Project Appraisal Document

Annex 2: Detailed Project Description

COUNTRY: ProjectName

1. 
   The proposed project aims to enhance Government-CSOs partnership in the implementation and monitoring of sector development programs. This focus stems from the global experience that shows how government-CSOs partnerships can help the government to increase the sustainability of its reforms and improve participation and inclusion which promotes effective development results.
   

2. 
   Literature on change emphasizes the importance of stakeholders’ sustainable collaboration. Partnerships are increasingly necessary to solve development challenges because individual stakeholders do not have all the functional means to provide for change. Although collective action can be challenging, coalitions for reform and networks often emerge around shared vision of development issues or priority reforms. By making development issues the focus of engagement, the process of change pushes stakeholders to identify their key concerns, what they involve, and how they can be collectively addressed. As a result, stakeholders learn to look for contextually relevant opportunities for change, and build the necessary processes for change to happen. This process requires collective identification of problems and solutions by stakeholders. Global experience shows that joint learning from lessons learnt in other countries during similar transition periods can help stakeholders to better contextualize the development issues and work collectively towards a shared vision of the way forward in terms of collaboration and partnerships.
   

3. 
   In the context of Yemen, while engaging with CSOs will help the Government to increase the sustainability of its reforms and improve the results of its development programs, it still needs to be supported by a pragmatic approach and mechanisms for genuine dialogue to jointly define a Partnership and Mutual Accountability Framework (PMAF), clarifying the rules and principles of partnership and accountability. It is also critical to operationalize the PMAF on a pilot basis in select sectors to test its feasibility and improve its implementation. The following principles lay the ground for the dialogue towards formulating the PMAF and the pilot Sector Action Plans:
   

1. 
   The Government seeks to: (i) improve operational collaboration and coordination with CSOs on sectoral development programs, (ii) harness community participation more effectively, (iii) and promote CSOs contributions to service provision and support to more inclusive development programs;
   
2. 
   CSOs seek a constructive engagement with the Government at the national and sectoral levels on specific development and reform programs;
   
3. 
   Government and CSOs develop an effective process to evolve the PMAF, especially through implementing specific SAPs on a pilot basis in select sectors in close coordination between line ministries and sector mapped CSOs; and
   
4. 
   Government and CSOs consider various tools to improve the partnership including reforms of laws and regulations relating to the sector.
   

These principles will shape the dialogue between the stakeholders and guide their discussion towards expanding the number of collaboration options while giving them the responsibility to agree on the partnership rules and principles.

4. 
   Through its three components the project will help foster a dialogue between line ministries and sector mapped CSOs working on service delivery, participation and decentralization programs. This will provide them with the space and opportunity to exchange views on sector development issues, develop a shared vision and understanding of sector priorities, and jointly identify their complementarities and overlaps. Based on the dialogue outcomes, specific results oriented action plans will be developed in select sectors on a pilot basis. The dialogue will build on the findings and operational recommendations of the CSO Mapping and Capacity Assessment study that will inform both the proposed activity as well as the upcoming Civil Society Support Project
   

5. 
   The project will draw on research related to activation of multi-sectoral networks and coalitions for governance. It aims to organize, as a first step, a National Learning Forum to distill lessons from international and regional experiences and the CSO Mapping and Capacity Assessment study. This will be followed by a series of parallel sector dialogue sessions between line ministries and the sector mapped CSOs. Based on the results of the dialogue sessions SAPs for select sectors will be developed on a pilot basis. The pilot SAP will be implemented within the defined framework of the PMAF. This sequenced dialogue will allow for the initiation of a gradual participatory process from joint learning and discussion of sector development issues to formulating specific collaborative action plans.
   

