Project Document Template

VII.Governance and Management Arrangements

The project has been designed by UNDP, in coordination with CDEMA and IFRC. The initiative will be implemented in accordance with the conditions established in the Indirect Management Delegation Agreement ECHO/-AM/BUD/2017/91012 signed between the European Union and UNDP, that fits in the dispositions of the Financial and Administrative Framework Agreement (FAFA) between the European Union and the United Nations. Based on the Contribution-Specific Agreement signed with the European Union, UNDP is the Implementing Partner, being responsible of project implementations and results achievement. CDEMA and IFRC are Responsible Parties in the execution of the substantive results of the project as foreseen in the "Partnership" section.

The project is managed by the UNDP Regional Hub, located in Panama. The project has a maximum duration of 18 months, with two additional months for reporting. It is implemented by UNDP Regional Hub for Latin America and the Caribbean based in Panama, under Direct Implementation Modality (DIM). UNDP Country Offices are responsible for implementation, monitoring and provide support, inputs and supervision of national consultants for national-level activities, to ensure maximum complementarity and relevance.

The project will be entered in ATLAS with an Award number and 4 Outputs, according to the Results Framework of the project. UNDP, CDEMA and IFRC are jointly involved in each output implementation, with different responsibilities in the implementation of the activities, as specified in the Work Plan.

Management arrangements will be agreed between implementing partners, through specific Letters of Agreement. Likewise, coordination agreements will be signed for the implementation of national level activities under UNDP responsibilities with the corresponding Country Offices, to facilitate the necessary resources for their implementation. With Oxfam, a memorandum of understanding will be signed to clarify coordination of activities, albeit without a transfer of funds.

Project Organization Structure

The following organigram shows the project organization structure for the implementation:

Project Organisation Structure

Project Board

Project Assurance

Regional Programme



Senior Beneficiary:

Beneficiary countries representatives

Executive

UNDP Regional Hub for Latin America and the Caribbean,

Donor

ECHO

Regional Advisors: CDEMA, IFRC, UNDP Hub

Project Coordinating Team: Manager and Assistant

CDEMA Team

IFRC Team

UNDP Country Teams

1) The Project Board will be a key mechanism for ensuring coordination and planning of activities across national and regional stakeholders, and providing strategic guidance and advice for the implementation of the project. The Project Board will consist of a panel with the project responsible parties, including IFRC and CDEMA, Countries’ representatives, and the Donor. Representatives of other stakeholders could be included in the Board as appropriate. This approach ensures that the perspectives and synergies of the partners are captured and that there is ownership, promotion of sustainability and coordination with regional and national strategies (CDM Strategy, national work plans). Its main functions will be to: a) provide general advice to the project and maintain its alignment with DRR objectives; b) provide advice on linking the project to regional and national priorities for achieving sustainable development goals; c) analyze results and outputs of project implementation and provide recommendations and technical assistance to the development of activities, d) review the project intervention plan.

The Project Board will be led by the representative of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean and will consist of:

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  Executive: individual representing the project ownership to chair the group: the Director of the Regional Center for Latin America and the Caribbean (RC-LAC) or his delegate, representing the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean
  
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  Countries Senior Beneficiaries: individual or group of individuals representing the interests of those who will ultimately benefit from the project. The primary function within the Board is to ensure the realization of project results from the perspective of project beneficiaries. Nominated representatives of the beneficiary countries will serve on the Project Board in this capacity.
  
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  Donor: individual or group representing the interests of the parties concerned which provide funding for the project, European Commission's Humanitarian aid and Civil Protection department.
  

The Project Board will convene on the 2^nd quarter of Year 1 and on the 3^rd quarter of year 2 of the project. The meetings can be face-to-face or online. After the meetings, the Project Board will send out minutes within 10 working days. The Project Board will be responsible for providing recommendations for project management decisions, including approvals of Workplans and requests for substantive revisions to the project. The final decisions will be responsibility of the Directorate of the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean, through the Directorate of the Regional Center for Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the Regional Offices of IFRC and CDEMA, as responsible parties for the execution of the project.

