors/Assistant Chiefs, except in the case of the PMEW Directorate (where it takes place at level of Research Officers) and in the case of FSCN Directorate, where the two Services are led by one Additional Director and by one Research Officer. This is a first incon-sistence in the organizational structure that needs to be addressed. However, what strikes most in this structure is the balance between top officers and lower lever of-ficers. Indeed, there are 11 higher-level research staff (i.e. 1 Director General, 4 Research Direc-tors/Deputy Chief, and 6 Additional Directors/Assistant Chiefs) and only 7 lower-level research staff (i.e. 6 Research Officers and 1 Research Investigator). In other words, instead of showing the usual pyramidal structure, the FPMU is characterized by a “house-shape” structure in which, except for the roof (DG plus RDs), the façade has a box shape. That is, each research staff responsible for a Service has under him only one lower-level research staff.23

4.1.1.2. Staffing

Another criticism is the chronic under-staffing of FPMU, which affects the FPMU work perform-ance. Comparing the FPMU sanctioned posts as per the 1998 Government Ordnance and the actual, current situation (Table 10), we can estimate the staff shortage at 22.2% for research staff (4 out of 18, including the only Research Investigator into the research staff) and at 25.0% for supporting staff (3 out of 12). However, the situation is worse than that because some of the research staff formally present are actually on leave, as usually happens in any organization. For instance, four research officers are currently abroad for long-term training (Annex 10). This means that the FPMU is operating with an actual shortage of 44.4% research staff. If we finally consider that, according to the amount of work the FPMU has to carry out (cf. section 3.2.1.3), the number of sanctioned posts should be larger, the staff shortage is even more pronounced. This problem is going to last for quite some time (e.g. due to research officers leaves for long-term training): therefore, a careful personnel management is needed.

22

It should be noticed that administratively a Deputy Chief position is comparable to the position of a Research Direc-tor. Consistently, the Assistant Chief position is comparable to that of an Additional Director.

23 More precisely, this is in general valid although in two cases (PMEW and FSCN Directorates) the Additional Direc-tors have two research staff under them, but in one case an Additional Director (Policy Advice and Analysis) has no research staff under him.


Technical Report 27

Table 10. Comparison between sanctioned posts and actual posts at FPMU

Positions Sanctioned Current Difference Staff abroad Actual difference Officer (Class I) Director General Research Directors Deputy Chief Additional Directors Assistant Chiefs Research Officers

1 3 1 4 2 6

1 3 - 5 1 4

- - 1 -1 1 2

- 1 - 2 - 1

- 1 1 1 1 3

Total 17 14 3 4 7 Officer (Class II) Research Investigator AO PO

1 2 1

- 1 1

1 1 -

- - -

1 1 -

Total 4 2 2 - 2 Supporting staff Steno typists Off. assistant cum typist Driver MLSS

3 1 1 4

3 1 - 3

- - 1 1

- - - -

- - 1 1

Total 9 7 2 - 2 Grand total 30 23 7 4 11

Matching this staff structure with the amount of outputs and services FPMU has to deliver (cf. sec-tion 3.2.1.3), the latter seems over-ambitious relative to the existing research staff (letting alone staff capacities and operation modalities, cf. sections 4.2.1 an 4.3.1) and this imbalance needs to be considered. This has been also reported by the FPMU officers who, despite acknowledging the ad-vantages of a simple structure featured by the vertical break-down into four Directorates, strongly emphasize the need for more research officers for effectively carrying out their daily work.

4.1.1.3. Functions

A third, even more important criticism is the existence of significant areas of overlap/duplication across Directorates. This is partly due to the lack of a clear partition of functions across Directorates in the current FPMU Mandate (cf. section 4.1.2) and partly to the lack of effective coordination and horizontal communication mechanisms among Directorates (cf. section 4.3). This applies primarily to the PARS Directorate, specifically in the areas of “provid(ing) advice, as-sistance and support to national food policies and strategies” and “analiz(ing) economic and agricul-tural statistics, food supply consumption and demographic data and derive(ing) indicators pertaining to the food and nutrition situation” (cf. Annex 8), which largely overlaps with the Mandate of other Directorates that also have competencies in terms of policy analysis, advise and monitoring in their own specific field of competence. At the same time, it is self-evident the existence of important omissions, some from the thematic viewpoint (e.g. safety nets), some others from the functional viewpoint (e.g. data management and communication). Moreover, there is no unit in the organization responsible for planning the work, monitoring activities and evaluating them. The only reference in the Mandate to this fundamental function is made under the specific activities of the Policy Advisory and Research Service that should “ensure the appraisal of the FPMU’s research activities, (…) and ensure the technical quality


28 Technical Report

of the FPMU’s research activities to an acceptable standard, through the appraisal of project docu-ments and clearance of technical and terminal reports.” However, no matter about the existence of a formal reference in the Mandate, FPMU planning ca-pacity is very weak, monitoring is only bureaucratically performed (cf. section 4.3.1.3) and there is a fundamental lack of whatsoever mechanism of output evaluation in all Directorates as well as at the overall organization level.


The three major issues emerged in the capacity assessment with reference to FPMU organizational structure are the following: • from the functional point of view, the existence of overlap/duplication across Directorates as

well as the lack of some important topics/management functions (i.e. data management, commu-nication, planning, monitoring, evaluation);

• from the structural point of view, a structure which reflects the functional shortcomings; • from the organizational point of view, a non homogeneous allocation of Service responsibilities

(between Additional Director and lower levels) and a chronic under-staffing. The proposed changes focus on these three issues.

4.1.2.1. Functions

Function imbalances have been addressed primarily through the proposal of a new FPMU Mandate (Annex 11) that attempts to simplify/clarify the content of FPMU Mandate and gently innovates its contents without jeopardizing current operation capacity. The objectives pursued in drafting this new Mandate are as follows: • re-define/update the FPMU mission; • assign clear responsibilities to the Directorates; • add/fine-tune topics and functions. The FPMU mission has been re-defined around two instrumental functions (i.e. collect/store/make available data and communicate/disseminate results) and five content-oriented functions (monitor food security situation and policies, contribute to the formulation and review of policies and pro-grammes, carry out policy-oriented research and analysis, extend policy advice to the Government of Bangladesh, and provide secretarial service to FPMC and contribute to other committees). Clear responsibilities have been assigned to the four Directorates, eliminating areas of overlapping and including missing functions. The first major change has been to switch the topics of the three thematic Directorates from a food chain approach (i.e. production/market/consumption) to a food security approach (availability/access/utilization): • food availability (FAV): domestic production, public procurement, monitoring, forecasting, etc.; • food access (FAC): domestic markets, international markets, public food distribution, safety nets,

etc.; • food utilization and nutrition (FUN): nutritional requirements, food safety standards, nutritional

status, etc.


Technical Report 29

This has the advantage to make FPMU functions and structure immediately consistent with the three dimensions of food security and provide a direct link to the organization of the NFP and its Plan of Action (cf. section 5.1 for the reorganization of the NFPCSP Thematic Teams). The fourth Directorate (Management, Information and Communication, MIC) has been assigned with all functions that need to be centralized because they are necessary to the overall operation of FPMU (i.e. that are cross-cutting and needed by thematic Directorates to accomplish their daily ac-tivities). The MIC Directorate is therefore responsible for FPMU corporate policy for food security knowl-edge generation and dissemination (data/information exchanges with upstream providers and in-house data/information management, dissemination of policy analysis findings and data to down-stream users, including the management of the FPMU’s database, website and documentation cen-ter). It is also responsible for planning and monitoring FPMU activities as well as for co-operation with partners and donors. In other words, it is responsible for ensuring a more result-based man-agement and for internal and external coordination of FPMU activities.

4.1.2.2. Structure

The FPMU organizational structure should change in order to consistently reflect the FPMU Man-date revision (Figure 6). Here it is evident the different role of MIC Directorate as compared to the other thematic Directorates. This, of course, does not mean a different status of the former vis-à-vis the latter. It only acknowledges that the MIC Directorate will accomplish some staff functions to the DG (e.g. planning and monitoring, cooperation with partners/donors, website, documentation cen-ter) as well as take the responsibility of providing some services to other Directorates (e.g. data management and statistics, output production and dissemination).

Figure 6. Proposed structure of FPMU

Director General • Co-ordinate FPMU Directorates/FPMU management • Identify and initiate work on food security issues • Respond to policy advice requests by the GoB • Ensure continuous liaisons with other ministries/agencies • Act as Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) Secretary • Represent the Secretary-MoFDM/higher authorities of the GoB

Directorate of Food Availability

(FAV) A. Domestic Production (FAV-P) B. Early Warning & Agricultural

Sustainability (FAV-W)

• Domestic production monitoring and forecasting

• EW System

• Analysis of agricultural sustainability issues

Directorate of Food Access

(FAC) A. Physical and Economic Access

(FAC-E) B. Social Access (FAC-S)

• Physical and economic access to food (impact of commodity, market-ing and trade policies as well as of changes in the economy at large)

• Social access to food (public food distribution system, safety nets)

Directorate of Food Utilization

and Nutrition (FUN)

A. Food and Nutritional Requirements

(FUN-R) B. Food Consumption and Nutritional

Status service (FUN-S)

• Normative analysis of food consump-tion (food nutritional requirements, food quality and safety standards)

• Positive analysis of food consumption (monitoring of food consumption, as-sessment of food intakes on nutritional outcomes )

Directorate of Management, Information

and Communication (MIC)

A. Planning and Monitoring (MIC-P) B. Information and Communication (MIC-I)

• Planning, monitoring and evaluation of FPMU activities

• Cooperation with donors/projects

• Collect, store and make available informa-tion/data on food security

• Dissemination of findings of policy-oriented research and analysis on food security


30 Technical Report

4.1.2.3. Organization

The first move in addressing the chronic under-staffing at FPMU is to fill in currently vacant posi-tions. Indeed, there are 7 vacant positions vis-à-vis the sanctioned staff, namely 4 research staff po-sitions (i.e. 1 Assistant Chief, 2 Research Officers, and 1 Research Investigator) and 3 non-research staff positions (1 Personal Officer, 1 Driver, and 1 MLSS) (cf. Table 10).24 Moreover, considering the current FPMU workload, the number of positions should be increased. The proposal is depicted in Annex 12 and summarized in Table 11. The increase in the number of posts will focus on Research Officers (11 more positions25) as well as at Additional Directors (2 more positions) level. The rationale behind this decision is twofold: (i) solve the imbalance existing between higher-level and lower-level research staff enlarging the “basis” of the pyramidal structure, and (ii) solve the imbalance of Service responsibility allocation, which in the new proposal is con-sistently located at Additional Directors level.

Table 11. Comparison between sanctioned posts and proposed posts at FPMU Positions Sanctioned Proposed Difference

Officer (Class I) Director General Research Directors Deputy Chiefa Additional Directors Assistant Chiefsa Research Officers

1 3 1 4 2 6

1 4 - 8 -

17

1

-1 4

-2 11

Total 17 30 13 Officer (Class II) Research Investigator AO PO

1 2 1

1 4 1

- 2 -

Total 4 6 2 Supporting staff Steno typists Off. assistant cum typist Driver MLSS

3 1 1 4

3 1 1 4

- - - -

Total 9 9 - Grand total 30 45 15 a In the new proposal, Deputy Chief and Assistant Chief positions have been transformed into Research Director

and Additional Director positions, respectively.

24

Considering the changes in the FPMU functions and the length of the recruitment process, it is suggested that some specific expertise, like the data base manager, the IT specialist and the librarian (cf. Capacity Development Plan), may be recruited in the short run taking advantage of the request for filling research vacant positions already submitted by FPMU to the GoB last year.

25 The decision to have 5 Research Officers in the MIC and FAC Directorates instead the usual 4 (2 per each service, as in other Directorates) is dictated by the higher workload that these Directorates have given vis-à-vis the others.


Technical Report 31

4.2. Skills, competencies and human resource management


4.2.1.1. Capacities

One of the main findings of the capacity assessment with specific reference to human resources is the mismatch between existing skills/abilities and those required to effectively accomplish the tasks of FPMU Mandate. In fact, FPMU’s work requires professional staff (economists, agricultural economists, statisticians, etc.). However, most permanent staff consists of junior professionals who joined the FPMU only recently (7 of them as recently as July 2006 only). Moreover, their academic background and professional experience do not appear to be fully in line with the functions to be performed, especially in terms of technical knowledge, analytical and practical skills (Annex 13). Indeed, among the 10 people who have been recruited since year 2000, half of them had a back-ground that is only poorly related to food policy analysis (e.g. botany, mechanical engineering, tech-nical aspects of agriculture). Furthermore, many of them came from other branches of the public administration that have little to do with food security (e.g. Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry of Education) and only 2 out of 10 had had previous research experiences, although in fields differ-ent from policy-oriented research (namely, plant biology and rice research).

4.2.1.2. Recruitment rule/job descriptions

This situation was (and still is) largely due to the fact that, according to the current recruitment rule (Annex 14), people can get a position as FPMU research staff either on the basis of the number of years of service in a given grade scale (no matter if at FPMU or in other branches of the Bangla-deshi public administration) or on the basis of their level of academic qualification (e.g. B.Sc. or M.Sc. in a given field). In fact, people at FPMU are recruited as in the rest of the Bangladeshi public administration on the basis of advertisements and examination conducted by the Public Service Commission. However, despite the selection criteria are clearly stated in the recruitment rule, until recently the recruitment has been on previous experience based only on the number of service years and thus, very little im-portance has been given to the skills of the candidates. A proposal for a Recruitment rule revision has been submitted for approval to the Secretary MoFDM in the second half of 2008 (cf. Annex 14) and is currently under consideration by the Min-istry of Establishment. This proposal for the first time specifies some qualification and competence criteria based on the required type of education degree and on the number of publications for each position.


32 Technical Report

Furthermore, people do not have individual job descriptions. The activities they have to carry out are stated in very general terms according to the functions listed in the current FPMU Mandate26 (Annex 1), which is characterized by a very broad coverage of tasks to be accomplished. As a result, officers do not have clear focused job descriptions and are not clear enough about what are the per-sonal tasks they should accomplish.

4.2.1.3. Personnel management

It should be also stressed that traditionally the FPMU top positions (i.e. the Director General and the four Research Directors) have not been covered by promotion of FPMU officers, but by secondment of top officers coming from other branches of the public administration. Considering the tiny size of FPMU as compared to other organizations in the Bangladeshi public administration (equally eligible for the ones who are qualified to get a top position at FPMU), FPMU has generally had little appeal for the top officers who have been appointed: usually they accepted the position at FPMU only as a short-term stay (both in the case of a promotion or of a punishment) anticipating a quick move to a more yearned organization/agency in the Government of Bangladesh. This gave rise to a very rapid turn-over of top positions at FPMU that over the last five years amounted at 9 Directors General and 16 Research Directors (see Annex 15).27 This destabilizing feature of FPMU is compounded by the frequent transfers of Research Officers across Directorates in the attempt to cope with research staff leaves from their original position, either because of long-term training (currently, 4 research staff out of 14) or because of promotion of some permanent staff to top positions: since July 2007 as much as 10 transfers across Directorates have been recorded (Annex 16). In conclusion, the tasks FPMU should accomplish according to its Mandate seem over-ambitious in relation to the actual staffing (both quantitatively and qualitatively) as proved by the time allocation to different activities (cf. section 3.2.1.3).


4.2.2.1. Capacity development interventions

The capacity assessment shows that, despite FPMU research staff is highly motivated, it still show some skills/competence gaps, namely in the area of technical/analytical capacities, food policy mon-itoring capacities, result-oriented managerial capacity, and information and communication skills. Strengthening the analytical capacity of FPMU research staff is the most important objective of the Capacity Development Plan (cf. Annex 2 for details). According to it, on-the-job training will be used to develop some basic analytical skills (e.g. introductory statistics, etc.) for those FPMU staff

26

The FPMU job descriptions reported in the “Job Description of the MoFDM” issued on 29th May 2005 (Office Order signed by the then Secretary in charge Md. Fazlur Rahman, No-Khadulam/Prashasan-1/Karjo-bitaran/04/558) was in-deed exactly the same as the FPMU Mandate.

27 However, the current situation is better because at the end of 2008, for the first time, three permanent FPMU officials have been appointed as Director General and Research Directors.


Technical Report 33

who do not owe them yet, without ruling out different modalities (i.e. short-term courses) as appropriate. Capacity development interventions would be also directed towards enhancing contri-butions from FPMU staff to the delivery of technical and advisory support to policy makers (advi-sory notes/papers).28 FPMU analytical capacities can be enhanced (in the medium term) through more advanced training on selected specific topics relevant for food security analysis. Those topics range from specific training aiming at being acquainted with the use of advanced software packages (e.g. STATA, SPSS), to the practical follow-up of already received training (e.g. research methods), the critical assessment of some specific policy (e.g. policy toolkit), as well as to some specific topics relevant for FPMU analytical/monitoring activities (e.g. price and production forecasting, market analysis of procurement and distribution, early warning monitoring, nutrition outcomes and impacts). These training activities can be carried out as short courses/internships, in country or abroad. The strengthening of analytical capacity includes also some long-term training for a restricted number of FPMU permanent staff (up to 1 PhD and 5 MSc). Finally, the establishment of a national post-graduate training program on food security (FS Master) would provide a window for other training opportunities such as attending pilot modules of the FS Master. Food security and food policy monitoring capacity should be developed for all monitoring reports produced by FPMU. The activities connected to the monitoring of the NFP-PoA can be used as a means for training on-the-job the staff of FPMU and partner ministries, with a view at enabling an-nual monitoring and reporting functions without technical assistance. However, internship/short-term training can be also envisioned in the medium term to develop more advanced capacities in the specific field of policy monitoring and evaluation (e.g. production, consumption, etc.). Significant efficiency gains can be expected from a better management of available FPMU human resources and food security data/information. Training activities29 in this field are essentially de-voted to strengthen the FPMU capacity in planning and monitoring its own activities. They include some introductory training on result-based management and other specific issues in organizational management in the medium term. The enhancement of basic information skills (e.g. IT applications for reporting, data analysis, draw-ing, introductory statistics) would represent an essential component of the on-the-job training for FPMU staff. Moreover, training to FPMU officials on the use of the database would be delivered, in line with progress made in database development and upgrading activities. Finally, many different training activities would need to address the issue of enhancing essential individual communication skills, ranging from English language to communication skills (e.g. text analysis, report writing, presentation preparation, addressing different audiences, etc.) through

28

This may take the form of brainstorming sessions involving FPMU staff on the contents of ad hoc requests received from the GoB to ensure a common understanding of the sets of issues to be addressed (begin of the process), while later also discussing the approach and contents of the papers/notes produced (end of the process).

29 Enabling interventions to training includes some institutional and managerial changes such as revisions to the FPMU mandate/regulatory framework and FPMU organizational/setting (cf. section 4.1.2) as well as reforming the organization recruitment policy (see below).


34 Technical Report

different modalities (i.e. on-the-job or short-term training) according to the specific needs of the target population.

4.2.2.2. Recruitment rule/job description revisions

Annex 17 reports the comparison between the Recruitment rule proposal submitted in 2008 to the Secretary MoFDM and the revision we are proposing. The main differences between the two are that the latter (i) takes into account the organizational changes proposed as a result of the capacity assessment (cf. section 4.1.2) and (ii) tries to ensure higher flexibility in recruiting people for higher positions. Annex 18 provides also a series of the job description templates for different positions, according to the new organizational structure (cf. Annex 12). These include the job descriptions of the newly created positions for the data base manager, the network/website specialist and the librarian.

4.2.2.3. Personnel management

Personnel management issues refer primarily to three issues: • the recruitment of new staff; • the management of transfers/leaves; • the management of the transition phase after retirement of the current DG. Considering the changes in the FPMU functions and the length of the recruitment process, it may be problematic to wait to recruit staff having the required new expertise (i.e. the data base manager, the network/website specialist and the librarian). Therefore, as a short-term solution, it is suggested to consider recruiting this expertise taking advantage of the request for filling in research officer va-cant positions already submitted by FPMU to the GoB last year. The number of research staff currently present is very close to the minimum threshold for everyday operation of FPMU. This calls for a very careful staff management – including long-term training abroad, other training activities outside FPMU (e.g. internship) or in-house (some short courses) – such that it can be ensured a continuous research staff presence no less than 9 units. Moreover, fu-ture transfers of people across Directorates should be avoided or at least reduced. Finally, the issue of managing the period immediately after the retirement of the current DG should be addressed. Probably, this is the most concerning short run issue with reference to human re-sources management. If not carefully managed, this phase may precipitate FPMU in the old-fashioned situation of having a DG not fully acquainted with the FPMU mandate and its technical mission FPMU and a loss of “institutional memory”.


Technical Report 35

4.3. Strategic leadership/process management


4.3.1.1. Values (culture) and vision (leadership)

As in other public administrations in Bangladesh and abroad, the organizational culture of FPMU is characterized by a strict adherence to the established procedures with a very limited capacity to in-novate procedures even when limits/constraints are recognized.30 It is also very much “top-down” in nature, which does not mean only to show loyalty and respect to the Government (as normal in an organization which is part of the public administration), but also to a-critically accept any decision coming from anyone at a higher hierarchical level. Probably because of the limited size of the organization, there is no fragmentation among sub-groups within the FPMU. However, this does not imply that coordination among Directorates can be given for granted (see section 4.3.1.3). In general, the culture of the organization does not encourage innovation and result-orientation in systems and processes. However, as proven by the history of FPMU (cf. Box 1 in section 3.1), the organization encourages professionalism and gives a high value to human resources improvement, especially if it can be reached through training opportunities abroad (see section 4.3.1.4). This opens avenues for capacity development activities (cf. Capacity Development Plan). Traditionally, leadership at FPMU has been very weak due to the fact that the Director General posi-tion has been usually covered by non-FPMU professionals coming from other branches of the public administration, often for very short periods of time. However, the situation has changed recently due to the appointment of a new Director General in December 2008 who is a FPMU professional. He is a very dedicated person showing a clear vision of the role FPMU should play, and all FPMU offi-cials support him. However, the current Director General of FPMU is expected to retire on 31 December 2009, which raises an important issue regarding future leadership. Therefore, a solution must be found in order to prevent a situation of lack of leadership, as happened in the past (cf. section 4.2.1.3).

4.3.1.2. Internal relationships

No conflicts between top officers and lower-level officers are reported. There are no complaints of favouritism or gender bias, being quite clear the relative positions of permanent FPMU officers in terms of career and being also clear the grading and career structure at FPMU. There is no evidence of mobbing.

30

For instance, despite all FPMU officers use routinely their own PC, the culture of the organization is still a “paper” culture, that is the information technology potential has not been fully exploited, despite all people at FPMU emphasize the need for having more efficient data/information exchange procedures, a centralized and fully accessible database, etc.


36 Technical Report

However, a potentially problematic situation that must be monitored is the competition that might prospectively emerge between permanent and non-permanent staff (i.e. people belonging to other branches of the public administration currently seconded to FPMU). In fact, the size of the organiza-tion (only 30 positions, administrative staff included) vis-à-vis to comparable public organizations (e.g. DAM-MoA, DAE-MoA, DG Food) makes available only a few top positions (i.e. the four Re-search Director positions) and lower-level officers are very likely to be stuck in their own position for a long period of time. Potential FPMU permanent officers candidate for this office feel non-permanent officers as a threat to career opportunities for at least a couple of reasons: (i) they have not yet matured the minimum working age that, according to the current recruitment rule, is required for being considered for that office, whilst non-permanent officers have a longer employment record, and (ii) non-permanent of-ficers have been trained abroad and seem to have at the moment better capacity than permanent of-ficers competing for the currently vacant Research Director position.

4.3.1.3. Coordination and control mechanisms

As already seen, the roles and responsibilities of Directorates in the organization show some overlap due to the fuzziness of the FPMU Mandate in describing functions (cf. section 4.2.1). This situation largely applies to individual as well. In fact, FPMU officers do not have individual responsibilities, which are instead generically stated per each Directorate (i.e. they are not assigned to specific per-sons) according to FPMU Mandate (see Annex 8). This means that the personal responsibilities are not clearly spelt out, unless for some specific tasks, such as the production of the outputs delivered routinely. As a result, officers are not clear enough about what their personal responsibilities are. The only coordination mechanism operating at FPMU is the Monthly Coordination Meeting,31 when all FPMU staffs (research and support) convene once a month to discuss with the Director General any problem that might emerge in the daily operation of the organization. This frequency makes sense considering the size of FPMU. However, according to participants, those meetings are mainly devoted to try to catch up with lagging behind schedules due to the excessive number of regular and ad hoc outputs/services that leave little room to more systematic planning efforts. To be effective any coordination effort should be based on monitoring activities, which in turn re-quires a detailed workplan, i.e. everybody should be clear about activities do be carried out, time-frames, deadlines, indicators, and responsibilities. Unfortunately, nothing like that exists at FPMU. The only seemingly planning tool currently existing is a sort of inventory of output and services to be delivered, prepared in 2005 merely translating the Mandate into an agenda for FPMU activities.32 Although very far from being a workplan, everybody at FPMU is using this document as a refer-ence, but its effectiveness as a management tool is questionable.

31

Plus the recently established FPMU-NFPCSP coordination meeting, whose focus is instead coordination between FPMU and the NFPCSP – Phase II.

32 The then Director General, A.K.M. Motahar Hossain, soon after his appointment decided to make a first step towards a planning system, because he was very uncomfortable with the existing Mandate. Unfortunately, this agenda lists activi-ties in a very broad and generic form and does not include any time frame, indicators and responsibility allocation.


Technical Report 37

Moreover, the lack of other coordination and control mechanisms implies that monitoring is poorly performed at FPMU. A good example is the administrative reports FPMU has to prepare for the MoFDM. Despite FPMU has to produce two monthly reports and one fortnightly report on activi-ties, targets and progresses (cf. Table 2 and Annex 6), those reports are compiled in a very bureau-cratic way and are not actually used as management tools. In fact, those reports contain a list of items (i.e. activities carried out), but according to FPMU officers, no feedback on the reports’ con-tents has ever come from the addressees of those reports. And it is actually hard even to conceive any feedback, considering there is no workplan against which achievements can be contrasted. Finally, the output analysis has also shown that there is little knowledge by FPMU officers about who are the final users of outputs and there is no formal feedback mechanism aiming at checking for client satisfaction. More concerning is the lack of feedbacks to FPMU officers about their own performances. The only appraisal system is based on the assessment made by higher level officers through the so-called An-nual Confidential Report (ACR), used mainly for career advancement purposes as in the rest of Bangladeshi public administration.33 However, ACR is heavily inclined toward subjectivity and of-ten contains statements or remarks that are inconsistent and contradictory. Even if officers fulfill all the requirements there is no guarantee that they will be promoted as this is 'subject to availability of vacancies' in the next rank. As a result, people generally consider it unfair and for sure it is far less than efficient, being based on non-meritocratic criteria (huge power of discretion by higher level officials in determining the destiny of lower level employees). Moreover, although in principle people should be given regular feedbacks on their own performance, this will hardly so. In conclusion, FPMU staff shows only a limited managerial capacity both individually and institu-tionally and so far only very limited efforts have been made by the organization to measure internal and external performances. Moreover, little use of information technology is done with respect to the storage, manipulation, analysis, and reporting functions regarding performance information. As a result, no effective control mechanisms are in place at FPMU and the officers do not pay attention to planning, monitoring, and evaluation of performance. This prevents also to use this information for organizational learning.

4.3.1.4. Incentives

Promotion and salary are the most important dimensions of the reward system at FPMU. As usual in Bangladesh, the salary levels in a public organization like FPMU are less than in the private sector for staff of a comparable level. Vice versa, the salary levels are the same at FPMU and in other or-ganisations in the public sector for comparable working positions (i.e. placed on the same grade). The only difference refers to the fact that, considering differences in the size between FPMU and comparable organizations (e.g. MoA-BARC or DGF), the same office is placed one or two grades below at FPMU considering there are less hierarchical levels between the topmost position and the

33 The system works through a double checking mechanism, that is the officer which is the immediate superior of the one who should be evaluated has to prepare the ACR, which is then signed for approval by the immediate superior of the former (i.e. two levels higher than the officer that should be evaluated) in order to ensure a fair procedure.


38 Technical Report

lowest position.34 FPMU does not have any rewards besides salaries. This is a major difference, es-pecially for top positions, as compared with the same positions in comparable organizations, where there are very valuable fringe benefits (e.g. transport, housing, etc.). Promotion is the only way to get an increase in pay/status.35 People at FPMU are promoted as in the rest of the Bangladeshi public administration, i.e. on the basis of a process that in principle takes into account their seniority, job performance, and merit. However, it does not follow any well con-ceived rational process. Rules and regulations are arbitrarily framed by the government which some-times lack transparency. There are no annual promotional rounds and often officers have to wait for years before they are considered eligible for advancement. In reality, in absence of transparent promotion policy neither of its requirements are strictly fol-lowed. Seniority is used just as a minimum requirement for application to a higher-level position (according to what is stated in the recruitment rule). For lower-level positions, this is usually enough for getting a promotion. Vice versa, for top positions, once the year’s service requirement has been met, the performance criterion operates, based on the assessment made by higher level officers (by means of the Annual Confidential Report). But, as has already been mentioned (cf. section 4.3.1.3), this leaves a large degree of discretion on discussing the case for promotion. Generally, FPMU officers place a very high value on non-monetary rewards (e.g. study opportuni-ties abroad, travels in the country with travel allowances/daily allowances, vehicles, etc.). These ex-pectations have been raised by the opportunities offered by the NFPCSP. Moreover, FPMU officers value very much the opportunities of career promotion within the organization (cf. section 4.3.1.2). Status consciousness is another issue of grievance. A formal process of dismissal exists, although very rarely it is applied. In principle it works on the ground of inefficiency and/or misconduct (e.g. financial irregularities). In reality this charge is often perceived/interpreted as political patronage. At FPMU no one has been discriminated/dismissed on these grounds ever since its establishment. The retirement policy is the same that applies to the whole public sector in the country.


4.3.2.1. Values (culture) and vision (leadership)

The actions to be implemented in order to change the FPMU culture towards a more result-based orientation are primarily capacity development interventions such as training on result-based man-agement, information technology use, etc. (cf. strategy S4 in Annex 2). In addition, the enhancement of analytical capacity is expected to contribute to develop a critical attitude in FPMU research staff.

34 For example, the General Director FPMU is placed in grade 5, while the DG Food at grade 4 and a Chief Scientific Officer at MoA-BARC at grade 3.

35 Although little integration of FPMU officers pay may be obtained as per diem if they participate in field works. This makes this kind of activities very appealing to FPMU research officers.


Technical Report 39

Leadership may be under threat if the retirement of the current DG is not properly managed. In fact the current DG will retire as early as the end of December 2009. By that date no other FPMU re-search staffs have the service age qualification for stepping in and the two oldest research officers will be abroad for their long-term training in January 2010. In order to avoid to bring back FPMU in the old-fashioned situation of having a DG not fully ac-quainted with the FPMU mandate and its technical mission it is recommended to take all needed actions for ensuring take over by another FPMU permanent staff. Referring to this issue, suitable options are (i) an extension of the current DG’s appointment or (ii) assigning the responsibility as acting DG to one of the FPMU professionals.36 Less preferred options might be to look for some-body in the public administration who has the right qualification (i.e. at least a Joint Secretary grade) and dedication to FPMU, or send out a call for position open to everybody (i.e. within and outside the public administration), with very strict professional terms of reference (cf. Annex 18), such that the selected person will fit to the FPMU DG job.

4.3.2.2. Internal relationships

Managing internal relationships in general do not pose serious problems, and even less so after the last assignment of the responsibility as acting Research Directors of the Food Security, Consump-tion and Nutritional Analysis (FSCN) and Production, Market, and Early Warning (PMEW) Direc-torates to the two non-permanent FPMU officers. However, this decision has been made only at DG level, without a formal endorsement by the MoFDM Secretary. In order to render the task allocation more stable and prevent potential conflicts, always possible when a given decision is not sanctioned by the authority who has the formal power to do so, it is recommended to adopt any action to have as soon as possible a formal acknowledgement of this at MoFDM level, through a formal decision by the MoFDM Secretary.

4.3.2.3. Coordination and control mechanisms

The situation that results from the capacity assessment with specific reference to FPMU manage-ment is that of an organization characterized by too heavy administrative/bureaucratic workload, enormous pressure caused by ad-hoc requests, work priorities determined by emergencies, no clear assignment of tasks/responsibilities, limited accountability, weak data management system, and in-efficient in-house data exchange/use. The analysis clearly shows that the improvement of coordination and control mechanisms can be pursued either indirectly or directly. In the former case the issue can be addressed through actions that will be implemented to pursue primarily other objectives but have a positive feedback on FPMU management, such as the Mandate revision (cf. section 4.1.2.1), the adoption of new job de-scriptions (cf. section 4.2.2.2), the reduction of workload through the revision of output policy (cf. section 3.2.2), and improving individual managerial capacity through RBM training (cf. section 4.3.2.1).

36 These options have already been brought to the attention of the MoFDM Minister and Secretary by the consultants, with positive reactions, and it is expected that both the NFPCSP staff and the FPMU DG will follow up.