6. 
   The participants of the parallel sector dialogue sessions to follow the National Learning Forum will be representatives of line ministries and sector mapped CSOs that will be identified by the mapping exercise as a part of the CSO Mapping and Capacity Assessment study. The participation will reflect the variance in age, gender and diversity of the CSO community in Yemen. The results of the parallel sector dialogue sessions will help to build a shared vision of development priorities and challenges in targeted sectors, which will then be presented at a joint workshop to allow for broader consultation and consensus-building. In the final general meeting, the participants will then collaboratively define and agree on the draft PMAF. As a last step, based on the developed synergies, the participants will agree on pilot sectors that will take the lead on formulating and piloting the implementation of sector specific results-oriented action plans. Focusing the scope of the SAPs to specific pilot sectors will provide a likelihood of effective implementation and has more potential for impact in terms of raising awareness of the feasibility and importance of partnerships for development. While the proposed project will support CSOs’ constructive engagement with the Government on the implementation and monitoring of ongoing development programs, it will also set the ground for operationalizing the donors’ pledge of US$7.5 billion for development programs during the transition period. The PMAF will also be key in supporting the Government in the implementation and monitoring of development projects in an inclusive and participatory manner.
   

7. 
   Two technical assistance notes will be produced through this process to inform public policies and programs of the Government of Yemen, as well as donors and the CSO community: (i) a note collecting lessons learnt from government-CSO partnerships in other countries that went through political and economic transitions, such as the Philippines and Indonesia. At the regional level, the note will illustrate the experience of the self-regulated CSO community in the Palestinian territories, and its impact on CSOs’ internal governance and efficiency gains in service delivery; and (ii) a note on the complementarities and overlaps between the Government and CSOs in targeted sectors based on line ministries’ and CSOs’ parallel sector dialogue sessions. Both notes will be translated into Arabic and disseminated widely. The agreed PMAF, which will provide the framework for an inclusive and sustainable collaboration between the Government and CSOs, will also be published. Finally, the results oriented action plans (SAPs) for pilot sectors that have been identified during the sector dialogue sessions will be developed jointly by targeted line ministries and CSOs that are active in the same sector and will focus on the implementation and monitoring of specific sector development programs. This sequenced process will lay the necessary foundations for a sustainable partnership between the Government and CSOs.
   

8. 
   The proposed Project will have two tracks: a Bank-executed track aimed at distilling international and regional experiences and presenting both the demand and supply side perspectives on government-CSO partnerships, and a Recipient-executed track with the objective of leading the process of organizing and facilitating sector dialogue sessions. Project Components
   

Component One: Knowledge for Development Partnership (Bank-executed)

9. 
   A cornerstone of the change process towards sustainable partnerships is learning from experiences in the countries that have undergone similar transitions. In addition to learning from international and regional experiences, the project will facilitate interactions across different stakeholder groups. These interactions have traditionally been limited in Yemen, contributing to a lack of trust and collaboration. Bringing different groups together towards a common objective will help break down barriers and facilitate spaces for dialogue. The World Bank, as a global and regional convener of development stakeholders and connector of practitioner groups to knowledge and other resources, is in a unique position to support this kind of multi-stakeholder, broad-based approach, working in partnership with other institutions. Lessons learnt from Indonesia, Turkey and the Philippines, countries that have successfully put in place government-CSO partnerships for development, will be presented and discussed to foster Government-CSO dialogue in Yemen. The enabling factors that supported these partnerships and the roles played by each stakeholder in improving development results will help Yemeni stakeholders better understand and contextualize the challenges and opportunities for partnership in the Yemeni context. From the Middle East and North Africa region, the Palestinian NGO experience with regard to self-regulation for improved networking and internal governance, and in the field of service delivery, will also be presented and discussed. This particular experience from the region is of high importance to many CSOs and government actors in Yemen. A note summarizing these experiences will be produced and disseminated in Arabic.
   

9. 
   This component will finance the preparation and organization of the National Learning Forum with the support of international experts in multi-stakeholder network and coalition building. The Forum will gather government representatives and CSO leaders from different governorates in Yemen. Government and CSOs representatives from the Philippines, Turkey and Indonesia, as well as the Palestinian NGO Development Center (NDC) representatives, will be invited to present the demand and supply side perspective of their experiences. Discussions will be documented, translated and disseminated widely after the event.
   

