Transcript reflection of children`s interests in PRSPs and budgets in

Regional study on the reflection of children’s
interests in PRSPs and budgets in West and
Central Africa
Oxford Policy Management
Presentation to UNICEF Regional Social Policy Workshop
12 February 2008
Purpose and content of presentation
• To introduce the study
• To articulate our approach
• To outline the methodology
Regional study on children’s interests in PRSPs and budgets
Regional study on children’s interests in PRSPs and budgets
Objective of study
Context:
•Common use of national frameworks for development planning
•Use of MTEFs and budget process to translate plans into delivery
•Post Paris Declaration development environment: changing aid modalities
•Need for UNICEF to engage in policy process: state as duty bearer for rights
Purpose:
• To provide UNICEF and partners (regional and country) with essential knowledge
base and methodology to effectively engage in PRSPs, budget processes and
new aid modalities
• Therefore to understand the way in which children’s interests are affected by
PRSPs, budgets and new aid environment
Approach
The study will
• Follow in region overall -- and in more detail in 5 country case studies -- the
translation of issues around the well-being of children and the MDGs
through the PRSPs into policy, funding and implementation.
• Through identifying gaps in the translation, the study aims to identify binding
constraints which are the starting points for articulating specific entry points
for UNICEF. These may be policy issues, or system issues. The question is
not only the gap, but the cause of the gap.
• Focus on 4 priority policy areas
– Universal primary education
– Gender equality, particularly in education
– The reduction of under-five mortality (health, nutrition, water, sanitation and
hygiene)
– HIV and malaria
How does it all hang together: methodology, approach and blocks
From broad regional overview to specific focus in country case studies
Predominantly a
problem in
identification &
policy
formulation
Block 1:
PRSPs prioritisation of
children and MDGs
Predominantly in
budget planning
Block 2:
Fiscal space and
public expenditures
Across policy and budget cycle
Block 3:
Across policy and budget cycle
Block 5:
UNICEF engagement
Strengthening of PFM systems
Block 4:
New aid modalities
Methodology
Phase 1: Regional overview
Phase 2: Country Case
Phase 3: Synthesis
Studies

Restricted to policy
formulation and
prioritisation phases

Articulated policy consistent
with child right realisation?

Have financial (and other)
resources been prioritised for
children specific
programmes?


Situation analysis for
understanding child
poverty and policy context

Selection research topics
(what are specific current
gaps/entry points in
countries in five areas)