40 Technical Report

Directly addressing the issue of a more effective result-based management of FPMU activities im-plies the enhancing of managerial capacity at institutional level, implementing coordination and control mechanisms of FPMU activities. This means adopting an effective planning, monitoring, and evaluation system. Of course, such an important change in the managerial culture of FPMU cannot be expected to hap-pen overnight. Therefore, a gradual and participatory approach needs to be adopted. A preliminary Workplan and a Monitoring Framework have been prepared in a participatory manner during the consultants’ second mission.37 The proposed 2009-10 workplan (Annex 19) is a proposal to be tested as a management tool. Being the first time FPMU is adopting a workplan, it has been designed purposely at the simplest level of details, including only: • the activities, which mimic the ones resulting from the output assessment (cf. block of activities

#2 – “Output/service delivery”, and #1.1.4 – “Work planning, monitoring and reporting”), and the ones included in the Capacity Development Plan38 (cf. block of activities #1 – “Institu-tional/managerial activities”, and #3 – “Capacity development activities”);

• their duration, on a monthly basis; • the allocation of responsibility (at Directorate level); • a few explicative notes on implementation modalities. The natural complement to the 2009-10 Workplan is its Monitoring Framework (cf. Annex 20). This Monitoring Framework has the same breakdown of activities as in the proposed Workplan, suggesting: • a set of SMART indicators per each activity;39 • a baseline and a target per each indicator as appropriate (and feasible);40 • the means verification per each indicator; • the frequency of monitoring; • a set of explicative notes or assumptions as appropriate. Both the Workplan and the Monitoring Framework represent only proposals for adoption over the fiscal year July 2009-June 2010 that should be tested by FPMU using it in monitoring and evaluat-ing the organization’s activities. The two important managerial changes implied by this test adop-tion are that (i) the MIC Directorate will start acting as the unit in charge of planning and monitor-ing FPMU’s work, and (ii) the proposed workplan and monitoring framework will be used as man-agement tools in administrative reporting (cf. the Activity Report (M), the Target and Progress Re-port (M) and the Pending Activities Report (F)). 37

Both the Workplan and the Monitoring Framework have been developed assuming that the Option #1 for the Output Policy revision will be adopted.

38 Of course, in this case the adopted perspective is that of FPMU, not the one of the Capacity Development Plan,

which is instead reflects the one of the implementing agency (i.e. NFPCSP).

39 In the management literature, SMART is the acronym for Specific, Measurable, Agreed, Realistic, Time-bound, and

recalls the criteria a given indicator must meet in order to be effective.

40 The baseline, estimated over the period April 2008-March 2009, was not available for all indicators. Therefore, it is suggested that in the test implementation the existing gaps will be filled in. Moreover, an attempt of final users involve-ment has been made whenever feasible and appropriate (e.g. service delivery).


Technical Report 41

A roadmap for the full adoption of the Workplan and Monitoring Framework has been agreed upon in consultations with FPMU staff as follows: b) April-November 2009: test implementation of the proposed 2009-10 Workplan and Monitoring

Framework, which should be considered as “interim” (i.e. provisional) until the next mission of the institutional consultants (cf. the NFPCSP Global Workplan 2009-2012, Annex 8);

c) November 2009: first mission of the institutional consultants aiming at taking stock of the test implementation, fine tuning of the Monitoring Framework, finalizing the 2009-10 Workplan (to be adopted for the remaining period of the FY 2009-10), and drafting the provisional 2010-11 Workplan;

d) December 2009-June 2010: full implementation of the (final) 2009-10 Workplan and Monitoring Framework;

e) June 2010: second mission of institutional consultants aiming at taking stock of the 2009-10 im-plementation experience and finalizing the 2010-11 Workplan and Monitoring Framework.

4.3.2.4. Incentives

In an ideal world, incentives should be linked to performance. However, this is prevented at FPMU by existing administrative rules. The only reward that can, up to certain extent, be linked to per-formance is the prospect of long-term training/short courses/internship abroad.41 It is warmly rec-ommended to use this leverage to motivate FPMU research staff as far as possible. The other reward that can be used to provide incentives to FPMU staff is the prospect of career ad-vancement. Also in this case the room of manoeuvre is very limited, considering the small size of the organization and its few hierarchical levels. However, some scope for career advancement of mid-lower level research staffs can be accommodated if the proposal of new sanctioned posts (cf. Table 11 in section 4.1.2.3) will be accepted. Finally, any pay/status issue that can be perceived as unfair should be addressed in order to prevent this will undermine the staff’s sense of belonging to the organization. This means that the salary scale inconsistency currently existing for some permanent FPMU staff appointed as Additional Di-rectors/Assistant Chiefs should be fixed.42 The involved people have already submitted their appli-cation but have not succeeded yet in sending their case through proper channel, in this case the MoFDM.

41 However, it should be acknowledged the limited extent of this leverage, considering that the precondition for this would be the full implementation of a monitoring and evaluation system that will likely be operational only towards the end of NFPCSP – Phase II.

42 Namely, this problem involves Mahbubur Rhaman, Feroz Al Mahmud, Ferdousi Ara, Mostafa Al Banna. All those people joined the FPMU in 2006. When the call for position was published, it mentioned a pay scale of Taka 9,000-15,480, which corresponds to a grade 7 post, but the grade was not explicitly mentioned in the call for position. This created a salary treatment disparity between them and other FPMU permanent staff who were Additional Directors at that time (i.e. Hajiqul Islam and Naser Farid, before their recent promotion to Research Director position) as well as with non-permanent FPMU staff (i.e. attached) Additional Directors (i.e. Syed Amdadul Huq and Ruhul Amin Talukder) who were/are instead placed at grade 6.


42 Technical Report

5. INTER-INSTITUTIONAL L INKAGES AND INSTITUTIONAL POSITIONING

5.1. Inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration


To understand the institutional relationships of the FPMU with the rest of Bangladeshi public ad-ministration, it is necessary to recall briefly the organization of the GoB. The Bangladesh Secreta-riat, the centre of all public administration works, is a conglomerate of all ministries and divisions under them. In shaping public policies, the Secretariat collects, collates, evaluates, and synthesizes data, facts, figures, evidence, and analyses. Ministries and divisions are self-contained hierarchical units responsible to formulate public policy, undertake administrative planning, evaluate policy and plan implementation, frame legislation, rules, and regulations, advise, and assist Ministers in their administrative duties/responsibilities vis-à-vis parliament, etc. Each Minister is responsible for the administration/overall work supervision while the Secretary/Additional Secretary is the principal accounting officer of the Ministry. A Ministry may consist of one or more Divisions. Each Ministry/Division is headed by a Secretary or, in his absence, by an Additional Secretary. He advises the Minister on policy and administrative matters, oversees the routine operations of the Ministry/Division, supervises its staffing and organ-izational process, and manages its financial aspects. Each Division is further classified into Wings. A Wing is a self-contained part of a Division for conducting specified duties of a distinct nature. It is under the charge of an officer of the rank of Joint Secretary, who is in charge of the affairs of the Wing and is empowered to submit cases to the Minister for decisions through the Secre-tary/Additional Secretary of the Division. A number of Branches constitute a Wing. A Deputy Secretary looking after a Branch is under the overall supervision of the head of the Wing within which his Branch operates. Below the branch is the Section, the basic working unit in a divi-sion, which is headed by a Senior Assistant/Assistant Secretary. He is the desk officer of the Minis-try, initiates files, examines papers under consideration on the basis of rules/regulations, standing instructions and precedents, and puts up cases to the higher authorities for decision. He has also a basic role in closing the files (i.e. in transmitting final orders to concerned agencies). Most Ministries/Divisions have one or more executive agencies attached to them. These are known as Departments/Directorates or subordinate offices. A Department/Directorate provides executive direction in the implementation of policies while a subordinate office serves as a field establishment for their actual implementation. Subordinate offices either work under the Ministry/Division or in some cases under Department/Directorate. FPMU has a special status within this framework. It is a unit created within the MoFDM with the specific duty of monitoring food security and the implementation of the National Food Policy. As such, it has the same rank of a Wing within the Ministry, as proven also by its officer in charge (the DG) who has the rank of a Joint Secretary (Figure 7). However, differently from standard Wing chiefs (i.e. Joint Secretaries) who have to pass through the Additional Secretary of the Division to


Technical Report 43

submit cases to the Minister, the FPMU Director General is empowered to directly submit cases to the Minister for decisions through the Secretary.

Figure 7. Institutional relationships of FPMU Moreover, in a context where coordination between ministries remains weak and policy making processes remain compartmentalized, the fact that FPMU is engaged in various inter-ministerial coordination processes is noteworthy. FPMU has indeed the responsibility of providing secretarial services (i.e. all the relevant informa-tion needed as well as data, policy briefs, analytical reports) to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC), which is the National Committee responsible for monitoring the overall food situation of the country and regularly reviews the production, demand, stocks, prices and food secu-rity issues of the country. The FPMC is thus in a position to provide policy guidelines to the GoB in order to ensure national food security. FPMU contributes also to other inter-ministerial committees such as the Early Warning Technical Committee (EWTC), the Food Security, Consumption and Nutrition Technical Committee (FSCNTC), the Safety Nets Technical Committee (SNTC) and so on. Both the FPMC and other technical committees are the institutional bodies where FPMU contributes to make policy-relevant decisions founded on its analyses and represent the main loci where the coordination and collabora-tion with other Ministries/Agencies take place. Finally, there is another area of inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration represented by the two bodies specifically created with the support of the NFPCSP for the monitoring of the imple-

MoFDM Secretary

Administration Additional Secretary

Food Joint

Secretary

Disaster Mngt. Joint

Secretary

FPMU DG/Joint Secretary

FPMC Other

Ministries

EWTC

FSCN TC

SNTC

. . .

NFPCSP

FPWG

TTs

NFP

Committees Ministry of Food and Disaster Management


44 Technical Report

mentation of the National Food Policy (NFP), namely the Thematic Teams (TTs) and the Food Poli-cy Working Group (FPWG). The TTs, called Thematic Research Teams under NFPCSP – Phase I, include representatives from the concerned planning units or policy wings of the partner Ministries/Divisions which have a say in the implementation of the National Food Policy and, broadly speaking, on any food security related issue. The activities of the TTs, supported by the NFPCSP Technical Assistance Team (TAT), focus on the monitoring reduction of food insecurity and progress towards the World Food Summit target and the hunger Millennium Development Goals, assessing the cost effectiveness of activities tar-geted to ensure food security, and formulating new programs and/or modifications or expansions in existing ones. The TTs functions are allocated according to four core food policy-related issues as follows: • TRT A: Food Availability (FA); • TRT B: Physical and Social Access to Food (PSA); • TRT C: Economic Access to Food (EA); • TRT D: Utilization of Food for Nutrition (UFN). Immediately after the NFP was approved, the FPMU established the FPWG led by the DG of FPMU and the Chief Technical Advisor of the NFPCSP. The FPWG comprises the FPMU Directors, TT leaders, and the senior staff from the partner Ministries. The FPWG is supposed to meet quarterly with an overall objective to review progress of the work, give guidance, and enable hierarchical su-pervision over the partner Ministries’ staff in the TTs by the respective senior staff. In between such sessions the FPWG meets as required, with its non-FPMU members represented by the relevant staff in the TTs. In carrying out the functions, the TTs coordinate their own activities with other TTs and operate under the guidance and supervision of the FPWG. This network of relationships is largely consistent with the FPMU Mandate and, broadly speaking, with the country needs in the field of food security. There are, however, a few areas where im-provements are possible, namely: • the frequency and timeliness of meeting: generally, all Committees as well as the FPWG do not

show a clear pattern of gathering even when a given frequency is clearly spelled out (as it is, for example, in the case of the FPWG). This is partly normal, dealing with issues that sometimes have to be dealt on an ad-hoc basis (e.g. emergencies), but it depends also on a weak planning capacity by the ones who have the responsibility to call for meetings as well as on a too tight working sche-dule, dominated by other pressing duties;

• the level of participation of FPMU staff as well as of partner Ministries representatives to the TTs remains sub-optimal. This is partly due to a low level of commitment of TTs members and, again, to a too tight working schedule characterized by other pressing duties;

• the efficiency of exchange of data/information is still low due to a poor use of information tech-nologies both within FPMU and between FPMU and data providers in partner Ministries;

• the ability to carry out autonomous research and analysis by TTs is quite low because of a still weak analytical background of FPMU as well as partner Ministries’ representatives, but most of all because they work as committees in which members have very limited time to devote to subs-tantive technical work;

• the articulation of TTs into four teams (with two TTs dealing with food access) is rather artificial given that the NFP is its articulated around 3 core objectives (food availability, food access, nutri-


Technical Report 45

tion/food utilization). Also, the articulation of the TTs is not consistent with the current articula-tion of the FPMU Directorates.


The issues highlighted with specific reference to inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration can be largely addressed by capacity development activities (e.g. improving the analytical, monitoring and managerial capacities, cf. strategies S2 and from S4 to S6 in Annex 2). The specific institutional changes that is appropriate to highlight here are the following: • make a more widespread and effective use of information technologies in managing data exchange

with data providers in partner Ministries as well as within FPMU; • try to be more timely in calling for meeting of technical committees led by FPMU staff and to en-

hance the TTs’ rate of attendance of both FPMU staff and representatives of partner Ministries: both actions have been explicitly addressed in the Monitoring Framework identifying specific in-dicators (cf. Annex 20);

• make more consistent the thematic organization of TTs and that of FPMU: the proposed reorgani-zation of FPMU around three thematic Directorates (cf. section 4.1.2.1 and Annex 12) will address this issue. But this also calls for a reorganization of the TTs, which should be reduced to only three teams, merging TRT-B (Physical and Social Access) and TRT-C (Economic Access) into a single Food Access Thematic Team, in line with the three core objectives of the National Food Policy.

5.2. Institutional positioning


The assessment of FPMU institutional positioning has been carried out through a stakeholder analy-sis, that is a systematic gathering and analysis of qualitative information to identify the interests to-wards FPMU as well as NFPCSP activities. The first step in stakeholder analysis has been the identification of stakeholders. Broadly speaking, all institutional actors (i.e. organizations) who have a vested interest in the FPMU businesses have been considered as stakeholders. Ex ante, they have been grouped into three categories:43 • providers: people/institutions who are in contact with FPMU for procedural reasons (e.g. data pro-

vision) and lies upstream in the FPMU process of knowledge production; • users: people/institutions who are interested in what the FPMU is doing, either because they are

users for institutional reasons (e.g. MoFDM top officers, members of technical committees, etc.), or because they are interested in food security issues in the country (e.g. NGOs);

• contributors/allies: people/organizations with whom FPMU may in principle develop a partnership (e.g. HKI/BRAC on nutrition issues).

43 In each category it has been identified who is institutionally responsible for the relationship with FPMU (i.e. the boss) and who is actually doing the job (i.e. the officer(s) actually in touch with FPMU staff).


46 Technical Report

This process of stakeholder identification was articulated into (i) mapping FPMU institutional rela-tionships, and (ii) selecting a number of contacts on the basis of their relevance. At the end of the process, twenty stakeholders have been interviewed (cf. Annex 21) that, from the institutional view-point, belong to five sectors, namely: development partners, national political, public entities, NGOs, and others. The second and most difficult step has been the assessment of stakeholder characteristics (i.e. ex-pectations and interests). Characteristics such as knowledge of FPMU/NFPCSP activities, interests related to these activities, position for or against them, and ability to affect the FPMU activities (through the stakeholder’s power and leadership) have been analyzed.44 At the end of the process, a stakeholder mapping has been produced (Table 12 and Figure 8). Table 12. Stakeholder mapping

Stakeholder Knowledge Position Involvement Power

NFPCSP FPMU NFPCSP FPMU NFPCSP FPMU NFPCSP FPMU NFPCSP +++ +++ +++ FPMU +++ +++ +++ MoFDM ++ +++ = ++ = +++ +++ DGF + ++ + – – + +++ + MoA-DAE = + = – = ++ = MoA-DAM = + = + = ++ = BBS = + = = = + = MoF/PC = = = = = = = NGOs + = + + = = = Note: the assessment is based on a seven point Likert scale ranging from +++ (very high, or very cooperative in the case of Position), to – – – (very low, or very competitive in the case of Position).

Figure 8. Stakeholders mapping, with reference to position and involvement

44 Examples of the questions used in the stakeholder analysis are the following: What are the institutional relationships between your institution/organization and FPMU? Is there any problem and/or how these relationships can be im-proved/enhanced? What are the functions that FPMU is currently fulfilling? What is the evaluation that you give about FPMU performances in fulfilling the functions above? What are the functions that FPMU should fulfil in order to serve its mandate? What steps should be taken, with specific reference to the relationship between your institution/position and the FPMU, in order better pursue/fulfil the objectives/functions above?

Involvement

DGF

MoF/PC

BBS

MoA-DAE/DAM

MoFDM

Competition Cooperation

FPMU

NFPCSP

NGOs

High

Low

Position


Technical Report 47

The main conclusions of stakeholder analysis can be summarized as follows: • some stakeholders stressed they do not have a clear perception of what FPMU is currently doing:

this reveals a clear problem of communication/dissemination of FPMU outputs and results; • many stakeholders emphasized the overlapping of contents among FPMU outputs as well as be-

tween FPMU outputs and the ones produced by other agencies and branches of the GoB. Specifi-cally, monitoring and compiling statistics is an ability that other branches of the GoB have devel-oped over last years: actually, FPMU ability to produce original data is very limited and it general-ly uses data produced by other branches of the GoB (e.g. MISM-DGF);

• on the other hand, FPMU role in monitoring of NFP-PoA is fully acknowledged by all interviewed stakeholders;

• all stakeholders have also emphasized that more policy analysis and advice on food security issues is needed to make better-informed policy decisions and FPMU is the right place where to carry out this kind of analytical work within the GoB;

• some stakeholders raised the issue of keeping FPMU within the MoFDM. There are actually three alternative options reflecting contrasting views about FPMU institutional location, namely: (i) maintaining it within the MoFDM as an independent unit (i.e. as it is now), (ii) maintaining it within the MoFDM but merging it with the MISM-DGF, and (iii) moving the FPMU in a coordi-nating body of the GoB (e.g. Planning Commission) acknowledging the cross-cutting nature of food security.

In conclusion, the analysis emphasized a potentially competitive attitude by some stakeholders, but the cooperative attitude by others (Figure 8), and the existence of some threats to FPMU current role, but also big opportunities if the organization will be able to re-position itself.


The conclusion of the stakeholder analysis are consistent with the output and performance analyses (e.g. too little analytical content of many outputs, overlapping content across FPMU outputs, little value added of FPMU production vis-à-vis other outputs produced by other branches in the GoB, etc.). Consistently, the proposed changes mimic the ones already proposed in the relevant sub-sections of section 3 and 4 and in the Capacity Development Plan (cf. Annex 2). The expectation is that, after the implementation of the Capacity Development Plan actions as well as other changes proposed in the previous sections, the stakeholders’ position vis-à-vis the FPMU could change, moving them from the competitive side of the ladder towards a more cooperative atti-tude (Figure 9). In summary, the overall strategy for pursuing the objective of improving FPMU performances and sustainability can be summarized as follows: “one step aside, one step forward”, that is broadening the content focus of FPMU activities (i.e. dealing with all dimensions of food security, addressing it as much comprehensively as possible) and climbing up the value added ladder (i.e. adding to the already existing monitoring abilities, more policy analysis and advise). Shortly, this means re-positioning FPMU where its comparative advantage actually lies vis-à-vis potential competitors. With specific reference to the issue of where FPMU should be placed within the GoB, the consul-tants do not have a clear preference, because both options (i.e. keep FPMU within the MoFDM or moving it in a coordination body of the GoB) have both pros and cons. Therefore, this issue is left to FPMU and higher level decision makers for consideration and discussion. What is clear, however, is


48 Technical Report

that in both options strengthening the links with partners Ministries is a pre-requisite for a more ef-fective operation of FPMU.

Figure 9. Stakeholders mapping after the proposed changes

6. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This document comprehensively reports on the main findings of the Institutional Assessment (IA) of FPMU. The IA general objective is the assessment of the FPMU current ability to pursue its institu-tional objectives, aiming at identifying existing gaps and/or bottlenecks in FPMU operations and designing suitable interventions to enhance such ability. In short, the IA aims at providing the ana-lytical background for the improvement of FPMU performances and sustainability, identifying needed technical assistance interventions by NFPCSP and/or actions to be implemented by other institutions, primarily the Government of Bangladesh. Following findings of outputs, human resources, stakeholders and SWOT analyses, the IA suggests a multi-pronged strategy whose rationale is twofold: (i) broadening the scope of FPMU activities (i.e. dealing with all dimensions of food security, addressing it as much comprehensively as possi-ble), and (ii) climbing up the value added ladder (i.e. adding to the already existing monitoring abili-ties, more policy analysis and advise capacity). Shortly, this means re-positioning FPMU where its comparative advantage actually lies. The main outcomes of the IA are summarized in Annex 22, where a Roadmap for the improvement of FPMU performance and sustainability is reported. The IA identified six major issues as areas of interventions and proposes some actions summarized into the Roadmap as follows: 1. delivery of analytical outputs and services:

Involvement

FPMU

NFPCSP

Competition Cooperation

DGF

MoA-DAE/DAM

BBS

NGOs MoF/PC

MoFDM

Position

Low

High


Technical Report 49

• reduce the number and/or frequency of the outputs, addressing the issue of content overlapping, • broaden the food security coverage, filling in the existing gaps in terms of data/information

(namely, consumption/nutritional data, price data, etc.), • increase the analytical content of outputs;

2. organizational structure:

• refocus the contents of the three thematic Directorate by core food security dimensions (availa-bility, access and utilization/nutrition) in line with the NFP,

• eliminate/reduce overlapping across the three thematic Directorates and concentrate all staff/service functions in the fourth Directorate,

• address the imbalance between top-officers (DG, Research Directors and Additional Directors) and lower-level officers (i.e. research officers) increasing the number of research officers,

• addressing the issue of insufficient supporting staff slightly increasing their number; 3. human resources management:

• balance the current mismatch between actual technical capacity/skills and required technical capacity/skills recruiting staff with the right technical background as permanent FPMU offic-ers,

• reduce turn-over in top-positions through internal promotion of FPMU permanent staff and adopt performance as a criterion for career advancement,

• address the current shortage of staff present at FPMU vis-à-vis the number of outputs/services to be delivered filling in currently vacant positions, increasing the number of staff, carefully managing staff leaves for training activities,

• address the current lack of specific skills (i.e. statistics/database management, network/website management, librarianship) recruiting those expertise as part of the proposal already submitted to the MoFDM in 2008 to fill in currently vacant positions,

• provide the right incentives to staff making consistent the pay scale among staffs at the same level;

4. processes management:

• strengthen coordination and control mechanisms toward a more result-based management im-plementing the proposed FPMU workplan and monitoring plan and using them as guidelines for activity reporting,

• careful management of the transition phase after DG retirement (Dec 2009) taking the neces-sary actions to ensure take over by another FPMU permanent staff,

• reduce turn-over in top-positions through internal promotion of FPMU permanent staff and adopting performance as a criterion for career advancements;

5. inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration:

• address the issue of overlapping between current FPMU activities and other GoB branches (e.g. data production) focusing on more policy analysis,

• establish efficient electronic exchange of data both upstream and downstream, • develop FPMU database, website and documentation center, • make more efficient the organization of the inter-ministerial Thematic Teams (TTs) reducing

their number to three, consistently with the three FPMU thematic Directorates;


50 Technical Report

6. institutional positioning: • increase FPMU outreach through more structured dissemination activities and refocusing out-

put/service contents (cf. also point 1 above) • consider and discuss with all interested parties options for a better FPMU institutional position-

ing, e.g. keeping FPMU within the MoFDM and strengthening links with partner Ministries in-volved in food security or moving FPMU in a coordinating body of the GoB (e.g. Planning Commission, Ministry of Finance).

Those actions are differentiated in the Roadmap according to the institution/organization responsi-ble for implementing them (i.e. MoFDM, FPMU, and NFPCSP). By and large, the MoFDM is re-quired to endorse and/or take necessary actions for institutional and organization changes, the FPMU to initiate/follow-up those actions to the MoFDM as well as implementing immediately ac-tionable changes, and the NFPCSP is required to support proposed institutional changes as well as the implementation of actions through capacity development activities. Guidance on how to implement those actions is provided by a set of key outputs produced during the institutional assessment whose relationships with the TORs’ outputs is as follows:

IA TORs’ outputs IA key outputs

#1 – A short-term/medium-term capacity devel-opment plan

• FPMU Capacity Development Plan (Annex 2)

#2 – A proposal for monitoring FPMU perfor-mance and sustainability

• Interim 2009-2010 FPMU Workplan (Annex 19)

• FPMU Monitoring Framework (Annex 20)

#3 – Recommendations on institutional/ organizational changes

• Proposals for FPMU output policy revision (cf. section 3.2.2)

• Proposal for FPMU Mandate revision (Annex 11)

• Proposal for a new FPMU organizational structure (cf. section 4.1.2)

• Proposal for a new FPMU organogram (An-nex 12)

• Proposal for a new FPMU Recruitment rule (Annex 17)

• Proposal for FPMU job descriptions (Annex 18)

Within this comprehensive framework, three actions require top priority by the MoFDM Ministry and, broadly speaking, by the GoB, namely: a. approval of the new FPMU Mandate (and the consequent re-organization of FPMU structure and

organogram), b. filling in currently vacant positions (including the data base manager, the network/website spe-

cialist and the librarian expertise) and recruitment of new staff according to the proposed new or-ganogram/job descriptions), and

c. manage the phase after the retirement of current FPMU DG (expected as early as the end of De-cember 2009) in order to ensure the take over by another FPMU permanent staff.


Technical Report 51

These actions have already been brought to the attention of the MoFDM Minister and Secretary by the consultants, with positive reactions. It is warmly recommended that both the NFPCSP staff and the FPMU DG will follow up.


52 Technical Report

REFERENCES

Boesen, N., and Therkildsen, O., 2004. Between Naivety and Cynicism: A Pragmatic Approach to Donor Support for Public-Sector Capacity Development. Copenhagen: Danish Ministry of For-eign Affairs - Danida. August 2004.

DFID, 2003a. Promoting Institutional and Organisational Development. London: UK Department for International Development. March 2003.

DFID, 2003b. Promoting Institutional and Organisational Development. A Sourcebook of Tools and Techniques. London: UK Department for International Development. March 2003.

EuropeAid, 2007. Institutional Assessment and Capacity Development. Why, What and How? Tools and Methods Series: Reference Document No 1. Luxembourg: Office for Official Publications of the European Communities.

Lusthaus, C., Adrien, M.-H., and Perstinger, M., 1999. Capacity Development: Definitions, Issues and Implications for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation. Universalia Occasional Paper No. 35, September 1999.

North, D.C., 1991. Institutions, Institutional Change and Economic Performance. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

OED-WB, 1996. Lessons and Practices No. 7: Technical Assistance. Operations Evaluation De-partment, World Bank. Washington: The World Bank.


Technical Report A-1

Annex 1 - Terms of Reference

FAO - National Food Policy Capacity Strengthening Programme (NFPCSP), Bangladesh

International Consultant National Consultant

“Institutional Assessment of the Food Planning and Monitoring Unit (FPMU)

and Formulation of a Capacity Development Plan”

Under the overall supervision of the FAO Representative for Bangladesh and the direct supervision of the NFPCSP Chief Technical Coordinator and in close consultation with relevant experts of the NFPCSP Technical Assistant Team and officials of the Food Planning and Monitoring Unit and the MoFDM, the consultants will be responsible for performing the tasks and producing the deliverables as described below. TASKS AND DELIVERABLES Based on available documentation, including FPMU’s mission statement, consultations with relevant stake-holders, and following standard Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities Threats (SWOT) techniques, the con-sultants are expected to undertake the following tasks: A – Performance Assessment: the consultants will assess current FPMU performance with respect to the following dimensions: • Delivery of analytical outputs and advisory services - Review FPMU historical performance since establishment (with and without technical assistance) - Assess the quantity, quality and analytical and advisory products and services currently delivered by the

various divisions of the FPMU - Assess their relevance to the MoFDM, the FPMC and other policy-makers; the consultants will notably

distinguish between routine and unplanned technical outputs and services. - Assess their relevance from the viewpoint of the National Food Policy implementation/monitoring re-

quirements - Assess the effectiveness of output dissemination strategies and potential areas for improvement - Identify areas of complementarity and overlapping with outputs and services produced by other organiza-

tions engaged in food policy analysis and monitoring; and identify main “niches” and comparative advan-tages of FPMU;

- Identify relevant outputs and services that require priority attention within the framework of capacity de-velopment interventions

• Inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration - Review the number, quality and impact of analytical and advisory services, involving collaborations with

partner ministries - Assess the effectiveness of existing coordination mechanisms (Thematic Research Teams, Food Policy

Working Group, Early Warning Technical Committee, etc.) - Identify gaps and areas for improvement B - Capacity Assessment: The consultants will identify and assess the key factors underlying FPMU’s cur-rent and future performance with a particular focus on the following dimensions:


A-2 Technical Report

• Internal organizational and managerial structures and capacities (i) FPMU organizational structure - Review FPMU organizational structure - Assess the appropriateness of the role/functions of FPMU various operational units (adequacy of terms of

reference, areas of complementarity/duplication, potential gaps), viz. FPMU current delivery performance and future work in relation to the NFP.

(ii) Skills, competencies and human resource management: - Review distribution of roles and responsibilities of FPMU staff in the delivery of FPMU various outputs

and services; assess adequacy of staff skills and competencies, and effectiveness in the use of existing hu-man resources

- Review job descriptions, pay and conditions, performance management and evaluation processes, career development planning, for senior management positions (DG, Directors), middle-level and junior positions and the way they affect individual performance.

- Identify skills and competency gaps and needs for changes in current staffing/additional FPMU staff, as well as needs for redirecting short term and long term capacity development and other technical assistance;

(iii) Strategic leadership/ process management - Review procedures and guidelines, decision-making processes, including planning and priority-setting;

internal communication and coordination mechanisms; reporting requirements, performance monitoring processes and other accountability mechanisms; and assess the way they impact on the delivery of both routine, as well as unplanned, demand driven outputs and services;

- Identify main areas for improvement in the short term/medium term and map out practical capacity devel-opment interventions (nature and modalities) in the area of results-based management, in due consideration of current management/administrative culture.

- (Assess the implications of on-going public administration reforms on FPMU on managerial capacities, as relevant)

• Institutional positioning and inter-institutional linkages: - Assess the relationships of the FPMU with other departments within the MoFDM and with partner minis-

tries and other government and non-government bodies, with particular focus on data and information ex-change processes, technical collaborations and communication and coordination mechanisms

- Assess major constraints on the FPMU/MoFDM in fulfilling its inter-ministerial coordinating role with regard to NFP related activities, through the Thematic Research Teams and the Food Policy Working Group

- Identify practical avenues, including possible capacity building interventions, for strengthening communi-cation and coordination mechanisms between FPMU with partner ministries (awareness raising, need for moderators/facilitators, prioritization and planning, partnerships), as well as the possible need for re-positioning of FPMU within the government.

C. Recommendations for improving FPMU performance and sustainability Based on the findings of the performance and capacity assessments conducted along the lines suggested above, the consultants are expected to provide a set of actionable recommendations for improving FPMU performance and sustainability. These recommendations shall be translated into the following specific out-puts: • Output#1: A short-term/medium term capacity development plan: The capacity development plan ex-

pected to feed into NFPCSP-Phase II planning activities. It is therefore expected to provide clear indica-tions on the type, implementation modalities - by the NFPCSP and, where appropriate, by other institutions - and sequencing of capacity development interventions and other support that the NFPCSP- Phase II should focus on in the short term and the medium term, so as to maximize impact and sustainability. The



Capacity Development Plan shall notably distinguish between interventions geared towards improving FPMU delivery of analytical outputs and services, and possible interventions for improving FPMU inter-ministerial coordinating role, in relation to the NFP and its PoA.

• Output#2: A proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability: The proposed monitoring

system is expected to identify a set of simple indicators for measuring and monitoring FPMU performance with regard to the delivery of key analytical and advisory outputs and services on food security and policy issues, including indicators reflecting FPMU’s ability to deliver in an autonomous manner (without tech-nical assistance).

• Ouput#3: Recommendations on institutional/organizational changes potentially needed in the longer

run for improving FPMU performance and sustainability that might be considered for further action by Government and other stakeholders.