2) The Directorate of the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean, or its deputy, will authorize the project implementation under the DIM. In addition, it will approve and sign the Project Document, and its eventual substantive revisions, and will approve the cost-sharing agreement with the donor. The Directorate of the Bureau will lead the Regional Project Board, through the Directorate of the Regional Center for LAC, or its deputy. The Directorate of the Bureau will delegate the project implementation functions to the Directorate of the Regional Center for LAC, through the Sustainable Development Regional Team and the Country Offices involved. The project approval in ATLAS and the revisions will be carried out by the Directorate of the Regional Center for LAC or by the delegated person, who will have the authority to fulfill this function.

3) The partners involved in the implementation (CDEMA and IFRC) responsible for executing their planned activities, providing technical assistance, monitoring progress and achieving the expected targets in accordance with a signed agreement (either Letter of Agreement or Responsible Party Agreement). To do so, they will contract the required staff, goods and services, as well as manage the payments, in accordance with the project Workplan and the terms established in the Indirect Management Delegation Agreement ECHO/-AM/BUD/2017/91012 signed between the European Union and UNDP. They will provide quarterly reports about their implementation, in order to advance the project quarterly and annual reports. They will participate in the elaboration of the interim and final report, including the narrative and financial sections, in the format required by the donor.

4) UNDP Country Offices involved in the project will be responsible for their corresponding implementation activities, planning and executing planned activities, providing technical assistance, monitoring progress and achieving the expected targets. To achieve this, the project will provide the necessary resources for hiring staff, acquiring goods and services, as well as managing payments, according to a Workplan. Each CO budget will be decentralized through Department IDs; the Regional office will retain oversight, establish expenditure limits, and be responsible for budget revisions. The Regional office will review expenditure on a quarterly basis and reserves the right to reallocate resources that are not being utilized. COs are responsible for financial management, ensuring that all project process are in line with UNDP Programme and Operations Policies and Procedures (POPP), in accordance with the terms established in the Indirect Management Delegation Agreement ECHO/-AM/BUD/2017/91012, signed between the European Union and UNDP. Each CO is accountable for project hiring processes, the procurement and supplier processes, the organization of travels and workshops, the preparation of payment requests (SPD) and requisitions in ATLAS, and implementation of project activities.

5) The Sustainable Development and Resilience Team Leader will provide overall oversight to the technical, logistical and administrative processes related to the project. In this regard, she will oversee project coordination, provide feedback on the annual Workplan and the quarterly and final reports, analyze substantive and budget revisions, before asking for their approval to the Regional Bureau for LAC and /or the Regional Hub for LAC, review and approve the project's technical reports and products, and coordinate the financial and operational closure of the project.

6)The Regional Advisor on Disaster Risk Reduction and/or Caribbean Disaster Risk Management Specialist will be responsible for the technical supervision of the project and for the project personnel. She will substantively follow up to the Project, conducting monitoring visits to the countries where activities are implemented; she will support the execution of the Project, ensuring its technical consistency, its compliance with the Workplan, the achievement of its products and results, and the technical quality of the reports. The regional Advisor will work in collaboration with the Regional Programme Coordinator as project guarantor, to ensure that the results are entered in Atlas in a timely manner and delivered to the Project Board and to the donor. The Regional Programme Coordinator, will ensure quality assurance and oversight, while daily management and supervision of implementation will be responsibility of the SDR cluster.

7) The Project Guarantor will be the Regional Programme Coordinator. Her function is to ensure and support the monitoring of annual Workplans, progress reports, substantive and budget revisions, and proposals for equipment transfer at the end of the Project. She will also be responsible for monitoring the ATLAS system, ensuring that the information is updated, at least every three months (when receiving the quarterly reports). She will ensure that the funds for project implementation are available, and used properly. She will also monitor the quality of the project implementation and the risk indicators every year.

8)The overall Project Team is made up of the UNDP Regional Project Coordination team and National coordinators, the IFRC project coordinator and CADRIM technical staff, and the CDEMA regional coordinator.

