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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Funding Modalities and Organisational Aspects

Presentation to Informal Meeting of the JAGNovember 24, 2005Allan Barry and Murray SmithEvaluation Core Team and Team Leader

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Funding Modalities & Organisational Aspects

Governance and Accountability

Financing Modalities & Harmonisation

Corporate Management and Capacity

Supporting Trade and Development

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Governance and Accountability

Methodology

Findings and Conclusions

Recommendations

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Governance and Accountability

Methodology

Analysis of documentation establishing ITC, its mandate, governance and oversight structures.Analysis of how structures have changed over time, their size, participation, nature of their role, input and output documentation, and effectiveness.Analysis of previous reviews and assessments of supervisory structures, and interviews with some of those participating.

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Governance and Accountability

Findings and Conclusions

Basic weaknesses in current governance and accountability structure:

Currently lacks either an expert advisory group or a small enough management body to provide adequate programme review or policy guidance.Absence of effective policy and programme review at level of ITC’s overall operations.Differing priority and accountability arrangements for different programme areas.

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Governance and Accountability

Findings and Conclusions

Past experience provides:Substantial evidence of benefits that can be provided by a smaller and more expert group.Precedents and lessons that can be drawn on.Confirmation of feasibility of such a governance mechanism within framework of formal oversight by parent bodies.

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Governance and Accountability

Findings and Conclusions

Changing circumstances include:Bilateral donors now provide half of ITC funding, including part of its operational base.The donor and beneficiary community has established increasingly clear priorities post-Monterrey on:

• Increased aid coherence, • Measuring, monitoring and achieving results,• Increased accountability for results.

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Governance and Accountability

Findings and Conclusions (2)This provides a strong case for reassessing supervisory and accountability structures for the agency.Such a mechanism would support a new ITC management team with a more effective body for dialogue, program review and results assessment.This need not detract from the important but different role played by the larger ‘board of governors’ type of intergovernmental body of the JAG

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Governance and Accountability

Findings and Conclusions (3)

Burden of current oversight arrangements by parent institutions, in particular the UN, is excessive for a small organisation that is not operationally part of the UN Secretariat, and is not well-suited to ITC’s current needs.

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Funding Modalities and Harmonisation

Methodology

Findings and Conclusions

Recommendations

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Financing Modalities and Harmonisation

Methodology

Analysis of:Nature of funding arrangements: regular budget and extra-budgetary resources.Changes in composition and level of resources.Programmes financed from different sources.Individual bilateral funding agreements and projects.Program-specific management or coordinating arrangements.Evaluation material on some of the programs, and interviews.

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Financing Modalities and Harmonisation

Findings and Conclusions

Considerable progress in managing and simplifying a complex set of funding modalities.Still an overall lack of coherence, insofar as differing modalities do not provide an integrated program and budget that can be effectively reviewed, monitored and assessed by governments.

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Financing Modalities and Harmonisation

Findings and Conclusions (2)

Significant further scope for reducing the use of earmarked funding other than in support of an agreed program such as GTF.ITC’s operations would be facilitated in terms of reduced transaction costs, with potential gains in efficiency and effectiveness of program operations if the share of extra-budgetary funding provided through GTF, in particular Window I, could be increased further.

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Financing Modalities and Harmonisation

Findings and Conclusions (3)

Evidence of recent improvements in individual funding arrangements readiness of donors to envisage changes to strengthen program coherence and reduce transaction costs.Commitments in Rome and Paris Declarations to achieve greater harmonisation in donor financing provide a strong case for further improvement in funding modalities.

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Financing Modalities and Harmonisation

Findings and Conclusions (4)

Harmonisation of donor-provided extra-budgetary resources and improved governance and accountability are closely related.Progress on harmonisation is likely to require steps to strengthen governance structure and provide for review of an integrated program and budget.

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Financing Modalities and Harmonisation

Findings and Conclusions (5)

Greater use of multi-year commitments, and early availability of promised funding, would allow more effective programming and likely enhancement of results.A single fiscal year for all ITC operations, and development of an integrated program and budget document, for review by contributors and beneficiaries, would provide a better basis for consideration of an overall harmonised approach to extra-budgetary funding.

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Recommendations

Implementing Harmonisation

Increased harmonisation of donor support should be undertaken as a priority with the objective of reducing transaction costs and further improving overall program coherence and effectiveness.If possible, this should be in the form of a Program-Based Approach (PBA)

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Recommendations

Program-Based Approach (PBA): Key Elements

An integrated program and budget document, with a structured medium-term strategy, to facilitate an assessment of tradeoffs and relationships between different activities.A results-based management framework that reflects the needs of the organisation and is responsive to requirements of sources of funding.An overall program review body, representative of both donors and beneficiaries.

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Recommendations

Implementing Harmonisation (2)

Consideration should be given to greater use of multi-year commitment authority and reduction of late availability of funding authority for the year or years in question.Steps should be taken to facilitate a harmonised approach, in particular movement to a single fiscal year for all ITC operations, and preparation of an integrated program and budget document covering all ITC operations.

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Recommendations

Strengthening Governance & Accountability

Governance and accountability structures should be re-examined, with a view to providing a smaller and more effective mechanism for overall program review and policy guidance.Such a mechanism should complement and support the existing Joint Advisory Group.It should also replace some existing mechanisms such as Consultative Committee of GTF.

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Recommendations

Strengthening Governance & Accountability (2)

Any such new arrangement should be relatively small and representative of both donor governments and different geographic groupings of beneficiary governments.Interested governments should establish a process for initial review of the governance structure and further steps for greater harmonisation of donor support.

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Recommendations

Strengthening Governance & Accountability

Current overload of technical oversight mechanism appropriate to UN secretariat bodies should also be reviewed.

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Capacity of the Organisation

Presentation to the Joint Advisory GroupNovember 24, 2005Murray Smith, Team Leader

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Capacity of the OrganisationMonitoring systems differ for Regular Budget and Extra-budgetITC is at an early stage of implementing RBMSelf-Evaluation is effective but is linked to operational management at present ITC programming is in line with its comparative advantage; newer programming draw on ITC’s experience and capacity for networking of TSI partners

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Strengthening Operational Performance

More systematic needs assessment and measuring unit costs including backstoppingMonitoring of utilisation of products and results achievedManaging for Development Results (MfDR) is best addressed by more emphasis on country-specific projects in the portfolio of projects

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Strengthening Operational Performance

ITC should implement a change management strategyImplementing RBM should be a high priority Monitoring of results will require TSIs to measure results achieved in terms of capacity building for TSIs and especially Greater emphasis on strategic HR, professional development and gender balance

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Supporting Trade and Development

ITC should utilise an “MDG” lens to integrate development goals including ITC should explore innovative programmes for the informal sector and women entrepreneursITC should work with TSI partners to develop performance standards, monitor results achieved and increase sustainability of TSIs

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Evaluation of the International Trade Centre

Supporting Trade and Development (continued)

Sustain co-operation with UNCTAD and WTOExplore new development partnershipsOptions to strengthen field presence should be exploredGreater emphasis on country-specific projectsIf key management and institutional reforms can be implemented, the scale of ITC programming should be increased