The Consultancy Report is expected to include at least the following: • Executive summary • Background Analysis • Methodology for conducting the assessment • Main findings of the performance and capacity assessments • A short term/medium capacity development plan for the FPMU (Ouput#1) • Proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability (Output#2) • Long-term recommendations for enhancing FPMU institutional performance and sustainability (Out-

put#3) QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED International Consultant The consultant should have adequate academic qualification (PhD preferred) in a discipline relevant to the assignment supplemented by a minimum 10 years of practical experience in managing food security/policy analysis and research in public or private institutions, preferably in developing countries. Other require-ments include (i) prior experience with capacity/institutional needs assessment; (ii) familiarity with manag-ing organizational/institutional changes as well as with results-based management principles and their im-plementation (iii) strong ability to analyze and synthesize vast amounts of information, (iv) strong writing skills, (v) fluency in written and oral English, (vi) previous working experience in Bangladesh; (vii) pre-vious work with the FPMU and the MoFDM is an advantage; Immediate availability required National Consultant The consultant should have (i) adequate academic qualifications and demonstrated experience with similar undertakings (ii) excellent ability to analyze and synthesize vast amounts of information (iii) fluency in writ-ten and oral English; Immediate availability required CONSULTANCY DURATION AND MODALITIES The consultancy is expected to be conducted over a period of 8 weeks. The consultant shall submit a concept note for the institutional assessment report within one week of signing the contract. The consultancy may be organized the form of: (i). One single mission of 8 weeks over the period January-March 2009: Within two weeks before the end of the consultancy, the consultants shall submit a draft of the Mission Report highlighting interim findings of the institutional assessment and related Outputs #1, #2 and #3, to be presented and discussed in a work-



shop involving relevant stakeholders. The report shall be finalized not later than two weeks following the end of the mission. Or, (ii) Two separate missions: 5 weeks in January/February 2009 and 3 weeks in March/April 2009: - The first mission (5 weeks in January/February) will be devoted to the performance and capacity assess-ments of the FPMU and formulation of FPMU short-term/medium term capacity development plan (Ou-put#1).Within one week before the end of the first mission, the consultants shall submit a draft of the report, including interim findings of the performance and capacity assessments with reference to the Ouput#1 to be presented and discussed in a workshop with relevant stakeholders. The capacity development plan (Out-put#1) shall be finalized not later than two weeks following the end of the mission - The second mission (3 weeks in March/April) will be devoted to the finalization of the institutional as-sessment and report, including proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability (Ouput#2) and recommendations on potential institutional and organizational changes needed in the longer run (Ou-put#3). These outputs shall be presented in a workshop for discussion with relevant stakeholders within one week before the end of the mission. The final report shall be submitted not later than two weeks following the end of the mission.



Annex 2. FPMU Capacity Development Plan

Executive summary The present document is the FPMU Capacity Development Plan (CDP), that is Output #1 of the FPMU In-stitutional Assessment consultancy. It represents a comprehensive plan of activities for FPMU capacity de-velopment for consideration under NFPCSP Phase II. Following findings of outputs, human resources, stakeholders and SWOT analyses, it is structured as a multi-pronged strategy aiming at improving FPMU performance and sustainability. This general objective is articulated into nine capacity development specific objectives, which have been considered as eligible areas of interventions in the CDP, namely: A1. FPMU organizational management; A2. FPMU data management; A3. FPMU information and communication; A4. Food policy monitoring; A5. Analysis of food security issues and policy advise; A6. Inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration for the monitoring of the NFP-PoA; A7. Other inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration; A8. FPMU engagement in food security research outsourcing; A9. FPMU engagement in consultations with food security stakeholders. The overall strategy for pursuing the CDP objectives can be summarized as follows: “one step aside, one step forward”, that is (i) focusing on the FPMU core business (i.e. dealing with all dimensions of food secu-rity, addressing it as much comprehensively as possible), and (ii) climbing up the value added ladder (i.e. adding to the already existing monitoring abilities, more policy analysis and advise). Shortly, this means re-positioning FPMU where its comparative advantage actually lies. The strategies identified in the SWOT analysis have been used as building blocks of this overall strategy, each addressing specific issues, namely: S1. Redefining FPMU mission/regulatory framework; S2. Reforming staff recruitment policy; S3. Revising output policy; S4, Improving management capacity; S5. Improving human resources technical capacity; S6. Developing synergies/partnerships; S7. Enhancing FPMU institutional positioning. The CDP has been developed as an intermediate step towards a monitoring system of CDP activities (cf. Output #2 of the second mission under the Institutional Assessment consultancy) and it rests on a set of “enabling interventions”, corresponding to the first three strategies above (S1 to S3), that need to be realized mainly by institutional actors other than NFPCSP, such as the GoB. This calls for contingency plans in order to cope with the risk those interventions would not materialize. Moreover, a strong awareness raising/advocacy action towards the GoB and a firm commitment over the life of NFPCSP Phase II and beyond by all involved stakeholders is needed in order to reduce the risk of impair-ing any capacity development effort and ensure sustainability (cf. Output #3 of the Institutional Assessment consultancy which deals on longer term recommendations).



1. Background and Objectives

The formulation of the Food Planning and Monitoring Unit (FPMU) Capacity Development Plan (CDP) is the first output of the Institutional Assessment consultancy carried out within the NFPCSP Phase II project by Professor Donato Romano and Mr. Ahbab Ahmad. According to the Terms of Reference (see Annex 1), the Consultants were expected to undertake the following tasks:

A – Performance Assessment: the consultants will assess current FPMU performance with respect to: A.1 - Delivery of analytical outputs and advisory services; A.2 - Inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration; B – Capacity Assessment: the consultants will identify and assess the key factors underlying FPMU’s current and future performance with a particular focus on: B.1 - Internal organizational and managerial structures and capacities; B.2 - Institutional positioning and inter-institutional linkages.

Based on the findings of the performance and capacity assessments, the consultants were expected to pro-vide a set of actionable recommendations for improving FPMU performance and sustainability, that should be translated into the following specific outputs:

• Output#1: A short-term/medium-term capacity development plan; • Output#2: A proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability; • Ouput#3: Recommendations on institutional/organizational changes potentially needed in the longer run.

The consultancy was broken down into two missions. The first mission (carried out between Janu-ary 12 and February 18, 2009) was devoted to the performance and capacity assessments of the FPMU and formulation of FPMU short-term/medium-term capacity development plan (Ouput#1).

2. Main Findings of the Performance and Capacity Assessment

2.1. A Bird’s Eye View to the Adopted Methods

Broadly speaking, capacity can be defined as the ability of people and organizations to manage their affairs successfully. A similar definition is the one reported by EuropeAid (2007: p. 5), which was adopted in the Institutional Assessment (IA) of the FPMU: “capacity is the organization’s ability to perform tasks and produce outputs, to define and solve problems, and make informed choices”45. To be successful, capacity development efforts must, of course, be targeted on those factors that are most critical in enhancing performance. This requires a detailed understanding of what organiza-tional capacity is, what it is good for, and how it changes. The approach adopted in the IA as well as in developing the CDP is the so-called “results-oriented approach to capacity change” (ROACH, cf. Boesen and Therkildsen, 2004). It is a helpful tool for thinking analytically and operationally about capacity and capacity development and it is adopted by

45

Comparing this definition with the TORs for the institutional assessment of FPMU, it is clear that the two components reported in the TORs, namely the “performance” assessment (i.e. output and service delivery) and the “capacity” as-sessment (organizational structure and managerial capacities) are both included in the EuropeAid (2007) definition of capacity assessment.



some major development agencies such as EuropeAid. There are three cornerstones in the ROACH46 approach: • Organizations can conveniently be understood and analyzed as “open systems”. Any organization

(or a unit within an organization) is viewed as a system consisting of interacting and interdepen-dent elements embedded in a context from which the organization obtains inputs or resources, uses the inputs to organize production processes, and produces outputs.

• A focus on specific organizational outputs is useful in understanding organizations and their

changes. The outputs are the direct products and services of an organization and the immediate effect of organizational performance. Focus on capacity makes it important to concentrate on the immediate effect of organizational performance, i.e. the products and services delivered, which are indeed good proxies for the organization’s existing initial capacity. Also, assessment of out-puts implies to pay attention on often relatively tangible results of performance and fosters, from the very outset, a performance-orientation focusing on results.

• Both a “functional-rational” and “political economy” perspectives must be applied in under-

standing how organizational capacity is shaped and reshaped over time. Indeed, getting beneath the surface of organizations is very complex due to the fact that organizations have a visible and formal appearance (i.e. what is formally agreed upon, e.g. written in papers), but they also have informal and hidden aspects (i.e. whatever actually affects the organization performance even though not formally made explicit in written papers). Both analytical dimensions are needed be-cause both are crucial for the organization performance.

The IA of FPMU has been carried out through four steps which represent a logical sequence in get-ting an understanding as well as assessing the organization’s capacity and performances. a. Outputs assessment: a systematic and comprehensive survey of existing outputs (both products

and services) delivered routinely as well as on ad-hoc basis by FPMU has been conducted through a questionnaire administered to the Director General and to the Research Direc-tors/Deputy Chief of the four FPMU Directorates. Then, those preliminary results have been par-ticipatory validated interviewing each FPMU research staff and carrying out two plenary consul-tations with FPMU and NFPCSP Thematic Advisory Team (TAT). Finally, each output has been analyzed and assessed in terms of its contents, contribution by the NFPCSP-TAT, links with the data sources, potential overlapping with in-house as well as other’s outputs, and outreach effec-tiveness.

b. Human resources assessment: a systematic and comprehensive survey of FPMU human re-

sources (both research staff and support staff) actually present as well as currently abroad for long-term training has been conducted through a questionnaire administered to the Director Gen-eral and to the Research Directors/Deputy Chief of the four FPMU Directorates, and interviewing each FPMU research staff. Finally, the tentative future FPMU structure and preliminary results in terms of adequacy of personnel technical and managerial skills, FPMU operating procedures,

46 The ROACH approach fits well with the programmatic aid approaches (sector-wide approaches and budgetary aid linked to overall poverty-reduction strategies) currently being adopted by most development agencies. Such approaches focus strongly on ownership as a condition for success. This key assumption is strongly supported by evidence.



time allocation to the various activities, and difficulties in delivering have been participatory va-lidated carrying two plenary consultations with FPMU and NFPCSP-TAT.

c. Stakeholder analysis: A stakeholder analysis was carried out to gather and analyze qualitative

information from stakeholders other than the FPMU and NFPCSP-TAT to determine whose in-terests should be taken into account in designing the CDP and broadly speaking in streamlining the activities of the NFPCSP Phase II. Twenty-three key informants have been interviewed in or-der to get a feedback about their knowledge on FPMU and NFPCSP activities, their expectations and interests, their positions, and the importance they attach to FPMU activities. Also the main findings of the stakeholders analysis have been participatory discussed and validated through a consultation with FPMU research staff and NFPCSP-TAT.

d. SWOT analysis: Finally, the main findings of the previous analyses have been used to participa-

tory assess and discuss with FPMU research staff and NFPCSP-TAT the current position of the organization in terms of FPMU internal strengths and weakness as well as external opportunities and threats it faces. The SWOT analysis provided a clear basis for designing the changes needed to build on strengths, minimize weaknesses, take advantage of opportunities and deal with threats. SWOT analysis results have been eventually used to formulate and develop organiza-tional strategies, with specific reference to the capacity development of FPMU.

2.2. Performance Assessment

Table 1 summarizes the results of the output (i.e. products and services) survey. Table 1. FPMU output inventory. FPMU functions Periodical (routinely) Not periodical (ad-hoc)

Administration

• Activity report (M) • Target & progress report (M) • Pending activities report (F) • FPMU section in the MoFDM Annual report (Y) • FPMU Coordination meetings (M) • FPMU Directorates coordination meetings (M)

• Compiling/drafting the MoFDM An-nual report (on average four times in 10 years)

• Other administrative activities (e.g. re-vision of the recruitment rule)

Secretariat • FPMC working papers (ex-ante) (B) • FPMC minutes, follow-up (ex-post) (B)

• Contributing to the Parliament question time replies

Coordination

• Leading the EW Technical Committee (B) • Leading to the Safety Net Technical Committee (Q) • Participation to NFPCSP bodies (e.g. Steering Com-

mittee, Research grant panel) • Activities related to the implementation of the NFP-

PoA (e.g. TRTs, FPWG)

• Participation to meetings and Commit-tees (e.g. price assessment, etc.)

Policy advise to GoB

• FMPU Technical advisory notes, on-

demand and pro-actively

Input/briefing to development partners

• Providing data to development partners (e.g. export data to compile the FAO’s World Grain Statistics)

• Providing background info • Providing data • Commenting on documents

Research

• FPMU research under non-NFPCSP initiatives

• FPMU contribution to others’ research • Formulation of research proposal to

development partners • Input to formulation and monitoring of

NFPCSP research activities (e.g. TORs review)



Table 1 (contd.). FPMU output inventory. FPMU functions Periodical (routinely) Not periodical (ad-hoc)


• NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y) • Database on food security (Y) • Consumption monitoring report (Y) • Food Budget Report (Y) • Production monitoring report of amon/boro (H) • Costs of production amon/boro/wheat (Q) • BGD food situation report (Q) • Market monitoring report (M) • Stockflow tables (M) • Border price monitoring (M) • Foodgrain outlook (F) • Food situation (F) • Food scenario (F) • Early Warning (F) • Food situation (D) • Procurement (D)

• Inputs to monitoring activities of other bodies/agencies (e.g. PRSP-II, MDGs)

Note: Y = yearly; H = half yearly; Q = quarterly; B = bimonthly; M = monthly; F = fortnightly; D = daily.

The main conclusions that can be drawn from the output analysis are the following: a) FPMU delivers an exorbitant number of outputs that, even if we take into account only the peri-

odical outputs, amounts to 25 outputs or 977 issues per year; b) in terms of contents, the outputs are characterized by many overlapping data/information which

cluster around two main typologies of data/information: - production: mainly output quantities; - market: procurement (domestic and international) and distribution;

c) there are some important gaps in terms of data/information: - generally speaking, data/information on food utilization are largely missing; - more specifically, there is a lack of data/information in most outputs on availability at con-

sumption level, nutrition, farm-gate prices, real prices (both wholesale and retail). This assessment is also confirmed by the stakeholder analysis. It was emphasized by many stake-holders the content overlapping of many FPMU outputs and the outputs produced by other institu-tions. Examples are the data on prices (which are published daily by the MISM-DGF) and the pro-duction costs estimates (which are published on line by the DAE-MoA and are also computed by the DAM-MoA). Moreover, most stakeholders stressed that while monitoring and compiling statistics is an ability that other branches of the GoB have developed over last years (taking advantage of a much larger organization size47 and of the possibilities offered by ICTs), more policy analysis and advise on food security issues is desperately needed and all emphasized that FPMU is the right place in the GoB to carry out this kind of analytical work.

47 In fact, MISM-DGF, DAE-MoA and DAM-MoA have a sensibly larger staff, usually spread across all districts of Bangladesh, which ensures them a comparative advantage in primary data gathering as compared to the limited FPMU capacity in doing so.



2.3. Capacity Assessment

Assessing capacity serves as input in decisions on strategic and operational choices about the levels, focus areas, operational modalities and timing of capacity development. The main findings of the capacity assessment with specific reference to the FPMU refer to two main issues: its chronic under-staffing and the mismatch between existing skills/abilities and those required to accomplish effec-tively the tasks of FPMU mandate. The FPMU work performance is affected by a substantial staff shortage. Comparing the FPMU job position description (cf. G.O. Kha-M/pro-1/1277/98-/211 of 4 March 1998) and the current situation (Table 2), we can estimate the staff shortage at 22.2% for research staff (4 out of 18, including the only research investigator into the research staff) and at 25.0% for supporting staff (3 out of 12). Table 2. Comparison between sanctioned posts and actual posts at FPMU

Positions Sanctioned Current Difference Staff abroad Actual difference Officer (Class I) Director General Research Directors Deputy Chief Additional Directors Assistant Chiefs Research Officers

1 3 1 4 2 6

1 3 - 5 1 4

- - 1 -1 1 2

- 1 - 2 - 1

- 1 1 1 1 3

Total 17 14 3 4 7 Officer (Class II) Research Investigator AO PO

1 2 1

- 1 1

1 1 -

- - -

1 1 -

Total 4 2 2 - 2 Supporting staff Steno typists Off. assistant cum typist Driver MLSS

3 1 1 4

3 1 - 3

- - 1 1

- - - -

- - 1 1

Total 9 7 2 - 2 Grand total 30 19 7 4 11

However, the situation is exacerbated because 4 research officers are currently abroad for long-term training. This means that the FPMU is operating with an actual shortage of 44.4% research staff. If we finally consider that, according to the volume of work the FPMU has to carry out the number of sanctioned posts should be increased, the staff shortage is even more pronounced. This problem is going to last for quite some time (due to research officers leaves for long-term training): therefore, a careful personnel management is needed. FPMU’s work requires professional staff (economists, agricultural economists, statisticians, etc.). However, most permanent staff consists of junior professionals who joined the FPMU only recently (7 of them as recently as July 2006 only). Their academic background and professional experience do not appear to be fully in line with the functions to be performed, especially in terms of technical knowledge, analytical and practical skills (Annex 2). In addition, a very limited managerial capacity both individually and institutionally is reported (e.g. planning, monitoring, evaluation).



Moreover, until recently the FPMU top positions (i.e. the Director General and the four Research Directors) have not been filled in by promotion of FPMU permanent staff, but by secondment of top administrative cadres coming from other branches of the public administration. This gave rise to a very rapid turn-over of top positions at FPMU that over the last five years amounts to 9 Directors General and 16 Research Directors48. This destabilizing feature of FPMU is compounded by the frequent transfers across Directorates in the attempt to cope with research officers’ long-term training leaves and promotion of some perma-nent staff to top positions: since July 2007 as much as 10 transfers across Directorates have been recorded. In conclusion, the FPMU mandate seems over-ambitious in relation to the actual staffing (both quantitatively and qualitatively) as proved by the time allocation to different activities: • on average 40% of total time is devoted to the production of non-periodical (i.e. ad-hoc) outputs; • scarce time (only 18% of total) remains for research or policy advise activities; • virtually no time is left for new skills/abilities application on the job; • the mismatch between outputs and human resources results in a very little time for output prepa-

ration: on average only 1.44 person-day are devoted to the preparation of a given output49. This situation affects the ability of FPMU to develop and sustain a long term strategic vision and to build upon achievements, and may eventually impair any capacity building effort.

3. The Starting Point for Developing the FPMU Capacity Development Plan: the SWOT Matrix

The findings of the performance and capacity assessments largely confirms and fine-tunes those of the preliminary institutional assessment carried out in the formulation stage of NFPCSP phase II by Dr. Vianney Labe and Prof. Sattar Mondal. The problem tree analysis conducted at that time emphasizes three main problems, namely: informa-tion (data and information flows both in-house and between FPMU and partner ministries), man-agement (low managerial capacity, inefficient ICT/logistic support), and technical capacity (still li-mited professional competencies, ICT and English skills). The performance and capacity assessments, although largely confirming those findings, depicted a more articulated picture, where there are not only weaknesses and threats, but also strengths and op-portunities, as shown by the FPMU SWOT matrix (Annex 3).

48 The current situation is better because at the end of 2008, for the first time, some permanent FPMU officers have been appointed as Director General as well as two Research Directors. But the problem still remains for filling the va-cant position as Deputy Chief (equivalent to that of Research Director) of the Market Monitoring and Food Operations Directorate.

49 This ratio has been computed considering only periodical outputs referring to administrative, coordination and moni-toring outputs (Table 1). If also other categories of outputs are considered, and especially if non-periodical outputs are included, the ratio is even lower.



The information contained in the SWOT matrix can be grouped into clusters of issues that refer to internal as well as external factors, both positive (i.e. strengths and opportunities) and negative (i.e. weaknesses and threats), to be taken into account in designing the CDP, as follows: a) internal factors:

• mission/regulatory framework: e.g. FPMU committed by mandate to policy analysis and advice to GoB on food security issues, to monitor the food security situation (e.g. NFP-PoA, PRSP-II, MDGs), but overlapping functions across FPMU directorates and still limited coverage of non-grain products and some dimensions of food security (e.g. nutrition, access, etc.), etc.;

• outputs/inputs: e.g. long records in monitoring and analysis of food security issues, existence of a huge information base on food security, but inefficient data exchange procedures, too many and overlapping outputs with limited analytical contents, etc.;

• human resources: e.g. chronic under-staffing (both research and support) especially with refer-ence to some crucial expertise (e.g. data-IT management), high turn-over in top FPMU posi-tions often covered by non-permanent (i.e. non technical) staff, highly motivated personnel but still inadequate technical capabilities, communication skills, result-oriented managerial capaci-ty, and too bureaucratic/hierarchical culture, etc.;

• management: e.g. well equipped working environment (furniture, ITs, etc.), but too heavy ad-ministrative/bureaucratic workload, enormous pressure caused by ad-hoc requests, and work priorities determined by emergencies, no clear assignment of tasks/responsibilities, limited ac-countability, weak data management system and inefficient in-house data exchange/use, etc.;

• institutional positioning: e.g. poor communication skills of FPMU as an institution, very li-mited outreach, poor recognition of work at FPMU (reputation), etc.;

b) external factors:

• political/legislative/social trends: e.g. GoB committed to food security, acknowledgment of NFP monitoring function as part of the broader PRSP & MDGs monitoring efforts, increasing demand for policy advice by the GoB, increasing demand for inputs and policy advice by de-velopment partners, very active civil society, but at the same time there is no clear perception by many stakeholders of what FPMU is doing, etc.;

• technological trends: e.g. IT developments disclose opportunities for more efficient flows of data/information with upstream data providers and for downstream outreach, etc.;

• competitors’ positioning: e.g. no other GoB agency/body able to carry out policy analysis and extend policy advice in specific area of food security, but monitoring skills have been develop-ing also elsewhere, there are overlapping with outputs produced by other GoB agencies/bodies, potentially non-cooperative attitude by some upstream data providers, etc.;

• links and partnerships: e.g. some links already established and good prospects for further de-velopment of links and partnerships, but sometimes low quality of data inputs and inability to develop a more efficient exchange of data with upstream provider, there is a potential for ex-ploiting the research stock developed over the years (including the research grant facility under NFPCSP Phase I), and NFPCSP support is guaranteed for the next 3.5-4 years, although this may be too short for developing a sustainable capacity, etc;

• other factors: e.g. potential loss of key FPMU staff, potentially problematic relationships be-tween permanent and non-permanent staff, etc.

Building on those clusters it has been possible to identify some strategies that represent avenues for capacity development interventions. These strategies were formulated by using statements that mix



the points identified in the SWOT matrix trying to maximize the internal strengths and the external opportunities as well as minimize the internal weaknesses and the external threats. The resulting strategies can be summarized as follows: S1. Redefining FPMU mission/regulatory framework; S2. Reforming staff recruitment policy; S3. Revising output policy; S4. Improving management capacity; S5. Improving human resources technical capacity; S6. Developing synergies/partnerships; S7. Enhancing FPMU institutional positioning. In some cases, several strategies can address the same important issue (cf. the so-called “area of in-tervention” in section 4.5). In this case, it is therefore necessary to combine different strategies in order to address each capacity development issue.

4. A Short-term/Medium-term Capacity Development Plan (CDP) for the FPMU

4.1. Principles

The IA of the FPMU was based on a set of principles that shaped the adopted methods of work50, namely: • comprehensiveness: the IA considered as much comprehensively as possible any aspect of the

functioning of the FPMU; • unbiasness: the IA was as much value-free as possible, not adopting ex-ante the stake of any

stakeholder, being them domestic or foreigners (e.g. the donors); • participation, that is the FPMU ownership of the capacity development options was acknowl-

edged from the very outset such that the emerging capacity development strategies would more likely to be successful;

• openness: it was acknowledge that FPMU is embedded in a context and, as a result, the organiza-tion must be considered as an open system interacting with such a context;

• gradualism: a step-wise, zooming-in approach was adopted, starting with a more general analysis to eventually fine-tuning it coming back iteratively to the same components of the system in sub-sequent steps, e.g. making first an inventory of the system components, then validating them par-ticipatory, and eventually conducting their assessment.

Those principles were adopted also in designing the FPMU CDP. However, in addition to that, a few other principles have been adopted, namely:

50

Some of these principles (e.g. comprehensiveness, unbiasness and participation) stem out directly from the TORs (cf. Annex 1); others (e.g. adopting a systemic and step-wise approach) are the results of the institutional and capacity as-sessment practice all over the world in the last decade or so (cf. DFID, 2003a and 2003b; Boesen and Therkildsen, 2004; EuropeAid, 2007).



• realism: it has been acknowledged there are constraints in setting the objectives/targets of the CDP and therefore, instead of assuming an “ideal” outcome, its better to be realistic and stick to what is feasible in the time frame of the CDP;

• consistency: the CDP needs to be developed as much consistently as possible with NFPCSP Phase II Project Document and its Logical Framework51;

• flexibility: this means acknowledge that only some actions are under direct control of the NFPCSP Phase II; many other are beyond the NFPCSP reach, depending by other actors (e.g. the GoB). This necessarily implies to make some assumptions about the realization of some ac-tions52;

• sustainability: all CDP activities must aim at strengthening the ability of FPMU to operate effec-tively after the end of the NFPCSP Phase II. This means that the CDP activities must ensure a gradual diminishing NFPCSP Phase II support/involvement in output production and must be consistent with the NFPCSP Phase II exit strategy.

4.2. Objectives

The general objective of the CDP is the improvement of FPMU performance and sustainability. Pursuing this objective means maximizing the FPMU strengths and building on the opportunities provided by the external environment. At the same time, this implies to address current FPMU weaknesses, while trying to minimize existing external threats. This general objective can be articulated into nine capacity development specific objectives, which will be considered as eligible areas of interventions (cf. section 4.5), namely: A1. FPMU organizational management; A2. FPMU data management; A3. FPMU information and communication; A4. Food policy monitoring; A5. Analysis of food security issues and policy advise; A6. Inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration for the monitoring of the NFP-PoA; A7. Other inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration; A8. FPMU engagement in food security research outsourcing; A9. FPMU engagement in consultations with food security stakeholders.

4.3. Strategies

The overall strategy for pursuing the objective of improving FPMU performances and sustainability can be summarized as follows: “one step aside, one step forward”, that is focusing on the FPMU core business (i.e. dealing with all dimensions of food security, addressing it as much comprehen-sively as possible) and climbing up the value added ladder (i.e. adding to the already existing moni-toring abilities, more policy analysis and advise). Shortly, this means re-positioning FPMU where its comparative advantage actually lies. The strategies identified in the SWOT analysis can be meant as building blocks of this overall strat-egy, each addressing specific issues (cf. section 4.5), namely: 51 While the CDP will, in turn, feed into the NFPCSP Global Workplan 2009-2012.

52 This will call for contingency plans in detailing the NFPCSP Phase II Global Workplan 2009-2012 in order to cope with the risks that some assumptions would not materialize.



S1. Redefining FPMU mission/regulatory framework; S2. Reforming staff recruitment policy; S3. Revising output policy; S4, Improving management capacity; S5. Improving human resources technical capacity; S6. Developing synergies/partnerships; S7. Enhancing FPMU institutional positioning. The first three (S1 to S3) are indeed “enabling interventions” that can be meant as actions/activities to be implemented to make more effective the FPMU capacity development activities (S4 to S7).

4.4. The Capacity Development Plan Matrix

The core of the Capacity Development Plan is the so-called CDP matrix (Annex 4), developed ac-cording to the principles introduced in section 4.1.

4.4.1. Consistency with NFPCSP Phase II Logframe

The principle of consistency implies that the CDP needs to be developed as much consistently as possible with the NFPCSP Phase II Logical Framework53, whose specific outcomes are twofold: 1. Role and capacity of FPMU to monitor food security and timely short-term recommendations

strengthened, which is in turn broken down into three outputs: Output 1 - Institutional and managerial capacities of FPMU enhanced; Output 2 - Technical capacities of FPMU enhanced; Output 3 - Contributions of partner ministries to FPMU’s work and NFP-PoA monitoring en-hanced54;

2. Capacity of FPMU to provide medium and long-term policy analysis and recommendations strengthened, which is broken down into two outputs: Output 4 - Medium and long-term food security research undertaken in support of FPMU’s work; Output 5 - Food security policy issues regularly debated between GoB and main stakeholders.

4.4.2. Areas of intervention for capacity development

The five outputs identified in the NFPCSP Phase II Logframe have been retained as one of the en-tries of the CDP matrix, namely they can be read across columns (“Topics”). They have been further fine-tuned into nine specific “Areas of interventions” eligible for capacity development, namely:

53 In fact, the CPD has been developed building on the findings of the IA which are largely consistent with the Logical Framework (outcomes/outputs) defined as part of the NFPCSP Phase II project formulation. The CDP will in turn facili-tate the formulation of the NFPCSP Phase II Global Workplan 2009-2012, which is currently (at the time of drafting the CDP) on going.

54 The contribution of partner ministries is realized primarily through the Food Policy Working Group (FPMC) and the four inter-ministerial Thematic Research Teams (TRTs) established under NFPCSP Phase I. Those teams will operate under the NFPCSP Phase II as well. However, considering that the TRTs capacity of directly conducting research has proven to be a too ambitious objective, it seems more realistic to assign to those teams only a function of consultation and coordination between the FPMU and partner ministries, plus supporting FPMU in food research outsourcing. This is why under NFPCSP Phase II the name of those teams have been switched to just Thematic Teams (TTs).



• Output 1: A1. Organizational management capacities; A2. Data management capacities; A3. Information and communication capacities;

• Output 2: A4. Monitoring capacities; A5. Analytical capacities;

• Output 3: A6. Inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration capacities for the monitoring of the NFP-PoA; A7. Other inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration capacities;

• Output 4: A8. Capacities to engage in food security research outsourcing;

• Output 5: A9. Capacities to engage in consultations with food security stakeholders.

4.4.3. Capacity development modalities

The principle of flexibility is at work across the rows, identifying different “Modalities” for carrying out the capacity development activities, namely: a. enabling interventions55: a.1. FPMU staffing and work organization, that is actions that lie on the GoB side but whose reali-

zation is largely beyond the reach of FPMU per se, which can only indirectly contribute to them through actions of awareness raising/advocacy towards the “true” decision makers, located in other, usually higher level branches of the GoB;

a.2. development of tools, which would largely lies on NFPCSP side for carrying out specific, high-ly specialized tasks (e.g. support to the realization of the FPMU database, website, documenta-tion center, development of policy instruments, etc.) that are a prerequisite for ensuring a high-er degree of effectiveness to subsequent capacity development activities;

b.-c. training, that includes different activities depending on the NFPCSP Technical Assistance (but subsequent to the development of tools (a.2) and whose actual effectiveness/realization is con-ditional upon changes in FPMU staffing and work organization (a.1)). Those activities can be singled out according to their level of specialization, the number of target participants, and the actual availability of the suitable human resources/institutions, which eventually determines if it will take place either in country or abroad56: • on-the-job training: carried out by the NFPCSP-TAT in the form of direct coaching the

FPMU staff as well as technical discussions/ad hoc seminars and training sessions; those ac-tivities usually are aimed at enhancing basic/intermediate skills/abilities that can be devel-oped as a learning by doing process over the daily operation of the inter-ministerial Thematic Teams (TTs) and have a fundamental applied nature; in principle all FPMU staff and TT members should participate, according to the individual skill/ability level (i.e. the ones who prove to have already a sufficient proficiency in the capacity at hand may skip it);

55 Those interventions are actions/activities that aim at creating an environment which will be conducive to more effec-tive FPMU capacity development activities (i.e. training).

56 This is why the proposals of training in Annex 4 should be considered only tentative, being their actual organizational modality conditional upon the availability of the relevant training expertise domestically or abroad.



• short courses: aiming at complementing and deepening support delivered on-the-job by the NFPCSP-TAT, they are carried out by selected experts on specific intermediate/advanced topics; by their very nature, they usually involve a subset of FPMU staff and TT members, but without ruling out cases in which all of them may be involved; they may be organized domestically (either in-house or at qualified national institutions) as well as abroad;

• study tours: this modality would be considered on a strictly case by case basis, they would be kept to the minimum and relevant to context, focusing on comparative best-practices in coun-tries within the region;

• internships: short-term internships in relevant leading institutions at home or abroad on high-ly specific topics may also be considered; they may focus on acquiring advanced technical capacities (for monitoring as well as policy analysis) and whenever is required an in-depth exposure of the trainee to a specific method of work; by its very nature, this modality will be restricted to only some FPMU staff according to their own level of skills (i.e. such that the selected people may effectively benefit of such a specialized training), to specific needs iden-tified in consultation with the FPMU, and keeping in mind feasibility considerations (in par-ticular, release of FPMU staff for extended periods of time);

• long-term training abroad for enhancing technical and leadership capacities of FPMU perma-nent staff57 in fields closely related to FPMU’s work and the context of Bangladesh.

The identification of the above training modalities shows that the principle of realism has also been taken into account. The design of the capacity development activities has been carried out adopting a phased-in and targeted approach to strengthening institutional, managerial and analytical capaci-ties, offering a portfolio of activities differentiated according to current skills/abilities of the target FPMU/members of the TTs, cf. Annex 2). Moreover, considering how the workload of FPMU staff and proximity to their own desks affected the NFPCSP Phase I training, it is recommended to keep at minimum the duration of in-house training through short courses58. The sustainability principle refers more to longer term considerations. It is implicitly working in all capacity development activities in the sense that enhancing and strengthening FPMU performance is per se a means to increase the sustainability of the organization. However, it should be stressed that the achievements of the institutional changes indicated in the “enabling interventions” rows as well as some activities that contribute to a better institutional positioning of FPMU (e.g. areas of inter-vention A6 to A9) should be able to contribute to a higher sustainability. The final outcome of this exercise is the CDP matrix that reports in each cell the specific capacity development activities to be carried out (Annex 4), streamlining them according to the following time frame: • short-term (ST), until the end of year 2009, • medium-term (MT), which corresponds to the end of the NFPCSP Phase II (year 2012), and • long-term (LT), that is after the end of NFPCSP Phase II.