Component Two – Partnership and Mutual Accountability for Improved Participation and Inclusion (Recipient-executed):

9. 
   Parallel dialogue sessions between line ministries and CSOs that are active in the same development sectors will be organized to exchange views on sector development issues and priorities, and to identify complementarities and overlaps between these stakeholder groups. These sessions will cover development programs currently implemented in these sectors, as well as the potential role of each stakeholder, in order to identify points of convergence and synergy for collaboration. Inherent weaknesses in terms of participation and accountability in the targeted sectors will be identified so that these can be meaningfully addressed with CSO involvement. Given the donor-dependent nature of development programs in Yemen in general, and in CSOs activities in particular, participation of key donors in some of the sessions will be crucial. Based on the outcome of the parallel dialogue sessions, a draft PMAF will be formulated by experts/facilitators of multi-stakeholder coalition and partnership building. The draft PMAF will be discussed and validated at a general meeting with all participants. The validated PMAF in the targeted sectors will be submitted to MoPIC and disseminated.
   

Component Three – Sector Action Plans for Improved Development Results and Capacity Building Activities (Recipient-executed):

9. 
   Given that any reform is a long-term process, and rests on the credibility of effectiveness of formal and informal institutions, it is important to test the feasibility of the PMAF through sector-specific, results oriented action plans. An important lesson from international experiences on government-CSO partnerships shows that having a sectoral focus ensures more development effectiveness by concentrating coordinated interventions on specific sector projects. Based on the outcomes of the parallel sector dialogue sessions and building on the synergies that will have emerged from drafting the PMAF, SAPs that are results oriented will be jointly formulated in select sectors by CSOs and line ministries collaboratively as a pilot initiative. In the context of Yemen, it will also be more effective to narrow down the geographic scope of the action plans while coordinating with other donors on their ongoing programs in the targeted sectors and areas. The SAPs will attempt to operationalize the principles enshrined in the PMAF, thereby testing its sustainability and also shed light on the aspects that need to be refined, added or clarified. These action plans are expected to be monitored by multi-stakeholder committees comprising of officials from line ministries and CSO representatives. Furthermore, a key mechanism for the sustainability of the Government-CSOs partnership will involve, at a later stage, institutionalization of the PMAF actions plans within ongoing Government and donor supported programs.
   

9. 
   Recognizing the need to build the capacity of CSOs through action learning to implement and monitor inclusive development projects while facilitating participation and giving voice to local communities and marginalized groups, the project will dovetail CSOs’ capacity building efforts with the ongoing capacity building program of Affiliated Network for Social Accountability in the Arab World (ANSA-AW)¹⁵. Several capacity building sessions on the approach and concept of social accountability have already been organized at the regional and country levels in MNA by ANSA-AW. Capacity building needs identified in the SAPs will be addressed through ANSA-AW’s programs.
   

9. 
   Another component of ANSA-AW is an action learning small grants program for CSOs. CSOs active in the proposed project’s pilot sectors will be encouraged to apply for grants to implement social accountability related interventions specified in SAPs in close coordination with partner line ministries. Linking the proposed project with ANSA-AW’s capacity building and grants programs will reinforce stakeholders’ capacities around social accountability concepts and approaches. In the medium term, it is expected to promote the integration of tailored social accountability tools into development projects in select sectors. The project will also encourage CSOs mapped to the pilot sectors to create sector coalitions that represent all CSOs active in the sector to act as interlocutors with the Government. Coalition and capacity building activities to institute and nurture these coalitions will be undertaken. The promotion of social accountability initiatives by sector mapped CSOs in collaboration with select line ministries in Government development projects in Yemen, through ANSA-AW capacity building and grants programs, will be a natural step towards evolving the PMAF and enlarging it to other sectors while embedding specific social accountability initiatives into on-going and future development programs.
   

Annex 3: Implementation Arrangements

COUNTRY: ProjectName

Institutions

1. 
   The project will be implemented by the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC). The ministry is well positioned to ensure a transparent and inclusive approach to promote all stakeholders’ buy-in to the dialogue process. MoPIC has also more leverage in terms of coordination with various line ministries, with the Ministry of Social Affairs, CSOs as well as key donors. The MoPIC Economic Studies and Forecasts unit will be in charge of putting in place the various workshops and following up on the outreach and dissemination activities. The Economic Studies and Forecasts unit is established for more than ten years and has been implementing UNDP and World Bank funded projects. For an enhanced implementation, an individual local consultant will be hired to provide “in-house” support to MoPIC teams in terms of coordination with project stakeholders and a sequenced implementation of the project activities on a daily basis. He will alos provide support for follow up actions and liaison with the Labor Intensive Public Works Project PMU who will be responsible for all financial transactions.
   