UNDP Regional Human Resources for the Project Team will include:

The Regional Project Coordinator, (18 months-full time), will be a DRR Specialist and work under the DRR unit. His/her functions will be the general project coordination, strategic and operational project planning, monitoring and follow-up to the development of activities, technical assistance and guidance to national technical specialists, relationship with regional and national beneficiaries, regional partners and ECHO, project report to UNDP and ECHO, and systematization and documentation of lessons learned. The position, contracted with project resources, will be responsible for conducting the technical, logistical and administrative processes needed to implement regional activities, to monitor the implementation of the National Workplans, and to achieve the expected outputs. S/he will carry out its functions ensuring that all project processes are carried out in line with the UNDP Program and Operations Policies and Procedures (POPP). This implementation includes hiring processes, procurement and suppliers’ processes, organization of travels and workshops, preparation of payment requests (SPD) and requisitions in ATLAS. The Project Coordinator will report to the Regional Advisor on Risk Reduction/Caribbean Risk Management Specialist.

A Regional Research Programme Assistant (18 months part time) will assist the Regional Coordinator, conducting administrative and logistics activities, as well as financial monitoring and preparation of reports, supporting coordination and communication with technical specialists and project documentation and reporting.

A Regional Knowledge Management Coordinator (10 months full-time) with experience in DRR and communications coordination, will be responsible to develop key project communication material related to systematization and transmission of best practices and to support the Regional Communications staff with information on materials and content for blog entries.

National coordinators consisting of staff hired especially by - or assigned to - the project by UNDP, will be responsible for conducting technical, logistical and administrative processes in order to implement the Activities in each country of intervention, to monitor the implementation of the National Work Plans, and to achieved the desired outputs. The national coordinator will report to their respective unit supervisor matrixed with the Regional Project Coordinator and will have the following functions:

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  To ensure the achievement of the objectives, goals and results of the project in the country assigned (technical, budgetary, financial and legal components).
  
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  Ensure the inclusion of the gender perspective in project products.
  
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  Conduct strategic project planning exercises in coordination with the Government’s strategic partners.
  
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  Inter-institutional coordination with government agencies, NGOs, civil society etc.
  
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  Elaboration of Terms of Reference for hiring national consultants.
  
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  Preparation of quarterly reports and annual reports in UNDP format and intermediate and final reports in ECHO format to be sent to the project coordination.
  

National Coordinators functions are to coordinate the implementation of the project planned activities at national level, facilitating the participation of key stakeholders in EWS gap assessment, solutions tool package, road map process and concrete actions, and to maintain relationship with beneficiaries and partners at a national level. The National Coordinators are also responsible for supporting knowledge transfer at a national/sub-regional level, reporting on the activities developed in the country and conducting systematization and documentation of lessons learned at country level.

CDEMA and IFRC Human Resources are:

A CDEMA Regional Coordinator (18 months 3/4-time) will be responsible to lead the development of the EWS checklist and guide, to provide quality assurance for testing solutions tool packages through desktop activity, to lead the national roadmap process and sustainability dialogues, and to support the transfer of tools and best practices. The CDEMA Regional Coordinator will facilitate relationship with CDEMA participating states, and coordinate and collaborate with UNDP at national level.

A IFRC Regional Unit Manager (18 months- 20% time) as a DRR Specialist will provide IFRC overall regional program coordination, and strategic and operational regional program planning.

A IFRC Project Coordinator (18 months-full time) as a DRR Specialist, will be responsible for IFRC community components coordination, and financial and reporting functions. The IFRC Project Coordinator will be responsible for activity planning and overall coordination of IFRC team. The function also includes managing the relationship with UNDP and CDEMA, and developing strategic and operational project planning.

A IFRC CADRIM Technical Specialist on CEWS (16 months-full time) will be in charge of coordinating IFRC CEWS/PAPE knowledge management coordination, tool & methodology development (CEWS), and monitoring and follow-up to the development of CEWS activities.

A IFRC CADRIM Regional Program Assistant (18 months part-time) will conduct administrative and logistics activities, supporting coordination and communication with technical specialists, as well as providing support to project documentation and reporting.

1 IFRC Regional Finance Officer (16 months - 25%) will be responsible for supporting the IFRC Project Coordinator with the timely submission of financial reports on expenditure.

The Project Team will be supported by the UNDP Regional DRR Advisor a.i. and the DRR Unit Program Associate. The team will also have technical support consultants and a administrative and financial support group. The project team will receive technical assistance from the Project Guarantor, the South-South Cooperation and Gender teams, the Regional Sustainable Development Team Leader and Program Officers from each Country Office. The project team will establish a technical coordination mechanism for effective project management and implementation at a regional and country level.