57 The NFPCSP Phase II foresees a limited number of scholarships in supporting this long-term training activity, namely 1 PhD and up to 5 MSc.

58 If training should be organized according to this modality, it is recommended to do it either outside FPMU premises (preferably between 4:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.) or in-house but no more than 1-2 days a week.



As shown in Table 3, recommended capacity development activities would also be opened to part-ner ministries to strengthen their own capacities and enhance the efficiency of the institutional col-laboration with FPMU. Table 3. Overview of the CDP matrix and linkages with NFPCSP Outcomesa

Modalities Time-frame

Topics Outcome 1: Capacity for monitoring and providing short-term recommendations

Outcome 2: Medium/long-term policy analysis

1. Institutional/ managerial capaci-ties

2. Technical capacities

3. Collaboration with partner minis-tries

4. Research outsourcing

5.Consultation with SHs

a. Enabling interventions a.1. Staffing and organization • a.2. Tools development • • • b. Domestic training b.1. On-the-job • • • • • b.2. Short-courses • • • • b.3. Internships • c. Training abroad c.1. ST courses/study tours/internships • • • • c.2. Long-term training •

a For details, please refer to Annex 4.

4.5. CDP areas of intervention

In this section the activities of the CDP matrix are detailed according to the nine areas of interven-tions, showing how the different strategies (cf. section 4.3) contribute to each area (Table 4). Table 4. Synopsis showing how strategies relate to each area of intervention.

Strategies

Areas of interventions A1. FPMU organiza-tional manage-ment

A2. FPMU data man-agement

A3. FPMU informa-tion and communi-cation

A4. Food policy monitoring

A5. Analy-sis of food security issues and policy advise

A6. Inter-ministeri-al/inter-agency collabora-tion for NFP-PoA monitoring

A7. Other inter-ministeri-al/inter-agency collabora-tion

A8. FPMU engage-ment in food security research outsourc-ing

A9. FPMU engagement in consulta-tions with food securi-ty stake-holders

S1. Redefining FPMU mission/ regulatory framework • S2. Reforming staff recruitment policy • • • • S3. Revising output policy • • • S4. Improving management capacity • • • • • • S5. Improving human resources technical capacity • • S6. Developing synergies/ partnerships • • • S7. Enhancing FPMU institu-tional positioning •

For each area of intervention, a short narrative explains the rationale of the activities proposed for consideration by NFPCSP and introduces the tables (each table referring to a given strategy) which contain the groups of activities needed to address specific issues, including timeframes and specific responsibilities.



The tables are organized as an intermediate step towards a monitoring system of CDP activities59. This is why instead of merely reporting the activities for consideration by NFPCSP (as in the CDP matrix, cf. Annex 4), the cells in the first column of each table recall what the current situation is (i.e. the baseline), while next columns report expected achievements of each activities according to different timeframes (ST/MT/LT). In doing so, the tables make clear the dependencies across sub-sequent activities/achievements. Moreover, each table reports also who is foreseen to be responsible for a given activity/achievement (i.e. FPMU, GoB, NFPCSP or others, indicating the role played as responsible, R, or supporting, S) and the candidate modality (keeping in mind that this might be different according to the actual availability of expertise at the moment of implementation).

A1: Organizational management capacities

One of the determinants of an organization’s performance is its managerial capacity. FPMU makes no exception in this regard. Rather, the IA emphasized how needed is improving its management capacity. Pursuing this objective rests on the realization of some enabling interventions as well as some specific training targeted to strengthening the FPMU organizational management capacity. Enabling interventions includes some institutional and managerial changes such as revisions to the FPMU mandate/regulatory framework (e.g. elimination of function overlapping across FPMU Di-rectorates) and organizational/setting of FPMU (e.g. revision of FPMU structure), both under S1; reforming the recruitment policy (both chronic and temporary under-staffing), under S2; as well as identification of mechanisms for clear responsibility allocation among FPMU staff, under S3. The implementation of these changes is a gradual and long-term process that rests largely on the side of the GoB. Referring to those interventions, in the short term, it is recommended to discuss and assess propos-als stemming out from the IA and start filling in the vacant positions and recruiting the required specialized staff to respond to the identified managerial needs (e.g. IT specialist)60. In the medium term it is suggested that FPMU can implement the interim piloting of proposals while waiting for the formal approval of those proposals (e.g. revision of FPMU structure) by the GoB which will likely take place in the longer term. Training activities are essentially devoted to strengthen the FPMU planning and monitoring capaci-ty. They include some introductory training on result-based management (RBM) and other specific issues in organizational management in the medium term. In this context, NFPCSP would primarily act as a “catalyst”, through a set of consultative, advisory and selected training activities. In particular, this would involve follow-up discussions with the FPMU and other relevant stakeholders (i.e. awareness raising/advocacy primarily towards the

59 According to the TORs (cf. Annex 1), an output of the second IA mission will be the formulation of a proposal for monitoring FPMU performance and sustainability. Although this is beyond the scope of the CDP, it is straightforward to see the relationship existing between the monitoring of CDP activities and that of the FPMU as such.

60 As a short-term solution, if it proves impossible to establish at least a temporary position, it is suggested to consider

recruiting this expertise as FPMU research officers, taking advantage of the request for filling in research officers vacant positions already submitted by FPMU to the GoB last year. However, in the long run this expertise should count on a position additional to FPMU positions of research officers.



MoFDM) with particular reference to work planning, including proposals for streamlining the num-ber and contents of FPMU regular monitoring reports (cf. also A4, A6, and A7); identifying the set of technical outputs that needs priority support (cf. also A3), rationalizing assignments of FPMU Directorates/staff in the delivery of key outputs and setting adequate timeframes. S1: Redefining FPMU mission/regulatory framework

Baseline Achievements Responsibilities

ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Function overlapping across FPMU Directo-rates

Proposal to eliminate functions overlapping as result of the IA

S R

Discussion/assessment of the proposal

Interim adoption of the proposal by FPMU

Formal adoption of the new Mandate by the GoB

ST: R MT: R LT: S

LT: R

ST: S MT: S

Structure only partially respondent to the mission

Proposal for restruc-turing FPMU organi-zation (including creation of informa-tion and knowledge management unit)

S R

Discussion/assessment of the proposal of restructuring

Interim adoption of the proposal of restructur-ing by FPMU

Formal adoption of the new Mandate by the GoB

ST: R MT: R LT: S

LT: R

ST: S MT: S

S2: Reforming FPMU staff recruitment policy


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Chronic under-staffing: only 14 re-search staff out of 18 (including the only research investigator)

Filling in the vacant position recruiting 1 new research staff (1 IT specialist (comput-er, network, website)

Filling in the vacant position recruiting other 2 new research staff (1 statistician for FPMU database and 1 librarian)

S R

Filling in the vacant position as research director/deputy chief with FPMU research staff, even in deputa-tion if necessary

Filling in the vacant position as research director/deputy chief with permanent FPMU research staff

S R

Proposal of a new FPMU staff frame-work (i.e. sanctioned posts) which increases the number of FPMU research staff by 5 units, plus 1 IT spe-cialist (computer, network, website), plus 1 statistician for FPMU-DB, plus 1 librarian as results of IA

Formal adoption of the new FPMU staff framework (i.e. sanc-tioned posts) by the GoB

ST: S LT: S

LT: R

ST: R

Temporary under-staffing: 4 research staff abroad out of 14

Careful management of training abroad, i.e. not going below the current level of staff presence (10)

Careful management of training abroad, i.e. not going below the current level of staff presence (10)

R

S4: Improving FPMU management capacity


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Unclear allocation of responsibilities

Identification of me-chanisms for responsi-bility allocation ac-cording to proposals for function overlap-

S R



ping elimination and FPMU organization restructuring, identifi-cation of priority outputs, planning and monitoring practices, etc. as result of the IA

Discussion/assessment of the proposal of responsibility alloca-tion

Adoption of the pro-posal of responsibility allocation by FPMU

R S

Weak planning/ monitoring capacity

Proposal for plan-ning/monitoring as result of the IA

S R

Discussion/assessment of the proposal

Piloting of the propos-al by FPMU, if ac-cepted

ST: R MT: R

ST: S MT: S

FPMU staff/TT mem-bers exposed to intro-ductory concepts of result-based manage-ment through a short course on-site

Experimenting the implementation of an result-based manage-ment

MT: S LT: R

MT: S

MT: R

FPMU staff/TT mem-bers trained on result-based management, leadership and organi-zation development, negotiations and con-flict management through short-term training abroad

Experimenting the implementation of an effective result-based management

MT: S LT: R

MT: S

MT: R

A2: Data management capacities

Significant efficiency gains can be expected from a better management of available food security data. An enabling intervention playing a crucial role in this area (cf. S2) is the recruitment of specia-lized staff, such as an IT specialist (for computer/network/website management) plus a statistician for the FPMU database. In the medium term, if the recruitment of an IT specialist is not feasible, it is again suggested to consider as an interim solution the recruitment of this expertise on an FPMU research officer position, taking advantage of the request already submitted by FPMU to the GoB last year. However, all efforts should me made to ensure that at least in the longer run this expertise should be additional to the FPMU research officers’ positions. Capacity development interventions are needed to streamline and improve FPMU data management system (cf. S4), including improvements to the collection, storage and processing of food security information and data available within the boundaries of the MoFDM and other partner institutions (DGF, MoA, BBS, MoHFW, MoWCA, etc.), as well as developing operational interfaces and vir-tual linkages with other relevant databases available in country and abroad. This would first entail a careful specification and planning of interventions needed (e.g. development of a Data Management Plan). Follow-up assistance would focus on the development, in the medium term, of a comprehensive and user-friendly database of food security data within FPMU, and enhancing the ability of FPMU staff and other partners to access it and use it effectively. More specifically, the adoption of more effi-cient in-house data exchange procedures as well as more efficient data exchange procedures with major data providers (e.g. partner ministries) is set as a fundamental achievement for the medium term.



The enhancement of basic information skills (e.g. IT applications for reporting, data analysis, draw-ing, introductory statistics) would represent an essential component of the on-the-job training for FPMU staff (cf. S4). Moreover, training to FPMU and partner ministries officials on the use of the database would be delivered61, in line with progress made in database development and upgrading activities (i.e. both in the short and in the medium term). This may take the form of on-the-job train-ing, linked to the production of specific monitoring reports and other analytical activities, supple-mented by external expertise in the form of short courses in country or abroad, as needed. S2: Reforming FPMU staff recruitment policy


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Lack of IT expertise 1 IT (computer, net-

work, website) spe-cialist recruited as part of the recruitment of new research staff

Formal adoption by the GoB of the new FPMU staff frame-work (sanctioned posts) including 1 IT specialist (computer, network, website)

ST: S LT: S

ST: R LT: R

1 statistician for FPMU database re-cruited as part of the recruitment of 2 new research staff

Formal adoption by the GoB of the new FPMU staff frame-work (sanctioned posts) including 1 statistician for FPMU database

MT: S LT: S

MT: R LT: R



ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Weak data manage-ment capacity

Data management development plan, as part of information and knowledge man-agement development plan

Implementation of the data management system development plan

ST: S MT: R

ST: R MT: S

Upgraded FPMU database (including links with other organ-izations databases)

R S

Inefficient data ex-change/use

Adoption of efficient in-house data ex-change procedures

R S

Adoption of efficient data exchange proce-dures with major data sources

R S S S

Limited information-oriented culture

Enhanced basic in-formation skills (e.g. IT applications for reporting, data analy-sis, drawing, introduc-tory statistics) through on-the-job training

R

Ability to use the existing FPMU data-base through on-the-job training

Ability to use the upgraded FPMU data-base through on-the-job training

ST: R MT: R

Ability to access and use existing virtual libraries through on-the-job training

R

61 Along with training on the use of virtual libraries, as described under area of intervention A3.



Improved IT know-ledge management through short-course on-site on the intro-duction to IT-enabled knowledge manage-ment

S R

Proficiency in IT knowledge manage-ment through short-term training abroad on IT-enabled know-ledge management

Experimenting the implementation of an effective IT-enabled knowledge manage-ment

LT: R MT: S MT: R

A3: Information and communication capacities

Significant efficiency gains can be also expected from a better management of available food securi-ty information and knowledge. In this regard, it should be stressed that the level of achievements that can realistically be expected in this area of intervention in the medium term (i.e. over the life span of NFPCSP Phase II) is restricted to some “essential” information and communication capaci-ties. Enabling interventions on the GoB side would be the creation, within the FPMU, of an information and knowledge management unit, (cf. A1/S1), that would also ultimately cover FPMU “corporate communication” responsibilities. This shall start with recruiting specialized staff (i.e. an IT special-ist for computer, network and website management and, if appropriate, a translator)62 under S2. This will also entail a revision of the FPMU output policy (streamlining the number and contents of FPMU outputs, identifying the set of outputs that need priority support63, cf. A1, A4, A6, and A7) under S3, and the development of a plan for enhancing essential information and communication capacities (e.g. information and knowledge management development plan) under S4. Besides the development of a comprehensive and user-friendly food security database (cf. A2), the need for preserving and making a better use of food security information generated within and out-side FPMU can be addressed through establishing a documentation center (i.e. a repository for food security-related reports, studies and other documents relevant for the FPMU activities) in adequate premises indicated by the DGF (cf. S2)64. Linkages with existing virtual libraries, initially accessible through NFPCSP/FPMU intranet/website that will give FPMU staff and other stakeholders a single interface access to web-based food security-specialized resources need to be developed (cf. also A5).

62 In this case also it is suggested to consider as an interim solution, in case at least temporary posts cannot be estab-lished, the recruitment of this expertise on research officers’ positions taking advantage of the request already submitted by FPMU to the GoB last year. But, in the long run, this expertise should be additional to FPMU positions of research officers.

63 The second mission of the IA in 2009 will make a preliminary proposal on the set of outputs to focus upon. The initial

candidates are those outputs that are currently the most important ones in terms of response to FPMU mandate as well as users’ appreciation, namely the NFP-PoA Monitoring Report, the Quarterly Food Situation Report, and the Fortnightly Foodgrain Outlook.

64 This would entail assisting in organizing available information through classification schemes, establishing a library catalogue and providing necessary equipment.



Another enabling intervention is for FPMU to appoint a full-time librarian to manage, with NFPCSP support, the documentation center (cf. S2). Even in this case, it is suggested that, if an ad hoc position cannot be creates, as an interim solution to recruit this expertise on a research officer position taking advantage of the request for filling in vacant research officers positions already submitted by FPMU to the GoB last year. However, in the long run it should be ensured that this expertise is additional to the FPMU positions of research officers. Moreover, the opportunity to have access to existing virtual libraries would be ensured through on-the-job training. The objective of making a better use of food security information can be also pursued through the upgrading of the FPMU website. The current FPMU section under the NFPSCP website is expected to gradually be transformed into a “true” FPMU website. It shall be developed and upgraded with a view at enhancing visibility of FPMU monitoring and analytical outputs (cf. also A9) and enhancing the use of the website, as an interface between the FPMU and other food security stakeholders. This would notably involve establishing further links with other major food security information provid-ers within (partner ministries) and outside the GoB (think tanks)65. Meanwhile, a system for track-ing use of the website would need to be put in place (thus, partly addressing also the issue of en-hancing the FPMU management capacity, cf. A1). Besides the interventions above, which are primarily targeted at developing the FPMU basic “corporate” information and communication capacity, many different training activities would need to address the issue of enhancing essential individual communication skills, ranging from English language to communication skills (e.g. text analysis, report writing, PowerPoint presentation preparation, addressing different audiences, etc.) through different modalities (i.e. on-the-job or short-term training) according to the specific needs of the target population. These training activities will be developed in parallel with the enhancement of basic information skills (cf. A2), and gradually upgraded over the NFPCSP life span, from basic level (in the sort term) to more advanced skills (in the medium term) (cf. S4). S2: Reforming FPMU staff recruitment policy


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Lack of ICT expertise 1 IT (computer, net-

work, website) spe-cialist recruited as part of the recruitment of new research staff

Formal adoption by the GoB of the new FPMU staff frame-work (sanctioned posts) including 1 IT specialist (computer, network, website)

ST: S LT: S

ST: R LT: R

Lack of a librarian 1 librarian recruited as part of the recruitment of 2 new research staff

Formal adoption by the GoB of the new FPMU staff frame-work (sanctioned posts) including 1 librarian

MT: S LT: S

MT: R LT: R

65 This is just one of the many examples of interventions that can address different issues: for example, in the case of the links with virtual libraries, both information/communication capacity and analytical capacity are intervention targets and the links with virtual libraries may thus be reported under both areas of interventions.



S3: Revising FPMU output policy Baseline

Achievements Responsibilities ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH

Too many and over-lapping outputs with limited analytical content

Identification of the outputs to focus upon

S R

Proposal of outputs content and format to focus

Production of the new outputs according to the proposal

Formal adoption of the new FPMU output portfolio by the GoB

ST: S MT: R LT: S

LT: R

ST: R MT: S

Improved outreach according to the in-formation and know-ledge management development plan

R S

Too many administra-tive outputs

Identification of the administrative outputs to focus upon

S R

Proposal of outputs content and format to focus upon

Formal clearance by the GoB to the pro-posal of new FPMU administrative outputs

ST: S MT: S

MT: R

ST: R

Production of the new administrative outputs according to the pro-posal

R



ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Limited infor-mation-oriented culture

Enhanced basic information skills (e.g. IT applications for reporting, data analysis, draw-ing, introductory statistics) through on-the-job training

R

Difficult access to analytical content re-sources

Room for the document reposi-tory/library as-signed by the GoB

Refurbishment of the room for the docu-ment repository/library

ST: S ST: R

MT: R

Establishment of links with existing virtual libraries

R S

Ability to access and use virtual libraries through on-the-job training

R

Weak FPMU information and knowledge management (including communication) capacity

Plan for develop-ing essential information and communication capacities (In-formation and Knowledge Management development plan)

Implementation of the plan for develop-ing essential information and communi-cation capacities

ST: S MT: R

ST: R MT: S

Upgraded FPMU website R S Inadequate individual communication skills

Basic informa-tion skills (e.g. analysis of text, report writing, PPT presentation preparation) developed through on-the-job training

R



Introductory English skills developed through short course on-site

Intermediate English skills developed through short course on-site

S R

More advanced communication skills (e.g. report writing, addressing different audiences) developed through short course on-site

S R

More advanced communication manage-ment skills developed through short-term training abroad

Experimenting the implementa-tion of an effec-tive communi-cation man-agement

LT: R MT: S MT: R

A4: Monitoring capacities

The FPMU is currently producing quite a significant number of periodical food security monitoring reports which appear to overlap to a large extent. Therefore, an enabling intervention for strengthen-ing the FPMU monitoring capacity is represented by a rationalization of the number and contents of FPMU regular monitoring reports (cf. S3), identifying those that need priority capacity development support (cf. A3). In perspective, the core monitoring report around which most FPMU monitoring activities should be organized is the NFP-PoA monitoring report. The activities connected to the monitoring of the NFP-PoA can be used as a means for training the staff of FPMU and partner ministries, with a view to enabling annual monitoring and reporting functions without technical assistance. In this regard, on-the-job training can be delivered on various dimensions of the monitoring work and following schedules of technical consultations set in the “Roadmap for producing the NFP PoA Monitoring Report”, already prepared by the NFPCSP in consultation with the FPMU and partner ministries. The same modality (i.e. on-the-job training) will be largely replicated also for other regular monitor-ing reports, starting with developing basic capacities. However, other training modalities can be en-visioned in the medium term, (e.g. internship/short-term training) to develop more advanced capaci-ties in the specific field of policy monitoring and evaluation (e.g. production, consumption, etc.). S3: Revising FPMU output policy


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Too many and over-lapping monitoring outputs

Identification of the monitoring outputs to focus upon

S R

Proposal of monitor-ing outputs content and format to focus upon

Production of the new monitoring outputs according to the pro-posal


ST: S MT: R LT: S

LT: R

ST: R MT: S

S5: Improving human resources technical capacity


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Insufficient capacity for monitoring

Basic capacity of coordination/ produc-tion of the NFP-PoA monitoring report developed through on-the-job training

Enhanced capacity of coordination/ produc-tion of the NFP-PoA monitoring report through on-the-job training

ST: R MT: R

Basic capacity of Enhanced capacity of ST: R



production of regular monitoring reports (e.g. production, mar-ket, etc.) developed through on-the-job training

production of regular monitoring reports (e.g. production, mar-ket, etc.) through on-the-job training

MT: R

Achieved advanced skills in monitoring through internship at leading Bangladeshi institutions, e.g.: • specific variables

relevant for food se-curity (e.g. produc-tion, consumption) (e.g. BBS, BAU)

• monitoring and evaluating pro-grams/projects (e.g. BRAC-RED)

S R

Achieved proficiency in monitoring and evaluating through short-term training abroad

S R

A5: Analytical capacities

Strengthening the analytical capacity of FPMU research officers is the most important objective of the CDP. This objective can be pursued enhancing the ability to have access to dedicated resources to carry out policy analysis and extend advice to the GoB (cf. S2), reducing the current workload for non-analytical outputs (cf. S3), and improving the individual technical capacity of FPMU staff to carry out policy analysis. Ensuring a better access to dedicated food security resources can be addressed through establishing a documentation center and linkages with existing virtual libraries, accessible through NFPCSP/FPMU intranet/website (cf. also A3, especially S4 therein). Moreover, the ability to access those resources would be achieved through on-the-job training. An enabling intervention for the development of analytical capacities communication and informa-tion capacities will, here again, be the revision of the FPMU output policy (streamlining the number and contents of FPMU outputs, identifying the set of outputs that need priority support from NFPCSP, cf. also A1, A4, A6, and A7) under S3, which will reduce the current workload of FPMU staff, concentrating their activities on outputs having more analytical content. The development of policy instruments (original instruments or revamping already existing ones) fact sheets as a toolkit to provide a synthetic and handy source of information about the policy in-strument definition, objectives to be pursued, likely impacts, and a critical assessment of implemen-tation case studies (preferably in Bangladesh) would be another enabling intervention relevant in the medium term, also as a basis for follow-up training activities (cf. S5)66.

66 If available, NFPCSP will hire the expert for developing such a toolkit, which will be later used for short-courses on-site for FPMU as well as TT members.



On-the-job training will be used to develop some basic analytical skills (e.g. introductory statistics, etc.) for those FPMU officers who do not owe them yet, without ruling out different modalities (i.e. short-term courses) as appropriate. While priority for on-the-job training activities shall continue to be given in the short term/medium term to the enhancement of FPMU regular food security moni-toring reports (cf. A4), capacity development interventions would be gradually redirected towards enhancing contributions from FPMU staff to the delivery of technical and advisory support to policy makers (advisory notes/papers). This may take the form of brainstorming sessions involving FPMU staff on the contents of ad hoc requests received from the GoB to ensure a common understanding of the sets of issues to be addressed (begin of the process), while later also discussing the approach and contents of the papers/notes produced (end of the process). FPMU analytical capacities can be enhanced (in the medium term) through more advanced training on selected specific topics relevant for food security analysis. Those topics range from specific training aiming at being acquainted with the use of advanced software packages (e.g. SPSS), to the practical follow-up of already received training (e.g. research methods), the critical assessment of some specific policy (e.g. policy toolkit), as well as to some specific topics relevant for FPMU ana-lytical/monitoring activities (e.g. price and production forecasting, market analysis of procurement and distribution, early warning monitoring, nutrition outcomes and impacts). These training activi-ties can be carried out with any modality other than on-the-job (i.e. short courses/internships in country or abroad). The strengthening of analytical capacity includes also some long-term training for a restricted number of FPMU permanent staff (NFPCSP foresees up to 1 PhD and 5 MSc). Finally, the establishment of a national post-graduate training program on food security (FS Master) aiming, in the medium and long term, to become Bangladesh’ national reference for food security training, is foreseen as a key element of NFPCSP exit strategy. This would provide a window for other training opportunities such as attending pilot modules of the FS Master whose program will be probably finalized and formally recognized by the GoB after the end of NFPCSP Phase II. S2: Reforming FPMU staff recruitment policy


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Lack of a librarian 1 librarian recruited as

part of the recruitment of 2 new research staff

Formal adoption by the GoB of the new FPMU staff frame-work (sanctioned posts) including 1 librarian

MT: S LT: S

MT: R LT: R

S3: Revising FPMU output policy


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Too many and over-lapping outputs with limited analytical content

Identification of the outputs to focus upon as a result of the IA

S R

Proposal of outputs content and format to focus upon as a result of the IA

Production of the new outputs according to the proposal


ST: S MT: R LT: S

LT: R

ST: R MT: S

Improved outreach according to the com-munication/ informa-tion development plan

R S

Too many administra-tive outputs

Identification of the administrative outputs to focus upon as a

S R



result of the IA Proposal of outputs

content and format to focus upon as a result of the IA

Formal clearance by the GoB to the pro-posal of new FPMU administrative outputs

ST: S MT: S

MT: R

ST: R

Production of the new administrative outputs according to the pro-posal

R



ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Difficult access to analytical content resources

Room for the document reposi-tory/library as-signed by the GoB

Refurbishment of the room for the document repository/library

ST: S ST: R

MT: R

Establishment of links with exist-ing virtual libraries

R S

Ability to access and use virtual libraries through on-the-job train-ing

R

S5: Improving human resources technical capacity


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Insufficient capacity for policy analysis and advise

Basic analytical ca-pacity (e.g. introducto-ry statistics, graphs & charts) developed through on-the-job training or short courses on-site

Ability to access and use links with existing virtual libraries, through on-the-job training

ST: R/S MT: R

ST: R

Introductory capacity in preparing briefs/notes/paper both on emerging issues and on demand (e.g. food availability abroad, food balance, nutrition) developed through on-the-job training

Enhanced capacity in preparing briefs/notes/paper both on emerging issues and on demand (e.g. food availability abroad, food balance, nutrition) gradually improved through on-the-job training

ST: R MT: R

Development of a toolkit for policy anal-ysis (original or re-vamping already exist-ing ones)

R

Achieved advanced skills in analyzing policy issues through short course on site such as: • use of statistical

analysis software (e.g. SPSS);

• price and produc-tion forecasting;

• market analysis; • early warning; • nutrition; • tools for policy

analysis

S R

Achieved advanced skills in analyzing policy issues through internship at leading Bangladeshi institu-tions such as:

S R



• prices, poverty (e.g. BIDS, DU);

• safety nets (e.g. BRAC-RED-DI);

• surveys and data analysis case studies (e.g. DATA, BRAC-RED);

• nutrition outcomes and impacts (e.g. IPHN, IPH, INFS, ICDDR-B)

Design of a Master on Food Security

Organization of a Master on Food Secu-rity in collaboration with private/public institution

Food Security Master recognized by the GoB

ST: S MT: S

LT: R

ST: R MT: R

ST: S MT: S

Achieved advanced skills attending Food Security Master pilot modules

R S

Achieved proficiency in assessing policy impact through short-term train-ing/internship abroad

S R

Achieved proficiency in assessing policy impact through long-term training abroad for FPMU permanent staff (NFPCSP plan: • 2009: 1 PhD + 2

MSc)

Achieved proficiency in assessing policy impact through long-term training abroad for FPMU permanent staff (NFPCSP plan: • 2010: 2 MSc • 2011: 1 MSc)

ST: S MT: S

ST: R MT: R

A6: Inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration capacities on the monitoring of the NFP-PoA

Monitoring the progress in the implementation of the NFP-PoA by the various stakeholders requires managing a large set of data to document the list of annual monitoring indicators. This requires im-proving NFP-PoA monitoring specific-information flows and use by FPMU and partner ministries in connection with the upgrading of the FPMU database. Enhancing capacities in this area first requires a review of FPMU’s information requirements and their supply by relevant partner ministries, including the flows and processes used with particular reference to monitoring outputs to be produced by FPMU on a regular basis (including the NFP-PoA monitoring report) and the development of specific recommendations for improving the access and the quality of data from partner ministries (cf. S4 and S6), as well as avenues for standardiza-tion of methods used by the respective partner ministries, so that data can be analyzed and dissemi-nated in a reliable fashion (cf. also A2 and A3, with specific reference to S4 therein). Recommenda-tions would be implemented, as feasible, as part of follow-up capacity development interventions in the medium term Inter-ministerial/inter-agency consultations (meetings, seminars) on NFP-PoA monitoring, as estab-lished under Phase I, shall continue serving as basis for on-the-job training (cf. S6), using as a refer-ence the Roadmap for producing the NFP-PoA Monitoring Report, developed by NFPCSP-TAT in consultation with the TTs in 2008. This would involve meetings of the FPMU/TTs to review and discuss progress on PoA monitoring work and related issues and provide necessary guidance, en-larged seminars with all TT members and other relevant senior officials from partner ministries to



review monitoring outputs and reach consensus on the contents of the monitoring report before submission to the FPMC. Furthermore, in order to strengthen the institutional collaboration finalized to the monitoring of the NFP-PoA, TTs members would also be involved in selected short-course training activities (cf. S6) developed as part of the analytical capacity training for FPMU staff (cf. also A5). S4: Improving FPMU management capacity




R S



ST: R MT: R

S6: Developing synergies/partnerships


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Inefficient data ex-change/use


R S S S


Enhanced basic in-formation skills (e.g. IT applications for reporting, data analy-sis, drawing, introduc-tory statistics) through on-the-job training

R

Ability to use the FPMU database through on-the-job training


ST: R MT: R

Insufficient collabora-tion with partner min-istries involved in the NFP-PoA monitoring

Better collaboration developed through TT on-the-job training (consultations within partner ministries involved in the moni-toring of NFP-PoA)

Better collaboration developed through TT on-the-job training (consultations within partner ministries involved in the moni-toring of NFP-PoA)

ST: R MT: R

ST: S MT: S

ST: S MT: S

Basic analytical ca-pacity (e.g. introducto-ry statistics, graphs & charts) developed through short course on site

S R

Development of a toolkit for policy anal-ysis (original or re-vamping already exist-ing ones)

R

Achieved advanced skills in analyzing policy issues through short course on site such as: • price and produc-

tion forecasting; • market analysis; • early warning; • nutrition; • tools for policy

S R



analysis Design of a Master on

Food Security Organization of a Master on Food Secu-rity in collaboration with private/public institution

Food Security Master recognized by the GoB

ST: S MT: S

LT: R

ST: R MT: R

ST: S MT: S

Achieved advanced skills attending Food Security Master pilot modules

R S

Achieved proficiency in policy monitoring and policy impact assessment through short-term train-ing/internship abroad

S R

A7: Other inter-ministerial/inter-agency collaboration capacities

Capacity development interventions may also focus on promoting consultations on emerging policy issues (e.g. National Food Budget, production costs and procurement prices, etc.) and on any other issue that may emerge and require insights from partner ministries (e.g. with reference to how to improve the quality of data, the enhancement of data exchange procedures, data analysis, and dis-semination). This means primarily contributing to the upgrading of the FPMU database, including links with other organizations’ databases (cf. S4). This may notably entail establishing small ad-hoc working groups involving relevant experts from partner ministries and/or organizing special training sessions (usually in the form of short courses on site) on topics of common interests (cf. S6). Again, in order to level the playing field and strengthen the institutional collaboration (cf. S6), short course training activities developed as part of the analytical capacity training for FPMU staff would also be opened, on a selective basis to collaborating staff from Partner Ministries (cf. also A5). S4: Improving FPMU management capacity




R S



ST: R MT: R

S6: Developing synergies/partnerships


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Inefficient data ex-change/use


R S S S


Enhanced basic in-formation skills (e.g. IT applications for reporting, data analy-sis, drawing, intro-ductory statistics) through on-the-job

R



training Ability to use the

FPMU database through on-the-job training


R

Insufficient collabo-ration with partners other than those involved in the NFP-PoA monitoring

Better collaboration developed through TT on-the-job training (consultations on emerging policy issues)

Better collaboration developed through TT on-the-job training (consultations on emerging policy issues)

ST: S MT: S

ST: S MT: S

ST: R MT: R

Basic analytical ca-pacity (e.g. introduc-tory statistics, graphs & charts) developed through short course on site

S R

Development of a toolkit for policy analysis (original or revamping already existing ones)

R

Achieved advanced skills in analyzing policy issues through short courses on site such as: • price and produc-

tion forecasting; • market analysis; • early warning; • nutrition; • tools for policy

analysis; • topics of common

interests (e.g. comparative anal-ysis of costs of production, mar-keting margins, etc.)