Underlying policy, public
finance and public
administration processes

UNICEF engagement

Placing country findings in
regional context

Opportunity to compare and
contrast findings across case
studies and regional overview
Desk review (17)
essential knowledge base of opportunities and constraints needed to develop strategies for effective
engagement in PRSPs, policy and budget processes, as well as the new aid modalities
Regional review
Broad content
• Desk base review (entirely) – 17 in total
• In countries with a first generation PRSP, analysis will compare new to old
PRSPs – is there a different focus of emphasis?
• Contextualised within overall resource frameworks (macro-fiscal),
including ODA flows and structure to 17 countries
POLICIES
• Policy matrix to analyse prioritisation and
treatment of:
•Universal primary education
•Gender
•Reduction under 5 mortality
•HIV and Aids and malaria
•Social protection
• Implementation matrix
• Monitoring and indicators
SUPPORTING SPENDING PLANS
• Focus on medium term spending plans
not annual budgets
• Analysis of expenditures across broad
categories compared to total GDP and
budgets
• Real and nominal increases in spending
• A view of pro-poorness of spending within
social sectors
• A view to whether PRSPs are well-costed
Country case studies – activities
Burkina Faso, Chad, Ghana, Mauritania and Sierra Leone
•In depth situation analysis desk review to understand poverty and policy
context – across the policy and budget cycle
•
•
•
•
Review of statistics
Policies and plans in identified sectors
Structure of the state (central versus decentralised)
Reform programmes
•Selection of specific research topics – to understand specific bottlenecks
• Dependent on the state of the policy debate
• Research questions per case country study will be determined as
research progresses and in agreement with UNICEF country office
•Qualitative research – country visits
• Analysis of specific research question along policy/budget cycle
• A look at UNICEF engagement in policy and budget processes so far
Regional study on children’s interests in PRSPs and budgets
Block 1: PRSP’s prioritisation of children and MDGs
How does PRSP address child poverty and child rights?
• Does PRSP poverty analysis capture poverty situation of children?
• Are inequalities – region, gender, or income status – addressed?
• Does policy articulation adequately address identified poverty situation? Is
it adequately pro-poor in emphasis?
• Does PRSP indicate spending prioritisation of included policies?
• Does prioritisation of programmes within sectors match stated policy? (i.e.
are pro-poor interventions prioritised in spending?)
• Is there an action matrix or log frame identifying coherent implementation
framework?
• Do monitoring and evaluation indicators reflect goals and underlying poverty
situation well?
How is PRSP embedded within overall policy and planning context?
(case studies)
• Is there another long-term development plan or vision?
• Are there regional development plans; if so, how do they relate to PRSP?
• What is legal status of PRSP, in relation to other policy documents?
• Relationship of PRSP to sector plans?
• How has emphasis in PRSP shifted over successive documents?
• Which organisation in government responsible for drafting PRSP?
Regional study on children’s interests in PRSPs and budgets
Block 2: Fiscal space and public expenditure for children
Overarching questions:
• Changes in the size of overall resource envelope, particularly with respect
to ODA flows
• Share of expenditure on broad categories compared to total expenditure
and GDP
• Percentage real and nominal increase in spending across categories
• Pro-poorness of spending (e.g. balance between primary, secondary,
tertiary)
Regional Overview: focus only on MTEFs and info in APRs
Case studies: look deeper into annual budget process
Will require understanding of:
• Macro-fiscal framework
• Budget classification
• Budget documentation – processes
• Inter-governmental fiscal relations
Look beyond MTEF and prioritisation to annual budgets and actual spending
Regional study on children’s interests in PRSPs and budgets
Block 3: Strengthening PFM systems
Overarching questions:
• What are the on-going PFM reform programmes?
• What weaknesses have they been designed to address?
• How does PFM reform relate to decentralisation processes?
• What other public sector reforms are there?
Case studies: building on understanding of budget process from Block 2
Will require understanding of:
• Budget execution: responsibilities
• Reporting and accountability processes
• Opportunities for civil society to participate in and influence budget proces
Regional study on children’s interests in PRSPs and budgets
Block 4: The new aid modalities
Overarching questions:
• Importance of ODA relative to domestic revenue and GDP
• Potential to undermine macroeconomic balances?
• How have aid flows been used (repay debts, savings, or increasing
spending?)
• Variance between committed and disbursed aid
• ODA flows by types of modality (GBS, sector support, SWAps, other types
of basket funds, traditional project assistance)
• Are new modalities aligned with government budget cycles?
• Institutional arrangements for government-donor coordination?
• Performance assessment frameworks: aligned with PRSP review
cycle?
• Predictability of ODA
Regional study on children’s interests in PRSPs and budgets
Block 5: UNICEF’s engagement in PRSPs and Budgets
Overarching questions:
• What are roles and responsibilities for policy engagement in CO?
• How do staff understand their roles, and how their work relates to Paris
Declaration?
• PRSPs:
• Working groups?
• What kind of participation?
• Support (consultants, regional, or HQ) enlisted to enhance
participation?
• Barriers to engagement?
• Central budget process:
• Level of awareness of key staff of budget/admin/PFM processes?
• How do they stay involved/informed?
• SWAp/ongoing policy dialogue in sectors:
• Nature of CO engagement?
• Commitment of financial resources to basket funds?
• Technical support provided to line ministries?
• Opportunities and challenges faced by staff?
• Engagement with CSOs to improve participation in policy process?