Technical Assistance

2. 
   MoPIC, line ministries and sector mapped CSOs are expected to require technical assistance on coalition building, developing a PMAF as well as results-oriented action plans and M&E. Technical assistance will be provided by Bank staff and consultants to advise on the design the implementation at every stage of the project. The Bank will employ staff and consultants to support technical assistance needs.
   

Financial Management

3. 
   The Labor Intensive Public Works Project PMU will be in charge of financial management and procurement. The PMU is composed of experienced teams and administers resources from over 15 donors. It concurrently implements about 450 sub-projects, some of which are related to NGOs, and ensures that donor funds are utilized in accordance with the rules and procedures of each donor transparently.
   

Procurement

4. 
   Procurement for the project will be administered in accordance with the World Bank’s Guidelines. Given the very small financial dimensions of procurement for all the project components, procurement of consultancy services financed plans under the Labor Intensive Public Works Project PMU will be carried out by firms following locally established commercial practices acceptable to the Bank, and in accordance with the provision of paragraphs 3.13 of the Bank’s Procurement Guidelines. Consultant firms and individuals will be selected in accordance with IDA Guidelines for selection and Employment of Consultants (dated January 2011). For firms, all contracts above US$300,000 would be procured using Quality and Cost Based Selection method (QCBS). Least Cost-Based Selection (LCS) and selection based on consultant qualification procedures would be used for small contracts of standard or routine nature estimated to cost less than US$300,000 or equivalent. Shortlist of consulting firms for services estimated to cost less than US$300,000 equivalent per contract may be composed entirely of national consultants in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2.7 of the Consultant Guidelines. All consulting services contracts above US$300,000 would be subject to IDA’s prior review. All individual consulting assignments would be selected on the basis of comparison of CVs in accordance with Section V of the Guidelines for Selection of Consultants.
   

Trust Fund Arrangements

5. 
   Recipient-Executed Components (Component 2-3): The Deauville Partnership Transition Fund (DPTF) first enters into a Financial Procedures Agreement with the World Bank as the Implementation Support Agency. Upon approval by the Steering Committee of the DPTF of the grant application for the proposed project the Bank, acting as Implementation Support Agency (ISA), will enter into a Grant Agreement with MoPIC which according to the provisions of the DPTF Operation Manual and the Transition Fund Grant Application is a Recipient Entity for the purposes of this grant.
   

6. 
   Bank Executed Component (Component 1): The Deauville Partnership Transition Fund (DPTF) signs a Grant Agreement with the World Bank as recipient and implementing agency with endorsement from the Government of Yemen represented by MoPIC for bank-execution of the component.
   

Coordination with Donors and Other National Entities

7. 
   The Bank will maintain coordination with Donors, INGOs and other national entities implementing activities with CSOs, particularly in the area of service delivery to ensure continued synergy and regular flow of information on project activities.
   