S R

A8: Capacities to engage in research outsourcing

The IA considers that the best strategy for FPMU cannot be preparing FPMU staff for conducting in-house all the socio-economic research needed to support policy making on food security. It emerged, that FPMU should rather be in a position to effectively mobilize relevant food security research expertise among specialized institutions within the civil society, monitor the outsourced research in order to ensure compliance with government needs, and selectively use research findings to improve the quality of FPMU analytical, advisory and monitoring activities in support of policy making Capacity development interventions would focus in the short term on assisting FPMU with the iden-tification of research topics according to GoB needs, while in the medium term they would focus on strengthening FPMU’s capacity to prepare clear terms of reference for commissioning research. Likewise, FPMU contribution to monitoring the on-going studies is a task that will span over the whole NFPCSP Phase II and shall be gradually transferred to FPMU staff as part of on-the job train-ing activities. In order to strengthen FPMU capacities towards research outsourcing, a follow up of the training already carried out by NFPCSP can be envisioned aiming at gaining a better understanding of re-



search methodologies and results. This training may focus either on applying the research methods theory to selected case studies or on deepening the research methods theory on specific advanced topics relevant for food security analysis. S6: Enhancing FPMU institutional positioning


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Insufficient capacity to exploit the results of food security research

Research agenda de-fined

Ability to prepare TORs for research study outsourcing

ST: R MT: S

ST: S MT: R

On-going studies monitored on a conti-nuous basis on-the-job (including seminars)

On-going studies monitored on a conti-nuous basis on-the-job (including seminars)

R

Ability to follow-up research studies en-hanced through fol-low-up short courses on site on research methods

S R

Advanced capacity to follow-up research studies achieved through short-term training/internship abroad on research methods for address-ing specific food secu-rity issues (e.g. nutri-tion)

S R

A9: Capacities to engage in consultations with stakeholders

FPMU needs to more pro-actively engage in diversified platforms for dialogue among food security stakeholders (decision-makers and practitioners from the MoFDM and other partner ministries, NGOs, civil society, development partners). This may involve discussing specific policy is-sues/papers produced by NFPCSP/FPMU or other think tanks, findings of commissioned research, results of NFP-PoA monitoring activities. Modalities for dialogue shall be defined according to needs and expected outcomes. From the capacity development viewpoint, this can be a basis for on-the-job training through small in-house seminars, expert group discussions, broader stakeholder consultations. S7: Enhancing FPMU institutional positioning


ST MT LT FPMU GoB NFPCSP OTH Insufficient capacity to exploit the results of food security research

Enhanced capacity in preparing briefs/notes to disseminate re-search findings for gradually developed through on-the-job training

R

Insufficient capacity to disseminate the results of food security re-search

Basic ability to organ-ize consultations with the civil society/ NGOs on a continuous basis on-the-job

Full capacity to organ-ize/participate in con-sultations with the civil society/NGOs on a continuous basis on-the-job

ST: R MT: R



5. Conclusion and Recommendations

The present document is the Output #1 of the FPMU Institutional Assessment consultancy. It represents a comprehensive plan of activities for FPMU capacity development for consideration un-der NFPCSP Phase II. Following findings of outputs, human resources, stakeholders and SWOT analyses, it is structured as a multi-pronged strategy aiming at improving FPMU performances and sustainability that has been designed consistently with the NFPCSP Phase II Logical Framework and shall feed into the NFPCSP Global Workplan 2009-2012. The Capacity Development Plan rationale is twofold: (i) focusing on the FPMU core business (i.e. dealing with all dimensions of food security, addressing it as much comprehensively as possible), and (ii) climbing up the value added ladder (i.e. adding to the already existing monitoring abilities, more policy analysis and advise capacity). Shortly, this means re-positioning FPMU where its com-parative advantage actually lies. It has been developed as an intermediate step towards a monitoring system of CDP activities, which will feed into the FPMU monitoring proposal (cf. Output #2 of the second mission under the Institu-tional Assessment consultancy). And it rests on a set of “enabling interventions” that need to be rea-lized (mainly by institutional actors other than NFPCSP, such as the GoB) in terms of: 1. redefining FPMU mission/regulatory framework; 2. reforming staff recruitment policy; 3. revising output policy. This calls for contingency plans in order to cope with the risk those interventions would not mate-rialize. Moreover, a strong awareness raising/advocacy action towards the GoB and a firm commit-ment over the life of NFPCSP Phase II and beyond by all involved stakeholders is needed in order to reduce the risk of impairing any capacity development effort and ensure sustainability (cf. Output #3 of the Institutional Assessment consultancy, which deals on longer term recommendations).



Annex 3. Questionnaire used for the FPMU outputs assessment The purpose of this survey is to gather preliminary information on the output delivered by FPMU in fulfill-ing its own mandate over the last five years. In this survey we define as output any deliverable of FPMU activities (e.g. reports/studies, tables, charts, etc., cf. Annex 1). Start considering last year and then proceed backward, filling in a separate form for each output and num-bering progressively each. In the case of outputs which are delivered on a routinely basis, please consider only the most recent one. 1. Name of output: ____________________________________________________________________

2. Date of delivery (if you don’t remember the exact date, just report month and year): ___________________

3. FPMU responsible person for the output (if no clear responsibility assigned, either formally or informally,

please report “none”): _________________________________________________________________

4. FPMU persons contributing in preparing the output: ________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

5. How much time did it take to produce the output (total time devoted to output preparation by the responsible

person plus the contributors)? ______________ person-hours/person-days (delete what is not appropriate)

6. Output typology:

� monitoring � data analysis � policy advice � technical note

� study/research � administrative support

7. Frequency:

� daily � weekly � fortnightly � monthly � quarterly � bi-ennal � yearly � ad hoc

8. Delivered to:

a. unit/department/division/ministry: ____________________________________________________

b. person to whom deliver: ____________________________________________________________

9. Used by (if different from the person to whom it has been delivered):

a. unit/department/division/ministry: ____________________________________________________

b. person who used the output: ________________________________________________________

10. Does the output have a prescribed format (structure)?

� Yes � No

11. Output content typology (if appropriate, tick more than one box):

� table � chart � comment/text

12. Medium:



� paper � electronic

13. Background info/data typology (if appropriate, tick more than one box):

a. production level

� price � quantity (target) � quantity (actual) � area � other (specify): _____________

comments: _________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

b. market level (quantity)

� procurement (target) � procurement (actual) � stocks � distribution � other (specify): _

comments: _________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

c. market level (prices)

� nom. prices (wholesale) � real prices (wholesale) � nom. prices (retail) � real prices (retail):

comments: _________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

d. consumption level

� availability � consumption � other (specify): ______________________________________

comments: _________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

e. international level

� price CIF � price FOB � import � export � product. � stock � other (specify):

comments: _________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

14. Background info/data source (if appropriate, report more than one source):

a. production level

� price _________________________________________________________________________

� quantity (target) ________________________________________________________________

� quantity (actual) ________________________________________________________________

� area _________________________________________________________________________

� other (specify): __________________________________________________________________

b. market level (quantity)

� procurement (target) ____________________________________________________________

� procurement (actual) ____________________________________________________________

� stocks ________________________________________________________________________

� distribution ___________________________________________________________________



� other (specify): __________________________________________________________________

c. market level (prices)

� nominal prices (wholesale) _______________________________________________________

� real prices (wholesale) ___________________________________________________________

� nominal prices (retail) ___________________________________________________________

� real prices (retail) ______________________________________________________________

� other (specify): __________________________________________________________________

d. consumption level

� availability ____________________________________________________________________

� consumption __________________________________________________________________

� other (specify): __________________________________________________________________

e. international level

� price FOB ____________________________________________________________________

� price CIF _____________________________________________________________________

� import _______________________________________________________________________

� export ________________________________________________________________________

� production ____________________________________________________________________

� stock _________________________________________________________________________

� other (specify): __________________________________________________________________

15. Are there similar outputs produced by other organizations/institutions in Bangladesh?

� No � Yes (specify): ____________________________________________________________

16. How difficult was to deliver and why?

� very difficult � quite difficult � on average � quite easy � very easy

(explain why): _______________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

17. If you were the user of this output, how would you rate it and why?

� very important � quite important � on average � not so important � negligible

(explain why): _______________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

18. Do you have any suggestion on how the delivery of this output may be improved? ________________



__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

19. Is there any other output you deem important for the FPMU to produce (which is currently not)?: (please,

if any, provide a brief description of it) ______________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

20. Name of the respondent: ______________________________________________________________



Annex: Tentative List of FPMU outputs

The following list is only tentative and is meant to make easier to you to remember which outputs FPMU is currently producing. Please, feel free to consider also output which have not been included in the following list. Start considering last year and then proceed backward, filling in a separate form for each output and num-bering progressively each form (fill in the number in the upper right corner box on the first page). In the case of outputs which are delivered on a routinely basis, please consider only the most recent one.

1. Administrative reports a. monthly: to the Cabinet division/coordination and Parliament sell

• Activity report: what has been done over the last month, prospect for the next 2 months • Target and Progress report: targets achieved over the last month, targets for the next 3m, 5m, and 1y • Pending activities report: activities not accomplished over the last month

2. Secreteriat FPMC: at least 6 times per year a. ex-ante: working papers b. ex-post: minutes; monitoring of decisions

3. Technical reports: a. yearly:

• FPMU database b. quarterly:

• BGD Food situation report • Price report

c. monthly: mostly on ad hoc basis • Market monitoring report

d. fortnightly: 1st and 16th of each month • Foodgrain outlook • Food situation • Food scenario • Early warning • Border price monitoring

e. weekly: only on ad hoc basis f. daily:

• Food situation • Procurement

4. Tables (Charts?) a. yearly:

• Production/distribution/procurement tables: sent to Secretary/MoFDM/MoFin/Planning/ Cabinet • cost of production: input/output, quantity/prices

b. shorter than yearly: only on ad hoc basis 5. Reports made in collaboration with other institutions/organizations:

a. biennial: • production assessment: boro e aman crops, in collaboration with BBS, DAE, PARSO, etc.



Annex 4. Questionnaire used for the FPMU human resources assessment The purpose of this survey is to gather preliminary information on the human resources at FPMU. Each Director is kindly required to fill in the sheet with reference to his own Directorate and according to the current situation. 1. Directorate name: ____________________________________________________________________

2. Total number of staff belonging to the Directorate:

Level Current

Vacant Total Permanent Seconded

Research Director/Deputy Chief Additional Director/Assistant Chief Research officer/investigator Administrative/support staff Total

3. Please, report the following information per each staff member:

a. Research Director / Deputy Chief:

Name: _________________________________________________________________________

Status: � permanent � seconded

Year and month when he/she joined the FPMU: ________________________________________

Institution where the officer was employed prior joining the FPMU: ________________________

Educational background (report the highest degree achieved and the field): ______________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

Research experience prior joining the FPMU (report the type and the field of research): ___________

_______________________________________________________________________________

Main tasks accomplished within the Directorate: _______________________________________

_______________________________________________________________________________

TRT membership: � TRT-A � TRT-B � TRT-C � TRT-D � None

b. Additional Director / Assistant Chief:

# 1: Name: _____________________________________________________________________




Educational background (report the highest degree achieved and the relevant field): ________________

_______________________________________________________________________________




_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


# 2: Name: _____________________________________________________________________





_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


c. Research officers/investigators:

# 1: Name: _____________________________________________________________________





_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


# 2: Name: _____________________________________________________________________





_______________________________________________________________________________




_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


# 3: Name: _____________________________________________________________________





_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


d. Administrative/support staff:

# 1: Name: _____________________________________________________________________



Institution where the staff was employed prior joining the FPMU: __________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________

# 2: Name: _____________________________________________________________________





_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________



# 3: Name: _____________________________________________________________________





_______________________________________________________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________________

4. How is your own time allocated in an average day?

Secretariat to FPMC: _______________ %

Output production (routinely): ________ %

Output production (ad hoc): __________ %

Monitoring: _______________________ %

Administrative duties: _______________ %

5. How is your own time allocated on average on a yearly basis?




Monitoring: _______________________ %


6. How is the time of your Directorate allocated in an average day?




Monitoring: _______________________ %


7. How is the time of your Directorate allocated on average on a yearly basis?




Monitoring: _______________________ %




8. How difficult is carrying out the following activities and why?

Secretariat to FPMC: � difficult � neither difficult, nor not difficult � easy

(explain why): _______________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Output production (routinely): � difficult � neither difficult, nor not difficult � easy

(explain why): _______________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Output production (ad hoc): � difficult � neither difficult, nor not difficult � easy

(explain why): _______________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Monitoring: � difficult � neither difficult, nor not difficult � easy

(explain why): _______________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Administrative duties: � difficult � neither difficult, nor not difficult � easy

(explain why): _______________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

9. Do you have any suggestion on how the delivery of those activities may be improved?

Secretariat to FPMC: _________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Output production (routinely): __________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Output production (ad hoc):____________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Monitoring: ________________________________________________________________________



__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

Administrative duties: ________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________

10. Name of the respondent: ______________________________________________________________



Annex 5. FPMU SWOT Matrix

Strengths • Mandate to conduct policy analysis and advice to GoB on food security issues • Mandate to monitor the food security situation (e.g. NFP-PoA, PRSP-II, MDGs) • FPMU 30-years long records in monitoring and analysis of food security issues (also, thanks to technical

assistance), with a specific strong capacity in food grains • Repository of a rich and large amount of data and information on food security • Professional skills/trained staff, mostly permanent at FPMU • Ability to deliver an extraordinary amount of outputs considering the limited number of staff • Highly motivated personnel for improvement and personal development (young age/junior staff,

willingness to learn, thinking themselves as researchers, not only as civil servants) • Well equipped working environment (furniture, ITs, etc.) • Reporting line within the MoFDM (direct access to the secretary, in principle easier collection of data)

Weaknesses • Not yet able to carry out autonomously policy analysis and advice to GoB • Limited coverage of non-grain products and broader food security issues (e.g. nutrition, access, etc.)

according to the the MoFDM mandate • Overlapping functions across FPMU directorates (according to the current mandate) • Lack of budget allocation for research and no spending power (→ sustainability) • Too many (considering the limited number of staff) and overlapping outputs with limited analytical contents • Inefficient data exchange with upstream agencies/bodies • Limited access to sources of data and research (i.e. library) • Chronic under-staffing (both research and administrative support) especially with reference to needed

expertise (e.g. data-IT management) • High turn-over in top FPMU positions often covered by non-permanent (i.e. non technical) staff • High mobility of research staff across Directorates • Still inadequate technical capabilities • Inadequate communication skills • Inadequate result-oriented managerial capacity • Bureaucratic/hierarchical culture (which may be a constraint for policy analysis), very limited information-

oriented culture (i.e. poor exploitation of the existing pool of data/info) • Too heavy administrative/bureaucratic workload, enormous pressure caused by ad-hoc requests, and work

priorities determined by emergencies (little scope for on the job applications of new skills, impacts on the quality of outputs)

• No clear assignment of tasks/responsibilities (overlapping, duplication), limited accountability • Weak data management system and inefficient in-house data exchange/use • Poor communication skills of FPMU as an institution, very limited outreach • Poor recognition of FPMU by others (reputation • Dissatisfaction for the existence of salary differentials within FPMU and between FPMU and comparable

agencies/bodies within the GoB Opportunities • GoB committed to food security (e.g., new NFP approved and NFP-PoA endorsed) • Acknowledgment of NFP monitoring function as part of the broader PRSP & MDGs monitoring efforts • No other GoB agency/body able to carry out policy analysis and advice in specific area of food security • Increasing demand for policy advice by the GoB • Increasing demand for inputs and policy advice by development partners • Very active civil society/NGOs • IT developments disclose opportunities for more efficient flow of data/information with upstream data

providers and for downstream outreach • Exploiting the research stock developed over the years (including the research grant facility) • Links already established and good prospects for further development of links and partnerships • Possibility to commission/outsource research • TT/FPWG as tool for contributing to NFP implementation and monitoring • NFPCSP support for the next 3.5-4 years

Threats • No clear perception by stakeholders of what FPMU is doing • Monitoring skills have been developing also elsewhere • Overlapping with outputs produced by other GoB agencies/bodies • Potentially non-cooperative attitude by some upstream data providers • Low quality of data inputs and inability to develop a more efficient exchange of data with upstream provider • Vacant FPMU top positions occupied by officers having a non-technical profile • Potential loss of key staff • Potentially problematic relationships between permanent and non-permanent staff • Too short period of NFPCSP technical assistance (only 3.5-4 years) for developing a sustainable capacity • Weak support by the GoB after the end of the NFPCSP will not guarantee the sustainability in the long run



Annex 6. Fact sheets on FPMU outputs

Periodical monitoring/data analysis

Name: Database on food situation

Frequency: yearly

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. Policy: Hajiqul Islam

FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates:

NFPCSP contributors: None

Typology: Monitoring + Data analysis

Medium: hardcopy

Posted on the web: http://www.mofdm.gov.bd/Situation%20Report.htm

Main data sources: DAE-MoA, DAM-MoA, BBS, DGF-MoFDM, Faostat

Users: 500 copies sent out to a list of addressees including all GoB ministries, Intl organizations, Ambassa-

dors, NGOs

Comparable outputs: MoA – Handbook of Agricultural Statistics (Y)

BBS – Statistical Pocket Book (Y)

HKI – Nutrition surveillance report (Y)

FPMU – Bangladesh food situation report (Q)



Name: Consumption (farmer’s level) monitoring report

Frequency: yearly

Language: First issue (2008) in Bengali; next issues in English

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. Nutrition: Abdur Rahman (serving as Nutrition Director)

FPMU contributors : Dir. Nutrition: Ruhul Amin Talukder, Alima Nusrat Jahan, all other Directorates

(survey)

NFPCSP contributors: Lalita Battacharjee, Harun Yusuf


Medium: hardcopy

Posted on the web: No

Main data sources: Field data

Users: not yet identified

Comparable outputs: HKI – Nutrition surveillance report (Y)

FPMU – Bangladesh food situation report (Q)

BBS- HIES



Name: NFP-PoA Monitoring report

Frequency: yearly

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. Policy: Hajiqul Islam?

FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates and TRTs

NFPCSP contributors: Nathalie Bouché, …


Medium: hardcopy



Users: GoB Ministries, GoB Agencies, Development partners, Research institutions

Comparable outputs: PRSP-II Monitoring Report

MDG Report - Bangladesh



Name: Food Budget

Frequency: yearly (but updated 2-4 times a year)

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. Marketing: Hajiqul Islam (serving as Marketing Director)

FPMU contributors : Ferdousi Ara, Ismail Mia



Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: BBS, DAE, DGF, MoFDM, MoF

Users: MoFDM, DGF

Comparable outputs: MoF Budget Statement



Name: Production monitoring report of amon/boro

Frequency: twice a year

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. EW: Abdur Rahman

FPMU contributors : Md. Syed Amdad Huq, Sohela Khanum; all other Directorates for survey

NFPCSP contributors: Sabour, Ferdous


Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: field surveys

Users: EWTC, FPMC, MoFDM Secretary

Comparable outputs: 2008 FAO/WFP crop and food supply assessment mission to Bangladesh



Name: Bangladesh food situation report

Frequency: quarterly

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates:

NFPCSP contributors: Rezaul Talukdar


Medium: hardcopy + electronic

Posted on the web: http://www.nfpcsp.org/about%20FPMUpub.htm


Users: List of 59 addressees (PS, Secretaries of Ministries, DSs of MoFDM, DG MoA, Planning Commis-

sion members, Intl organizations, Ambassadors, NGOs)

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Database on food situation (Y)

FPMU – Food scenario (F)

HKI – Nutrition surveillance report (Q)



Name: Costs of production for amon/boro/wheat

Frequency: three issues per year

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : S. Amdadul Huq

NFPCSP contributors: No


Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: DAM, DAE, BBS, BARI, BRRI, MISM-MoA

Users: FPMC

Comparable outputs: DAE – Costs production on line:

http://www.dae.gov.bd/index.php?area=statistics&action=cost_of_production.html

NFPCSP – Costs production



Name: Market monitoring report

Frequency: monthly, but delayed (5 to 7 issues per year)

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:





Medium: Hardcopy


Main data sources: primary data

Users: PM, PM Secr., Cabinet Secr, Min Finance, Secr. Finance, MoA, min MoFDM, Secr MoFDM, DG

Food, Min Defence, Min Rural Devt and Coop, Min Local Govt

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Food situation report (F)

FPMU – Food situation report (D)



Name: Stockflow tables

Frequency: monthly updates of the year table

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:




Typology: Monitoring

Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: DGF (MIS, Impor/Procurement/Distribution/Accounts sections), Min. of Finance (for

the budget)

Users: Secretary and Minister MoFDM, DGF, BGD Bank; others (ADB, WB, some embassies, NGOs) on

request

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Food Budget (Y)



Name: Border price report

Frequency: monthly (but including fortnightly data)

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:





Medium: Hardcopy


Main data sources: DGF District offices

Users: MoFDM (Secretary and Minister), FPMC, BGD Bank

Comparable outputs: None



Name: Fortnightly foodgrain outlook

Frequency: fortnightly

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : None

NFPCSP contributors: Marie Jo Cortijo (resp.), Nathalie Bouché, Md. Ferdous Alam, Md. Mahbub Pervez




Main data sources: DAM-MoA, DGF-MoFDM, FAO, USDA, BGD Bank

Users: List of 59 addressees (PM, PS, Secretaries of Ministries, DSs of MoFDM, DG MoA, Planning

Commission members, Intl organizations, Ambassadors, NGOs)




Name: Food situation


Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : Dir. EW: Md. Syed Amdad Huq (sects 1 and 2); Dir. Marketing: Ferdousi Ara, Ismail

Ama





Main data sources: DAE-MoA, DAM-MoA, MMIS-MoA, BBS, MISM-MoFDM, DGF-MoFDM, REA,

FAO

Users: List of 16 recipients (PM, Cabinet, Min. Finance, Min. Planning, Min. Foreign Affairs, Min. Com-

merce, Min. MoA, Min. and Secr. MoFDM, Min Fisheries and Livestock, Min Communications, Min Indus-

tries, Min. Social welfare, Min Home Affairs, Min. Rural Devt and Cooperative, Min. Local Government)

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Foodgrain outlook (F)




Name: Food scenario


Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : Md. Ruhul Amin Talukder, Alima Nusrat Jahan





Main data sources: DAE-MoA, BBS, DGF-MoFDM, DGRR-MoFDM

Users: Additional Secretary MoFDM, MoFDM programmer (for uploading)

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Food situation (F): actually, as it stands, it is a subset of the Food scenario

(F)



Name: Early warning report


Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. EW: Md. Abdur Rahman

FPMU contributors : Syed Amdadul Huq



Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: DAE-MoA, BBS, BMD, FAO (they depend on what are the contents; structure not yet

finalized)

Users: Minister MoFDM, Cabinet Secretary, Secretary MoFDM, DG FPMU, Res. Directors FPMU

Comparable outputs: Ad hoc reports by WFP



Name: Daily Food situation

Frequency: daily

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. EW: Abdur (Chair of the Monitoring cell), Ferdousi Ara, Md Ruhul Amin Taluk-

der, Mahbub Rahman (members)

FPMU contributors : Dir. Marketing: Ismail Mia, Dir. Nutrition: Alima



Medium: Hardcopy


Main data sources: DAM-MoA, DGF-MoFDM, FAO, USDA, CMS, BGD Bank

Users: PM, PM Secr., Cabinet Secr, Min Finance, Secr. Finance, MoA, min MoFDM, Secr MoFDM, DG

Food, Min Defence, Min Rural Devt and Coop, Min Local Govt

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Procurement report (D) (subset of the Daily food situation)

FPMU – Food situation (F)

FPMU – Fortnightly foodgrain report (F)




Name: Daily procurement report

Frequency: daily

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. EW: Sohela Khanam

FPMU contributors : None



Medium: Hardcopy


Main data sources: DGF-MoFDM

Users: Cabinet Secretary, Min. MoFDM, Secretary MoFDM, Add. Secretary MoFDM, DG Food - MoFDM

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Food situation (D): it is a subset of the procurement table in the Food situa-

tion (D), with regional breakdown; same table in the fortnightly food situation report



Administration

Name: Activity report

Frequency: monthly

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates, complied by Alima Nusrat Jahan and Ruhul Amin Ta-

lukder



Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: NA

Users: MoFDM for administrative purposes (monitoring)

Comparable outputs: FPMU – Target and progress report

FPMU – Pending activities report



Name: Target and progress activities report

Frequency: monthly

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates, complied by Alima Nusrat Jahan and Ruhul Amin Ta-

lukder



Medium: hardcopy




Comparable outputs: FPMU – Activity report

FPMU – Pending activities report



Name: Pending activities report


Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates, compiled by Alima Nusrat Jahan and Ruhul Amin Ta-

lukder



Medium: hardcopy




Comparable outputs: NA



Name: Working papers and minutes for FPMU Coordination meetings

Frequency: monthly

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Dir. General: Ruhul Amin

FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Research Directors, complied by Alima Nusrat Jahan and Ruhul

Amin Talukder


Typology: Coordination

Medium: Hardcopy



Users: FPMU Directorates for organizational purposes; MoFDM (Secretary and Additional Secretary)

Comparable outputs: FPMU Directorates coordination meetings (M)



Name: Minutes of FPMU Directorates coordination meetings

Frequency: weekly (in registers) and monthly (circulated as letters)

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Research Directors of each FPMU Directorates

FPMU contributors : All other members of the involved Directorate


Typology: Coordination

Medium: Hardcopy



Users: FPMU Directorates for organizational purposes

Comparable outputs: FPMU Coordination meetings (M)



Secretariat

Name: Working papers for FPMC and minutes

Frequency: at least every two months

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: Director General: Md. Ruhul Amin

FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates; Ferdousi Ara and Ismail Mia (rapporteurs)

NFPCSP contributors: upon request (if policy advise is required)

Typology: Monitoring + Data analysis + Policy advise

Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: all data sources available at FPMU

Users: FPMC members




Coordination

Name: Working papers for EWTC and minutes

Frequency: on average 6 times a year, but in 2008 only 3 times

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : All other FPMU Directorates: S. Amdad Huq, Sohela Khanam

NFPCSP contributors: upon request

Typology: Monitoring + Data Analysis + (Policy Advise)

Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: DAE, BBS, BMD, SPARSO, FAO, DGF

Users: EWTC members, MoFDM (for the minutes)

Comparable outputs: No



Name: Working papers for Food Security, Consumption and Nutrition Technical Committee and minutes

Frequency: on average 3 a year

Language: Bengali

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : Ruhul Amin Talukder, Alima Nusrat Jahan


Typology: Monitoring + Data Analysis + (Policy Advise)

Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: BBS-HIES, MHFW, MWomen affairs, LGRD, HKI, INFS, IPH

Users: SNTC members, DG FPMU, Secretary MoFDM (for the minutes)




Name: Working papers for the Inter-ministerial/Inter-agency Monitoring Committee for Safety Nets Pro-

grammes and minutes

Frequency: on average 3 a year

Language: Bengali/English

Start date:

Current issue:


FPMU contributors : Ruhul Amin Talukder, Alima Nusrat Jahan


Typology: Coordination + Monitoring + Data Analysis

Medium: hardcopy


Main data sources: …

Users: Committee members, DG FPMU, GoB agencies




Name: Participation to NFPCSP bodies (e.g. Steering Committee, Research grant panel)

Frequency: on average once a year

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: DG

FPMU contributors : …

NFPCSP contributors:

Typology: Coordination + Monitoring

Medium: …


Main data sources: …

Users: …




Name: Activities related to the implementation of the NFP-PoA (e.g. TRTs, FPWG)

Frequency: FPWG: on average 3 a year; TRTs: on average once a month

Language: English

Start date:

Current issue:

FPMU responsible: DG

FPMU contributors : Reserach Directors + resource persons from each Directorate

NFPCSP contributors: TAT members

Typology: Coordination + Monitoring + Data Analysis

Medium: …


Main data sources: Institutions concerned with each thematic area…

Users: …




Annex 7. Synopsis of input data sources for analytical outputs

O Prices O Q (target) O Q (actual) Area I Prices I Quantity Rainfall Other NP (whole) RP (whole) NP (retail) RP (retail) OMS price Proc. Price Proc. (target) Proc. (actual) Stocks DistributionMonitoring/data analysisDatabase on food security (Y) DAE-MoA BBS BBS MMIS-MoA MMIS-MoA BMD BBS/BSCIC DAM-MoA DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMFood budget (Y) DAE-MoA BBS DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMProduction monitoring report of amon/boro (H) DAE-MoA BBS BBS MMIS-MoA MMIS-MoA BMD BBS/BSCIC DAM-MoA DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMCosts of production of amon/boro/wheat (Q) DAE-MoA BBS MMIS-MoA MMIS-MoA BARI, BRRIBGD food situation report (Q) DAE-MoA BBS DAM-MoA MISM-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMMarket monitoring report (M) DAE-MoA BBS BBS MMIS-MoA MMIS-MoA BMD BBS/BSCIC DAM-MoA DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMStockflow tables (M) DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMBorder price monitoring (M) DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMFoodgrain outlook (F) DAM-MoA MISM-MoFDMFood situation (F) DAE-MoA BBS BBS MMIS-MoA DAM-MoA MISM-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMFood scenario (F) DAE-MoA BBS DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMEarly Warning (F) DAE-MoA BBS BBS BMDFood situation (D) DAM-MoA DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMProcurement (D) MISM-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMNumber of total hits 0 8 9 6 5 4 4 4 7 0 4 0 3 4 9 11 10 9

Availability Consumption Other FOB Price Border price CIF Price Pu Import Q Pr Import Q Input Import Rice export World prod. Ships position Other Population PovertyMonitoring/data analysisDatabase on food security (Y) BBS FAO/USDA FAO DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM MMIS-MoA FAO Bgd Bank BBS BBSFood budget (Y) DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM BBSProduction monitoring report of amon/boro (H) BBS FAO/USDA FAO DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM MMIS-MoA FAO Bgd Bank BBS BBSCosts of production of amon/boro/wheat (Q)BGD food situation report (Q) FAO/USDA FAO DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM FAO Bgd BankMarket monitoring report (M) BBS FAO/USDA FAO DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM MMIS-MoA FAO Bgd Bank BBS BBSStockflow tables (M) Border price monitoring (F) DGF-MoFDMFoodgrain outlook (F) FAO/USDA FAO DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM MMIS-MoA FAO Bgd BankFood situation (F) BBS FAO/USDA FAO DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM MMIS-MoA REA FAOFood scenario (F) DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDMEarly Warning (F) FAOFood situation (D) FAO/USDA FAO DGF-MoFDM DGF-MoFDM DGF/CMS Bgd BankProcurement (D) Number of total hits 0 4 0 7 1 7 9 9 5 1 7 1 6 4 3

BARI Bangkadesh Agricultural Research InstituteBRRI Bangladesh Rice Research InstituteBBS Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics

BSCIC/BSFIC Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries CorporationBgd Bank Bangladesh Bank

BMD Bangladesh Metereological DepartmentCMS

DAE-MoA Department of Agricultural Extension, MoADAM-MoA Department of Agricultural Marketing, MoA

DGF-MoFDM Directorate General of Food, MoFDMFAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN

MISM-MoFDM Management of Information System and Monitoring Unit, MoFDMMMIS-MoA Market Monitoring and Information System, MoA

REA Rice Exporters AssociationUSDA Unites States Department of Agriculture

Other

Production Market

Consumption International



Annex 8. Current Mandate of FPMU

The Mandate of FPMU is to extend advice to the Secretary, Ministry of Food and other relevant offices in the Government on food policy issues based on systematic research, analysis and monitor-ing of information. The other function of the FPMU is to extend secretarial service to the National Committee entitled "Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC)" 1. Director General FPMU 1.1. Office of the Director General

In pursuance of fulfilling FPMU Mandate, the Director General of FPMU will require to Co-ordinate the work of four functional Directorates within the FPMU;

• Identify and initiate work on food policy issues by engaging FPMU resources in formulation of problems, collection and analysis of information, preparation of reports, dissemination of find-ings in a way desired by the Secretary, Ministry of Food;

• Keep continuous liaison with other ministries and agencies which are relevant to the context of food policy formulation and implementation;

• Provide the overall management of the FPMU by arranging necessary administrative and tech-nical support to all Directorates and organising a team work consisting of various Directorates;

• Develop a planned system of work schedules, data bank and a mechanism of forward looking information gathering in order to keep ahead of emerging problems in the area of food supply, demand, prices and income;

• Represent the Secretary, Ministry of Food at conferences and meetings as delegated and perform any other work assigned by the Secretary, Ministry of Food or higher authority of the Govern-ment.

1.2. Technical Functions of the Director General

i. Be responsible for monitoring overall food situation and analyzing short and long term food situation and reporting timely, reliable and objective information necessary for efficient food system operation;

ii. Be responsible for analyzing and explaining current state of food economy and interpret current trends and place findings and recommendations in context of current history;

iii. Be responsible for forecasting and analyzing what will happen in the future to portray ex-pected developments in major food markets in the near future to cover longer periods and to forecast food prices;

iv. Be responsible for projecting future food market conditions in a timely manner and to pro-vide basic information and market review to understand underlying economic forces;

v. Be responsible for preparation of food policy statement and incorporate necessary changes from time to time and to formulate and update a Policy Design Implementation Matrix for assessing the relationship between policy instrument and policy objectives;

vi. Be responsible for preparing reports on foodgrain prospect and formulate food procure-ment, distribution and pricing policies;



vii. Collaborate with international agencies like Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), World Food Programme (WFP), The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Devel-opment (OECD), World Grain Council (WGC), South-Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC), Word Bank, Asian Development Bank, International Food Policy Re-search Institute ( IFPRI) and other organizations and agencies in respect of food security and food policy related issues.

2. Directorate of Production Monitoring and Early Warning Service

2.1. Office of the Director

(i) Provide secretarial services and prepare documents for the Food Planning & Monitoring Committee.

(ii) Ensure liaison and coordination with, and supply information, guidelines and support to all relevant Ministries, Departments, Institutions, and specialized agencies, other international and national bodies.

(iii) Exercise overall management responsibility including planning, supervising and ensuring the implementation of the approved Programme of Work in the service's field of compe-tence. Provide administrative oversight, supervising staff, and coordination with other Di-rectorates of the FPMU.

(iv) Coordinate the planning of the Directorate's programme of work and ensure its technical quality and implementation through staff and non-staff resources.

2.2.A. Public Procurement and Producer's Incentive Service

The Service would provide economic data and analyses on basic food crops, to facilitate transparency of information for decision-making regarding import and export, and producer's incen-tive policies. Specific Activities:

(i) Provide analyses on cost and returns of production of food crops and analyse the compara-tive advantage of producing specific crop and specific grades of rice and wheat;

(ii) Provide analyses for fixation of procurement price and district wise procurement targets based on preharvest Corp estimates;

(iii) Provide recommendation of policy measures necessary to sustain the trend growth in do-mestic production and provide guidelines for diversification mainly with rice varieties and into other corps;

(iv) Review policy changes and studies relating to inputs, and factor markets, tariff and non-trade barriers, exchange rate, fiscal and monetary policies and determine the incentive structure in production by type;

(v) Analyse the impact of changes in prices relative to price of competing crops and of relative price variability (risk) on specific food crop production;

2.2.B. Domestic Production Monitoring and Early Warning Service

The Service is responsible for operation and upgrading of Early Warning System (EWS); and responsible for crop yield monitoring and weather monitoring activities through EWS opera-



tions. This Service is also responsible for providing information and analysis of the crop situation based on input market, climate and extension services. Specific Activities

(i) Provide forecast of major food crop through conducting survey for pre-harvest crop esti-mate;

(ii) Monitor continuously the food crop development situation in order to assist governments in taking timely and appropriate action in quickly changing situations.

(iii) Operate the National Early Warning System on Food and Agriculture and liaise with gov-ernment’s departments, agencies and international bodies participating in the System.

(iv) Identify regions and localities where production losses are imminent and assess possible rehabilitation requirements; propose emergency support programme;

(v) Issue reports on the food situation at the national and regional levels; ensure effective and timely dissemination of special alerts on food crop development problem areas and of spe-cial reports containing information and required actions in affected areas.

3. Directorate of Market Monitoring and Food Operation Policy 3.1. Office of the Director

(i) Provide secretariat services and prepare documents for the Food Planning & Monitoring Committee

(ii) Ensure liaison and coordination with, and supplies information, guidelines and support to all relevant Ministries Departments, Institutions, and specialized agencies, other interna-tional and national bodies.



3.2.A. Market Monitoring Service

The Service would keep the domestic wholesale, retail and producer's market supply/demand situation under continuous review; issue timely reports on the domestic food market situation and prospects. The Service would also maintain a constant watch on the market price situa-tion and outlook for major food commodities. It would identify specific food commodity problems and propose action to mitigate them. Specific Activities

(i) Provide information and analyses of price, trade and supply situation in domestic and world market on a continuous basis;



(ii) Provide analysis on the cross-border informal trade linkage with neighboring coun-try's markets and assess the implications for domestic market stability and public food op-erations;

(iii) Provide global supply, demand and price situations and outlook by using market review, appraisals and projections available form external sources;

(iv) Analyse spatial arbitrage condition and price spreads across important markets over time to determine the degree of market integration;

(v) Review existing studies and determinants of the marketing margins in food trade by grade, examining in detail storage, processing, trading margins to determine the incentive and ef-ficiency of these activities;

(vi) Analyse domestic food market structure, conduct, efficiency, price formation and recom-mendation of appropriate measures to eliminate bottlenecks for efficient private sector food trade and market environment;

(vii) Provide recommendations for economically efficient and socially desirable policy measures for ensuring adequate incentive for market intermediaries;

(viii)Analyse information on national and international food commodity and trade policies.

(ix) Prepare, in conjunction with other services, periodic projections of demand, supply and trade in food commodities.

(x) Undertake econometric analysis of, and provide information on factors influencing trends, patterns and inter-relationships in demand, supply and trade of major food commodities;

(xi) Take main responsibility for preparation of the Quarterly "FPMU Market Review". 3.2.B. Public Food Operation Monitoring and Planning Services Specific Activities (i) Monitor operation of public food distribution system (PFDS) and recommend appropriate

measures to eliminate bottlenecks for smooth and efficient public food operation including storage and movement planning;

(ii) Provide information and analyses of the existing public storage network and recommend guideline to rationalize storage space and improve capacity utilization to reduce cost to the Government;

(iii) Prepare food budget, update monthly projections and schedule timing for public import and procurement;

(iv) Analyze the economic and financial costs and benefits of a consumer's price stabilization activities and recommend trade policy instruments of achieving domestic price stability;

4. Directorate of Food Security, Consumption and Nutrition Analysis 4.1. Office of the Director

(i) Provide secretariat services and prepare documents for the Food Planning & Monitoring Committee






4.2.A. Food Security Analysis Service

The Service would analyze food security and food aid policies, and carry out conceptual and

methodological work on the formulation of comprehensive national and sub-regional food security programmes, identification and characterization of population groups vulnerable to food insecurity, design and management of national and regional food security information systems, formulation of national disaster and drought preparedness plans, and estimation of optimum national food security stocks and management procedures. Specific Activities: (i) Develop new methodological tools for the assessment of the food security situation in ac-

cordance with the broadened concept of food security.

(ii) Analyze food security and food aid programmes and policies, and contributes to the as-sessment of the food security situation in light of this analysis.

(iii) Ensure a food security focus in the FPMU's work through analytical and methodological work on the application of the broadened concept of food security as a framework of analy-sis, and the development of guidelines and manuals for the Special Programme in Support of Food Security.

(iv) Maintain professional contact with other national and international organizations and insti-tutions working on food security to keep up with new developments in concepts and me-thodologies.

(v) Develop conceptual frameworks and methodologies in the form of guidelines for pro-gramme and project analysis to incorporate economic, social, environmental, nutrition, food security and sustainability objectives into various national projects and programmes.

(vi) Conduct studies to ensure better integration of concepts related to social welfare, environ-ment, sustainability, nutrition, food security in the analysis of projects and sector policies.

(vii) Provide substantive support to other technical units in GOB for the integration of economic, social, environmental, nutrition, food security and sustainability objectives into the policy formulation and analysis process of programmes and projects.

(viii)Cooperate with academic and research institutions and other external bodies, for the ex-change of information and experience related to the Service's areas of activity and represent the FPMU and Ministry or Food in professional meetings and conferences related to the Service's subject matter areas.



4.2.B. Targeted Food Planning and Nutrition Analysis Service The Service would assess and monitor nutritional situations and requirements and provide ad-vice and assistance aimed at improving: the nutritional status of all, particularly the poor and most vulnerable groups in developing countries; food quality, safety and standards; and food science in-cluding food composition. It would have primary responsibility for coordinating nutrition-related activities in follow-up to international meeting and agreements. Specific Activities

(i) Prepare and disseminate, in collaboration with national and international organizations, and various agencies, regular reviews of the nutritional situation at national, regional and household levels;

(ii) In cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO), provide guidance on nu-tritional requirements arrange meetings of experts to review current research on physiologi-cal requirements for calories and nutrients, and to examine how to apply such research in calculating the nutrient requirements of various population groups; identify research needs and take steps to have priority research performed.

(iii) Provide other GOB organizations with planning advice on improving nutrition to assure the quality and nutritional adequacy of food supplies and to promote equitable access to and consumption of nutritionally adequate diets.

(iv) Provide services related to collection, compilation, dissemination and utilization of data on the nutrient composition of foods.

(v) Undertake studies and provide advice on:

(a) evaluate the impact on nutrition of development strategies, programmes and policies, in particular those related to agriculture and rural development,

(b) the monitoring and surveillance of the nutritional situation;

(c) the targeting of beneficiaries for assistance programmes and for nutrition-related inter-ventions.

(vi) Provide support to other GOB organizations through studies, manuals and guidelines, for the integration of nutritional objectives into agriculture and rural development plans and programmes, and into other GOB projects related to food production, processing, distribu-tion and consumption.

(vii) Establish and maintain working relationships, promote collaboration in nutrition-related research training, assessments with selected institutions and provide planning advice for better nutrition.

5. Directorate of Policy Advisory, Research and Statistical Analysis 5.1. Office of the Director

(i) Provide secretariat services and prepare documents for the Food Planning & Monitoring Committee (FPMC).





(iv) Coordinate the planning of the Directorate's programme of work and ensures its technical quality and implementation through staff and non-staff resources.

5.2.A. Policy Advisory and Research Service

The Service is the focal point for FPMU's economic research and policy analysis for food

security and sustainable development. In cooperation with academic and research institutions, it would contribute to the generation of knowledge and evolution of thought in economic, agricultural and social development issues; develop frameworks and methodologies to guide policy, and pro-gramme; ensure multidisciplinary integration of cross sectoral issues including environment, sustai-nability, nutrition and food security in the analysis of sectoral policies, the economic environment and the market. Specific Activities:

(i) Ensure the appraisal of the FPMU's research activities, the identification of programmes and projects and the provision of specialized support in the formulation or implementation of projects. It would also ensure the technical quality of the FPMU's research activities to an acceptable standard, through the appraisal of project documents and clearance of tech-nical and terminal reports. Provide technical support to the Ministry of Food projects when applicable.

(ii) Develop and provide technical guidance and support to special action programmes.

(iii) Provide advice, assistance and support to national food policies and strategies.

(iv) Provide leadership, coordination or assistance, as required, to GOB and specialized agen-cies and other bodies in its fields of activity.

5.2.B. Statistical Analysis Service The Service would analyze economic and agricultural statistics, food supply consumption and demographic data and derive indicators pertaining to the food and nutrition situation; prepare studies and also compile, evaluate and disseminate statistics on food supply and consumption. The service would also be responsible for developing agricultural inputs, land use data and agricultural prices both paid and received by farmers. Specific Activities:

(i) Compile, evaluate and disseminate statistics on food prices, agricultural inputs and support prices; analyse price data for the calculation of index numbers of production, prices re-ceived and paid by farmers etc; and develops methodology for surveys for assessing cost of production and marketing costs and margins.

(ii) Develop the programme relating to the preparation of economic accounts for agriculture; maintain the data base relating to external assistance to agriculture; and prepares studies on inter-country comparisons of agricultural output and productivity.



(iii) Compile, evaluate and disseminate statistics on agricultural inputs, i.e. fertilizers, pesti-cides, farm machinery etc, and develop the programme of environmental indicators asso-ciated with agricultural input.

(iv) Compile, analyse and disseminate data pertaining to food consumption, income and ex-penditure from national household surveys.

(v) Analyze population, food supply and consumption data and derive indicators of the food and nutrition situation; and prepare related studies.

(vi) Prepare estimates and projections of the agricultural population and labour force;

(vii) Collect, evaluate and disseminate agricultural statistics on production, trade and domestic utilisation of food and agricultural products.

(viii)Construct, maintain and update the following data series:

(a) total and per caput index numbers of food, agricultural production, and trade;

(b) supply/utilization accounts of food, including both primary and processed agricultural products;

(c) regional-level food balance sheets.



Annex 9. The FPMU Structure as per G.O No Kha-M/pro-1/1277/98-/211 of 4 March 1998

Director General

Research Director (PARS)

Research Director (PMEW)

Deputy Chief (MMFM)

Research Director (FSCN)

Additional Director (Statistical Analysis)

Additional Director (Policy Advise and

Analysis)

Research Officer (Sta-tistical Analysis)

Asstt. Chief (Market Monitoring)

Asstt. Chief (Food Management

and Planning)

Additional Director

Research Officer (Pro-duction Monitoring)

Additional Director (Food Security Analy-

sis)

Research Officer (Mar-ket Monitoring)

Research Officer (Food Management

and Planning)

Research Officer (Tar-geted food Planning

and Nutrition Analysis)

Research Investigator

Research Officer (Early Warning)

1 PO 1 Driver 1 MLSS

1 Typist 1 MLSS

1 AO 1 Steno typist 1 MLSS

1 Steno typist 1 MLSS 1 AO

1 Steno typist 1 MLSS



Annex 10. The current FPMU Structure (as per April 2009)

Director General Md Ruhul Amin

Research Director (PARS)

Md Hajiqul Islam

Research Director (PMEW)

Syed Amdadul Huq

Deputy Chief (MMFO)

Md Abdur Rahman

Research Director (FSCN)

Md Ruhul Amin Ta-lukder

Additional Director (Statistical Analysis) Mahbubur Rahman

Additional Director (Policy Advise and

Analysis) Feroz Al Mahmud

Research Officer (Sta-tistical Analysis)

…

Asstt. Chief (Market Monitoring)

…

Asstt. Chief (Food Management and Planning) Ferdousi Ara

Additional Director …

Research Officer (Pro-duction Monitoring) Sohela Khanam

Additional Director (Food Security Analysis)

Mostafa Al Banna

Research Officer (Mar-ket Monitoring)

Ismail Mia

Research Officer (Food Management and

Planning) …

Research Officer (Tar-geted food Planning and

Nutrition Analysis) Alima Nusrat Jahan

Research Investigator …

Research Officer (Early Warning) Abul Hasheem

1 PO 1 Driver 1 MLSS

1 AO 1 Steno typist 1 MLSS 1 Typist

1 MLSS

1 Steno typist 1 MLSS

Research Di-rector

Naser Farid

FPMU permanent staff currently present

1 AO 1 Steno typist 1 MLSS

FPMU non-permanent staff currently present

FPMU vacant positions

FPMU permanent staff currently abroad



Annex 11. Proposed FPMU Mandate

According to art. 15(a) of the Constitution of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, “it shall be a fundamental responsibility of the State to attain (…) a steady improvement in the (…) standards of living of the people, with a view to securing to its citizens the provision of the basic necessities of life, including food, clothing, shelter, education and medical care”. The mission of FPMU is grounded in this statement as it is bound to support the Government of Bangladesh in pursuing the goal of ensuring food security for the people of Bangladesh. This mission will be accomplished through:

a) collecting, storing and making available all information/data relevant for food security analysis and, specifically, for food policy formulation and implementation;

b) monitoring the food security situation in the country and the implementation of policies that may affect it;

c) delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for food security, on its own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh;

d) extending policy advice on food security to the Government of Bangladesh, on its own ini-tiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh;

e) contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs;

f) providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any other Governmental committee relevant for food security (e.g. Early Warning Technical Committee, Safety Net Technical Committee, etc.);

g) disseminating the results of policy-oriented analyses on food security to governmental bod-ies, non-governmental organization, development partners, and to the society at large.

1. Director General (FPMU-DG)

In pursuance of FPMU mission, the Director General of FPMU is required to:

• coordinate and supervise the work of FPMU Directorates and take the overall responsibility for FPMU outputs and services;

• take the necessary administrative and organizational decisions in order to ensure an effective result-based management of FPMU (including FPMU workplan formulation, implementation and monitoring);

• ensure continuous liaison and collaboration with governmental bodies (e.g. ministries, agen-cies, etc.), non-governmental organizations and development partners relevant for food secu-rity;

• identify, formulate and initiate policy analysis and research on food security issues to be con-ducted either directly by FPMU or through outsourcing to third parties;

• ensure delivery of effective and efficient responses to policy advice requests on food security and related policies implementation issues coming from any office of the Government of Bangladesh;

• act as Secretary of the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC);

• represent the Secretary-MoFDM or higher authorities of the Government of Bangladesh.



2. Directorate of Food Availability (FAV)

The FAV Directorate activities deal with all issues related to the domestic supply component of the availability dimension of food security. The FAV Directorate is constituted by the Office of the Director (FAV-D) and two Services: Domestic Production (FAV-P) and Early Warning and Agri-cultural Sustainability (FAV-W).

2.1. Director (FAV-D)

Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG, the Domestic Availability Director is required to:

• manage the work of FAV Directorate to ensure an effective result-based implementation of the FPMU workplan in the FAV Directorate’s relevant field of competence;

• be responsible for FAV Directorate outputs and services (i.e. monitoring, delivering policy-oriented analysis and research, extending policy advice to the GoB, contributing to pol-icy/program formulation, providing secretarial service to FPMC and contributing to other committees) according to the FPMU workplan;

• coordinate the work of FAV Directorate with other FPMU Directorates to ensure an effective and efficient exchange of information/data, production of outputs and delivery of services;

• develop the necessary collaboration with other offices of the Government of Bangladesh, non-governmental organizations and development partners as appropriate;

• contribute to the formulation of the FPMU workplan specifically through the identification of key analytical outputs in the FAV Directorate’s relevant field of competence.

2.2. Domestic Production Service (FAV-P)

The Service activities focus on economic and policy analyses related to the domestic production of all foods (crops, animals, and fisheries), public procurement of basic foods, and rural develop-ment.

Under the direct supervision of the FAV-D, the Domestic Production Service is required to:

• analyse the profitability of domestic food production and the comparative advantage of pro-ducing specific foods;

• provide recommendations for procurement price fixation and district-wise procurement targets based on cost of production and pre-harvest crop estimates;

• recommend policy measures on agricultural inputs production and distribution

• provide recommendations for policy measures necessary to ensure an environmentally, so-cially and economically sustainable food production growth;

• provide recommendations for investment and extension/research interventions needed to sus-tain food production;

• provide recommendations for agriculture production diversification, post-harvest activities de-velopment, and non-farm rural activities development;

• assess the impact of any policy affecting food production, with emphasis on changes in the structure of incentives to producers and in their exposure to risks (both environmental and economic);

• carry out any other analytical work deemed relevant for food security in the Service relevant field of competence.



2.3. Early Warning and Agricultural Sustainability Service (FAV-W)

The Service is responsible for all analyses related to domestic production monitoring and fore-casting, for contributing to the national Early Warning System, and for analyzing agricultural sus-tainability issues (both in terms of the impact of agriculture on the environment and of the environ-ment on agriculture).

Under the direct supervision of the FAV-D, the Early Warning Service is required to:

• monitor continuously the food crop development situation and provide forecasts of major food crop production, conducting surveys for early assessment of crops and pre-harvest crop esti-mate as well as building statistical models (e.g. crop yield-weather regressions);

• identify regions and localities where food production losses are imminent and assess possible rehabilitation measures, also proposing recommendations for the formulation of national dis-aster preparedness and rehabilitation plans;

• ensure effective and timely dissemination of special alerts on food crop development problems and of special reports containing information and required actions in affected areas;

• contribute to the national Early Warning System on food and agriculture and coordinate with Government’s departments, agencies and international bodies participating in the System;

• assess the impact of food production practices on environmental sustainability and the impact of global/longer term environmental trends and changes (e.g. climate change, water scarcity, etc.) on food production;


3. Directorate of Food Access (FAC)

The FAC Directorate activities deal with the physical, economic and social access dimensions of food security. The FAC Directorate is constituted by the Office of the Director (FAC-D) and two Services: Physical and Economic Access (FAC-E) and Social Access (FAC-S).

3.1. Director (FAC-D)

Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG, the Food Access Director is required to:

• manage the work of FAC Directorate to ensure an effective result-based implementation of the FPMU workplan in the FAC Directorate’s relevant field of competence;

• be responsible for FAC Directorate outputs and services (i.e. monitoring, delivering policy-oriented analysis and research, extending policy advice to the GoB, contributing to pol-icy/program formulation, providing secretarial service to FPMC and contributing to other committees) according to the FPMU workplan;

• coordinate the work of FAC Directorate with other FPMU Directorates to ensure an effective and efficient exchange of information/data, production of outputs and delivery of services;


• contribute to the formulation of the FPMU workplan specifically through the identification of key analytical outputs in the FAC Directorate’s relevant field of competence.



3.2. Physical and Economic Access Service (FAC-E)

The Service activities focus on the economic and policy analysis of physical and economic ac-cess to food, dealing specifically with the impact on access to food determined by economic and policy changes in domestic and international food markets as well as in the economy at large.

Under the direct supervision of the FAC-D, the Physical and Economic Access Service is re-quired to:

• monitor continuously the evolution of food price and trade situation in domestic and world markets and provide forecasts of supply and demand for major foods;

• assess domestic food market structure, conduct and performance, including marketing mar-gins, spatial arbitrage conditions and price spreads across important markets over time;

• assess the impact on domestic food markets of changes in the macroeconomic scenario;

• provide recommendations for economically efficient and socially desirable policy measures aiming at ensuring adequate incentives for market intermediaries and economic access to food by different consumer groups;

• assess the impact of any policy affecting the profitability of food assembly, marketing, storage, processing, and trade, with emphasis on changes in the structure of incentives and risk at dif-ferent levels along the food chain;

• assess the impact on the domestic market of changes in the international markets and of changes in foreign countries commodity, trade and macroeconomic policies;


3.3. Social Access Service (FAC-S)

The Service activities focus on the economic and policy analysis of social access to food, deal-ing specifically with the impact on access to food of the Public Food Distribution System and other safety net schemes.

Under the direct supervision of the FAC-D, the Social Access Service is required to:

• monitor continuously the operation of Public Food Distribution System (PFDS) and recom-mend appropriate targets for public food operations;

• assess the operational performance of PFDS and recommend appropriate measures to ensure a more efficient logistics of public food operations;

• prepare the national food budget, update monthly projections and schedule timing for public import and procurement;

• assess the design, monitor the implementation and assess the implementation modalities of safety net schemes other than PFDS;

• provide recommendations for the design and implementation of effective and efficient safety net schemes;


4. Directorate of Food Utilization (FUN)

The FUN Directorate activities deal with all issues related to food utilization dimension of food security. The FUN Directorate is constituted by the Office of the Director (FUN-D) and two Ser-



vices: Food and Nutritional Requirements (FUN-R) and Food Consumption and Nutritional Status (FUN-S).

4.1. Director (FUN-D)

Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG, the Food Utilization Director is required to:

• manage the work of FUN Directorate to ensure an effective result-based implementation of the FPMU workplan in the FUN Directorate’s relevant field of competence;

• be responsible for FUN Directorate outputs and services (i.e. monitoring, delivering policy-oriented analysis and research, extending policy advice to the GoB, contributing to pol-icy/program formulation, providing secretarial service to FPMC and contributing to other committees) according to the FPMU workplan;

• coordinate the work of FUN Directorate with other FPMU Directorates to ensure an effective and efficient exchange of information/data, production of outputs and delivery of services;


• contribute to the formulation of the FPMU workplan specifically through the identification of key analytical outputs in the FUN Directorate’s relevant field of competence.

4.2. Food and Nutritional Requirements Service (FUN-R)

The Service activities focus on the normative analysis of food consumption that is on the eco-nomic and policy analysis of formulation and implementation of food norms (e.g. food and nutri-tional requirements, food quality and safety standards).

Under the direct supervision of the FUN-D, the Food and Nutritional Requirements Service is required to:

• provide advice and assistance to the GoB for the formulation and harmonization of food and nutritional requirements and establishing a desirable dietary pattern aimed at improving the nutritional status of all, particularly the poor and most vulnerable groups;

• contribute to the harmonization of methodologies for food consumption, food safety and nutri-tion assessment/surveillance;

• contribute to the formulation and update of food quality and food safety standards guidelines;

• contribute to the formulation of nutrition, food quality and food safety policies and programs;

• monitor the level of awareness building activities with respect to nutrition and food safety promotion programs;


4.3. Food Consumption and Nutritional Status Service (FUN-S)

The Service activities focus on the positive analysis of food consumption that is on the eco-nomic and policy analysis of the impact of food consumption on consumers’ welfare (e.g. monitor-ing food consumption, assessment of food intakes nutritional outcomes).

Under the direct supervision of the FUN-D, the Food Consumption and Nutritional Status Ser-vice is required to:

• monitor continuously the food consumption situation, identifying and characterizing popula-tion groups vulnerable to food insecurity;



• contribute to the monitoring and assessment of food safety risks;

• assess the impact of food availability decline as well as food entitlement decline on consum-ers’ nutritional status and welfare;

• assess the impact of development strategies, programmes and policies, in particular those re-lated to agriculture and rural development, on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare;

• assess the impact of nutritional strategies, programmes and policies, in particular those related to the implementation of new food and nutritional standards and to the diversification of diet, on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare;

• assess the impact of the implementation of safety net schemes on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare;

• assess the impact of sanitation and health strategies, programmes and policies on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare;


5. Directorate of Management, Information and Communication (MIC)

The MIC Directorate activities deal with all functions that need to be centralized for the overall operation of FPMU. It accomplishes some staff functions to the FPMU-DG (e.g. planning and monitoring, cooperation with partners/donors) as well as service funtions to other Directorates (e.g. data/information management and communication). The MIC Directorate is constituted by the Of-fice of the Director (MIC-D) and two Services: Planning and Monitoring (MIC-P) and Information and Communication (MIC-I).

5.1. Director (MIC-D)

Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG, the Planning, Monitoring and Information Di-rector is required to:

• organize, supervise and monitor all information/data management and communication ori-ented activities within the FPMU as well as the FPMU interaction with information/data pro-viders and the dissemination/outreach of FPMU analysis findings;

• be responsible for quality of output/services delivered by FPMU;

• coordinate the work of MIC Directorate with other FPMU Directorates to ensure an effective and efficient exchange of information/data, production of outputs and delivery of services;


• coordinate and supervise the formulation of the FPMU workplan and take the responsibility for its monitoring in order to ensure an effective result-based management of FPMU;

• promote cooperation with donors/projects for developing partnership between FPMU and any interested party.

5.2. Planning and Monitoring Service (MIC-P)

The Service activities focus on planning, monitoring and evaluation of FPMU activities and on cooperation with donors/projects.

Under the direct supervision of the MIC-D, the Planning and Monitoring Service is required to:



• coordinate and supervise other FPMU Directorates’ contributions to the formulation of the FPMU workplan and take the responsibility for its finalization;

• be responsible for monitoring and evaluating FPMU activities in order to ensure an effective result-based management of FPMU;

• promote cooperation with donors/projects for developing partnership between FPMU and any interested party;

• carry out any other activity deemed relevant for an effective result-based management of FPMU.

5.3. Information and Communication Service (MIC-I)

The Service activities focus on collecting, storing and making available food security informa-tion/data and disseminating the findings of policy-oriented analysis and research on food security to governmental bodies, non-governmental organization, development partners and to the society at large.

Under the direct supervision of the MIC-D, the Information and Communication Service is re-quired to:

• promote cooperation with academic and research institutions in the field of knowledge genera-tion and evolution of thought on food security issues;

• develop and continuously update the FPMU database on food security, ensuring efficient data exchange procedures within-FPMU;

• act to develop operational interfaces and virtual linkages between the FPMU database and other relevant food security data/information sources, in country and abroad (e.g. other offices of the Government of Bangladesh, non-governmental organizations, development partners, academic and research institutions, etc.);

• compile, evaluate, elaborate, and disseminate in a friendly format food security statistics;

• establish and manage a documentation centre (i.e. a repository for food security-related re-ports, studies, etc.) through which also linkages with existing virtual libraries will be guaran-teed;

• develop and continuously update the FPMU website with a view at enhancing visibility of FPMU outputs and enhancing the use of the website as an interface between the FPMU and other food security stakeholders (e.g. ministries, think tanks, etc.);

• be responsible for the implementation and revision of the FPMU output policy (number, con-tents and formats of outputs, identification of priority outputs, etc.) and ensuring their techni-cal quality through a process of assessment and clearance;

• carry out any other activity deemed relevant for collecting, storing and making available food security information/data and disseminating the findings of policy-oriented analysis and re-search on food security.



Annex 12. The Proposed FPMU Structure

Director General (DG)

Research Director (FAV)

Research Director (FAC)

Research Director (FUN)

Additional Director (Physical & Economic

Access)

Additional Director (Social Access)

Additional Director (Domestic Production)

Research Officer (Foodgrains)

Additional Director (Food & Nutrition Standards)

Research Officer (Domestic Market)

Research Officer (Public Food Distribution

System)

Research Officer (Food Quality and Safety)

Research Officer (Nutritional Requirements)

Research Officer (Other Foods)

Research Director (MIC)

Additional Director (Planning & Monitoring)

Additional Director (Information &

Communication)

Research Officer (International Market)

Additional Director (Early Warning &

Agricultural Sustainability)

Research Officer (Early Warning)

Research Officer (Agricultural

Sustainability)

Additional Director (Food Consumption &

Nutritional Status)

Research Officer (Food Consumption)

Research Officer (Nutritional Status)

Research Officer (Planning)

Research Officer (Monitoring & Evaluation)

Research Officer (Network/Website

Management)

Research Investigator (Documentation Center)

Research Officer (Macroeconomic watch)

Research Officer (Other Safety Nets)

Research Officer (Database Management/

Statistics)

FPMU staff currently present

FPMU staff currently abroad and vacant positions



Annex 13. Human Resources Inventory

Name Directorate Education Activity before joining FPMU

Year of recruitment a

PITP (2006)b

ITP (2007)c

Long-term training

Other

Ruhul Amin DG • 1975: MSc Economics, Dhaka University

• 1973: BA (Hon) Eco-nomics, Dhaka Univer-sity

Research experience on Rural Roads

1980 Yes Yes • Stages/courses on Food Policy in Minnesota, North Carolina, and Bangladesh

Md Hajiqul Islam PARS • 1992: MSS Economics, Rajshahi University

• 1990: BSS (Hon) Eco-nomics, Rajshahi Uni-versity

Research experience on Community and Population

1995 Yes Yes 2008: MSc Inter-national Econom-ics and Public Policy, University of Cardiff, UK

• Stages/courses on Food Policy in Minnesota, India and Ban-gladesh

• In country stages/ courses on remote sensing and agricultur-al statistics

Md Abdur Rahman PMEW • 1975: BSc Agriculture, BAU, Mymensingh

• Relief Section, MoFDM

• Ministry of Labour

2007 Yes Yes

Naser Farid FSCN • 1999: MSc Develop-ment Economics, Wil-liams College, Massa-chusetts, USA

• 1985: MSc Statistics (Econometric group), Rajshahi University

• 1983: BS (Hon) Statis-tics (Econometric group), Rajshahi Uni-versity

IFPRI research counterpart

1995 Yes No 2007-ongoing: PhD Candidate Agriculture and Food Economics, University of Reading, UK

• 2003: WBI workshop on Po-verty and vulnerability, Wash-ington, DC

• 1999-2000: Internship at Sanwa Bank, NY, USA

• 1994: ERS-USDA Interna-tional Commodity Price Anal-ysis

• 1992-93: IFPRI Rice Market Integration Study,

• 1991: Stage on Food Policy, North Carolina A&T State University

• 1989: Postdoc in Finance and Management accounting, Loughborough University, UK

Mahbubur Rahman PARS • 1993: MSc Agricultural Economics (Marketing), BAU, Mymensing

• 1993: BSc Agricultural Economics, BAU, My-mensing

Ass. Director, Dept. of Youth Develop-ment, Ministry of Youth and Sports

2006 No Yes • Study tour of Public Food Distribution Systems, Hydera-bad, India

• In country stages/ courses on credit management, financial management, office manage-ment



Name Directorate Education Activity before joining FPMU

Year of recruitment a

PITP (2006)b

ITP (2007)c

Long-term training

Other

Feroz Al Mahmud PARS • 1990: MSc, Economics, Chittagong University

• 1989: BSC, Economics, Chittagong University

Ass. Director, Dept. of Youth Development, Ministry of Youth and Sports

2006 No Yes 2008-ongoing: MSc in Develop-ment Studies at South Bank Uni-versity

• In country stages/ courses on financial management and poverty alleviation, so-ciety and community devel-opment, role of Micro-credit in socio-economic uplift

Syed Amdadul Huq PMEW • 2007: MSc Business Ad-ministration (Marketing), Dhaka University

• 1987: BSc Agriculture, BAU, Mymensing

• DG Food, Depu-ty Director in several Services

• BRRI, Scientific Officer

2001 Yes Yes 2008: MSc De-velopment Stu-dies, University of Leeds, UK

• In country stages/ courses on food policy, legal affairs, supply and material man-agement, development ad-ministration, food manage-ment, disaster management

Ferdousi Ara MMFO • 2003: BA Education, Ban-gladesh Open University

• 1996: MSS Economics, Rajshahi University

• 1995: BSS (Hon) Econom-ics, Rajshahi University

Ass. Upazilla, Education Officer, Directorate of Primary and Mass Education, Minis-try of Education

2006 No Yes • In country stages/ courses on school management, aca-demic supervision

Ruhul Amin Ta-lukder

FSCN • Ongoing: MSc Develop-ment Studies, East West University, Dhaka

• BSc Engineering (Mechani-cal), Bangladesh University of Engineering and Tech-nology (BUET), Dhaka

Deputy Director and other services within the DG Food

2001 Yes Yes 2008: MSc De-velopment Policy, Practice and Process, Universi-ty of Reading, UK

• 2006: Graduate Certificate, Disaster Management, Swinburne University of Technology, Melbourne, Australia

• 2005: Post Graduate Di-ploma, Development Plan-ning, Academy for Planning and Development, Dhaka

Mostafa Al Banna FSCN • 2004: MSc, Business Ad-ministration, Bangladesh Open University, Dhaka

• 1994: MSc, Nutrition, Uni-versity of Dhaka

• 1991: BSc (Hon) Botany, University of Dhaka

Nutrition Promo-tion Officer, Min-istry of Agricul-ture

2006 No Yes 2008-ongoing: MSc Public Health Nutrition, University of Chester, UK

• In country stages/ courses on poverty mapping, project/program formula-tion, environmental man-agement



Name Directorate Education Activity before join-

ing FPMU Year of

recruitmenta PITP

(2006)b ITP

(2007)c Long-term

training Other

Sohela Khanam PMEW • 1983: MA, Bengali, Dhaka University

• 1980: BA (Hon), Bengali, Dhaka University

1984 No No

Abul Hashem PMEW • 2001: MSc Botany, Uni-versity of Dhaka

• 2000: BSc Botany, Univer-sity of Dhaka

2006 Yes Yes 2008-ongoing: MSc Public Policy and Programme Manage-ment, University of Bradford, UK

• In country stages/ courses on the role of institutions in achieving the MDGs

Md Ismail Mia MMFO • 2006: MSc Agricultural Economics (Marketing), BAU, Mymensing

• 2003: BSc Agricultural Economics, BAU, My-mensing

2006 Yes Yes Nil • In country stages/ courses on project/program formu-lation

Alima Nusrat Jahan FSCN • Ongoing: M.Ph. Plant Pa-thology

• 2001: MSc Botany, Ra-jshahi University

• 1999: BSc Botany, Ra-jshahi University

Lecturer of Biology, Bangataj College, Khirati, Kapasia Gazipur

2006 Yes Yes • In country stages/ courses on poverty analysis and mapping, project/program formu-lation

a For seconded staff, the year of assignment to FPMU is reported. b The NFPCSP Preliminary Intensive Training Program (PIPT) included the following training courses: (i) Introduction to economics as necessary for food security analysis; (ii) Food security: Concepts and Issues; (iii) Analysis of policy impact on food security; (iv) Practical applications of food security analysis and configuration of the Thematic Research Teams. c The NFPCSP Intensive Training Program (IPT) included the following training courses: (i) Food and Nutrition: Background for Policy Analysis; (ii) Monitoring Market Price for Key Commodities; (iii) Moni-toring the Implementation of National Food Policy and Planning Thematic Research Team Activities; (iv) Impact Analysis of Economic Policies of Food Security. Moreover, the following short courses have been delivered: (i) Food Balance Sheet and Supply Utilization Account; (ii) Research methodologies. English courses have been provided as well.