Safeguards

8. 
   Social and environmental safeguards are not expected to be triggered.
   

Annex 4: Operational Risk Assessment Framework (ORAF) COUNTRY: ProjectName Stage: Appraisal
Project Stakeholder Risks	Rating	Substantial
Description: (i) Given that the project’s focus is on dialogue and consensus building between the Government and CSOs, there is a risk that the stakeholders’ dialogue is impacted negatively by an unanticipated shift in the political, security, governance and civil society environment.	Risk Management: The ongoing transition in Yemen has created a unique opportunity to facilitate a dialogue between the government and CSOs that support inclusive and collaborative approaches. The Government has increasingly embraced the transformations in the CSOs landscape and despite many challenges, the Government and various development CSOs are trying to find ways to better define mechanisms of collaboration.
Description: (ii) The growing number of CSOs in Yemen during the current transition and the fragmentation of the CSO community as well as the tensions associated with the multiple fault lines that characterize Yemen social fabric limit the ability of some groups to collaborate with each other. The low capacity and lack of CSOs networking may also hamper or delay the consensus-building based dialogue between CSOs and the government.	Risk Management: A CSO Mapping and Capacity Assessment Study is underway to map the evolving NGO landscape to identify the key development NGOs working on service delivery, participation, decentralization and institution building, including women and youth organizations in five governorates and at the national level. The study will also identify the sectoral and thematic focus of these NGOs, as well as their size, influence and effectiveness.
	Resp: Bank	Stage: Preparation	Due Date: May 2013	Status: ongoing
Operating Environment Risks (Note for information: this section is not disclosed at negotiation and Board presentation stages)
2.1 Country (Note for information: this section is not disclosed at negotiation and Board presentation stages)	Rating	Substantial
(i) Politics: With February 21 polls, a political transition and a national dialogue was launched putting an end to the 33-year rule of President Saleh. The single-candidate presidential election featured Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi, who served as Saleh's vice president and has now assumed the presidency. Although violence is reported in the south and in Sa’ada, other major cities as well as Sana’a are relatively quiet. The political gains are fragile, The military still divided and several provinces are still outside the central government control.	Risk Management: Suspension of WB disbursements was lifted on January 20, 2012 and the Bank office is now open, with a core team led by the Country Manager, who is back in Yemen. The Bank is closely monitoring the situation and will adjust as needed.
	Resp:	Bank	Stage:	Implementation	Due Date:		Status:	Ongoing
(ii) Fiduciary Management: The main risk is related to the misuse of resources made available under Bank Group-financed projects	Risk Management: The Bank is closely monitoring the situation and stands ready to provide assistance in this area when the government is ready.
	Resp:	Bank	Stage:	Preparation	Due Date:		Status:	Ongoing
(iii) Corruption: There is a perception of widespread corruption in the country. The Government had taken steps towards improving governance and fighting corruption. These includes: -Investigations of corruption complaints by the Supreme National Authority for Combating Corruption (SNACC) established in 2006 - The ratification of the Financial Disclosure Bill in August 2006 under which senior civil servants are to disclose their assets to the SNACC.	Risk Management: Close monitoring of governance indicators and progress made in improving the situation. The Bank is also providing support to few initiatives, including Public Financial Management that will improve government ability to fight corruption.
	Resp:	Client	Stage:	Preparation	Due Date:		Status:	Ongoing
(iv) Economic Management: Fiscal sustainability continues to be macroeconomic challenge in Yemen, as the reduction of oil revenues is not sufficiently compensated by increased revenues from other sources. The recent political crisis resulted in oil and food shortages which deteriorated the humanitarian situation. With the political transition now in place, the shortages have abated although the humanitarian crisis continues.	Risk Management The Bank is working with the IMF and other development partners to help government improve Economic Management during these challenging times.
	Resp: Client	Stage: Preparation	Due Date:	Status: Ongoing
2.2. Sector/multi-sector (Note for information: this section is not disclosed at negotiation and Board presentation stages)	Rating:	Substantial
Description: The pioneering nature of the Project, the difficult transition period, the weak capacities of key Government ministries and the fragmented CSO landscape will pose challenges in ensuring strong continued ownership by key stakeholders.	Risk Management: MoPIC has expressed a strong interest in the Project and several CSOs working in various development areas were consulted and they have welcomed the project. Consultations will continue with line Ministries, other government institutions, CSOs and donors. Consultation and coordination with the Ministry of Social Affairs and donors will also be in place on a continuous basis
	Resp: Bank and Government	Stage: Preparation	Due Date: Continuous	Status:
Implementing Agency Risks (including fiduciary)
Capacity	Rating:	Moderate
Description: The project will be implemented by the PMU of the Labor Intensive Public Works Project under MoPIC. The capacity of some of the sectoral CSOs may pose a challenge.	Risk Management: The PMU has proved its capacity to respond to donors criteria while taking into consideration targeted groups’ needs and constraints as well as the ability to report in a timely manner to different donors. Where required, the CSOs will be provided targeted facilitation and support to execute their part of the partnership.