Annex 14. Comparison between the current recruitment rules and the proposed recruitment rules (submitted to MoFDM in 2008) Serial No.

Name of Post Present Recruitment Rule Name of Post Proposed Rules

1 Director General Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then some one with simi-lar pay scale and status be deputed. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Research Director/ Deputy Chief including 20 years of experience of 1st Class Government Service.

Director General Grade: 3 Pay Scale: 16,800 - 20,700

Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by contractual ap-pointment. Necessary qualification: MSc/PhD in Economics, Agricultural economics, MBA. (Business Administration). If none available on contract then by deputation with above academic qualifications. If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Research Direc-tor/Deputy Chief including 15 years of 1st class govern-ment service. There should be at least 8 Research Reports. 3 Publications in National/International Journals.

2 Deputy Chief

Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then some one with simi-lar pay scale and status be deputed. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Additional Director/ Assistant Chief including 12 years of experience of 1st Class Government Service.

Deputy Chief Grade: 5 Pay Scale: 13,750 - 19,250

Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by contractual ap-pointment. Necessary qualification: MSc/PhD in Economics, Agricultural economics, MBA. (Business Administration). If none available on contract then by deputation with above academic qualifications. If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Additional Direc-tor/Deputy Chief including 12 years of 1st class govern-ment service. There should be at least 5 Research Reports. 2 Publications in National/International Journals.



Serial No.


3 Research Director Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then some one with simi-lar pay scale and status be deputed. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Additional Director/ Assistant Chief including 12 years of experience of 1st Class Government Service.

Research Director Grade: 5 Pay Scale: 13,750 - 19,250

Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by contractual ap-pointment. Necessary qualification: MSc/PhD in Economics, Agricultural economics, MBA. (Business Administration). If none available on contract then by deputation with above academic qualifications. If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Additional Direc-tor/Deputy Chief including 12 years of 1st class govern-ment service. There should be at least 5 Research Reports. 2 Publications in National/International Journals.

4 Assistant Chief Recruitment Procedures: 50 % by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 50 % by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Officer If by Direct recruitment: 8 years of experience in relevance field. MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science. If the candidate has PhD then the working experience may be relax by 2 years.

Assistant Chief Grade: 6 Pay Scale: 11,000 – 17,650

Recruitment Procedures: 50 % by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 50 % by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Officer. There should be at least 3 Research Reports. 1 Publication in National/International Journals. If by Direct recruitment: 8 years of experience in relevance field. MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science. If the candidate has PhD then the working experience may be relax by 2 years.



Serial No.


5 Additional Director Recruitment Procedures: 50 % by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 50 % by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Officer If by Direct recruitment: 8 years of experience in relevance field. MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science. If the candidate has PhD then the working experience may be relax by 2 years.

Additional Director Grade: 6 Pay Scale: 11,000 – 17,650

Recruitment Procedures: 50 % by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 50 % by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Officer. There should be at least 3 Research Reports. 1 Publication in National/International Journals. If by Direct recruitment: 8 years of experience in relevance field. MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science. If the candidate has PhD then the working experience may be relax by 2 years.

6 Research Officer Recruitment Procedures: 1/3 (one third) by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 2/3 (two third) by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Investigator. If Direct recruitment: MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science..

Research Officer Grade: 9 Pay Scale: 6,800 – 13,090

Recruitment Procedures: 1/6 (one sixth) by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 5/6 (five sixth) by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Investigator. If Direct recruitment: MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science.



Serial No.


7 Research Investiga-tor

Recruitment Procedures: By Direct recruitment Necessary qualification: MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science.

Research Investiga-tor: Grade: 9 Pay Scale: 5,100 – 10,360


8 Section Assistant The Ministries and Divisions (Upper Division Assis-tant and Section Assistant) Recruitment Rule, 1984.

Section Assistant: Grade: 10 Pay Scale: 5,100 - 10,360

No Change: Same as before

9 Stenographer The stenographer and Steno Typist (Ministries, Divi-sions and Attached departments) Recruitment Rule-1978.

Stenographer Grade: 10 Pay Scale: 5,100 - 10,360


10 Steno-Typist The stenographer and Steno Typist (Ministries, Divi-sions and Attached departments) Recruitment Rule-1978.

Steno-Typist: Grade: 14 Pay Scale: 3,300 - 6,940


11 Typist Lower Divisional Clark: Typist, Plain Paper Copier, Duplicating machine operator, Dispatch Rider, MLSS(ministries, Division and attached Department), Recruitment Rule- 1993

Typist: Grade: 16 Pay Scale: 3,000 - 5,920


12 Driver Direct Recruitment Class: IIIX

Driver: Grade: 16 Pay Scale: 3,000 - 5,920


13 MLSS* ( Peon) Direct Recruitment Class: SSC

MLSS Grade: 20 Pay Scale: 2,400 - 4,310


* Member of Lower Sub-ordinate Staff



Annex 15. Joining and Release Dates of Director Generals and Research Directors at FPMU

No. Name Joining Date Date of Release Director General

1 Binoy Krishna Karmaker 04-02-2001 03-07-2004 2 Yakub Ali 04-07-2004 06-02-2005 3 A K M Motahar Hossain 07-02-2005 29-01-2006 4 Dr. Selina Ahsan 20-03-2006 20-02-2007 5 Md. Shafiqul Islam (i.c.) 29-04-2007 13-11-2007 6 Pranab Chakraborty 14-11-2007 26-10-2008 7 Md. Shafiqul Islam (i.c.) 11-05-2008 24-06-2008 8 Pranab Chakraborty 25-06-2008 26-10-2008 9 Md. Ruhul Amin 23-12-2008 Till today

Research Director 1 Md. Ruhul Amin (MMFM) 23-12-2008 2 Abdul Matin Khondoker (FSCN) 21-04-2002 01-03-2006 3 Md. Shafiqul Islam Khan (PMEW) 04-08-2004 30-06-2006 4 Md. Sahabuddin (PARS) 06-06-2004 14-07-2004 5 Moti Lal Bhadra (PMEW) 09-01-2003 09-08-2003 6 Sushen Chandra Das (PARS) 17-10-2004 01-02-2006 7 Md. Tohid Uddin Ahmed (PMEW) 10-02-2004 06-06-2004 8 Md. Abdur Rahman (PMEW) 16-01-2007 Till today 9 Abdul Khaleque (FSCN) 19-02-2006 26-11-2008 10 Md. Abdur Rab (PMEW) 13-09-2006 29-11-2006 11 Sultanul Islam Chowdhury (PMEW) 06-12-2006 11-01-2007 12 Md. Siddiqur Rahman (PARS) 02-02-2006 21-10-2006 13 Shohely Begum (PARS) 12-09-2006 10-05-2007 14 Nikhil Ranjan Roy (PARS) 03-07-2007 26-10-2008 15 Md. Hajiqul Islam (PARS) 24-12-2008 Till today 16 Naser Farid (*) 24-12-2008 Till today

* Mr. Farid promotion to Research Director has been decided, but not formalized yet (i.e. his actual position in a Direc-torate) because Mr. Farid is currently abroad for his long-term training under the NFPCSP. Note: There is a government order for leave substitute. So, no position was vacant as such because someone else was in-charge.



Annex 16. Transfers across FPMU Directorates of FPMU research staff

Name From To When S. Amdadul Huq MMFO PARS 2007

PARS PMEW Sept 2008 Ferdousi Ara MMFO PMEW July 2007

PMEW MMFO Dec 2008 Sohela Khanam PARS PMEW July 2008 Abul Hasheem FSCN PMEW July 2008 Alima Nusrat Jahan PMEW FSCN July 2008 Mahbubur Rahman MMFO PARS Nov 2008 Hajiqul Islam PMEW PARS Dec 2008 Naser Farid PARS ? Dec 2008 Abdur Rahman PMEW MMFO Feb 2009



Annex 17. Comparison between the 2008 recruitment rules proposal and the new recruitment rules proposal Serial No.


1 Director General Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by contractual ap-pointment. Necessary qualification: MSc/PhD in Economics, Agricultural economics, MBA. (Business Administration). If none available on contract then by deputation with above academic qualifications. If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Research Direc-tor/Deputy Chief including 15 years of 1st class govern-ment service. There should be at least 8 Research Reports. 3 Publications in National/International Journals.

Director General Grade: 3 Pay Scale: 16,800 - 20,700

Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by contractual ap-pointment. Necessary qualification: MSc/PhD in Economics, Agricultural economics, MBA. (Business Administration). If none available on contract then by deputation with above academic qualifications. If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Research Direc-tor/Deputy Chief including 15 years of 1st class govern-ment service or there should be at least 8 Research Reports. 3 Publications in National/International Journals.

3 Research Director Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by contractual ap-pointment. Necessary qualification: MSc/PhD in Economics, Agricultural economics, MBA. (Business Administration). If none available on contract then by deputation with above academic qualifications. If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Additional Direc-tor/Deputy Chief including 12 years of 1st class govern-ment service. There should be at least 5 Research Reports. 2 Publications in National/International Journals.

Research Director Grade: 5 Pay Scale: 13,750 - 19,250

Recruitment Procedures: By Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by contractual ap-pointment. Necessary qualification: MSc/PhD in any field as specified in the job descriptions of the Research Officers of the relevant Directorate. If none available on contract then by deputation with above academic qualifications. If by Promotion: Minimum 5 years of experience as Additional Direc-tor/Deputy Chief including 12 years of 1st class govern-ment service or there should be at least 5 Research Reports. 2 Publications in National/International Journals.



Serial No.


5 Additional Director Recruitment Procedures: 50 % by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 50 % by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Officer. There should be at least 3 Research Reports. 1 Publication in National/International Journals. If by Direct recruitment: 8 years of experience in relevance field. MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science. If the candidate has PhD then the working experience may be relax by 2 years.

Additional Director Grade: 6 Pay Scale: 11,000 – 17,650

Recruitment Procedures: 50 % by Promotion. MSc in any field as specified in the job descriptions of the Research Officers of the relevant Directorate. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 50 % by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Officer or there should be at least 3 Research Reports. 1 Publication in National/International Journals. If by Direct recruitment: MSc in any field as specified in the job descriptions of the Research Officers of the relevant Directorate. If the candidate has PhD then the working experience may be relax by 2 years.

6 Research Officer Recruitment Procedures: 1/6 (one sixth) by Promotion. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 5/6 (five sixth) by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Investigator. If Direct recruitment: MSc in Economics, Agricultural economics, Statistics, Mathematics. Agronomy, Nutritional Science, Soil Science, Botany or Computer Science.

Research Officer Grade: 9 Pay Scale: 6,800 – 13,090

Recruitment Procedures: 1/6 (one sixth) by Promotion. MSc in any field as specified in the relevant job descrip-tions. If eligible person is not available then by direct recruit-ment. And 5/6 (five sixth) by direct recruitment. Necessary qualification: If by Promotion: Minimum 7 years of experience as Research Investigator. If Direct recruitment: MSc in any field as specified in the relevant job descrip-tions.



Serial No.


7 Research Investiga-tor


Research Investiga-tor: Grade: 9 Pay Scale: 5,100 – 10,360

Recruitment Procedures: By Direct recruitment Necessary qualification: MSc in any field as specified in the relevant job descrip-tions.

8 Section Assistant The Ministries and Divisions (Upper Division Assis-tant and Section Assistant) Recruitment Rule, 1984.

Section Assistant: Grade: 10 Pay Scale: 5,100 - 10,360


9 Stenographer The stenographer and Steno Typist (Ministries, Divi-sions and Attached departments) Recruitment Rule-1978.

Stenographer Grade: 10 Pay Scale: 5,100 - 10,360


10 Steno-Typist The stenographer and Steno Typist (Ministries, Divi-sions and Attached departments) Recruitment Rule-1978.

Steno-Typist: Grade: 14 Pay Scale: 3,300 - 6,940


11 Typist Lower Divisional Clark: Typist, Plain Paper Copier, Duplicating machine operator, Dispatch Rider, MLSS(ministries, Division and attached Department), Recruitment Rule- 1993

Typist: Grade: 16 Pay Scale: 3,000 - 5,920


12 Driver Direct Recruitment Class: IIIX

Driver: Grade: 16 Pay Scale: 3,000 - 5,920


13 MLSS* ( Peon) Direct Recruitment Class: SSC

MLSS Grade: 20 Pay Scale: 2,400 - 4,310


* Member of Lower Sub-ordinate Staff



Annex 18. Proposed job descriptions Planning, Information Communication and Directorate (MIC) Position Title: Research Officer - Data Management / Statistics

Duties and Responsibilities Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG and direct supervision of the PI Research Director, the incumbent will assume direct responsibility for:

• designing, developing and maintaining the FPMU database; • designing, implementing, and supporting off-line and Web-oriented database applications as adding to the

FPMU database; • monitoring data quality in the FMU database and identifying/correcting inconsistencies; • collecting, validating and organizing statistical information needed for food policy analysis and monitoring

(including primary or secondary data from various sources); • developing and preparing computer programmes to produce tabulations for publications; produce ad hoc

reports from database(s), using statistical software to respond to requests from a variety of sources; • performing various statistical computations, using statistical software, in order to produce specific analyses and

programme edits, such as to identify or forecast events and patterns; • preparing statistical material and documentation for internal and international meetings; • collaborating with the Network/Website Research Officer to design, develop and maintain efficient da-

ta/information access to the FPMU database by FPMU Research Officer work posts and efficient linkages for data exchange between the FPMU and food security data providers;

• providing informal training and general assistance in the effective use of FPMU database as required; • performing other related duties as required.

Minimum requirements

• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Computer Sciences including or supplemented by mathematics, statistics or similar courses (work experience in the statistical field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to extract, analyze, interpret and format data; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying the basic statistical methods and

presenting statistical information in tabular and graphic form; • knowledge of the main statistical applications (statistical packages, spreadsheets, database management and

word-processing); • excellent command of English.

Selection criteria • experience in database support for statistical analysis and comprehensive database development and manage-

ment related to food, agriculture and economic policy analysis; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • experience with or knowledge of database software and database integration for the web; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a

comprehensive, accurate and timely manner; • ability to work in a team.



Planning, Information Communication and Directorate (MIC) Position Title: Research Officer – Network / Website Management

Duties and Responsibilities Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG and direct supervision of the PI Research Director, the incumbent will assume direct responsibility for (a) maintenance of LAN, WAN and web-based computer system; (b) development and administration of FPMU network and FPMU web-site; and (c) overall troubleshooting and updating of required infor-mation system software and hardware. Specifically to: • providing general systems administration and supporting for network software and servers (including support elec-

tronic mail, news, ftp server and WWW server directory); • maintaining internal network equipment of routers, servers and network hubs and support, tuning, maintenance, and

uptime of network equipment linking a number of separate facilities; • maintaining secure, reliable Internet connection along with Internet related services; maintaining remote access

network equipment configuration of Routers, switches DNS and load balancing systems; firewall deployment, main-tenance and auditing; system level security issues; backup management;

• designing, implementing and maintaining the FPMU intranet aiming at ensuring efficient and smooth exchange of data/information among FPMU Research Officer work posts;

• installing PCs, printers and other IT equipment (including printers) and monitoring its proper functioning, carry out backup service, data recovery and perform troubleshooting activities including network problems and/or system problems and assist with general technical issues;

• designing, developing and maintaining the FPMU Portal website; coordinating the integration of site components and test links, scripts, and CGI program; guaranteeing easy access to the FPMU database and FPMU documentation center by external users through the FPMU website;

• collaborating with the Data Management/Statistics Research Officer to design, develop and maintain efficient da-ta/information access to the FPMU database by FPMU Research Officer work posts;

• collaborating with the Data Management/Statistics Research Officer to design, develop and maintain efficient lin-kages for data exchange between the FPMU and food security data providers;

• providing informal training and general assistance in the effective use of IT systems as required; • performing other related duties as required. Minimum requirements • B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Computer Sciences including or supplemented by network management or similar courses (work

experience in the field of network management which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• knowledge of the main network/website management applications (including statistical packages, spreadsheets, database management and word-processing);

• Six years of computer, system and network management experience of which 3 years in Linux and 2 years in Web development and maintenance;

• Working knowledge of English and Bangla. Selection criteria • experience in TCP/IP, NFS, DNS/NIS, etc.; automating administrative tasks with Perl, shell scripts; • experience in HTML, XML, JavaScript and CGI programming; Adobe PhotoShop, Adobe Illustrator, MS Office

tools, configuration of Windows XP; • experience in web development and maintenance and ability to administer web-based information systems • experience in troubleshooting; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a compre-

hensive, accurate and timely manner; • ability to exercise a high level of judgment, personal initiative, tact and discretion and to communicate effectively

with people at all levels and to collaboratively work; • ability to work in a team.



Planning, Information Communication and Directorate (MIC) Position Title: Research Investigator – Documentation Centre

Duties and Responsibilities Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG and direct supervision of the PI Research Director, the incumbent will assume direct responsibility for (a) establishment and maintenance of a food security documentation centre; (b) devel-opment and administration of access to food security virtual libraries all over the world. Specifically to:

• collecting, classifying and storing publications and documents on food security (including gray literature and food security projects/programs documents, statistical publications, questionnaires or reports);

• developing, preparing and maintaining catalogues of the stored publications and documents; • developing and administering access to food security virtual libraries; • collaborating with the Network / Website Research Officer to design, develop and maintain efficient access to

the FPMU documentation centre by FPMU Research Officer work posts and by external users through the FPMU website;

• providing informal training and general assistance in the effective use of the food security documentation centre as required;

• performing other related duties as required. Minimum requirements

• B.Sc. in Librarianship including or supplemented by specialized scientific librarianship courses (work experience in the library field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to analyze, interpret and classify food security information; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying librarianship techniques; • knowledge of the procedure to guarantee access to virtual libraries; • excellent command of English.

Selection criteria • experience in library management; • experience in analysing publications and documents related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • experience with or knowledge of library management software and virtual libraries; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Planning, Information Communication and Directorate (MIC) Position Title: Research Officer - Planning


• designing and developing the FPMU workplan structure; • collaborating with the Monitoring and Evaluation Research Officer in identifying responsibilities, indicators,

targets, means of verification and frequencies for FPMU activities monitoring; • coordinating and supervising other FPMU Directorates’ contributions to the formulation of the FPMU

workplan; • finalizing annual FPMU workplan and medium-term workplan; • identifying effective and efficient coordination mechanisms among FPMU Directorates, with emphasis on

information technology based mechanisms; • promoting cooperation with donors/projects for developing partnership between FPMU and any interested

party; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Organization Management including or supplemented by result-based management courses (work experience in the RBM field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying the basic RBM methods; • five years of management experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in teams and organization management; • ability to exercise a high level of judgment, personal initiative, tact and discretion and to communicate effec-

tively with people at all levels and to collaboratively work; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Planning, Information Communication and Directorate (MIC) Position Title: Research Officer – Monitoring and Evaluation


• collaborating with the Planning Research Officer in identifying responsibilities, indicators, targets, means of verification and frequencies for FPMU activities monitoring;

• monitoring FPMU activities in order to ensure an effective result-based management of FPMU; • evaluating FPMU activities and identifying effective feedback mechanisms to FPMU staff to ensure

organizational learning, with emphasis on information technology based mechanisms; • designing and updating a monitoring report outline; • preparing the annual FPMU monitoring report; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Organization Management including or supplemented by result-based management courses (work experience in the RBM field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying the basic RBM methods; • five years of management experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in teams and organization management; • ability to exercise a high level of judgment, personal initiative, tact and discretion and to communicate effec-

tively with people at all levels and to collaboratively work; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Availability Directorate (FAV) Position Title: Research Officer – Foodgrains

Duties and Responsibilities Under the overall supervision of the FPMU-DG and direct supervision of the DA Research Director, the incumbent will assume direct responsibility for carrying out the following activities as specified in the FPMU Mandate and detailed in the annual FPMU workplan:

• monitoring the foodgrains domestic production and the implementation of policies that may affect it; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for the foodgrains domestic production,

on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on the foodgrains domestic production to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own

initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to the

foodgrains domestic production; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to foodgrains domestic production; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange

of information/data, production of outputs and delivery of services; • developing the necessary collaboration with other offices of the Government of Bangladesh, non-governmental

organizations and development partners as appropriate for carrying out the above activities; • contributing to the formulation of the FPMU annual and mid-term workplans through the identification of key

analytical outputs in the specific field of foodgrains domestic production; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics or Economics including or supplemented by agricultural production analysis courses (work experience in the agricultural production analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format microeconomic agricultural data, with specific reference to: - profitability of domestic food production; - comparative advantage of producing specific foods; - procurement price fixation; - district-wise procurement targets; - cost of production; - pre-harvest crop estimates; - post-harvest activities development;

• ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying agricultural production analysis methods; • three years of agricultural production analysis experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing agricultural production data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Availability Directorate (FAV) Position Title: Research Officer – Other Foods


• monitoring the domestic production of foods other than foodgrains and the implementation of policies that may

affect it; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for the other foods domestic production,

on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on the domestic production of foods other than foodgrains to the Government of

Bangladesh, on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to the

domestic production of foods other than foodgrains; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to domestic production of foods other than foodgrains; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of domestic production of foods other than foodgrains; • performing other related duties as required.



• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format microeconomic agricultural data, with specific reference to: - profitability of domestic food production; - comparative advantage of producing specific foods; - cost of production; - pre-harvest crop estimates; - agricultural production diversification; - post-harvest activities development; - non-farm rural activities development;

• ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying agricultural production analysis methods; • three years of agricultural production analysis experience; • good command of English





Food Availability Directorate (FAV) Position Title: Research Officer – Early Warning


• monitoring continuously the food crop development situation and providing forecasts of major food crop

production, also conducting surveys for pre-harvest crop estimate; • identifying regions and localities where food production losses are imminent and assess possible rehabilitation

measures, also proposing recommendations for the formulation of national disaster preparedness and rehabilitation plans;

• ensuring effective and timely dissemination of special alerts on food crop development problems and of special reports containing information and required actions in affected areas;

• contributing to the national Early Warning System on food and agriculture and coordinate with Government’s departments, agencies and international bodies participating in the System;

• providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any other Governmental committee, with specific reference to Early Warning;

• coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange of information/data, production of outputs and delivery of services;

• developing the necessary collaboration with other offices of the Government of Bangladesh, non-governmental organizations and development partners as appropriate for carrying out the above activities;

• contributing to the formulation of the FPMU annual and mid-term workplans through the identification of key analytical outputs in the specific field of Early Warning;



• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format microeconomic agricultural data; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying agricultural production analysis methods; • three years of agricultural production analysis experience; • good command of English





Food Availability Directorate (FAV) Position Title: Research Officer – Agricultural Sustainability


• monitoring continuously the impact of food production practices on environmental sustainability; • assessing the impact of global/longer term environmental trends and changes (e.g. climate change, water

scarcity, etc.) on food production; • identifying regions and localities where agricultural sustainability issues are more severe; • ensuring effective dissemination of special alerts on agricultural sustainability issues and of special reports

containing information and required actions in affected areas; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to agricultural sustainability; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of agricultural sustainability; • performing other related duties as required.



• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format microeconomic agricultural data; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying agricultural production analysis methods; • three years of agricultural production analysis experience; • good command of English





Food Access Directorate (FAC) Position Title: Research Officer – Domestic Markets


• monitoring the domestic food market situation and the implementation of policies that may affect it; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for the domestic food market situation,

on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on the domestic food market situation to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own

initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to the

domestic food market situation; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to domestic food market situation; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of domestic food market situation; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Agricultural/Food Economics or Economics including or supplemented by food market analysis courses (work experience in the food market analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format food market data, with specific reference to: - trends and variability of food prices; - forecasts of supply and demand for major foods; - food market structure, conduct and performance; - marketing margins; - spatial arbitrage conditions; - price spreads across markets over time;

• ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying food market analysis methods; • three years of food market analysis experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing food market data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Access Directorate (FAC) Position Title: Research Officer – International Markets


• monitoring the international food market situation and the implementation of policies that may affect it; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for the international food market

situation, on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on the international food market situation to the Government of Bangladesh, on his

own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to the

international food market situation; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to international food market situation; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of international food market situation; • performing other related duties as required.



• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format food market data, with specific reference to: - trends and variability of food prices; - forecasts of supply and demand for major foods; - food market structure, conduct and performance; - trade protection/liberalization measures; - spatial arbitrage conditions; - price spreads across markets over time;






Food Access Directorate (FAC) Position Title: Research Officer – Macroeconomic Watch


• monitoring the domestic food market situation in relation to changes in the macroeconomic scenario; • assessing the impact on domestic food markets of macroeconomic policy measures; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on the linkages between the domestic food market situation

and the macroeconomic scenario, on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on the linkages between the domestic food market situation and the macroeconomic

scenario to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh;

• contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to contrast adverse changes in the macroeconomic scenario;

• providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any other Governmental committee, with specific reference to the linkages between the domestic food market situation and the macroeconomic scenario;

• coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange of information/data, production of outputs and delivery of services;

• developing the necessary collaboration with other offices of the Government of Bangladesh, non-governmental organizations and development partners as appropriate for carrying out the above activities;

• contributing to the formulation of the FPMU annual and mid-term workplans through the identification of key analytical outputs in the specific field of the linkages between the domestic food market situation and the macroeconomic scenario;


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Agricultural/Food Economics or Economics including or supplemented by food market analysis courses (work experience in the food market and macroeconomic analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format food market and macroeconomic data, with specific reference to:

- monetary policy; - fiscal policy; - exchange rate policy; - change in unemployment rate; - change in the economic growth rate;

• ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying food market and macroeconomic analysis methods;

• three years of macroeconomic analysis experience; • good command of English





Food Access Directorate (FAC) Position Title: Research Officer – Public Food Distribution System


• monitoring continuously the operation of Public Food Distribution System (PFDS); • recommending appropriate targets for public food operations; • assessing the operational performance of PFDS; • recommending appropriate measures to ensure a more efficient logistics of public food operations; • preparing the national food budget, updating monthly projections and scheduling timing for public import and

procurement; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for PFDS, on his own initiative or on

demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on PFDS to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own initiative or on demand by the

Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to PFDS; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to PFDS; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of PFDS; • performing other related duties as required.



• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format food market data, with specific reference to: - trends and variability of food prices; - forecasts of supply and demand for major foods; - food market structure, conduct and performance; - trade protection/liberalization measures; - spatial arbitrage conditions; - price spreads across markets over time;


Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing national food budget data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Access Directorate (FAC) Position Title: Research Officer – Other Safety Nets


• monitoring continuously the implementation of safety nets other than the Public Food Distribution System

(PFDS); • assessing the implementation performance of safety nets other than PFDS; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for safety nets other than PFDS, on his

own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on safety nets other than PFDS to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own initiative

or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of safety net schemes with a view at enhancing their effectiveness

and efficiency; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to safety nets other than PFDS; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of safety nets other than PFDS; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Agricultural/Food Economics or Economics including or supplemented by safety nets analysis courses (work experience in the safety nets analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format data on safety nets; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying food market analysis methods; • three years of food market analysis experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing safety nets data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Utilization and Nutrition Directorate (FUN) Position Title: Research Officer – Food Quality and Safety


• contributing to the harmonization of methodologies for food quality and food safety assessment/surveillance; • contributing to the formulation, harmonization and update of food quality and food safety standards guidelines; • contributing to the formulation of food quality and food safety policies and programs; • monitoring the level of awareness building activities with respect to nutrition and food safety promotion

programs; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for food quality and food safety, on his

own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on food quality and food safety to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own initiative

or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to food quality and food safety; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of food quality and food safety; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Nutrition or Food Sciences including or supplemented by food quality and food safety analysis courses (work experience in the food quality and food safety analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format data on food quality and food safety; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying food quality and food safety analysis

methods; • three years of food quality and food safety analysis experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing food quality and food safety data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Utilization and Nutrition Directorate (FUN) Position Title: Research Officer – Nutritional Requirements


• contributing to the harmonization of methodologies for food consumption and nutrition

assessment/surveillance; • contributing to the formulation, harmonization and update of nutritional requirements guidelines; • contributing to the formulation of nutrition policies and programs; • monitoring the level of awareness building activities with respect to nutrition and food safety promotion

programs; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for nutrition, on his own initiative or on

demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on nutrition to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own initiative or on demand by

the Government of Bangladesh; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to nutrition; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of nutrition; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Nutrition or Food Sciences including or supplemented by nutrition analysis courses (work experience in the nutrition analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format data on nutrition; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying nutrition analysis methods; • three years of nutrition analysis experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing nutrition data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Utilization and Nutrition Directorate (FUN) Position Title: Research Officer – Food Consumption


• monitoring the food consumption situation, identifying and characterizing population groups vulnerable to food

insecurity • contributing to the monitoring and assessment of food safety risks; • assessing the impact of food availability decline as well as food entitlement decline on food consumption; • assessing the impact of development strategies, programmes and policies, in particular those related to

agriculture and rural development, on food consumption; • assessing the impact of nutritional strategies, programmes and policies, in particular those related to the

implementation of new food and nutritional standards and to the diversification of diet, on food consumption; • assessing the impact of the implementation of safety net schemes on food consumption; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for food consumption, on his own

initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on food consumption to the Government of Bangladesh, on his own initiative or on

demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to food

consumption; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to food consumption; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of food consumption; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Food Economics or Economics including or supplemented by food consumption analysis courses (work experience in food consumption analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format food consumption data; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying food consumption analysis methods; • three years of food consumption analysis experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing food consumption data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Food Utilization and Nutrition Directorate (FUN) Position Title: Research Officer – Nutritional Status


• monitoring the food consumption situation, identifying and characterizing population groups vulnerable to food

insecurity • contributing to the monitoring and assessment of food safety risks; • assessing the impact of food availability decline as well as food entitlement decline on consumers’ nutritional

status and welfare; • assessing the impact of development strategies, programmes and policies, in particular those related to

agriculture and rural development, on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare; • assessing the impact of nutritional strategies, programmes and policies, in particular those related to the

implementation of new food and nutritional standards and to the diversification of diet, on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare;

• assessing the impact of the implementation of safety net schemes on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare; • delivering policy-oriented analysis and research on any issue relevant for consumers’ nutritional status and

welfare, on his own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • extending policy advice on consumers’ nutritional status and welfare to the Government of Bangladesh, on his

own initiative or on demand by the Government of Bangladesh; • contributing to the formulation and review of food policies and programs with specific reference to consumers’

nutritional status and welfare; • providing secretarial service to the Food Planning and Monitoring Committee (FPMC) and contributing to any

other Governmental committee, with specific reference to consumers’ nutritional status and welfare; • coordinating his work with that of other FPMU Research Officers to ensure an effective and efficient exchange



analytical outputs in the specific field of consumers’ nutritional status and welfare; • performing other related duties as required.


• B.Sc. or M.Sc. in Nutrition, Food Science or Food Economics including or supplemented by consumers’ nutritional status and welfare analysis courses (work experience in consumers’ nutritional status and welfare analysis field which would result in equivalent competency may be substituted for the specialized courses);

• ability to collect, analyze, interpret and format consumers’ nutritional status and welfare data; • ability to work quickly, and with a high degree of accuracy applying consumers’ nutritional status and welfare

analysis methods; • three years of consumers’ nutritional status and welfare analysis experience; • good command of English

Selection criteria • experience in collecting, validating and analyzing consumers’ nutritional status and welfare data; • experience in analysing data related to food, agriculture and economic policy; • ability to organize work and establish priorities responding to internal and external queries and requests in a




Annex 19. FPMU 2009-2010 Interim Workplan

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 61 Institutional/Managerial Activities

1 Organizational Management1 Institutional management

1 Revision of the FPMU Mandate/functions DG DG Initiate and follow up

2 Revision of the FPMU structure DG DG Initiate and follow up

3 Revision of the recruitment rule/job descriptions DG DG Initiate and follow up

2 Human resources management1 Recruitment of staff for vacant positions DG DG Initiate and follow up

2 Recruitment of staff for new positions DG DG Initiate and follow up

3 Management of staff leaves DG DG

3 Information and knowledge management1 Data Management DG DG Follow up

2 Information and Communication DG DG Follow up

4 Work planning, monitoring and reporting1 FPMU workplan 2009-2010 WP FSCN MIC Interim implementation of the WP

2 FPMU workplan 2010-2011 WP x WP N/A MIC Interim implementation of the WP

3 Activity report (M) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r FSCN MIC Interim implementation of the WP

4 Target & progress report (M) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r FSCN MIC Interim implementation of the WP

5 Pending activities report (F) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r FSCN MIC Interim implementation of the WP

6 FPMU section in the MoFDM annual report (Y) r FSCN MIC

7 FPMU coordination meetings (M) x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x DG DG Interim implementation of the WP

8 Directorates coordination meetings (M) All RDs All RDs As soon as the FPMU will be increased

9 Compiling/drafting the MoFDM annual report r

10 Other administrative activities FSCN MIC As applicable, in the case the duty will be assigned to FPMU

2 Output/Service Delivery1 Secretariat

1 Periodical1 FPMC Working papers (ex-ante) (B) r r r

2 FPMC Minutes, follow-up (ex-post) (B) r r r

2 Non-Periodical1 Papers/briefs for the Parliament question time N/A MIC As applicable, in the case the duty will be assigned to FPMU

2 Coordination1 Periodical

1 TT/FPWG activities related to NFP-PoA monitoring x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x All TT/FPWG participants All TT/FPWG participants

2 EW Technical Committee (B) r r r PMEW FAV

3 FSCN technical committee (Q) r r r r r FSCN FUN

4 Safety Net Technical Committee (Q) r r r r r r r FSCN FUN

5 Participation to NFPCSP-related activities x DG DG and MIC Dir. DG for the Steering Committee; MIC Dir. for Res. Grant Panel

2 Non-Periodical1 Participation to other meetings/committees N/A Selected staff as appropriate As applicable, in the case the duty will be assigned to FPMU

3 Policy advice to GoB1 Periodical2 Non-Periodical

1 Technical/advisory notes N/A Selected staff as appropriate As applicable, in the case the duty will be assigned to FPMU

4 Input/briefing to development partners1 Periodical2 Non-Periodical

1 Providing background info/data, commenting on documents N/A Selected staff as appropriate As applicable, in the case the request will be addressed to FPMU

5 Research1 Periodical2 Non-Periodical

1 FPMU Research Agenda x x x x N/A Selected staff as appropriate

2 TORs for research studies x x x x r N/A Selected staff as appropriate

3 Monitoring/facilitation of research studies x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x All TT participants MIC

4 Contribution to the organization of SHs consultation x x N/A MIC

Notes2009 2010

no. Activities Current responsible Proposed responsible



4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 1 2 3 4 5 6

6 Monitoring/data analysis1 Periodical

1 NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y) r PARS MIC

2 Database on food security (Y) -> Food security yearbook (Y) r PARS MIC

3 Consumption monitoring report (Y) -> Households' food consumption & nutrition report (Y) r FSCN FUN

4 Food Budget (Y) r MMFO FAC

5 Production monitoring report of amon/boro (H) r r PMEW FAV

6 Costs of production amon/boro/wheat (Q) r r r PMEW FAV

7 BGD food situation report (Q) r r r r r PARS FUN

8 Market monitoring report (M) -> Price monitoring report (M) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r MMFO FAC

9 Stockflow tables (M) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r MMFO FAC

10 Border price monitoring (M) -> X MMFO -

11 Foodgrain outlook (F) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r PARS MIC

12 Food situation (F) -> Food situation (M) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r MMFO FAC

13 Food scenario (F) -> X FSCN -

14 Early Warning report (F) -> Early Warning report (Q) r r r PMEW FAV

15 Food situation (D) -> Food situation brief (D) r r r r r r r r r r r r r r r MMFO FAC

16 Food procurement (D) -> X MMFO -

2 Non-Periodical1 Inputs to monitoring of other bodies/agencies (eg. PRPS-II, MDGs) N/A Selected staff as appropriate As applicable, in the case the request will be addressed to FPMU

3 Capacity Development Activities1 Domestic training

1 On-the-job1 NFPCSP on-the-job activities x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x NFPCSP-TAT NFPCSP-TAT All TT participants

2 Short courses on-site1 NFPCSP short courses on-site x x NFPCSP-TAT NFPCSP-TAT All TT participants

2 Others' short courses on-site N/A Other organizations Selected staff, as applicable

3 Internships at leading institutions1 Internships at leading institutions x x N/A NFPCSP-TAT Selected staff, as applicable

2 Training abroad1 Short-term training/study tours/internships

1 Short-term training/study tours/internships x x N/A NFPCSP-TAT Selected staff, as applicable

2 Long-term training1 Long-term training NFPCSP-TAT NFPCSP-TAT Selected staff, as applicable

Current responsible Proposed responsible Notesno. Activities2009 2010

Periodical activities (i.e. to be carried out/delivered at a predetermined date) Non-periodical activities (i.e. to be carried out/delivered not at a predetermined date) r Report x Meeting/training



Annex 20. FPMU 2009-2010 Monitoring Framework

1 Institutional/Managerial Activities1 Organizational Management

1 Institutional management1 Revision of the FPMU Mandate/functions Approval of the new Mandate by MoFDM No by Jun 10: Yes MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

2 Revision of the FPMU structure Approval of the new strcture/sanctioned posts by MoFDM No by Jun 10: Yes MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

3 Revision of the recruitment rule/job descriptions Approval of the new Recruitment rule by MoFDM No by Jun 10: Yes MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

Approval of the new job descriptions by MoFDM No by Jun 10: Yes MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

2 Human resources management1 Recruitment of staff for vacant positions Number of vacant positions filled in 0 by Jun 10: at least 3 MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

2 Recruitment of staff for new positions Number of new staff recruited N/A by Jun 10: at least 4 MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

3 Management of staff leaves FPMU staff leaves (short- and long-term, domestic and abroad Yes by Nov 09: Yes FPMU coordination meeting minutes Annual

successfully managed such that the number of staff remaining by Jun 10: Yes AR review Annual

at FPMU will never be less than 8 units NFPCSP Reports Annual

3 Information and knowledge managementby Jun 10: specialist recruited

1 Data Management Recruitment of the network/website specialist N/A by Jun 10: specialist recruited MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

Avg. perception of the FPMU participation in the development N/A by Jun 10: medium FPMU coordination meetings Annual

of the database minutes and TAT interviews

Number of electronic data exchange links established with food 0% by Jun 10: 0-20% FPMU coordination meetings Annual

security data providers (percent on total links) minutes and TAT interviews

Availability of the prototype FPMU food security database N/A by Jun 10: DB prototype available FPMU Database prototype Once

2 Information and Communication Approval of the new output policy by MoFDM No by Jun 10: Yes MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

Availability of the documentation centre room by DGF No by Nov 09: DC room available DGF decision Once

Recruitment of the librarian N/A by Jun 10: librarian recruited MoFDM decision Once As applicable, conditional on MoFDM Decision

Availability of the prototype FPMU website N/A by Jun 10: Website prototype FPMU Website prototype Once

available

4 Work planning, monitoring and reporting1 FPMU workplan 2009-2010 Availability of a set of comments/recommendations for the N/A by Nov 09: comments/ FPMU coordination meetings Annual Comments/recommendations should be discussed and agreed

FPMU 2009-2010 workplan preparation (evaluation of interim WP implem.) recommendations available minutes and TAT interviews upon by FPMU staff before the consultants' mission (Autumn 2009)

Availability of the FPMU 2009-10 workplan and monitoring plan N/A by Nov 09: WP available FPMU 2009-10 WP & Mon Plan Once Particpatory developed during the NFPCSP consultant mission

2 FPMU workplan 2010-2011 Availability of the preliminary draft of FPMU 2010-11 workplan and N/A by Nov 09: WP and Mon Plan drafts FPMU 20010-11 WP & Mon Plan Once Particpatory developed during the NFPCSP consultant mission

monitoring plan available drafts

Availability of a set of comments/recommendations for the N/A by Jun 10: comments/ FPMU coordination meetings Annual Comments/recommendations should be discussed and agreed

FPMU 2010-2011 workplan preparation (evaluation of 2009-10 WP implem.) recommendations available minutes and TAT interviews upon by FPMU staff before the consultants' mission (Spring 2010)

Availability of the FPMU 2010-11 workplan and monitorin plan N/A by Jun 10: WP available FPMU 2010-11 WP & Mon Plan Once

Share of FPMU autonomous contribution to the preparation of 2011-12 WP N/A by Jun 10: 20-40% TAT interview and NFPCSP Reports Once

3 Activity report (M) Interim FPMU workplan used in the preparation of the AR No by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the AR 1 by Nov 09: 1 FPMU coordination meetings Annual

by Jun 10: 1 minutes and TAT interviews

4 Target & progress report (M) Interim FPMU workplan used in the preparation of the TPR No by Nov 09: Yes TPR review Annual

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the TPR 1 by Nov 09: 1 FPMU coordination meetings Annual


5 Pending activities report (F) Interim FPMU workplan used in the preparation of the PAR No by Nov 09: Yes PAR review Annual

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the PAR 1 by Nov 09: 1 FPMU coordination meetings Annual


6 FPMU coordination meetings (M) Avg. number of FPMU coordination meetings per month 1 by Nov 09: 1/month AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 1/month

7 Directorates coordination meetings (M) Avg. number of Directorates' FPMU coordination meetings 1 by Nov 09: 1/month AR review Annual After the recruitement of vacant positions staff

per month by Jun 10: 1/month

8 FPMU section in the MoFDM annual report (Y) Avg. number of days needed to prepare the PAR 5 by Nov 09: 4 FPMU coordination meetings Annual


Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline Yes by Nov 09: Yes FPMU coordination meetings Annual Exp deadline: end of July

by Jun 10: N/A minutes and TAT interviews

9 Compiling/drafting the MoFDM annual report Avg. perception of the improvement in user satisfaction N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement Interview with MoFDM officers Annual As applicable, in the case this duty will be assigned to FPMU

by Jun 10: N/A Conditional upon timely delivering of inputs from MoFDM

Avg. number of weeks needed to compile the MoFDM annual 8 by Nov 09: 8 AR review Annual As applicable, in the case this duty will be assigned to FPMU

report by Jun 10: N/A

10 Other administrative activities Avg. perception of the improvement in user satisfaction N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement Interview with users Annual As applicable, record those activities in the AR

by Jun 10: N/A

no. Means of verification Frequency Assumptions/NotesActivity Indicator(s) Baseline Target(s)



2 Output/Service Delivery1 Secretariat

1 Periodical1 FPMC Working papers (ex-ante) (B) Avg. number of FPMC meetings per year 6 by Nov 09: 6/year FPMC Minutes and AR review Annual At least 3 times: August, October, March

by Jun 10: 6/year

Avg. perception of the improvement in the ability to deliver N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement Interviews to FPMC members Annual

effectively and efficiently the FPMC Working papers by Jun 10: moderate improvement

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the FPMC 4 by Nov 09: 4 AR review Annual

Working papers per meeting by Jun 10: 3

2 FPMC Minutes, follow-up (ex-post) (B) Avg. number of days needed to prepare the minutes 2 by Nov 09: 2 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 1

2 Non-Periodical1 Papers/briefs for the Parliament question time Avg. perception of the improvement in user satisfaction N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement Interview with users Annual As applicable, record those activities in the AR

by Jun 10: slight improvement

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the papers/briefs 2 by Nov 09: 2 AR review Annual As applicable, record those activities in the AR

by Jun 10: 2

2 Coordination1 Periodical

1 TT/FPWG activities related to NFP-PoA monitoring Avg. number of TT meetings per year 13 by Nov 09: at least 15/year NFPCSP Reports and TT attendance Annual Longer-term target: at least 20/year by end of 2010

by Jun 10: at least 18/year sheets

Avg. rate of attendance by FPMU staff in TT meetings 60-80% by Nov 09: 60-80% TT attendance sheets Annual

by Jun 10: 60-80%

Avg. number of FPWG meetings per year 1 by Nov 09: at least 2/year FPWG minutes Annual

by Jun 10: at least 2/year

2 EW Technical Committee (B) Avg. number of EW TC meetings per year 3 by Nov 09: 4/year EW TC Minutes and AR review Annual EW TC meetings to be held one week before the FPMC meetings

by Jun 10: 4/year

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the EW 3 by Nov 09: 2 AR review Annual

prepartory papers by Jun 10: 2

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the minutes 2 by Nov 09: 2 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 1

Avg. perception of the improvement in the ability to lead N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement Interviews to EW TC members Annual

effectively and efficiently the EW TC by Jun 10: moderate improvement

3 FSCN Technical Committee (Q) Avg. number of FSCN TC meetings per year 1 by Nov 09: 4/year FSCN TC Minutes and AR review Annual March, June, September, December

by Jun 10: 4/year

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the FSCN 2 by Nov 09: 2 AR review Annual



by Jun 10: 1

Avg. perception of the improvement in the ability to lead N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement Interviews to FSCN TC members Annual

effectively and efficiently the FSNC TC by Jun 10: moderate improvement

4 Safety Net Technical Committee (Q) Avg. number of SN TC meetings per year 2 by Nov 09: 6/year SN TC Minutes and AR review Annual March, May, July, September, November, January

by Jun 10: 6/year

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the SN 2 by Nov 09: 2 AR review Annual



by Jun 10: 1

Avg. perception of the improvement in the ability to lead N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement Interviews to SN TC members Annual

effectively and efficiently the SN TC by Jun 10: moderate improvement

5 Participation to NFPCSP-related activities Participation to the Steering Comittee meetings per year Yes by Nov 09: Yes Steering Committee minutes Annual FPMU-DG

by Jun 10: Yes

Participation to the Research Grant Panel meetings per year Yes by Nov 09: Yes Research Grant Panel minutes Annual Director MIC

by Jun 10: Yes

2 Non-Periodical1 Participation to other meetings/committees Participation to the meetings per year Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual As applicable, record those activities in the AR

by Jun 10: Yes

3 Policy advice to GoB1 Periodical N/A

2 Non-Periodical1 Technical/advisory notes Avg. perception of the improvement in user satisfaction N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement TAT interviews and output review Annual As applicable, record those activities in the AR

by Jun 10: slight improvement Users interviews Annual

Share of FPMU autonomous contribution on final product 0% by Nov 09: 0-20% TAT and FPMU staff interviews Annual

by Jun 10: 0-20%

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the papers/briefs 3 by Nov 09: 3 TAT interviews and AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 3

Target(s) Means of verification Frequency Assumptions/Notesno. Activity Indicator(s) Baseline



4 Input/briefing to development partners1 Periodical2 Non-Periodical

1 Providing background info/data, commenting on Avg. perception of the improvement in the ability to respond to N/A by Nov 09: slight improvement TAT interviews and output review Annual As applicable, record those activities in the AR

documents Development Partners requests by Jun 10: moderate improvement Users interviews Annual

5 Research1 Periodical N/A

2 Non-Periodical1 FPMU Research Agenda Availability of the FPMU Research Agenda N/A by Nov 09: First draft available Research agenda draft Once

by Jun 10: Final draft available Research agenda Once

2 TORs for research studies Aavilability of TORs for research studies N/A by Nov 09: First draft available TORs for research studies Once

by Jun 10: Final draft available NFPCSP Reports Once

3 Monitoring/facilitation of research studies Avg. number of monitoring/facilitation sessions per month 2 by Nov 09: at lesat 2/month AR review Annual

by Jun 10: at least 2/month NFPCSP Reports Once

4 Contribution to the organization of SHs Avg. number of SHs consultation meetings per year 2 by Nov 09: 2/year AR review Annual

consultation by Jun 10: 2/year NFPCSP Reports Once

6 Monitoring/data analysis1 Periodical

1 NFP-PoA Monitoring report (Y) Share of FPMU autonomous contribution on final product N/A by Nov 09: 0-20% TAT interviews and AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 0-20%

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline N/A by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadline: within the Summer

by Jun 10: N/A Users interviews Annual

Avg. number of weeks needed to prepare the output 12 by Nov 09: 12 AR review Annual Conditional upon timely delivering of inputs from partners Ministries

by Jun 10: N/A

Increase in the number of hits/downloads N/A by Jun 10: Yes Website records Annual As applicable, after uploading

2 Database on food security (Y) -> Food security Avg. perception of the improvement in the content according to the output N/A by Nov 09: N/A TAT interviews and output review Annual

yearbook (Y) policy revision by Jun 10: slight improvement Users interviews Annual

Spreadsheet tables on the FPMU website uploaded absent by Nov 09: Yes TAT interviews and inspection of the Annual

by Jun 10: Yes website

Avg. perception of the quality of comments improvement absent by Nov 09: N/A TAT interviews and output review Annual

by Jun 10: slight improvement Users interviews Annual

Avg. number of weeks needed to prepare the output 8 by Nov 09: 8 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: N/A

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline and uploaded No by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadline: end of January

by Jun 10: Yes Users interviews Annual


3 Consumption monitoring report (Y) -> Households' First issue published No by Nov 09: Yes Output available Annual

food consumption & nutrition report (Y) Avg. perception of the output quality N/A by Nov 09: Medium TAT interviews and output review Annual

Avg. number of weeks needed to prepare the output 4 by Nov 09: 4 AR review Annual Conditional upon timely delivering of inputs from other Directorates

by Jun 10: 4

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline N/A by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadline (in regime situation): mid March

4 Food Budget (Y) Avg. number of days needed to prepare the output 5 by Nov 09: 5 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: N/A

Output delivered timely (one week after request) Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadline: end of July, but revised 2-4 times a year

5 Production monitoring report of amon/boro (H) Avg. perception of the consensus on improvement of N/A by Nov 09: moderate improvement TAT interviews and output review Annual

efficiency in monitoring methodology by Jun 10: significant improvement Users interviews Annual

Avg. number of weeks needed to prepare the output 4 by Nov 09: 4 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 4

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline and uploaded Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadlines: B: mid June, A: mid January


6 Costs of production amon/boro/wheat (Q) Avg. perception of the consensus on improvement of N/A by Nov 09: moderate improvement TAT interviews and output review Annual

efficiency in monitoring methodology by Jun 10: significant improvement Users interviews Annual

Avg. perception of the consensus on efficiency in N/A by Nov 09: moderate consensus TAT interviews and output review Annual

coordination mechanisms with BBS and MoA-DAE by Jun 10: significant consensus Users interviews Annual

Avg. number of weeks needed to prepare the output 2 by Nov 09: 2 AR review Annual Conditional upon timely delivering of inputs from field visits

by Jun 10: 2

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadlines: B: end of March, A: end of October, W: mid February


7 BGD food situation report (Q) Avg. perception of the improvement in the content according to the output N/A by Nov 09: N/A TAT interviews and output review Annual

policy revision by Jun 10: slight improvement Users interviews Annual


by Jun 10: 4

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline and uploaded Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp. Deadlines: Third week of April, July, October, January

by Jun 10: Yes Users interviews Annual





8 Market monitoring report (M) -> Price monitoring New project of structure and contents designed No by Nov 09: Yes FPMU coordination meetings Annual

report (M) Avg. perception of the improvement in the content according to the output N/A by Nov 09: N/A TAT interviews and output review Annual


Avg. number of days needed to prepare the output 10 by Nov 09: 10 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 10

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline and uploaded Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review & users interviews Annual Exp deadlines: by the 2nd week of every month


9 Stockflow tables (M) Avg. number of days needed to prepare the output 5 by Nov 09: 5 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 5

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review & users interviews Annual Exp deadlines: by the 1st week of every month

10 Border price monitoring (M) -> X Publication disconnected No by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual

11 Foodgrain outlook (F) Share of FPMU autonomous contribution on final product 0-20% by Nov 09: 0-20% TAT and FPMU staff interviews Annual

by Jun 10: 20%-40%

Avg. number of days needed to prepare the output 4 by Nov 09: 4 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 4

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline and uploaded Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadline: Tuesday of every other weekby Jun 10: 0 Users interviews Annual


12 Food situation (F) -> Food situation (M) New project of structure and contents designed No by Nov 09: Yes FPMU coordination meetings Annual

Avg. perception of the improvement in the content according to the output N/A by Nov 09: N/A TAT interviews and output review Annual



by Jun 10: 4

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline and uploaded Yes by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadlines: by the 3rd week of every monthby Jun 10: Yes Users interviews Annual


13 Food scenario (F) -> X Publication disconnected No by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual

14 Early Warning report (F) -> Early Warning New project of structure and contents designed No by Nov 09: Yes FPMU coordination meetings Annual

report (Q) Number of new format outputs issued per year 0 by Nov 09: 1 AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 3

Avg. perception of the improvement in the ability to use 0% by Nov 09: moderate TAT interviews and output review Annual

new methodologies by Jun 10: significant Users interviews Annual

Share of FPMU autonomous contribution on final product N/A by Nov 09: 0-20% TAT and FPMU staff interviews Annual

by Jun 10: 0-20%

Avg. number of weeks needed to prepare the output 6 by Nov 09: 6 AR review Annual Conditional upon timely delivering of inputs from data sources

by Jun 10: 6

Output delivered timely according to the expected deadline and uploaded No by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual Exp deadlines (seasonal): 1st week of March, October, Februaryby Jun 10: Yes


15 Food situation (D) -> Food situation brief (D) New project of structure and contents designed No by Nov 09: Yes FPMU coordination meetings Annual

Number of new format outputs issued per week 0 by Nov 09: 5 AR review Annual

Avg. number of hours needed to prepare the output 5 by Nov 09: 5 AR review Annual Conditional upon timely delivering of inputs from data sources

by Jun 10: 5


16 Food procurement (D) -> X Publication disconnected No by Nov 09: Yes AR review Annual

2 Non-Periodical1 Inputs to monitoring of other bodies/agencies Increase in the number of inputs to monitoring efferts of other bodies/ N/A by Nov 09: slight increase AR review Annual

(eg. PRPS-II, MDGs) agencies by Jun 10: slight increase NFPCSP Reports Annual

3 Capacity Development Activities1 Domestic training

1 On-the-job1 NFPCSP on-the-job activities Avg. rate of attendance by FPMU staff in on-the-job sessions 60-80% by Nov 09: 80-100% TAT and FPMU staff interviews Annual

by Jun 10: 80-100%

no. Activity Indicator(s) Baseline Target(s) Means of verification Frequency Assumptions/Notes



2 Short courses on-site1 NFPCSP short courses on-site Avg. number of short courses on site per year 2 by Nov 09: 3/year AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 3/year NFPCSP Reports Annual

Avg. rate of attendance by FPMU staff in short courses on site 60-80% by Nov 09: 80-100% AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 80-100% NFPCSP Reports Annual

Avg. number of training days per FPMU staff per year 11 by Nov 09: 12 Short courses attendance sheets Annual

by Jun 10: 15

2 Others' short courses on-site Avg. number of short courses on site per year 1 by Nov 09: 1/year AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 1/year

Avg. rate of attendance by FPMU staff in short courses on site 60-80% by Nov 09: 80-100% AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 80-100%

3 Internships at leading institutions1 Internships at leading institutions Avg. number of internships per year 0 by Nov 09: N/A AR review Annual

by Jun 10: 2/year NFPCSP Reports Annual

2 Training abroad1 Short-term training/study tours/internships

1 Short-term training/study tours/internships Avg. number of short-term/internship abroad per year 0 by Nov 09: N/A Institution invoices Once

by Jun 10: 2/year Student reports Once

Avg. number of training days per FPMU staff per year 2 by Nov 09: 4 TAT and FPMU staff interviews Annual

by Jun 10: 4

2 Long-term training1 Long-term training Additional number of FPMU staff sent abroad by Nov 09: 1 PhD/2 MSc University invoices Once Longer-term targets:

by Jun 10: N/A by Nov 10: 2 MSc

by Nov 11: 1 MSc

Number of FPMU staff that complete post-graduate by Nov 09: 3 MSc University certificates Once Longer-term targets:

education by Jun 10: 1 PhD by Jun 10: 1 PhD/2 MSc

by Nov 11: 2 MSc

by Nov 12: 1PhD/1 MSc




Annex 21. List of stakeholders interviewed for the stakeholder analysis

Sector Sub-sector No. Role Type Reason for choosing Development partners USAID 1 Food for peace officer in BGD O Representative of donors

EC 1 Programme manager in BGD O Representative of donors National political MoFDM 1 Minister P Policy-maker directly responsible for the political decisions affecting the

FPMU Public entities MoFDM 3 Secretary

Additional Secretary Joint Secretary Disaster Management

P/O Top officers directly responsible for making operational the political decision affecting the FPMU

1 Deputy Chief, Planning Wing O Desk officer responsible for development projects at MoFDM DGF 1 Director General, DGF P/O Top officers directly responsible for making operational the NFP

1 Deputy Director MISM-DGF O Desk officer responsible for providing data on food procurement and distribu-tion

MoA-DAE 1 Director General DAE-MoA P/O Top officer responsible for making operational the political decisions that may affect the FPMU (with reference to the provision of agricultural production data)

1 Deputy Director Monitoring O Desk officer responsible for providing data on agricultural production MoA-DAM 1 Director General DAM-MoA P/O Top officer responsible for making operational the political decisions that may

affect the FPMU (with reference to the provision of agricultural marketing data)

1 Deputy Director Monitoring O Desk officer responsible for providing data on agricultural marketing BBS 1 Dep. Director Agricultural Clusters O Desk officer responsible for providing statistics on many variables relevant for

food security MoF 1 Assistant Secretary, Budget Division O Desk officers responsible for development projects at MoF Planning Commission 1 Dep. Chief, Agriculture Division O Desk officers responsible for development projects at PC MHFW 1 Joint Chief O Officer

NGOs BRAC 1 Deputy Executive Director O Top officer responsible for research at BRAC HKI 1 Executive Director O Top officer responsible for the Nutrition Surveillance Survey at HKI

Others Former DG FPMU 1 Additional Secretary o.s.d. P/O Key informant: former Joint Secretary Disaster Management and former Direc-tor General FPMU



Annex 22. Roadmap for the Improvement of FPMU Performance and Sustainability

Issue statement Proposed actions Follow up Ref. to key outputs of the

institutional assessment General Issue Specific issue MoFDM FPMU NFPCSP 1. Delivery of ana-lytical outputs and services

1.1. Too many outputs/ services characterized by: • overlapping info/data • little analytical content • weak coverage of con-

sumption/nutrition is-sues

Concentrate on key out-puts/services: • increasing their analytical

content • extending the coverage of

consumption/nutrition is-sues

Endorse the FPMU output policy

• Implement FPMU output policy

• Participate in capac-ity development ac-tivities

Support to: • the improvement of

outputs/services • capacity develop-

ment activities (CDP)

• FPMU output policy: - #1 if increased staff - #2 if staff stays as it is

• Capacity development plan

2. Organizational structure

2.1. Food chain break-down (production, market and consumption) of the 3 thematic Directorates

Refocus the contents of the 3 thematic Directorate by core food security dimen-sions (availability, access and utilization/nutrition) in line with the NFP

Take the necessary actions for a rapid approval of the FPMU new mandate

• Initiate and follow up the proposal for the approval of the FPMU new mandate

• Interim implementa-tion of the FPMU new organizational structure

• FPMU new mandate • FPMU new organizational

structure

2.2. Functions overlap-ping/ duplication

Eliminate/reduce overlap-ping across the 3 thematic Directorates and concen-trate all staff/service func-tions in the fourth Directo-rate

2.3. Imbalance between top-officers (DG, Re-search Directors and Ad-ditional Directors) and lower-level officers (i.e. research officers)

Increase the number of research officers

Take the necessary actions for a rapid approval of the FPMU new organogram

Advocate for a rapid approval of the FPMU new organogram

• FPMU new organogram

2.4. Insufficient support-ing staff

Increase slightly the number of supporting staff

3. Human re-sources manage-ment

3.1. Mismatch between actual technical capaci-ty/skills and required technical capacity/skills

Recruit staff with the right technical background as permanent FPMU officers

Take the necessary actions for a rapid approval of the FPMU new recruitment rules and job descriptions

Initiate and follow up the proposal for the approval of the FPMU new recruitment rules and job descriptions

Support to capacity development of FPMU officials

FPMU new recruitment rules FPMU new job descriptions Capacity development plan

3.2. High turn-over in top positions (i.e. DG and Research Directors)

Reduce turn-over in top-positions through internal promotion of FPMU per-manent staff and adopt per-formance as a criterion for career advancement

FPMU new recruitment rules FPMU new job descriptions Capacity development plan



Issue statement

Proposed actions Follow up Ref. to key outputs of the institutional assessment General Issue Specific issue MoFDM FPMU NFPCSP

3.3. Specific skills (i.e. statistics/database man-agement, network/website management, librarian-ship) absent

Recruit those expertise as part of the proposal already submitted to the MoFDM in 2008 to fill in currently vacant positions

Take the necessary actions for a rapid recruitment of those expertise

Initiate and follow up the proposal for the recruitment of those expertise


FPMU new job descriptions

3.4. Too little staff cur-rently present at FPMU vis-à-vis the number of outputs/ services to be delivered

• Fill in currently vacant positions

• Increase the number of staff

• Careful management of staff leaves for training activities

Take the necessary actions for a rapid recruitment of vacant as well as new positions

Advocate for a rapid recruitment of vacant as well as new posi-tions


• FPMU new organogram • Capacity development plan

3.5. Need for incentives to staff

• Make consistent the pay scale among staff at the same level

Take the necessary actions for a rapid solution of the pay scale inconsistency

Advocate for a rapid solution of the pay scale inconsistency

4. Process man-agement

4.1. Need for a result-based management

Implement the proposed FPMU workplan and moni-toring plan

Commitment to: • implement the

FPMU workplan • using the proposed

monitoring plan for reporting

Support to: • capacity develop-


• development of FPMU workplan

Interim workplan and moni-toring plan Capacity development plan

4.2. Potentially weakening of leadership

• Careful management of the transition phase after DG retirement (Dec 2009)

• Reduce turn-over in top-positions through internal promotion of FPMU per-manent staff and adopt performance as a criterion for career advancements

Take the necessary actions for a smooth transition after DG retires ensuring take over by another FPMU permanent staff

Advocate for valoriz-ing FPMU permanent staff who completed long-term training abroad under NFPCSP

• FPMU new recruitment rules

• FPMU new job descrip-tions

4.3. Weak coordination and control mechanisms

• Implement the proposed FPMU workplan and monitoring plan

• Use proposed workplan/monitoring plan as guidelines for activity reporting

• Implement the FPMU workplan

• Use the FPMU mon-itoring plan for re-porting

Support to: • capacity develop-


• development of FPMU workplan

Interim workplan and moni-toring plan



Issue statement

Proposed actions Follow up Ref. to key outputs of the insti-tutional assessment General Issue Specific issue MoFDM FPMU NFPCSP

5. Inter-ministerial coordination and collaboration

5.1. Overlapping between current FPMU activities and other GoB branches (e.g. data production)

Reduce overlapping fo-cusing on policy analysis

Endorse the FPMU output policy




outputs/services • development of

database, website • capacity develop-


• FPMU output policy: - #1 if increased staff - #2 if staff stays as it is

• Capacity development plan

5.2. Need for more effi-cient data exchange be-tween FPMU and other branches of GoB

• Establish efficient elec-tronic exchange of data both upstream and downstream

• Develop FPMU data-base, website and do-cumentation center (cf. also 3.3)

• Take the necessary actions for a rapid re-cruitment of needed ex-pertise

• Facilitate the required links between FMPU and data providers (e.g. DGF-MIS, MoA-DAE/DAM)

• Implement the FPMU new organi-zational structure

• Establish the re-quired links



database, website • establish the re-

quired links • capacity develop-



structure • Capacity development plan

5.3. Need for a more effi-cient organization of the inter-ministerial Thematic Teams (TTs)

Reduce TTs to 3, consis-tently with the 3 thematic Directorates

Endorse the proposed change




structure

6. Institutional positioning

6.1. Need for a greater recognition of FPMU activities

Increase FPMU outreach through more structured dissemination activities and refocusing out-put/service contents (cf. also 1.1)



• Establish the re-quired links with fi-nal users



database, website • establish the re-

quired links • capacity develop-


• FPMU Output policy • FPMU new mandate • FPMU new organizational

structure • Capacity development plan

6.2. Ensure best institu-tional positioning

Discuss options with all interested parties

Discuss and consider the alternative options

Discuss and consider the alternative options

Two options: • keep FPMU within the

MoFDM and strengthen links with partner Ministries in-volved in food security

• move FPMU in a coordinat-ing body of the GoB (e.g. Planning Commission, Min-istry of Finance)

fpmu.gov.bdfpmu.gov.bd/agridrupal/sites/default/files/institu assessm final repo… · food and...

Documents