	Resp: Client	Stage: Implementation	Due Date: Continuous	Status: not yet due
Governance	Rating:	Low
Description: There is risk of weak inter-ministerial coordination between line ministries and MoPIC.	Risk Management: The team will support the MoPIC in establishing clear and transparent communication channels with line ministries to ensure a regular flow of information throughout the project preparation and implementation in order to address any issues upfront.
	Resp: Client	Stage: Preparation and implementation	Due Date: Continuous	Status:
Project Risks
Design	Rating:	Substantial
Description: Description: The Project design is based on multi-stakeholders coalition building. The CSOs low capacity as well as the current fluid political context and the weak governance may hamper or delay the consensus-building based dialogue between CSOs and the Government. Also, given the difficult security context, it may be difficult to implement, monitor and supervise the results-oriented sector action plans.	Risk Management :
	Resp: Client	Stage: Implementation	Due Date :	Status:
	Risk Management: The team will ensure that a transparent and inclusive process is in place and will support MoPIC in holding regular consultations to be able to address issues upfront. All meetings proceedings will be documented and published as well as documents that will be agreed on by the stakeholders. A targeted assistance will also be provided to CSOs as needed. The project’s activities will be based in Sanaa, making sure that participants to all project components can travel to Sanaa and do represent different governorates and regions. The results-oriented action plans will exclude activities in the most difficult regions, namely Saada and Abyan, due to their high security risk even for locals.
	Resp: Client and Bank	Stage: Implementation	Due Date : Continous	Status:
Social & Environmental	Rating:	Low
Description: The nature of most of the activities will be procurement of services and other intangibles, with possible small scale goods or capital equipment which are not anticipated to have any major or irreversible environmental impacts. Consequently, the project is not expected to trigger any safeguards and will include a negative list to screen out potential social or environmental safeguards in the operations manual.	Risk Management : Environmental Management Plan
	Resp: Client	Stage: Preparation and Implementation	Due Date :	Status:
Program & Donor	Rating:	Moderate
	Resp: Bank	Stage: Preparation	Due Date :	Status:
Delivery Monitoring & Sustainability	Rating:	Substantial
Description: Monitoring of Project delivery may be a challenge due to the uncertainties of the transition period and potential political shifts. There is also a risk associated with the likelihood of weak capacity and reporting.	Risk Management: To mitigate this risk, the project provides for technical assistance to support MoPIC and line ministries. Local consultants will also provide support in terms of coordination, event organization and follow up. For the implementation of sector action plans, the use of third party monitoring, as currently being established by the CMU across the portfolio, is also expected to mitigate this risk.
	Resp: Client	Stage: Implementation	Due Date :	Status:
Description: Both the GoY and the CSOs may face a challenge in sustaining the partnership beyond the duration of the project.	Risk Management: The PMAF created as a part of the project will establish clear mechanisms of engagement. The pilot results-oriented action plans will help operationalize the PMAF while feeding into the preparation of the Civil Society Support project which will help consolidate these coordination and partnership mechanisms.
	Resp: Client	Stage: Implementation	Due Date :	Status:
Other	Rating:	High
Description: Possibility of an upsurge in political unrest and insecurity could hamper or delay project implementation.	Risk Management: If there is a major deterioration of the political context due to internal or external circumstances at the national level, the project can only mitigate the risk by including crisis management processes that would likely include stabilization measures, delocalization of the dialogue sessions to a neighboring country and potential shifts between project components.
	Resp: Client and Bank	Stage: Preparation and Implementation	Due Date:	Status:
Non-disclosable Information for Management Attention (Optional) (Note for information: this section is not disclosed at negotiation and Board presentation stages)
Comments:
Project Team Proposed Rating Before Review
Preparation Risk Rating: Substantive	5.2 Implementation Risk Rating: Substantive
Comments: The preparation risk for this project is substantial because of country context, CSOs low capacity as well as risks related to the consensus building aspect of the project. However, the foundations to be laid by the ongoing CSO mapping and capacity assessment study; the diligent involvement of MoPIC and the careful and sequenced design of the project is expected to mitigate some of these risks.	Comments: The implementation risk for this operation is substantial because of country context. The low capacity and the governance environment present risks during project implementation and require mitigation. The incorporation of technical assistance into the implementation of the components as well as use of local consultants and maintaining flexibility and adaptability, is expected to mitigate the risks to the extent possible. Implementation risks are, however, likely to remain substantial throughout the duration of the project.
Overall Risk Following Review
Preparation Risk Rating:	7.2 Implementation Risk Rating:
Comments:	Comments: