Document of The World Bank
FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Public Disclosure Authorized Report No: 74711-AF
EMERGENCY PROJECT PAPER
ON A Public Disclosure Authorized PROPOSED GRANT
IN THE AMOUNT OF SDR 35.7 MILLION (US$ 55 MILLION EQUIVALENT)
TO THE
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF AFGHANISTAN
FOR A
Public Disclosure Authorized SECOND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT PROJECT
March 1, 2013
Human Development Unit South Asia Region
Public Disclosure Authorized
This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not otherwise be disclosed without World Bank authorization. CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS (Exchange Rate Effective January 31, 2013) Currency Unit = Afghani (AFN) AFN 51.2 = US$1 US$ 1.54 = SDR 1
FISCAL YEAR January 1 – December 31
ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS
AIT Afghanistan Institute of Technology ARTF Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund ANIM Afghanistan National Institute of Music ASDP Afghanistan Skills Development Project BP Business Plan BDS Business Development Services CTI Computer Technology Institute DA Designated Account DAB Da Afghanistan Bank DOI Department of Infrastructure DOP Department of Planning DMTVET Deputy Ministry of Technical and Vocational Education Training EC European Commission EMIS Education Management Information System EQUIP Education Quality Improvement Program ESMF Environment and Social Management Framework FM Financial Management FMM Financial Management Manual GAAP Generally Accepted Accounting Principles GC Grants Committee GCL Governing Council GDP Gross Domestic Product GOA Government of Afghanistan GIZ German Agency for Technical Cooperation IBRD International Bank for Reconstruction and Development ICT Information and Communication Technology IFC International Finance Corporation IDA International Development Association IP Implementation Partners IROA Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ISDS Integrated Safeguards Data Sheet LMIS Labor Market Information System M&E Monitoring and Evaluation MIS Management Information System MOE Ministry of Education MOHE Ministry of Higher Education MOLSAMD Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs and Martyred and Disabled MOU Memorandum of Understanding NGO Non-Governmental Education NIMA National Institute of Management and Administration NOSS National Occupational Skills Standards NPP National Priority Program NQF National Qualifications Framework NRVA National Risk and Vulnerability Analysis NSDP National Skills Development Program NSP National Solidarity Program NVETB National Vocational Education Training Board PIM Project Implementation Manual SC Steering Committee TEC Technical Evaluation Committee TTTI (3TI) Technical Teacher Training Institute TVET Technical and Vocational Education and Training
Regional Vice President: Isabel M Guerrero Country Director: Robert J. Saum Sector Director: Jesko S. Hentschel Sector Manager: Amit Dar Task Team Leaders Bappaditya Chakravarty/Leopold Remi Sarr
AFGHANISTAN Second Skills Development Project
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page A. Introduction ...... 1 B. Emergency Challenge: Country Context, Recovery Strategy and Rationale for Proposed Bank Emergency Project ...... 1 C. Appraisal of Project Activities ...... 11 D. Implementation Arrangements and Financing Plan ...... 15 E. Key Risks and Mitigating Measures ...... 25 F. Terms and Conditions for Project Financing ...... 26
Annex 1: Detailed Project Description ...... 28
Annex 2: Results Framework...... 41
Annex 3: Summary of Estimated Project Costs ...... 45
Annex 4: Operational Risk Assessment Framework (ORAF) ...... 46
Annex 5: Financial Management and Disbursement Arrangements ...... 51
Annex 6: Procurement Arrangements ...... 65
Annex 7: Implementation Arrangements ...... 87
Annex 8: Project Preparation and Appraisal Team Members ...... 92
Annex 9: Environmental and Social Safeguards Framework ...... 93
Annex 10: Economic and Financial Analysis ...... 98
Annex 11: Documents in Project Files ...... 104
Annex 12: Statement of Loans and Credits ...... 105
Annex 13: Country at a Glance ...... 106
Annex 14: Map ...... 107
AFGHANISTAN Second Skills Development Project
PROJECT PAPER
SOUTH ASIA
Basic Information Country Director: Robert J. Saum Sectors: Education Sector Manager/Director: Amit Dar/Jesko Themes: Technical Vocational S. Hentschel Education and Training (100%) Team Leaders: Bappaditya Chakravarty/ Environmental category: B Leopold Remi Sarr Expected Closing Date: 06/30/ 2018 Project ID: P132742 Joint IFC: Expected Effectiveness: Date: 07/01/2013 Joint Level: Lending Instrument: ERL Project Financing Data [ ] Loan [ ] Credit [ X ] Grant [ ] Guarantee [ ] Other: Proposed terms: Financing Plan (US$m) Source Total Amount (US $m) Total Project Cost: 60.0 Cofinancing: Borrower: 5.0 Total Bank Financing: IBRD IDA 55.0 New Recommitted Client Information Recipient: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Responsible Agency: Deputy Ministry of Technical and Vocational Education and Training, Ministry of Education, Govt. of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Contact Person: Mohammad Asif Nang Telephone No.: +93 700 044 305 Fax No.: N/A Email: [email protected] Estimated disbursements (Bank FY/US$m) FY 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Annual 11.6 14.5 15.6 10.5 2.8 Cumulative 11.6 26.1 41.7 52.2 55.00
Project Development Objective and Description The objective of the Project is to increase the potential for employment and higher earnings of graduates from Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) schools and institutes through improvements in the skills delivery system Project description:
Component 1: Strengthening of the TVET institutional system Component 2: Improving performance of TVET Schools and Institutes Component 3: Improving Teacher Competencies Component 4: Project Management, Monitoring & Evaluation and Public Awareness
Safeguard and Exception to Policies Safeguard policies triggered: Environmental Assessment (OP/BP 4.01) [ X ]Yes [ ] No Natural Habitats (OP/BP 4.04) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Forests (OP/BP 4.36) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Pest Management (OP 4.09) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Physical Cultural Resources (OP/BP 4.11) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Indigenous Peoples (OP/BP 4.10) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Involuntary Resettlement (OP/BP 4.12) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Safety of Dams (OP/BP 4.37) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Projects on International Waterways (OP/BP 7.50) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Projects in Disputed Areas (OP/BP 7.60) [ ]Yes [ X ] No Does the project require any exceptions from Bank policies? [ ]Yes [ X ] No Have these been approved by Bank management? [ ]Yes [ X ] No Conditions and Legal Covenants: Financing Description of Condition/Covenant Date Due Agreement Reference Section I, Recipient to (1) establish a ASDP II Steering Committee, (1) July 15, 2013 (A)2 of chaired by the Minister of Education, and with members, (2) Recurrent Schedule 2 their roles and responsibilities satisfactory to the Association and (2) maintain it throughout the project. Section I, Recipient will (1) establish a ASDP II Standing July 15, 2013 (A)3 of Committee in DMTVET, chaired by Deputy Minister, Schedule 2 DMTVET, and with members, their roles and responsibilities satisfactory to the Association and (2) maintain it throughout project implementation. Section I, Recipient to maintain the Skills Team within DMTVET Recurrent (A)4 of with staffing and terms of reference satisfactory to the Schedule 2 Association throughout project implementation. Section I, Recipient to devise and implement a plan for providing (A)5 of administrative autonomy to beneficiary schools and Schedule 2 institutes under the project Financing Description of Condition/Covenant Date Due Agreement Reference Section I, Recipient to devise a plan for gradual provision of June 15, 2014 (B)2 of financial autonomy to beneficiary schools and institutes Schedule 2 under this project Section I, Recipient to prepare and adopt a (1) Project (1) September 30, (B)1 of Implementation Manual (PIM) satisfactory to the 2013 Schedule 2 Association, and implement the project in accordance (2) Recurrent with the same, and (2) make no changes in the PIM without concurrence of the Association. Section I, Recipient to not award Sub-grant to any beneficiary December 31, 2016 (E)4 of TVET school or institute after December 31, 2016. Schedule 2 Section II, Recipient to assign an internal auditor to DMTVET September 30, 2013 (B)4 of Schedule 2
A. Introduction
1. This Project Paper seeks the approval of the Executive Directors to provide a Grant in an amount of SDR 35.7 million (US$55.0 million equivalent) to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan for the Second Skills Development Project.
2. The proposed Grant would help finance the costs associated with reforms in, and improvement of, the Technical and Vocational Education and Training sector in Afghanistan, with particular attention to deepening of the institutional systems. The level of skills in Afghanistan is low and formal training for mid-level skills competence, though it exists, is not standardized and/or benchmarked to acceptable sub-regional or regional standards. The proposed support will respond to the situation through: a) strengthening and improving the overall institutional system, b) providing incentives for development of TVET schools and institutes in that provide formal technical training; c) training of technical teachers; and d) developing labor market information systems and MIS to monitor the whole sector. All these interventions will be underpinned, and informed by robust linkages between the training providers and the labor market. The strength and relevance of the project lies in it being market-oriented, with a pivotal role for the private sector in management and decision-making in the skills delivery system.
3. The project will contribute directly to the economic growth and development of the country by (i) generating a cadre of skilled persons with assured competence in diverse areas, from management skills to technical skills, to meet private and public sector demand1, and (ii) gradually reducing dependence on foreign skilled labor. The project will also contribute to the opening up of self-employment opportunities for VET graduates through the establishment of linkages with other Bank supported projects such as the Afghanistan Rural Enterprise Development Project (AREDP), and the proposed New Market Development and Access to Finance projects.
4. This project will be funded by the Association, with the government providing support through financing some staff including salaries of technical teacher trainees.
B. Emergency Challenge: Country Context, Recovery Strategy and Rationale for Proposed Bank Emergency Project
Country Context
5. As a post-conflict country, Afghanistan has experienced volatility in its business environment due primarily to security concerns, which are now exacerbated by the approaching Transition in 2014 when the international forces leave. The average real GDP growth rate is forecasted to be 4-6 percent per annum between 2013-18 compared to a rate of 9 percent between 2003/04 and 2011-12. However, medium term outlook remains cautiously optimistic,2 and the Government’s policy has been to encourage industrial investment through a number of
1 USAID., p.61, 45% of respondents to the survey said that they needed personnel with management, marketing, etc. skills, in addition to General Knowledge and general education including knowledge of English. 2 Outlook Afghanistan (Afghanistan), reporting World Bank views, 01/17/13
1 measures3 and at the same time frame policies that will help (the largely illiterate and unskilled ) people find decent work.
6. The most important policy that has been framed is the ANDS (Afghanistan National Development Strategy 2009-13), which is a multi-pronged approach to promote foreign and domestic investment in the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors,4and to encourage local area economic development which will lead to a continuing demand for skilled labor. The TVET system in the country now needs to be geared up to meet this demand for skilled labor through institutional reforms. The objective is to ultimately institutionalize a robust market responsive skills delivery system for the medium to long term. This is also the approach taken in the National Priority Program 1 (NPP1) approved by the Government. Development Partners and IDA have already been working with the Government toward achieving these priorities.
Recovery Strategy
7. GIROA has been emphasizing the importance of Skills Development through a number of Policy Documents - the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (2009-13), the National Education Strategy (NESP 2007-08), NESP II (2010) and the Interim Strategy for Education (2010-11), and very recently, a specific Vocational Education and Training (VET) component in the NPP1.
8. The Government’s strategies (box below) identified the demand side bottlenecks and the factors constraining supply of competent skilled personnel while laying out the principles for addressing them. However they did not clearly spell out implementation arrangements in actionable terms. The strategies also did not dwell much upon improvement of the institutional environment and reforms in the institutes that provide skills training, which are a critical link in matching demand and supply. This major lacuna has weakened the linkage between what is possible and what needs to be done in the TVET sector.
3 Progressive policies of the GIROA include policies to foster trade and investment, including currency reform, rationalized customs tariffs, and a simplified tax code. It has also set up structures to help promote investment and investment-friendly policies. The Government has also set up Industrial Parks, and created a ‘one-stop shop’ for investors – the Afghanistan Investment Support Agency. There are no restrictions on converting, remitting or transferring funds associated with investment, such as dividends, return on capital, interest and principal on private foreign debt, lease payments, and royalties and management fees, into a freely usable currency and at a legal market clearing rate. The Private Investment Law states that an investor may freely transfer investment dividends or proceeds from the sale of an approved enterprise abroad. Afghanistan does not maintain a dual exchange rate policy, currency controls, capital controls, or any other restrictions on the free flow of funds abroad. Access to foreign exchange for investment is not restricted by any law or regulation.http://www.state.gov/e/eb/rls/othr/ics/2012/191093.htm 4 Presidential Decree. June 2012. On the Execution of Content of the Historical Speech of June 21, 2012 in the Special Session of National Assembly, available at: http://president.gov.af/en (accessed 9 September 2012).
2 National Education Strategy Plan for Afghanistan (2005-2010) predominately focused on rehabilitation of the education system in the country and meeting the major goals accepted by the government in international pacts and documents for the sector, including MDGs. Major programs targeted under this plan were infrastructure rehabilitation and development, access to education, management and quality enhancement of delivery in the sector.
The National Education Interim Plan (2011-2013) focuses on: (i) increased access to basic education particularly for girls and in rural areas in both General and Islamic Education; (ii) enhancement of the capacity of education delivery by reforms in Curriculum Development, Teacher Education and Science and Technology Education, Technical Education; and (iii) provide further access to Literacy and critical reassessment of the Education Governance and Administration. Major milestones to be achieved under this plan are to (i) increase enrollment in general formal education from 1.8 million to 8 million with 40 percent girls and (ii) increase the national literacy rate from 26 percent to 40 percent. The Plan proposes increased access to TVET through opening of new TVET centers in districts, and at the same time emphasizes quality improvement in TVET delivery.
The Afghanistan National Development Strategy (2009 - 2013) comprehensively addresses the security, governance, development needs of Afghanistan. This document is to serve as a roadmap for the international community, donors and the government of Afghanistan in pursuit of development and elimination of insecurity.
National Priority Program One under the title of Sustainable Decent Work Through Skills Development and Employment Policies for Job Rich Growth (referred to as the Labor Program) is organized around the shared belief that the government, private sector, and civil society should work together to form a coherent approach to the development of human resource capacity to maximize benefits for all Afghan citizens. Despite a wide range of educational initiatives, evidence suggests that neither recent graduates nor the labor force as a whole are fully meeting the skill demands of the market. The Labor Program is envisioned to be implemented over three years.
Rationale for Proposed Bank Emergency Project
9. Afghanistan experienced a significant economic growth averaging 9 percent in the past decade. Despite a slight decline in the economic growth rate in the past two years, the Afghan economy is ranked the 20th fastest growing economy in the world (cf. Afghanistan Economic Update, World Bank 2011). The private formal sector has also shown a significant increase - for example, the number of registered formal enterprises has grown from 1,139 in 2004 to 5,465 in 2011.5 This fivefold growth has been mainly driven by the construction and service industries, for both domestic and foreign companies. This growing size of the formal economy is likely to have boosted the demand for skilled workforce.
10. In Afghanistan, workers in the formal sector account for about 20% of an estimated total workforce of seven million – about 1.5 million. The formal sector has been steadily growing over time. This is expected to increase further as the economy formalizes more over time, and also to some extent owing to the anticipated growth of the number of tertiary service industries. The economy will also be affected positively by anticipated growth in construction, transportation and manufacturing as well as service provision and agriculture/food processing.
5 Data comes from the Afghanistan Investment support Agency, 2012.
3 11. There is a growing demand for skilled workers. A 2012 USAID survey of business owners and managers of 959 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) located in six major cities of Afghanistan, coupled with an employee survey6 revealed that 53% of enterprises interviewed desire to hire new employees.7 About 90% of enterprises think that hiring employees with specialized training is likely to make the company more profitable. In particular, skills were seen as a bottleneck by 36% of enterprises.
12. In addition to this growing need for skilled labor, employers highlighted the need for more training for their current and prospective workers in some specific areas. In particular, businesses have indicated that their workers need more training in general skills so that they can be used flexibly, literacy and language skills, management and administration, and marketing and sales. This demand, of course, varies across provinces – for example, the top five skills demanded in Kabul city are business skills, IT/computer, electronics programming and repair skills and general knowledge.
13. The study also highlighted that a non-trivial number of available skilled jobs are not filled due to the lack of adequate skills in the country. More specifically, 26% of enterprises stated that they were never able to find employees with the right set of skills and adequate training. Moreover, about a fourth of all enterprises revealed that they had to hire foreign skilled labor due to the lack of adequate skills in the domestic market. Employers also admitted that they are willing to pay more to hire Afghan workers with the same skills as foreign employees if such domestic skills were available.
14. In Afghanistan, about 400,000 persons enter the labor market annually. Of these, it is estimated that about 70,000 are High School graduates who do not find a place in a University or TVET institute. The larger proportion of labor market entrants are illiterate or possess minimum literacy (current rate of illiteracy in Afghanistan is 74%)8 and are unskilled. High schools graduates, though literate and possessing some basic skills, are unable to respond to the demand for skilled labor.
15. In light of the above discussion, it is therefore reasonable to say that there is a growing demand for skilled labor, which is not currently being met by the available stock of skills in the country. This is the demand driver for building up of the TVET system.
16. On the supply side, annual intake of formal TVET schools and institutes9 has now increased from an estimated 20,000 in 2007/08 to an estimated 70,000 in the current year. Though about 10,000 students graduated from TVET schools and institutions annually, the number of job placements is much less. This is primarily due to the actual low level of skills and competencies, which result from poor quality of skills delivery. Systemic deficiencies and low capacity of service-providers underpin this poor quality of TVET delivery.
6 A cluster sampling was developed in which each of the six cities were split into four geographical zones divided each into two to six clusters based on the degree of concentration of businesses. The six cities are Kabul, Jalalabad, Mazar, Herat, Kandahar, Kunduz and the businesses covered comprised of agribusiness, textiles, medical and cosmetology, construction, electronics and technology, non-clothing/non-electronic consumer goods, energy and transportation, and non-technical services and hospitality. 7 A similar percentage (i.e., 57%) was found by the recent survey carried out by the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE). 8 NEIP, op. cit.; NRVA 2007. 9 There are 210 government run schools and institutes in TVET and 47 private schools and institutes accredited by the DMTVET
4 17. It is clear that mismatch between the demand and supply of skilled labor is a result of inadequate institutional response to policy needs which otherwise might have led the government to address this weak link at this initial critical stage of the country development. Among the barriers to matching demand and supply, the critical ones are as follows10:
(a) Absence of a robust institutional system for the sector – the institutional system for the sector as a whole is fragmented. There are multiple ministries and other bodies involved with the management of TVET, whether formal or informal. While the Government is now trying to bring order into the system (through specific directions to the two leading Ministries of Education and Labor), the absence of a single Regulatory mechanism for the sector remains a major constraint on standardization, certification and licensing. This was anticipated in the ANDS and the NESP which envisaged the development of a TVET strategy and plan for the medium term and setting up of a National Vocational Education and Training Board. There have been some positive developments in this regard under the ongoing Afghanistan Skills Development Project (ASDP), which was the first attempt to address skills issues systemically in Afghanistan. However, clearly more emphasis needs to be placed on the development of the system.
(b) Poor quality of the skills delivery system – The delivery system for skills training lacks standardized curricula, which are general and not in line with industry needs. Moreover, the lack of textbooks and reference materials for students and instructional materials for teachers, affect the quality of skills training. Practical training is either nonexistent or of poor quality due to lack of infrastructure and skilled trainers.
(c) Absence of reliable Labor Market Information System – Labor market and industry related information is not reliable as no continuing system for collection of such information exists. The only available sources are periodic and irregular sample information collected by various agencies. Furthermore, the available information is not used for policy making purposes on TVET or labor training. This has also led to a disconnect between the market and the skills delivery systems.
(d) Lack of linkage between the labor market and the TVET sector – TVET service providers in general have no mechanisms to interact with industry, or to incorporate relevant technologies into their curricula, which would make their skills delivery market relevant. A corollary of this is the absence of formalized placement activities. As a result, graduates, especially those from the formal TVET stream, find it difficult to get jobs. Reportedly, in the informal sector, rates of employment post training are high. However, it is unclear whether this refers to full employment and/or skills- relevant employment.
10 The barriers to matching demand and supply have been viewed from different perspectives. A survey by the USAID, lists the barriers as (i) SME awareness of TVET in the country, (ii) negative perceptions of TVET, and (iii) SME unwillingness to pay for TVET. The UNESCO sponsored Joint Sector Review of TVET identified (i) lack of coordination between Ministries, (ii) funding shortages, (iii) reforms that do not fructify on the ground, and (iv) lack of trained teachers in TVET, and others10.
5 18. The rationale for Bank involvement is based on the understanding that it is necessary to break out of this ‘chicken and egg situation’ where policies for economic development cannot fructify because needed skills are nonexistent, and there is very little investment on skills because there is not enough industrial motivation to pay for skills training both pre-service and in-service. Bank support aims to break the vicious cycle by investing in skills, which will in turn assist in driving economic growth. This would normally have been done by the government itself. However, resource constraints have curtailed national investment in TVET, which is currently only at about 6% of the total education budget in Afghanistan.
Bank Response: The Project
19. The proposed project is designed to respond to the critical factors identified above with respect to the formal TVET system which falls under the jurisdiction of the DMTVET under MOE. Informal TVET is under the jurisdiction of the MOLSAMD. Given the high transaction costs of dealing with two ministries in a single project and concomitant coordination problems, it is considered judicious to have two separate projects for the formal and informal sectors of TVET.11 However, given the importance of non-formal TVET, particularly for illiterate, low- literacy and unskilled, and low-skilled individuals, a project on the non-formal TVET sector is currently under preparation and will be housed in the MOLSAMD.
20. The project is aligned with other donor funded projects in the TVET sector (e.g., GIZ, USAID, and Government of Netherlands) as well as the NPP1. Mapping to NPP1 is now an Afghan Government requirement and the proposed project fulfills this criterion. The project also links directly with other Bank projects, such as AREDP, the proposed Access to Finance and New Market Development projects. It also has links with other new investment areas prioritized by the Government, since a number of institutes provide technical training in the area of mining and extractive industries, and downstream manufacturing.12
21. Interventions that have proven effective in the ongoing ASDP have been used for designing the mix of programmatic actions to be taken in the current project. At the same time, new intervention strategies have been introduced. In particular, stress is laid, in the project design, on systemic improvements that will help to align skills supply and demand, and involvement of the private sector in managerial decision making at the school and institute level to shape skills delivery. The Challenge Fund concept has been used to encourage competition among service providers, and appropriate incentives will be provided. Finally, the project will seek to disseminate knowledge about the whole TVET sector through a carefully orchestrated public awareness campaign.
22. The mix of interventions will thus help to obtain (a) sector-wide institutional reforms in the TVET sector to assure quality and standardization, (b) a TVET system which provides market-oriented skills through the participation of private sector in management and decision- making of the service providers; and (c) improvements in the quality of TVET delivery. All the interventions under the project will be underpinned by robust market-linkage built on a strong information system platform.
11 UNESCO report, op.cit. 12 Recently, the DMTVET has been approached by mining companies to provide graduates from their mining etc. schools to become interns with these companies.
6 23. An important issue that has informed the design of the project and its intervention strategy is the country’s Transition in 2014. Possible consequences essentially revolve around the economic impacts of the withdrawal of international forces and the resultant decline in financial support to the Government13. In a country characterized by political turbulence as Afghanistan, the final political equation is likely to decide macro-economic issues and strategies. Considering these factors, and given that there is little time before end-2014, the project design focuses on intensive capacity building measures, especially for civil servants and Technical Teachers so that these human resources are available to the government beyond Transition. Obviously, if the Government takes clear and bold steps to ensure a peaceful Transition – as it is doing now – the benefits of such interventions would only increase in the medium to long term.
Project Development Objective
24. The Project Development Objective is to increase the potential for employment and higher earnings of graduates from Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) schools and institutes through improvements in the skills delivery system.
Summary of Project Components
25. The project has the following four components: (a) Component 1: Strengthening of the TVET institutional system (b) Component 2: Improving performance of TVET Schools and Institutes (c) Component 3: Improving Teacher Competencies (d) Component 4: Project Management, Monitoring & Evaluation and Public Awareness
These Components are further described below.
26. Component 1: Strengthening of the TVET institutional system (US$8.5 million). This component will essentially focus on (a) the formulation of a detailed TVET strategy and plan which would also be in line with the National Priority Program 1 (NPP1), the National Education Strategy Plan-II (NESP –II), and the Interim Strategy Document published by the Government, and an implementation program; (b) developing quality standards for skills delivery, (c) designing and implementing a labor market information system and an overall MIS for the TVET system, (d) capacity building of Monitors and Inspectors of schools and institutes accredited by DMTVET, and (e) conducting certification examinations for TVET graduates and related activities. Appropriate TA will be provided for this purpose.
27. The premise of this component is that the fragmentation in TVET policy and strategy needs to be addressed at the highest level, and in actionable terms, if a sustainable and integrated TVET system is to be institutionalized in the country. As has been said in the context of this paper, in spite of efforts, this work has so far remained incomplete. This component, by helping to create such an actionable strategy will assist in bringing all the players (government ministries including the Ministry of Labor, Private Sector, and others) to the table, and by doing so, lay the grounds for medium to long term intentional coordination by the Government.
13 Transition in Afghanistan: Looking Beyond 2012, the World Bank, November, 2011, Executive Summary
7 28. At the same time, it is realized that institutionalization without standardization is not possible. Standardization applies to both TVET service providers and those who are serviced, i.e., students. This matter of standardization is addressed through sub-components on development of quality assurance standards for skills delivery, for accreditation, and certification examinations for students. To make the overall system sustainable, ‘Afghanization’ will be a core theme from inception, and training will be gradually provided to Afghan Technical Teachers to become Assessors of Student Technical Competency, so that by the end of the project, they can fully take over the responsibilities of administering the certification examinations. This approach will be undertaken in a phased manner and the impact assessed over time.
In low income countries, the demand for technical skills tends to be weak, fragmented across small firms and poorly coordinated. Countries need more skills to help modernize their economies and accelerate growth, but they also need a vibrant modern sector to create the demand for technical skills and sustain a training market, as well as faster growth to generate the revenues to finance skills development. Governments can break out of this chicken and egg situation by making the formation of job relevant skills through TVET an explicit part of their strategy for growth and development. This among low and middle income countries is rare. That is why, the success of Korea, Taiwan, China and Singapore, in the early years of development is worth considering. Their experience shows that they understood the type of coordination failures that can emerge in training markets in early stages of development. Consequently, they pursued a Government led coordination plan aimed at encouraging more effective alignment of skill demand and supply as well as sustainable investments in higher level skills. In particular, they brought together three elements required to achieve results: (i) a clearly identified and well-focused source of demand for these higher-level skills; (ii) training curricula and pedagogy aligned with the skills to be developed; and (iii) arrangements for implementing the relevant training programs that include measuring success in terms of meeting explicit skill gaps.
Jee Peng Tan and Yoo-Jeung Joy Nam, Pre-employment Technical and Vocational Education and Training: Fostering Relevance, Effectiveness, and Efficiency, in Almex R., et.al.,(ed.), The Right Skills for the Job?, The World Bank,2012. p. 81-82
29. Component 2: Improving the performance of TVET Schools and Institutes (US$26.8 million). There are 257 public and private institutions accredited by DMTVET (210 public and 47 private) and these institutions will be eligible for participation in this component. Other institutions that are accredited over the life of the project will also be eligible. All institutions supported under the project will need to have strong private sector participation in the management committees vested with decision making authority.
30. This component will include a program for the recognition of schools and institutes that have already implemented some Good Practice (GP) in terms of initiatives taken to improve academic management, reform school administration, attempts to find placements for students, or to establish linkages with local industries, curricular reform at the local level, practical steps to deal with student welfare, etc. Such schools and institutes will be given an Award of USD 30,000 in kind. The second step will consist of selecting a number of schools and institutes (approximately 15 over the life of the project) who, through a detailed Business Plan (BP) demonstrate a willingness to sustain these Good Practices and/or to introduce new ones. The selected schools and institutions will be provided development grants. The BP will include very specific measures for:
8 (a) Building robust market linkages, (b) Introducing curricular reform with the specific idea of making skills taught at the school market-relevant14, and also to impart non-cognitive and life skills, (c) broad-basing of school governing councils to ensure private sector and industry participation in management and decision making, and (d) Establishing milestones for improvement in school administration.
31. There will be however, a cap of 15% of the total proposal in the BP for civil works. The Business Plan will have clear timelines and milestones to be achieved and sub-plans for reaching those milestones. BP will also include capacity building for administrators and staff of schools and institutes.
32. All schools and institutes that are recognized will be given TA to help them prepare their BP. These BPs will be evaluated based on specific criteria. Schools and institutes which satisfy the evaluation criteria will be provided funds for implementing their BP up to a maximum of USD 400,000.
33. A sub-component will fund a Voucher Program for meritorious students to pursue further professional certification programs. The total number of vouchers proposed to be provided will be about 1000. Attention will be paid to the process of selecting students. Currently, this process (introduced as a pilot under the ongoing ASDP I) involves a selection test, interview, and counseling. The final decision on beneficiaries is made at the level of the Office of the Minister of Education. The process will be strengthened to ensure that elite capture is eliminated and that there is clear transparency throughout the selection process.
34. Component 3: Improving Teacher Competencies (US$6.9 million). This component will be specifically directed towards developing an infrastructure for in-service training for Technical Teachers and to build a pool of Master Trainers. In this area, the Association will collaborate closely with GIZ who is already involved in pre-service and in-service training, to ensure coordination. It is proposed to train around 750 Technical VET Teachers and develop at least 60 Master Trainers. This will help the Technical Teachers Training Institute (3TI) to become sustainable in terms of Faculty resources by the end of the project. The Technical Teachers will undergo an eight month program delivered in four modules of two months each, and the Master Trainers – selected from the batches of Teacher Trainees – will undergo a course of two years.
35. Component 4: Project Management, Monitoring & Evaluation and Public Awareness (US$5.5 million). This component will finance the TA cost for the Skills Team, as well as costs of third party M&E, and a Public Awareness Campaign. The Public Awareness Campaign will sensitize High school graduates on the type of training provided by various institutions as well as the quality of the training. Further, survey has shown that even in the largest cities, SMEs are unaware of TVET in general. 15 The Awareness Campaign will also address this issue. At a later stage of the project, the possibility of combining the public
14 The focus sectors have been identified based on perceived needs of the market and include at present: (i) management and administration, (ii) accounting and banking, (iii) ICT, (iv) basic engineering skills (such construction related trades, metal work, and mechanical repairs), and (v) agriculture and related sub-sectors 15 USAID report, op.cit.
9 awareness campaigns with an MIS initiative to create a more operational ‘information, guidance and advisory' (IAG) service that actually seeks to broker contact between specific employers and individual students will be developed through the creation of public networks and interactive forums.
36. It is realized that the government has difficulties in monitoring outcomes. To deal with this issue, under the Monitoring and Evaluation sub-component, an MIS system will be developed and institutionalized. In addition, there are several areas where the project will support Third Party monitoring. These include: (a) evaluation of learning outcomes of students; (b) evaluation of teacher performance; (c) evaluation of Business Plan implementation; (d) satisfaction surveys of industry representatives on school and institute Governing Councils; and (e) Tracer studies of graduate students from project supported schools and institutes assessing impacts on employment and earnings. In addition, Impact Evaluation studies will be carried out by external agency during the project period.
Eligibility for Processing under OP/BP 8.0
37. The project has been developed keeping OP/BP 8.00 in mind with regard to expedited processing, given the country constraints, including the upcoming Elections and the Transition in 2014. The project is designed to ensure that project implementation modules are in place at the earliest so that there are no implementation delays, and the maximum advantage can be taken of the current stability in political, administrative and security situation.
Consistency with Country Strategy (CAS or ISN)
38. The Bank’s Afghanistan Interim Strategy Note (FY12-14) has three pillars, and the proposed ASDP II would directly support the third pillar, focused on inclusive growth and jobs. Jobs will go to skilled Afghan workforce if the labor market perceives the employability of the workforce. ASDP has shown that it is possible to improve employability by improving the quality and relevance of the skills provided and ASDP II builds on this experience. The project will support the ISN’s cross-cutting gender agenda by stressing on gender mainstreaming in skills development. The share of female beneficiaries in ASDP is already at around 30% and this proportion is proposed to be increased under ASDP II. The Government’s NPP1 is also predicated on the same concerns as those of the ISN and has put an emphasis on TVET as well as highlight the need to have an overall qualifications framework for vocational education.
39. In this context, it is also important to note that one of the findings of the World Development Report 2013 (WDR 2013) underscores employment as a significant pathway to social cohesion as it unleashes opportunities for men and women, in particular the youth, to enjoy higher life satisfaction. ASDP II caters also to the government run schools and institutes which cater to relatively economically disadvantaged youth from distant and insecure provinces by giving them completely free education and access to TVET. There is also a governmental policy that applies to these schools and institutes, enjoining them to have at least 30% female representation. This is in line with the WDR 2013 findings16.
16. World Development report 2013 on Jobs.
10 Expected Outcomes
40. Key outcomes and results indicators are: (a) Improvement in potential for employment and earnings as measured by- (i) Number of students of project supported institutions who obtain certifications from an internationally recognized institution/Agency. (ii) Percentage of graduates of project supported institutions who are employed within six months of graduation. (iii) Increase in earnings of the graduates of project supported institutions. (b) Improvement in skills delivery system as measured by- (i) Number of schools which demonstrate good practice in terms of (a) increasing the market relevance of skills acquired by students, (b) increased industry participation in school governance and management, and (c) improvement in infrastructure (both hard and soft) for skills delivery. (ii) Improvement in students’ learning outcomes.
C. Appraisal of Project Activities
Economic and Financial Analyses
41. In Afghanistan, workers in the formal sector account for about 20% of the labor force. In addition, the formal sector has grown from 1,139 private registered enterprises to 5,465 between 2004 and 2011. Data from several surveys suggest that there is demand for skilled labor and the outcomes from tracer studies of interventions under the ongoing ASDP project yield positive results. There is also rationale for public sector investments in training as elucidated in annex 10 of the economic analysis.
42. The economic feasibility of the proposed project is estimated through cost benefit analysis. The project is expected to generate direct and indirect benefits through (i) improvement in internal efficiency of TVET schools and institutes in terms of increased graduation rates and trade certification; and (ii) external efficiency via increased skilled employment and better earnings for TVET graduates as a result of higher productivity. The project will create positive externalities with more firms interested in hiring newly trained students with relevant skills and competences to take advantage of business opportunities opening up. Using the estimated benefits and costs associated with the project based on a 10 percent discount rate and a 25 year lifetime cycle, we compute the discounted present value of the project’s net benefit to be US$ 51.7 million. These benefits and costs yield an internal rate of return of 23 percent, which is larger than the cost of borrowing, thus making this TVET investment worth undertaking.
Technical
43. Technical capacity to implement the project exists in the Skills Team of DMTVET. However, this has to be supplemented by appropriate specialist TA. Support also needs to be provided for Teacher Training and for training of Principals and Administrators of schools and
11 institutes. Capacity for coordination of project implementation activities and the design, contracting and execution and supervision of civil works also exists and has been shown.
44. Capacity to develop market relevant courses is limited. The primary reason is the lack of involvement of employers and the private sector in discussions on these issues and the non- availability of industry-experienced people in the Curriculum Development Department of the DMTVET. The project aims to alleviate these constraints.
45. Currently, there are six institutes which have received support from ASDP in one way or the other. These are ANIM, NIMA, Afghan Institute of Technology, Blind School, Computer Technology Institute and Auto-mechanical school. Of these, NIMA, ANIM, Blind School and AIT have shown evidence of reforms initiatives, and will continue to be supported under ASDP II. However, this support will also be tied to actions under clear-cut Business Plans framed by them which will include developing the Afghan Faculty of these schools during the project period. The project design envisages a decline of foreign Faculty support to these schools over the course of the project implementation.
46. Overall, there are no leadership issues in the DMTVET and discussions have revealed that near future changes are unlikely. Personnel engaged in ASDP are well versed in Bank protocols, implementation and reporting needs. A challenge will be to create a similar atmosphere and readiness to respond to changes at the school and institute level. Schools and institutes supported under this project will be provided technical assistance to enhance their capacity to implement the program.
Fiduciary
47. Financial Management of ASDP II will be carried out through the existing Skills Team which is adequately staffed. In the latest FM review of the FM function in the unit in December 2012, the rating has been upgraded to Satisfactory.
48. Procurement was reviewed in December 2012. The procurement section in the existing Skills Team will carry out procurement functions for ASDP II also. The review in December 2012 found that the unit is adequately staffed and there is sufficient understanding of Bank procedures. Staff has adequate experience. Based on the above, procurement risk has been rated at Moderate.
Social (including Safeguards)
49. There is no social safeguard policy triggered by the project. The project is not expected to require any land acquisition, because the business plans of the TVET schools and institutes will primarily cover only minor civil works such as building of internal separation walls or electrical installation. The project includes civil works for a few new buildings in NIMA and DMTVET which will be built on the land that already belongs to the MOE. The MOE will document that the required land is free of any squatters and claims.
50. The implementing agency will review and enhance the current Complaint Handling System (CHS) at the beneficiary TVET schools and institutes and dormitories. The strengthening of CHS will focus on multiple grievance uptake channels and establishment of a grievance
12 redress committee in each beneficiary TVET school and institute, and its dormitory. The implementing agency will also ensure maintenance of complaint records in a central database to enable complaint tracking and review.
51. The Skills Team will have procedures in place to address broader social issues and promote gender equality by increasing the gender ratio in student and teacher population in the beneficiary TVET schools and institutes.
52. A Social and Gender Focal person is being recruited to ensure monitoring of the equity aspects throughout the project. The Social and Gender Focal person will receive training on social and gender aspects, in particular on the job training on the complaints handling system.
Environment (including Safeguards)
53. The project is Environmental Category B, and the Environmental Assessment Policy (OP 4.01) is triggered. Civil works under the project are expected to have limited environmental impacts because the civil works comprise renovation of the existing TVET schools and institutes such as building internal separation walls or electrical installations. Any new small buildings under the project will be built on the land that already belongs to MOE. The identified potential adverse impacts if any would be localized in spatial context, will be of short duration, and would be manageable through proper mitigation measures.
54. The anticipated environmental impacts of the project primarily comprise issues relating to environmental and personnel safety. Since the exact location of the TVET schools and institutes selected for renovation17, is not known at appraisal, a framework approach is being applied to address environmental impacts. The ESMF includes environmental guidelines and checklists for contractors. The framework also includes the appropriate environmental measures for mitigating impacts of construction activities including worker health and safety (consistent with IFC/ World Bank Group Environment Health, and Safety Guidelines (2007)).
55. Site-specific EMPs will be prepared for each sub-project to manage construction waste disposal and minimize dust hazards for workers, staff and nearby communities. An Environmental Focal person is being recruited by the Skills Team to ensure implementation of environmental safeguards during the project implementation.
Lessons Learned and Reflected in the Project Design
56. Engagement with the TVET sector and more specifically, implementation of ASDP brought to light some issues and also provided directions which the proposed project design has taken into account. These are as follows:
17 Construction under the project falls in two categories – construction in the institutes which are currently being supported by ASDP and will continue to receive aid under the new project, and renovation work in the schools and institutes which come under the project for the first time. The location of construction for the first category is known whereas the locations for the second category will be known as implementation progresses.
13 (a) Sharpening of focus on a market driven TVET program: Over the years, the TVET system which was originally based on the Russian model, has drifted further and further away from linkages with the market and emerging industrial scene. This was one of the major reasons why students were unable to get jobs after graduation.
The Auto Mechanical School in Kabul (Jangalak): The school has only two 1970s model cars of Russian make on which the students learn. Placement rate is approximately 10% (annual graduating cohort of approximately 900). Computer Training Institute: Has fifteen year old computers, and teachers are not trained on the latest computer languages, so student placement is minimal. Accounting Institute Kabul: No computers for students. Teachers do not know English, and the accounting system taught is Iranian, which has no application or usage in Afghanistan, which works on standard GAAP. Placement is minimal.
ASDP was the first attempt to deliberately provide this linkage. However, much more needs to be done and at a wider scope, if the whole supply system of skilled personnel is to be directly linked to market demand. ASDP II will attempt to do that by including a larger number of schools from all over the country within its scope, and providing incentives for market linked skills delivery. (b) Development of a strategic vision for TVET: In the area of general education, the NESP laid out clear directions. While the ANDS document and later on the NESP I and II paid some attention to TVET, the strategy was not as clearly laid out as in the case of general education. Government’s focus has shifted back to TVET recently in the wake of Presidential Decrees that emphasize the major role that TVET is expected to play. The Decree also specifically identifies the DMTVET as the driver of TVET development. In view of these developments, various bodies have been working with the DMTVET to try and frame a national TVET policy and strategy but this work has not been completed. There is thus a strong need to complete this work and lay out a strategic vision and a sustainable implementation plan for this sector as a response to both emerging market needs and pressing government policies. (c) Decentralization of school administration: When the implementation of ASDP began, the school administrative system was totally centralized. One of the covenants of ASDP was that autonomy should be granted to aided institutions in a phased manner. As a result, the Ministry has provided some degree of autonomy to the schools and institutions, but a lot remains to be done. Schools do not even have imprest cash to meet their smallest needs and thus very minor repairs also take a very long time to be carried out. In the area of curricular reform, there is no flexibility given to schools to adopt the curricula to accommodate to local industry needs, or to design their own practical lessons and solutions. This level of centralization reinforces the disconnect with the labor market since changes of any kind, in academic management or otherwise cannot be brought in, and industry is reluctant to participate in school affairs unless their participation bears some fruit. In the proposed project, the granting of autonomy
14 to schools in a phased manner will continue to be a dated covenant for all institutions being supported. Autonomy, in this context, means: (a) administrative autonomy (schools being free to manage their affairs within a boundary defined by Ministry policies); (b) academic autonomy (schools being free to innovate and bring in changes in delivery of skills training in response to market needs as perceived by them); and (c) financial autonomy (schools being allowed to open Bank Accounts, have imprest cash, receive grants and donations from supporting industries, as a starting point and to be able to generate income from trainings provided later on) (d) Training of Technical Teachers: While ASDP trained 570 technical teachers mainly in classroom management and pedagogy, technical training of teachers was not its focus. However, implementation of ASDP has highlighted the need for technical training (in addition to pedagogical training) for technical teachers. The lack of teacher competence has now come to the forefront as a major factor impeding higher quality TVET delivery. ASDP II project will focus on putting in place arrangements for training of technical teachers as well as master trainers. (e) Private sector responds positively to inclusive actions on TVET: Experience with ASDP has shown that where the private sector has been involved in the governance of institutions, it has led to institutions developing better linkages with the local labor market. This has in turn led to enhanced employment opportunities for graduates. ASDP II will further support this through ensuring that all institutions supported through the project have management committees which have a significant representation of the private sector and that they have a voice in the day to day management of the institutions. (f) Importance of certifying institutions: Under ASDP, the Committee on Education and Skills Policy (CESP) was set up. The Committee is chaired by the First Vice President and has all the Ministers of concerned Ministries as members18. The CESP is part of the Government response to the need for sector wide institutional reforms in TVET. Under its mandate, the CESP had developed a qualifications framework, and also encouraged the development of the National Occupational Skills Standards. While some NOSS have been developed so far, the standardization has not yet been benchmarked and no certification examinations have been held for technical (hard) skills. This issue is particularly addressed in the proposed project.
D. Implementation Arrangements and Financing Plan
57. No new Program Implementation Unit (PIU) will be established for the execution of this proposed project. Given the nature of the project and its strategic importance, the large number of activities to be completed within the time frame of the project, and the existing limited capacity of the government to coordinate and monitor program implementation, the following institutional arrangements have been agreed to ensure that funds are disbursed quickly, multi- sectoral objectives are reached, and that the transparency of all transactions is maintained.
18 Ministries of Education, Higher Education, Labor Social Welfare, Martyrs and Disabled, Finance, and Economy.
15 58. The DMTVET is a fully established department within the MOE with more than 2000 staff and teachers across the country and about 140 staff members in the DMTVET’s headquarters in Kabul. The Skills Team, within the DMTVET, will continue to be responsible for the main fiduciary functions related to program activities, such as procurement, financial management and reporting as well as project related coordination with other line departments, such as, planning and M&E. The DMTVET has also its own Engineering and Design department, which has been looking after the construction works of the Deputy Ministry. This includes overall technical guidance on rehabilitation and construction of schools and institutes.
59. The reasons for adopting this approach are two-fold: (1) it has been stated that the project has been front-loaded in order to ensure optimal disbursement before Transition, and this requires continuing, sustainable and effective systems, and (2) the existing TA within DMTVET have already trained a number of civil servants in procedures and protocols as applicable to Bank projects, and this process can be brought to a satisfactory stage given some more time, and in addition new civil servants can be trained.
60. Financial management, disbursements and procurement will continue to be the responsibility of the Skills Team. The arrangements are already in place, and have been reviewed and appraised by the FM and Procurement Teams of IDA. Additionally, the Procurement function has recently been strengthened with the addition of a Contract Management Officer in the Procurement Section of the Skills Team. FM staff in the Skills Team is conversant with Bank’s requirements including submission of Interim Financial Reports (IFR) and audits. Similarly, procurement staff is also conversant with all Bank procedures as no adverse comments have been received. Sample based procurement ex-post reviews have not revealed any deviation from established procedures and guidance.
61. Sub-grants to schools and institutes will be administered by the Skills Team within DMTVET, and the FM Manual will state in detail the mechanisms for allocating and disbursing funds. Appropriate and adequate checks and balances will be introduced to ensure transparency and accountability.
62. An essential part of project design is the involvement of the private sector in school and institution governance and management. It is proposed that schools and institutes set up Governing Councils (GCL) before the first tranche of sub-grant for school/institute is disbursed. This disbursement condition will be implemented at the sub-grant level and monitored through the Skills Team of DMTVET. It will be captured in the PIM and its arrangement closely monitored. The GCL may have a maximum of seven (7) members, one of who shall be the Chairman. The GCL will have at least three (3) representatives from the private sector, not more than three (3) persons from the school/institute, and not more than one (1) representative from the Ministry. The Chairman of the GCL will be a private sector representative, and the Principal or Administrator of the school or the institute will be the Deputy Chairman. The Governing Council will meet at least once every two months. Any committees constituted under the GCL will mandatorily have a private sector member. Co-options to such committees should be done in such a manner that there is increasing representation of the private sector in managerial decision- making in the school/institute.
16 63. Government shall also have to ensure that the decisions taken by the Governing Councils are implemented. To do this, it is proposed that the Ministry provides clear-cut directions to the schools/institutes so that they may act on all decisions whose impacts are internal. Recruitment and termination will however continue to be done from the central level. Covenant to the project requires that the DMTVET devises a plan to provide administrative autonomy to the beneficiary schools and institutes in a clear-cut manner.
64. Finally, it is proposed that the autonomy to be granted to the schools/institutes be carried to fiduciary functions also, particularly finance and accounting. It is understood that this cannot be done in one shot, and that there is likely to be an evolving process of change. It is therefore proposed that the granting of financial autonomy begins with the government devising an appropriate plan to do so within a stipulated time within the current legal framework.
65. A detailed Project Implementation Manual (PIM) will be developed and put in place by September 30, 2013 after obtaining concurrence from the Association. A financial management Manual shall be annexed to the PIM.
Project Cost and Financing
Cost % of Project Component (US$ Financing Financing million) Component 1:Strengthening the TVET institutional system 8.5 IDA 100% Component 2: Improving Performance of TVET schools 26.8 IDA 100% and institutes Component 3: Improving Teacher Competencies 6.9 IDA 100% Component 4: Project Management, M&E and Public 5.5 IDA 100% Awareness Incremental Operating Costs 4.1 IDA 100% Salaries of Technical Teacher Trainees and governmental support staff 5.00 Borrower 100% Total Base costs 56.8 Contingencies 3.2 IDA 100% Total Project Costs 60.0
Financial Management 66. A Public Financial Management performance rating system has been recently developed for Afghanistan by the Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA) multi-agency partnership program, which includes the World Bank, IMF, European Union, and other agencies. Afghanistan’s ratings against the PFM performance indicators portray a public sector where financial resources are, by and large, being used for their intended purposes as authorized by a budget that is processed with transparency and has contributed to aggregate fiscal discipline.
67. Financial management and audit functions for the proposed project will be undertaken through agents contracted under the IDA-financed Public Financial Management Reform Project (PFMRP) II. This is the primary instrument for continuing to strengthen the fiduciary measures
17 put in place for ensuring transparency and accountability of funds provided by the Bank and other donors. Under these contracts, two advisers - Financial Management and Audit - are responsible for working with the government and line ministries to carry out these core functions. The former, the Financial Management Agent (FMA) is responsible for helping the Ministry of Finance (MOF) maintain the accounts for all public expenditures, including IDA- financed projects and for building capacity within the government offices for these functions. The latter, the Audit Agent is responsible for providing technical assistance to the Control and Audit office in the performance of annual audits.
68. The financial management consultants working with the Skills Team will also work with the Finance and Administration department of DMTVET and assist them in the financial management of the project and undertake their capacity building.
69. Interim Financial Reports will be prepared by financial management consultants in the Skills Team every quarter and submitted to the Bank within 45 days from the end of the quarter. Consolidated project reports will be prepared, reviewed, and approved by the MOF, supported by the FMA.
70. A Designated Account (DA) will be opened at DA Afghanistan Bank (DAB, Central Bank) in the name of the project on terms and conditions satisfactory to the Association. The DA will be maintained by the MOF. Withdrawal applications for new advances and expenditure reports will be submitted monthly.
71. Fund management for the project will follow existing procedures. As with all public expenditure, all payments under the project will be routed through MOF. The FM Adviser will assist the MOF in executing and recording project payments. In keeping with current practices for other projects in Afghanistan, the DA will be operated by the Special Disbursement Unit (SDU) in the Treasury Department MOF. Requests for payments from DA funds will be made to the SDU by Finance and Administration department of DMTVET with assistance from the financial management consultants. All documentation will be maintained by the Finance and Administration department of DMTVET and the finance section of the Skills Team.
72. In addition to payments from DA funds, Finance and Administration department (DMTVET) can also request the SDU to make direct payments to consultants or consulting firms, and special commitments for contracts covered by letters of credit. Such requests will follow World Bank’s procedures. All withdrawal applications to IDA, including advances, reimbursement, and direct payment applications, will be prepared by the Project and submitted to MOF.
73. The Finance and Administration department (DMTVET), with assistance from financial management consultants will maintain essential project transaction records using computerized accounting system/Excel spreadsheets and generate required monthly, quarterly, and annual reports.
74. There shall be a Financial Management Manual for the project annexed to the PIM. The Manual will be in a form and content acceptable to the Bank.
18 75. The FM Manual (to be submitted by the MOE in form and content acceptable to the Association by September 30, 2013 and annexed to the PIM) will establish project financial management in accordance with standard Afghan government policies and procedures including use of the government Chart of Accounts to record Project expenditures. Overall Project accounts will be maintained centrally in SDU, which will be ultimately responsible for recording of all Project expenditures and receipts in the Government’s accounting system. Reconciliation of Project expenditure records with MOF records will be carried out monthly by the finance unit of the project.
76. Disbursements from the grant will be made using advances, reimbursement, direct payment, and payments under Special Commitments including records or against reports, in the form of statements of expenditures, as appropriate.
77. The Auditor General, supported by the Audit Agent, is responsible for auditing the accounts of all IDA and ARTF-financed projects; it will also be responsible for this Project’s audit. Annual audited project financial statements will be submitted within six months of the close of GIROA’s fiscal year. The Bank-funded projects already or currently being implemented by MOE (EQUIP, the Female Youth Employment Initiative, as well as ASDP) have no overdue audit reports. The key issues raised in these projects’ audit reports up to Solar Year 1389 have been resolved satisfactorily. Audit report for Solar Year 1390 has been prepared, reviewed and sent to the Client. The responsible entity for the audit report is the Ministry of Education. There are no significant audit issues.
78. Details of the arrangements for Financial Management are provided in Annex 5.
Procurement
79. With donor assistance, Afghanistan has made considerable efforts to establish the Legal and Regulatory Framework for public procurement over the last five years. A Procurement Law, reflecting international best practice in public procurement, was enacted in November 2005 replacing the earlier procurement regulations. While the law provides a very modern legal system for procurement, effective implementation of the law may encounter difficulties in the current weak institutional structure and capacity of the Government. A Procurement Policy Unit (PPU) has now been established under MOF to ensure implementation through the creation of secondary legislation, standard bidding documents, provision of advice, creation of the necessary information systems for advertising and data collection. “Rules of Procedure for Public Procurement,” which details the better implementation of the Procurement Law, has been issued by MOF.
80. The Special Procurement Commission, comprising the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) and Ministry of Economy (MOE) and under the chairmanship of MOF, approves high-value contracts.
81. In the absence of adequate capacity to manage procurement activities effectively, some interim arrangements have been put in place to improve Afghanistan’s procurement management. Specifically, a central procurement facilitation service, the Afghanistan
19 Development and Reconstruction Services (ARDS) Procurement Unit, has been established under the supervision of MOF.
82. Procurement for the project will be administered in accordance with the World Bank’s “Guidelines: Procurement under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits” dated January 2011”, and “Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers” dated January 2011, and the Financing Agreement. In addition, the World Bank’s “Guidelines on Preventing and Combating Corruption in Projects Financed by IBRD Loans and IDA Credits and Grants,” dated October 15, 2006, revised January 2011 has been shared with the recipient.
83. The World Bank’s Standard Bidding Documents, Requests for Proposals, and Forms of Consultant Contract will be used. Civil works and goods following National Competitive Bidding (NCB) procedures shall be procured using the agreed Standard Bidding Documents (SBDs) for Afghanistan. For sub-component 1.4, a procurement decision will be taken on the basis of a Consultant Qualification Selection (CQS). The implementing partner will have to provide facilitative and consultative support in the whole process of systemic development and improvement. The implementing partner will also assist in the systematization of the generic learning outcomes and competencies for each level. The important issues are to find correspondences between the various trainings that are offered either in the formal or the informal sector.
84. In case of conflict/contradiction between the World Bank’s procurement procedures and any national rules and regulations, the World Bank’s procurement procedures will take precedence as per the Article 4(2) of the Procurement Law July 2008 (Amendments in January 2009 incorporated) of the GIROA, and the World Bank’s Procurement/Consultant Guidelines shall prevail. The general description of various procurements under different expenditure categories are described in Annex 6. A detailed procurement plan has been prepared for the project.
85. The proposed project is implemented by DMTVET/MOE. The procurement staff already working in the Skills Team has satisfactory experience in handling non-complex and medium value contracts. ASDP-II will process large and complex contracts through Procurement Directorate of the MOE.
Strategy and Approach for Implementation Support
86. The strategy for implementation support for the project is based on ensuring that risks described in the ORAF are mitigated as per the plan presented in the ORAF. The ORAF presented in Annex 4 adequately describes the specific measures to be taken. Based on these measures, the following strategic approach has been developed:
87. There will be three levels of oversight for the project –at the Ministry level, at the Implementing Unit level, and for Fiduciary functions. With Transition approaching, it will be necessary to have regular oversight by the government at the highest levels. This will assure that project interventions continue to receive the priority they deserve on a continuing basis.
88. Ministry oversight – at the level of the Ministry, oversight mechanisms include a Steering Committee which is internal to the Ministry, and a Donor Coordination Group, which
20 will comprise all donors who are concerned with skills development through the MOE. The Steering Committee will provide policy and strategic guidance and take overall project level decisions. The Donor Coordination Group will be a more informally constituted group and its primary role will be to ensure coordination among the various donors who are directly or indirectly involved with the TVET sector. Implementation support here will ensure and facilitate (a) adherence to project covenants and legal requirements, (b) timing of actions, (c) actions on policy level decisions, (d) coordination among DPs to avoid duplication of investment actions, and (e) coordination with other Ministries such as the MOF to ensure smooth project operations. Development Partners would convene, in consultation with MOE, the Donor Coordination Group. The composition of these two bodies is shown in the following table:
Steering Committee Donor Coordination Group
Minister of Education Chairman Development Member (6) Partners
Dy. Minister, TVET Member Head of the Skills Secretary Team
Representative of MOF Member
Director General of Finance and Member di Donor Representatives Member (3)
Private Sector and Industry Member (2) i Skills Team’s Head Secretary
The Steering Committee shall be established by July 15, 2013. Detailed Terms of Reference of these two oversight bodies will be provided in the Project Implementation Manual.
89. Implementing Unit oversight – At the Deputy Ministry of TVET, a Standing Committee for ASDP will be constituted. The Standing Committee will be in place throughout the tenure of the project. The PIM will provide detailed Terms of Reference for the Standing Committee. However, the Committee will develop its own Rules of Business. The composition of the Standing Committee will be as follows:
21 Standing Committee for ASDP II
Deputy Minister of TVET Chairman
Skills Team’s head Member/Secretary
Director General (Finance and Admin.) of MOE Member
Finance Management Specialist, Skills Team Member
Procurement Specialist, Skills Team Member
Representatives of Private Sector and Industry (other than those are member Member (2) of Steering Committee)
Chairman will have the power to nominate a maximum of two other members to the Standing Committee. The primarily role of the Standing Committee will be to ensure that project implementation follows stipulated guidelines and adheres to the timelines as planned.
90. The Skills Team within the DMTVET will actually oversee the implementation of the project, particularly the execution of the sub-projects by the Beneficiary schools and institutes. Implementation support therefore will be directed towards providing technical support and guidance for smooth implementation. Implementation Support will also look at current or emerging issues that need to be resolved with respect to the MOE itself, or with respect to other external agencies or DPs.
91. Fiduciary oversight – Implementation support will be focused upon fiduciary matters on a regular basis. Both the Procurement and FM Teams in the Bank regularly guide and provide technical advice on issues to the implementing unit within the DMTVET, and during Implementation Support Missions (ISM), particular attention will be paid to implementing agency’s problems and ways and means will be explored to expedite matters keeping the Bank guidelines in the forefront.
92. It is expected that challenges will arise from the fact that the schools and institutions to be covered may be in provinces that are disturbed. These issues will be handled in consultation with the Ministry on a case by case basis. Options ranging from satellite imagery to hiring of third parties for on-site evaluation will be explored. Other issues that will require implementation support will arise from the design itself, particularly the sub-components concerning certification. In these respects, implementation support will also involve technical discussions with the implementing partner to sort out technical and administrative issues.
93. Implementation Management Tools. Other than the Project Implementation Manual, which will be completed by September 30, 2013, it is also proposed to develop other reporting tools which will help ISMs to assess project progress and to choose from various alternative approaches. The project is investing in M&E and also a LMIS. These will all be used to inform
22 implementation. These will also complement the Client’s M&E system, and will be useful to carry out mid-stream corrections where necessary.
94. Operational Guidelines. The PIM itself will contain fully developed Operational Guidelines, in addition to detailed Fiduciary Guidelines that will be fully exposed to project staff. Transparency and accountability will be promoted through strict observance of these Guidelines.
95. The Bank will maintain a multidisciplinary team of experts for implementation support, including specialists experienced in TVET, procurement, financial management, social, environment, and MIS/M&E.
96. Project implementation support and supervision will be conducted through: i. Two full regular Bank supervision missions every year and intermediate technical missions by specialists, as needed. The regular supervision missions will include field visits to schools and institutes on sample basis as well as interaction with project beneficiaries and various stakeholders. ii. Regular review meetings with MOE. iii. Review of Annual Action Plans prepared by the Skills Team iv. Review of semi-annual implementation progress reports prepared by the Skills Team. v. Review of M&E reports prepared by external agency, and third party reports on various aspects of project implementation. vi. Review of procurement post-reviews, IUFRs, and external audit reports. vii. Mid-term review (no later than October 31, 2015) viii. Mid-term Impact Evaluation reports
97. Alternate mechanisms for implementation, such as recruiting an UN agency to fully oversee project implementation have not been considered for this project. The reasons are that (i) there is already a working mechanism in place which has been rated as satisfactory for fiduciary purposes and (ii) that this mechanism uses civil service personnel and thus helps to build up capacity of the regular civil service.
Implementation Support Plan
98. The proposed implementation support plan is summarized below:
Time First Twelve months 12-48 months
Focus The focus of ISM during the first twelve months would be During this period, all other sub- on Components of Institutional strengthening, school and components would be initiated and institution Development, building up the infrastructure for completed, including the teacher training, implementation of the second phase of certification process and the TVET Voucher Programs, and capacity building measures for Plan administrators/ principals of schools as well as the Monitoring and Inspection department of DMTVET. It is also envisaged that the process of building up the
23 standardization and certification process will be initiated.
Skills Needed Skills needed during this period would be FM, All the skills mentioned in previous Procurement, Business Consultation and Business Plan column, plus Evaluation skills Development (for the VET schools), Design and Engineering, specific skills on equipping Teacher Training Schools for TVET teachers, School Inspection and Monitoring, Standards and Certification, M&E, and managerial skills
Resource At least six consultants in the various disciplines as At least six different Estimate mentioned above will be needed for periods varying consultants/staff for periods varying between 15 days to 70 days between three to five months over the total period
Timeline for Implementation
FY 14 FY 15 FY 16 FY 17 FY 18 (Jul 13 - Jun 14) (6 months) Recruitment of all Completion of Completion of Second Round of Closure activities TA and Completion Recognition Phase second round of Development and Impact of Recognition Awards and Recognition Support to Schools Evaluation studies at Phase Cycle 1; completion of first Awards, all other completed close. Procurement of cycle of activities in full Equipment for TTTI Development swing. Third Party and identification of Support Awards. Reports start to Implementation TTTI Program starts, come in. All Partners for Schools vouchers Awarded construction works and TTTI and Training of all completed staff starts. Mid-term Impact Evaluation work starts.
Monitoring and Evaluation
99. Monitoring and Evaluation for the project is proposed to be carried out on a continuous basis. The Skills Team already has a MIS system in place and it is regularly updated. However, it is necessary to strengthen the system. The project proposes to have a comprehensive MIS covering all aspects of the project (fiduciary ones in particular) and also a separate Labor Market Information System (LMIS).
100. The M&E system of the proposed project would consist of the following broad categories: (i) concurrent monitoring of physical and financial progress; (ii) results monitoring of PDO and intermediate outcome indicators, through major surveys at baseline, mid-term, and project completion, and smaller annual surveys in interim years; (iii) participatory monitoring; and (iv) Impact Evaluation studies and specialized thematic studies to rigorously establish the impacts of the project. The entire system will be supported by a computerized management information system (MIS) designed to (a) capture progress and achievements on various indicators as defined in the Results framework and described in Annex 1, (b) provide alerts and
24 reports to resource persons to facilitate activity planning and decision making, (c) support to institution level staff for decentralized data entry to enable data collection at appropriate levels, (d) aggregate data at levels that allow insightful analysis, and (e) provide a framework for information reporting, including generating reports on demand and at regular intervals. In addition, the investments made in capacity building of the Monitoring and Inspection Team of the DMTVET is expected to yield results in terms of high quality inputs on institution and school performance on a regular basis.
101. ASDP II proposes that given the general non-availability of verifiable data, and unreliability of data generated in-house, services of Third Party firm will be requested to provide monitoring of project outcomes. These will of course be complemented by the DMTVET’s own data generating and monitoring system which will then benefit also from the methodology and rigor of the Third Party surveys.
102. The closing date for the project is June 30, 2018
E. Key Risks and Mitigating Measures
Risk Ratings Summary Table
Risk Rating Stakeholder Risk Substantial Implementing Agency Risk - Capacity Moderate - Governance Substantial Project Risk - Design Substantial - Social and Environmental Substantial - Program and Donor Moderate - Delivery Monitoring and Substantial Sustainability Overall Implementation Risk Substantial
Overall Risk Rating Explanation
103. The overall risk rating for the project is Substantial as defined in the project ORAF (Annex 4), and is attributable to the key risks described below.
(a) Uncertainty: The period around the transition and upcoming elections (2013 and 2014) and uncertainty in the country environment could slow down implementation progress. It is expected that the new Government may not significantly change the fundamental focus of the project on institutional strengthening of the TVET system and granting of autonomy to the beneficiary TVET schools and institutes because the project attempts to address the underlying causes behind the poor TVET service delivery.
25 (b) Governance challenge: Insufficient transparency in personnel management and rent-seeking continue to persist though there has been no reported incidence of corruption in the ongoing ASDP project. The Project Steering Committee chaired by the Minister of Education will oversee and monitor project progress and help resolve problems as they arise. The Bank task team will also continue to closely monitor the recruitment process under the project and keep the MOE’s leadership apprised of the decisions by lower level officials that may affect implementation adversely. The project design includes actions to help build capacity of the Skills Team in procurement and financial management as well as a strong monitoring and evaluation program including monitoring by the third party in critical areas
(c) Capacity weaknesses: Implementation and monitoring capacity is weak across the TVET system. Capacity of the TVET schools and institutes (except NIMA and ANIM supported under the ongoing ASDP project) under the DMTVET is particularly weak. The project includes specific actions to build and strengthen planning, implementation and monitoring and evaluation capacity. Notwithstanding, the capacity building agenda requires sustained and intensive efforts over an extended period. As of date, stakeholders are on board with respect to the project and the Government has also participated in all stages of the project preparation. Basic tenets of the implementation process have been discussed with the Government and the stakeholders. Concerns of all stakeholders have been included in the project design so as to arrive at a balanced perspective. Project design allows for strict supervision and vigilance so as to mitigate the risks of governance and fraud. However, especially for those components of the project that deal with incentives, risk of fraud and corruption remains substantial and the general weakness of governance systems must be taken into account.
F. Terms and Conditions for Project Financing
Description of Condition/ Covenant Date Due Recipient to (1) establish a ASDP II Steering Committee, chaired (1) July 15, 2013 by the Minister of Education, and with members, their roles and (2) Recurrent responsibilities satisfactory to the Association and (2) maintain it throughout the project. Recipient will (1) establish a ASDP II Standing Committee in July 15, 2013 DMTVET, chaired by Deputy Minister, DMTVET, and with members, their roles and responsibilities satisfactory to the Association and (2) maintain it throughout project implementation. Recipient to maintain the Skills Team within DMTVET with Recurrent staffing and terms of reference satisfactory to the Association throughout project implementation. Recipient to devise and implement a plan for providing administrative autonomy to beneficiary schools and institutes under the project
26 Description of Condition/ Covenant Date Due Recipient to devise a plan for gradual provision of financial June 15, 2014 autonomy to beneficiary schools and institutes under this project, within constraints of applicable Laws, Rules or Regulations Recipient to prepare and adopt a (1) Project Implementation (1) September 30, 2013 Manual (PIM), satisfactory to the Association, and implement the (2) Recurrent project in accordance with these Manuals , and (2) make no changes in the Manuals without concurrence of the Association. Recipient to not award Sub-grant to any beneficiary TVET school December 31, 2016 or institute after December 31, 2016. Recipient to create an Internal Audit Cell within the DMTVET, September 30, 2013 and assign an international auditor
27 Annex 1: Detailed Project Description
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project 1. Afghanistan Second Skills Development Project (ASDP II) and the ongoing ASDP differ principally in terms of the overall approach and the identification of the focus areas. In contrast to the ongoing ASDP, which focuses on both formal and non-formal sectors, ASDP II proposes to concentrate on the formal sector only. Support to the non-formal sector is being proposed under a separate project.
2. Issues that came to the forefront during ASDP implementation regarding weaknesses in the overall public sector TVET administration system, may be categorized as follows:
3. Institutional system for TVET delivery: The overall system for TVET delivery is fragmented. Short term TVET is the mandate of the MOLSAMD (called ‘informal’ TVET in Afghanistan) while formal or structured long term academic programs are the province of the DMTVET. There has been a lot of discussion19 on the need for a clear strategic Plan. However, given that labor market information is scant and unreliable, a clear plan has yet to emerge in the country. Attempts so far made have relied on irregular periodic small surveys, and the task is far from complete. The absence of such a Plan has made the task of planning for reforms and progressive pro-active actions almost impossible. There is no regulatory mechanism that ensures that curricular standards are uniform, that delivery systems adhere to some kind of quality standards, and that there is a regular monitoring and evaluation for all service providers. While DMTVET has a curriculum development department, the texts and guidance notes are theoretical, outdated and not up to the mark, since the curriculum development specialists in DMTVET have practically no industrial experience. MOLSAMD has no experts on curricula. ASDP supports a curriculum development specialist in NSDP, but his inputs are more of a general nature. Quality standards for service providers need to be established.20 NIMA and ANIM now have some quality standards, but these have to be re-modeled to apply to all service providers under the DMTVET. There is no Board or certifying examination conducted by DMTVET, and therefore competence levels of graduates cannot be benchmarked. Clearly then a system-wide approach needs to be taken to strengthen and improve skills delivery in Afghanistan.
4. Management and administration of schools and institutes: In general, schools and institutions under the DMTVET have no market linkages to enable them to remain informed about market needs of skills and there are no placement mechanisms in these institutes to enable students to have institutional support when entering the job market. No institution has a Placement Cell that interacts with industry, and there are no Governing Councils with private sector representatives, except in some institutes supported by the ongoing ASDP. Several rounds of discussions with heads of institutes have revealed a complete lack of appreciation for student related issues –whether academic or otherwise. Basically schools and institutes are run as small
19 A working group of 15 development partners was set up in 2011 by the DMTVET under the leadership of UNESCO but no accepted document has emerged. Simultaneously, other Donors have been working on TVET strategies from their own perspective. 20 USAID report, op.cit. p,48 more than 60% of respondents said that they feel that there are no TVET institutes that produce graduates of high quality in the country.
28 offices rather than as academic centers. It must also be said that the central Ministry does not encourage pro-activeness and this might have contributed to current administrative and managerial attitudes in these schools and institutes.
5. Skills Delivery and Teacher Competence: Institutions lack in provision of skills delivery and technical teachers are not adequately skilled themselves – either in pedagogy or in academic content. Delivery infrastructure, which includes, on the one hand, workshops and, on the other, proper curricula that are tuned to occupational standards as well as market needs, are deficient. As of date, the total number of teachers in DMTVET schools and institutions is 2783, of which 48% are Grade XII or Grade XIV passed. The rest has general education degrees (BA or MA) from various Universities in the country. Only those who have passed Grade XIV ( a total of 1206) have some industry experience, though at a very low level.
6. Monitoring and Evaluation: Monitoring, inspection, and evaluation of performance of institutions and the quality of skills training is weak and, although the DMTVET has an inspection department, personnel are not trained or sufficiently committed. As a result, quality of data is poor and unverified. Monitors and Inspectors are supposed to evaluate schools and institutions on a regular basis, but this is not done, nor does a clear plan for such inspections exist.
7. Public Awareness: Of the approximately 140,000 high school students who graduate every year but do not find university placements, only a small share actually opt for a Vocational Education and Training. While this could be due to many reasons, the Ministry of Education suggests that graduating students are not really aware of career options that are opened up by pursuing a vocational education stream nor do they know the quality of education being offered in these institutions. At the same time, as the USAID report reveals,21 employers are very often not aware of the existence of skills providers even in their own cities. There is therefore a need for raising public awareness about TVET at all levels.
8. The project aims to address all the above issues through the following components:
(d) Component 1: Strengthening of the TVET institutional system (e) Component 2: Improving performance of TVET Schools and Institutes (f) Component 3: Improving Teacher Competencies (g) Component 4: Project Management, M&E and Public Awareness
The project components are detailed below:
9. Component 1: Strengthening of the TVET institutional system (US$8.5 million). This component will essentially focus on (a) the formulation of a detailed TVET strategy and plan which would also be in line with the National Priority Program 1 (NPP1), the National Education Strategy Plan-II (NESP –II), and the Interim Strategy Document published by the Government, and an implementation program, (b) developing quality standards for skills delivery including quality standards for service providers, (c) improvement in curricula and the process of
21 USAID report, op.cit. p.47, More than 70% of respondents (934 SMEs) said that they are not aware of private training centers or institutes in their area that offer job skills training.
29 production of teaching materials (d) designing and implementing a labor market information system, (e) capacity building of Monitors and Inspectors of schools and institutes accredited by DMTVET, and (f) conducting certification examinations for TVET graduates and related activities. This component will have the following sub-components:
a. Sub-component 1.1: TVET Plan and Strategy (US$0.3 million)-Under this sub- component TA will be provided to the DMTVET to complete the task of developing a strategic plan. This will include the exposure of the Plan to concerned stakeholders and its finalization before formal submission to the Government..
b. Sub-component 1.2: Institutional Strengthening (US$1.0million) – This sub- component will provide TA for (a) developing quality standards for skills delivery as well as accreditation standards for service providers, and (b) TA for setting up the Labor Market Information system. The sub-component will also include additional civil works on the Research building for the DMTVET at the Deh Boori campus. The Research Building will, in addition to housing the planning group, also accommodate the certification machinery and the training center for Assessment experts who will be trained by the certification agency and the facilitating agency.
c. Sub-component 1.3: Improving Monitoring and Inspection at DMTVET (US$0.2 million). This sub-component will support TA and training/capacity building for the Monitors working in DMTVET. TA will be used in developing processes, procedures, formats and to frame a Guidance Document for the Monitors and Inspectors. TA will also be used for initiating a detailed database on the performance and functioning of the various VET schools.
d. Sub-component 1.4: Development of a system for benchmarking and certification process (US$7.00 million). Under this sub-component, the building blocks of a system for standardization of competency levels and a certification process will be developed and implemented. Essentially this work will be in furtherance of the ongoing agenda of the Committee on Education and Skills Policy. For this sub- component it is proposed to utilize the expertise of an internationally reputed and respected facilitating implementation partner. Final procurement decision will be taken on the basis of a Consultant Qualification Selection (CQS). The implementing partner will have to provide facilitative and consultative support in the whole process of systemic development and improvement. The implementing partner will also assist in the systematization of the generic learning outcomes and competencies for each level. The important issues are to find correspondences between the various trainings that are offered either in the formal or the informal sector. The following steps are proposed to be taken (specific timelines for these shall be spelt out in the PIM):
Step 1: Appoint an independent expert group as soon as possible, to evaluate Grade 12, 13 and 14 curricula of the VET schools to determine aptitude outcomes and level of practical skills. The same group thereafter would evaluate the skills
30 standards to determine aptitude outcomes and level of practical skills. The work of this group will conclude within four months, with these two evaluations. The work of the Group will be facilitated by the Agency appointed for the purpose. Step 2: Appoint another expert group to make adjustments in the two sets as above, to bring about the needed correspondence between them. Step 3: Appoint an independent certification agency immediately thereafter to now certify the skills standards. This will be an iterative process with interactions between the Agency and the group in Step 1 above. Step 4: Carry out exercises to determine practical steps for establishing NVETB in terms of the Decree of the President, within stipulated timeline. Step 5: Take steps to establish the National Vocational Education and Training Board (NVETB) to set Standards, conduct certifying and licensing examinations on a national scale, and to accredit service (training) providers. The role of the NVETB has already been envisaged in the NESP, ANDS and the NPP1. The project here will provide the concrete and practical steps that are to be taken, but the project itself will not establish the NVETB. Actions will be taken by the government. Project will not provide funding for establishing the NVETB except needed critical TA for developing the program of actions. 10. Component 2: Improving performance of TVET schools and institutes (US$26.8 million). The focus of this component is to encourage and incentivize schools and institutes to respond meaningfully and concretely to the demands of the job market for relevant skills. Interventions are based upon the assumption that employers should have a meaningful say in shaping the skills training programs. This will provide assurance to them that they will be getting skilled persons who will actually deliver in an organizational context. The Component therefore is designed around the involvement of the private sector in all academic and managerial aspects of skills delivery and they will have a say in the decision making on all such issues. Further, this component reaches out to all the schools and institutes accredited by the DMTVET, including private and public schools. There will thus be a level playing field and both the private and public sectors have an opportunity to demonstrate their abilities to bring about concrete reforms that contribute to the overall objectives of the project. This component consists of four sub- components- (a) Reforms in schools and institutes, (b) Capacity-building of school principals and administrators, (c) Voucher programs for meritorious students and (d) Continuing aid to selected institutes. These are detailed below.
a. Sub-component 2.1: Institution Reforms (US$9.3 million). This sub-component is concerned with those institutions that did not benefit from investments under ASDP. The sub-component proposes investments in institution reforms under a two part scheme, as follows:
i. Recognition Phase: This is the first phase of the reforms process and will provide incentives to institutions to compete for funds under the second phase for wide-range institution reforms. The scheme will be restricted to those institutions who offer Technical and Vocational courses for Grades XIII and XIV, and those that have their own premises and hostels. These number nearly 70 (out of a total of 257 public and private schools and
31 institutes accredited by the DMTVET), spread all over the country. Under the scheme, each school/institute will be asked to fill in a questionnaire to be called Eligibility for Recognition Questionnaire (ERQ). In addition to providing detailed information, schools and institutes will be required to state whether they have implemented any Good Practice during the previous two years. Good Practice here will mean any one or more than one management action in the following areas (list not exhaustive): • Involving Private Sector in the Management and/or Academic Activities of schools and institutes. Examples would include but not be limited to whether the private sector has been involved in managerial decision making on administrative or academic activities, and whether the inputs from the private sector have been concretely acted upon. Most Professional Institutions have clear mechanisms for the involvement of Stakeholders in Management. This is so particularly in the Sub-continent. For instance, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, Institute of Costs and Works Accountants of India, Institution of Engineers India, and their counterparts in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, all have Sub- committees of their Governing Councils where industry members are nominated by the Council Member who is the Chairman of the Committee. These sub-committees look after various functions of the Institute including Curriculum (normally called Board of Studies), Placement and specific linkage with Industry(normally called Members in Industry and/or Campus Placement), Standards (Accounting or Engineering or whatever the case may be), and so forth. Standards particularly are mandatorily exposed to industry and Standards committees mandatorily have industry representatives (see for example, the website of International Federation of Accountants, ifac.org) and such committees are replicated in similar Institutions elsewhere in the world. Reference may be made to the websites of these institutions (www. icai.org, for instance)
• Improving Practical Training. Examples would include but not be limited to efforts by the Faculty to increase the number of hours of practical training; regular visits by students to local industries; arranging for Faculty exposure to factory processes or business offices; specific efforts to improve the quality of practical training classes, etc. • Improving the content of classroom teaching. Good practice here includes but would not be limited to efforts to enrich classroom content through internet or library search or other means as a result of a clear collective Faculty decision that is regularly monitored; putting in place a formal mentoring program of junior Faculty by the senior ones, etc. • Student Services and Welfare. Examples include specific actions taken by the institution’s management to improve living conditions in hostels; providing better administrative service to students at the
32 institute offices or the library; improvements in facilities for student health and hygiene, etc. 1. All the eligibility questionnaires will be evaluated through a two- stage process. The first stage will be called the Eligibility stage and the second, the Award phase. Eligibility phase will evaluate the questionnaires based on the marks as given below. Eligibility bars have been kept low to allow the maximum number of institutions to participate. Under the eligibility conditions as formulated, even a school which has 100 students and 5 teachers, but has a placement cell and a progressive placement record, and good record keeping as well as a school shura with private sector participation, will get more than 80 marks. Thus the eligibility conditions are not biased against schools which are smaller in size, but aim to recognize the good performers. The argument here is that if the basic administrative and management norms have not been met, then it is extremely unlikely that the institution would have implemented any Good Practice. At this stage, the purpose is to recognize those institutions that are making noticeable progress in one way or the other, and reward them, so that others are encouraged to follow them. The eligibility conditions are as follows:
Teacher Student Ratio is better than or equal to 1:20 20 marks
Number of students is greater than or equal to 300 10 marks
Vacant Faculty positions less than or equal to 10% 10 marks
Existence of Placement and Student records 20 marks
Existence of operational School Management Council 20 marks with outside representation Growth in placements over the last 3 years (at least 40% 20 over the last 3 years)
2. Those institutions found eligible will then be considered for a Recognition Award. The Award will be a Grant in kind of the value of USD 30,000 per awarded institution. The award will be based on the following marking scale: One Good Practice implemented 50 Two Good Practices implemented 60 Three Good Practices implemented 75 More than three (quality considered) above 75
3. The highest scoring institutions will then be given the Recognition Award amounting to USD 30,000. The Award will also carry a Certificate of Recognition from the Minister of Education. The
33 Eligibility Questionnaire itself will request institutions to provide a list of items to be procured that they consider critical (e.g., computers or machines for their workshops). These items will be procured by the Skills Team. At this initial stage, procurement by the individual institutions of items would not be encouraged since the procurement mechanisms at the institutions would not have been assessed. 4. The Recognition phase would be completed within the first year of effectiveness of the project and the cycle would be repeated in the third year of the project. 5. For purposes of evaluation, a Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) would be set up by the DMTVET, Chaired by the Deputy Minister, and comprising of two other outside experts and two private sector representatives as members. The Skills Team’s head shall act as Secretary to the committee. The recommendations of the TEC would be then sent a Grant Committee chaired by the Minister of Education. The composition of the Grants Committee (GC) shall be as follows:
Minister of Education – Chair Deputy Minister of TVET – Deputy Chairman Representative of Development Partners (2) – Member Representative of Private Sector (2)- Member Representative of Ministry of Finance (1) – Member Skills Team’s Head – Secretary 6. Institutions which are recognized during the first cycle will also be eligible to participate in the following cycle. It is estimated that approximately 20 institutions would be recognized during each cycle. 7. Under the above procedure, in all subsequent cycles, the eligibility and award criteria can be further tightened and the bar raised a little, so that there is a general tendency to improve school functioning in order to become eligible for awards. The Government itself may later take over the whole scheme and apply the same. ii. Development Support Phase. Each institution which is recognized during the first phase will then be shortlisted for a Development Support Grant (DSG) amounting to USD 400,000. As the Recognition phase, the Development Support Phase will also be repeated twice during the project cycle. It is expected that out of the 20 Recognized institutions in each cycle, at least 7 will qualify for DSG. In order to qualify for selection, a two –stage process will be entered into, as follows:
34 1. Business Plan Evaluation. Each institution will be asked to prepare a detailed Business Plan for the next three years. The Business Plans will focus on the activities that will be financed by the institution over the next 3-5 years as well as annual performance targets. It will also state how the institution will –
i. Induct private sector and industry representatives in their Governing Councils ii. Involve private sector and industry representatives in school management activities [particularly in investments on infrastructure (both hard and soft), and in managerial and administrative matters] and decision-making including placement and student learning-particularly through practical training iii. Develop regular linkages with industry and formalize interactive processes with industry iv. Gradually concentrate on Core Focus Areas and Areas of Core Faculty competence v. Bring about reforms in classroom management practices especially for practical and workshop classes vi. Evolve systems for inducting students in various committees concerning management of the institution vii. Introduce a student and staff Grievance Redressal Mechanism viii. Create a system for watching over student health and hygiene particularly in the hostels ix. Capacity building of school administrative and management personnel (including Committee and Council members) x. Involve women in Governing Councils and in Academic activities xi. Encourage female participation in the student body.
2. Business Plans will not cover construction. Purchase of laboratory and workshop equipment and minor civil works such as building internal partition walls or electrical installations will be allowed. Total expenditure on such minor works will not be allowed to exceed 15% of the total budget of the Business Plan. 3. Institutions will prepare these Business Plans with clear milestones and timelines so that implementation of the Plans can be carried out. The Business Plans will be evaluated by the TEC (although for this phase the outside experts may be changed if the Ministry so desires), and graded as per criteria to be decided. Institutional Business Plans that score more than 60% of marks will be invited for the second and final phase of selection.
35 4. TA support (common TA firm for all institutions) will be provided under the project to assist institutions in preparing their plans as above. 5. Selection. Those institutions that qualify after the Business Plan Evaluation phase will then be asked to appear for a presentation before the Grant Committee. The Grant Committee will take the final decision on the selection for Development support. TA will help the institutions with their presentations, and will also assist them during their appearance before the Committee. 6. Prior to disbursements, each selected school will have to arrive at an MOU with the DMTVET and confirmed by the MOE. The MOU will have the agreed Business Plan as an integral attachment, and will specifically mention the benchmarks and timelines for each of the major heads of activities under 1(a) to (f) in the previous paragraph. The MOU will also have clauses for suspension of support if the stipulated conditions, including timelines, are not met. Further, the MOU will also enjoin the Grantee to ensure the implementation of proper FM and procurement practices within the institutions. Grantees will also be provided with TA to regularly monitor progress and to guide school administration on effective implementation of the Business Plan. TA will also report to Skills Team within DMTVET on the progress being made by the institution. b. Sub-component 2.2: Capacity Building for School Principals and Administrators (US$0.2 million). This sub-component involves training and capacity building of TVET principals and administrators of all schools and institutes accredited by DMTVET. This will be done primarily through in-country programs, taking advantage of similar programs done under EQUIP. It is proposed to train a total of 200 principals and administrators on various subjects including school management, school administration including documentations, managing of school finances, student management, examination administration, computer literacy and English, etc. Part of the program will be to develop a network for sharing of learning and experience amongst all the schools and institutes. c. Sub-component 2.3: Voucher Program for Students (US$5.00 million). This sub- component has the objective of providing incentives that will: (a) increase the attractiveness of formal VET training to students; (b) supporting meritorious students to complete further professional diplomas in chosen fields; and (c) providing support to female students who wish to pursue further professional training. Under the scheme, vouchers will be given for pursuing professional courses specifically in Accounting, HR, Banking, Insurance, Procurement, Logistics and Operations, Advanced diploma-level technical courses (Specialized Welding, Instrumentation, Power Electrician, etc.). The program will be open to students of all institutes accredited by DMTVET. As a special affirmative action,
36 the program will be open also to students of schools for the visually and hearing impaired accredited by DMTVET.
1. The amount of the voucher is US$5,000 (80% for academic costs and 20% for support costs) in total, regardless of the length of the academic program. In other words, the average cost is $2500 per year with the mean length of these funded courses about two years. Normally, a technical program is over two years at least, to lead to a Diploma in any country in the sub-region Final Semester Students of ASDP aided institutions who are meritorious and come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, are eligible for the program. The Ministry has also decided on a quota of 30% for women and 10% for physically challenged students. The condition for receiving the voucher is an official document attesting that the candidate is enrolled in a professional course.
2. A pilot Vouchers Program has already been initiated under the ongoing ASDP. So far, 102 students have benefited from it. Students have registered with the American University in Kabul for further training in Accountancy and Management. Students have also registered with other distance learning courses in the Region. Some students have opted for further engineering diploma training in other countries in the Region. Selected students had appeared for a comprehensive Test (including an English Test) and the process of selection was made transparent, and administered directly by the Office of the Minister. It is proposed to continue to provide this encouragement to students of VET schools, so that they may proceed to obtain professional certification after graduating from Grade XIV from the VET institutions. The Pilot program covers 200 students. This is currently being evaluated and based on outcomes, the design will be adjusted. Under the proposed project, this number will be increased to 1200 (cumulative). d. Sub-component 2.4: Continuing Support to Selected Institutions (US$12.3 million). Under this sub-component, four well performing and reforming institutions, NIMA, ANIM, the Afghan Institute of Technology (AIT) and the Blind School will continue to be provided support for further reforms and development of soft and hard infrastructure. ASDP had already invested in these schools and it is necessary to carry on the efforts so that these institutions arrive at a stage where they can operate freely on their own as premier institutions. However, support will be provided to these institutions under certain conditions, stipulated as below:
(i) Preparing a detailed Business Plan as for the selected institutions under Sub-component 2.1 and defending the same before a Special Committee (SPC) headed by the Deputy Minister of DMTVET and co-chaired by the Director General of Administration and Finance of the Ministry of Education. The Special Committee will also have nominees of two Development Partners as its Members and the Skills Team’s head as its Secretary. The Principal of each institution (Coordinators in the case of
37 NIMA and ANIM) will defend the Business Plan with a detailed presentation on the same. In particular, the Business Plan will clearly state how each institution proposes to –
• Build linkages with industry and the private sector and specifically involving private sector and industry in administration and academic affairs; • Upgrade the quality of functioning of the Governing Councils • Demonstrate upgrading of student facilities • Demonstrate upgrading of quality of learning experience • Use the interventions and assistance of international partners and Faculty (where applicable) • Conduct regular studies for Learning Assessment • Upgrade in-house examination system • Upgrade Records system • Establish Placement Cell and implement Placement Policies • Upgrade Procurement and FM systems at the institution level • Build capacity of Faculty and school administration personnel • Demonstrate flexibility in tailoring curricula to market needs • Ensure student discipline and morale • Encourage extra-curricular activities related to academic pursuits • Conduct seminars and conferences to encourage student learning • Replace all international Faculty with Afghan Faculty over the next three years.
(ii) Achievement, on an annual basis, will be evaluated by the SPC and recommendations on milestones achieved will be made to the Steering Committee who will decide on continuing support for the following year.
(iii) A major part of the budget (almost 78%) will be spent on NIMA. Works in the NIMA campus are not yet complete (a women’s hostel and two boys’ hostels are to be constructed, in addition to other minor works) and there is a continuing need to have international support for training of a sufficient number of Afghan teachers. Although some have been trained, the required complement of at least 35 is still to be achieved. The Blind School does not have international Faculty. However, it will need experts to act as Counselors to help the Blind students find some career path of their own after graduation. The quality of students of the Afghan Institute of Technology is already good and has also been appreciated by the US Army Engineering Corps. That institution only requires support for putting all in house systems in order and to upgrade the quality of its practical training further. In any case, the conditions stipulated in (i) above will have to met by all these institutions.
11. Component 3: Improving Teacher Competencies (US$6.9 million). Under this Component, an in-service Teacher Training Institute will be set up. There is already a building
38 available for this purpose and this component will provide the equipment of that building with furniture and equipment both for classrooms as well as Workshops, in order to make it a modern TVET Teacher Training Institution. Costs incurred will also include an exposure tour for the administrator and managerial staff of the proposed institution to familiarize themselves with the needed infrastructure and its optimum use. It is proposed to train around 750 teachers over the project period in batches of 25 each. Every batch will undergo four modules of two months each and there will be a gap of two months before the next module. The training will be both on pedagogy and technical content. Particular emphasis will be on practical training and exposure to new technologies. Teachers will be invited to the Teacher Training Center from all over the country, and initially the Center will be run with the help of International experts. From every batch, 2-3 teachers will be identified who will then be trained as Master Trainers, and as the project progresses and the number of Master Trainers increases, dependence on external Faculty will be reduced. Thus it is expected that by the end of the project the Master Trainers will completely take over the institutional and academic programs for technical teacher training. A detailed exercise on this aspect and the contents of the modules is already under way through discussions with GIZ who in turn have finalized the scheme in consultation with teacher training institutions in Germany.
3. Component 4: Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Public Awareness (US$5.5 million). This component comprises of three sub-components as follow:
a. Sub-component 4.1 Project Management (US$2.0 million): These include consultant costs, purchase of goods and minor works, etc. ASDP currently supports specialist TA particularly in Finance and Procurement and also in project administration within the Skills Team. It is proposed that the contracts of these personnel will be continued into ASDP II particularly in view of the fact that their performance has recently been assessed by Bank procurement and FM teams and found to be satisfactory. Only a very few new positions are proposed to be added (including Gender and Safeguards specialists as per recommendations of the concerned teams) during the period of ASDP II.
b. Sub-component 4.2 Monitoring and Evaluation (US$2.0 million): As stated earlier, monitoring and evaluation is a weakness in the TVET system. This includes the monitoring of the labor market. While the training of Monitors and Inspectors of DMTVET has been considered elsewhere (under Component 1), the concern in this sub-component is for setting up an appropriate M&E system that can be used as a means of continuous learning also. Under ASDP, an MIS system has already been developed. This will be further strengthened and streamlined during the ASDP II. In addition, this component will pay costs of Third Party monitoring of various aspects of the project including, inter alia: (a) achievement of institutions on Business Plans; (b) Tracer studies on student placements; and (c) Teacher performance after training at the Teacher Training Institute, (d) assessing learning outcomes of students, etc. Finally, this sub-component includes the cost of Impact Evaluation studies for the project as a whole, once at mid-term, and once at the end of the project.
39 c. Sub-component 4.3 Public Awareness Campaign (US$1.5 million): Under this sub-component, a Public Awareness Campaign will be initiated with the specific objectives of (a) creating awareness among high school graduates about TVET as a career option and providing students information about the training that is being provided in various institutions, and, over time, more information on the quality of training provided, (b) creating awareness among private sector and industry about TVET efforts in Afghanistan and actions taken to raise standards so that there is a higher level of response as regards placement proposals, (c) creating awareness among parents in general about TVET especially with regard to career options for girls. A Public Awareness Cell (PAC) has already been set up in the Deputy Ministry with a sub-unit for Graphic Design and Printing. The Public Awareness Campaign proposed under this project will sensitize High school graduates on the type of training provided by various institutions as well as the quality of the training. Further, survey has shown that even in the largest cities, SMEs are unaware of TVET in general. The Awareness Campaign will also address this issue. At a later stage of the project, the possibility of combining the public awareness campaigns with the MIS initiative to create a more operational ‘information, guidance and advisory' (IAG) service that actually seeks to broker contact between specific employers and individual students will be developed through the creation of public networks and interactive forums.
40 Annex 2: Results Framework
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
Cumulative Target Values** Description Responsibil (indicator PDO Level Results Unit of Baseline Data Source/ ity Frequency definition, etc.)
Indicators* Core Measure *** YR 1 YR2 YR3 YR4 YR5 Methodology for Data Collection
Indicator One: Improved potential Number 1058 1423 3601 7536 12650 18000 Baseline, mid- School/ Skills Information about for employment and higher term and end- Institution and Team/DMTVE the certificate earnings(1)- Number of students of term DMTVET T obtained by supported institutions who obtain records graduates of certifications from an internationally Percent Baseline to Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline Annual Certification supported recognized institution/Agency be +5% +10% +15% +20% +25% Results from Skills Team institutions (2) – Share of students who pass the determined Independent certification examination Agency Marks obtained in conducting the various papers, Exams student performance at examination. Indicator Two: Improved potential Percentage To be Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline and Tracer studies Skills Team/ Institution from for employment and higher earnings points determined +0% +3% +6% +9% +10% Annual and monitoring DMTVET/ which students (3)-Percentage of graduates who are once surveys/Impact Third Party graduated, province employed within six months of institutions Evaluation to which graduates passing out from all project are selected belong; Job title, supported institutions Starting salary, Employer name and nature of business, etc., Indicator Three: : Improved Percent To be Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline and Tracer Studies Skills Wage earned by potential for employment and higher determined +0% +5% +10% +10% +15% Annual and Impact Team/DMTVE TVET graduates earnings (4) – Higher earnings of once Evaluation T/ Third Party and earnings from employed graduates of supported institutions surveys self-employment schools and institutes compared to are selected graduates from non-beneficiary schools and institutes
Indicator Four: Improvement in Number 3 4 8 9 13 14 Quarterly reports M&E data from Skills Team/ Increasing market skills delivery system (1)- Number of & Annual project; DMTVET relevance of skills is schools which demonstrate good surveys Monitoring and Third Party directly linked to practice in terms of (a) increasing Inspection data the number of market relevance of skills acquired from DMTVET students who find by students, (b) increased industry employment participation in school governance particularly in local and management, and (c) industries, or are improvement in infrastructure(both able to set up their hard and soft) for TVET delivery own business;
41 Cumulative Target Values** Description Responsibil (indicator PDO Level Results Unit of Baseline Data Source/ ity Frequency definition, etc.)
Indicators* Core Measure *** YR 1 YR2 YR3 YR4 YR5 Methodology for Data Collection
increased industry participation in school governance and management is measured through the number of committees in which industry actively participates and a survey of how their suggestions and recommendations are taken into account , and improvement in infrastructure is measured against specific improvements made as per benchmarks and timelines within the overall Business Plan Indicator Five: Improvement in Rating on a N/A 3 5 7 Learning Periodic sample Third Party Tests centered skills delivery system (1)- scale of 1- Outcome surveys around skills and Improvement in students’ learning 10 Assessments classroom outcomes through Classroom Every two years knowledge Indicator Six : (i) Total number of Y Number 2,000 5,000 10,000 15,000 26,000 40,000 Quarterly reports Institution Skills Total Beneficiaries Beneficiaries & Annual records Team/DMTVE includes all students surveys T of all schools (ii) Share of female beneficiaries Y Percent 30% 32% 35% 38% 40% 40% supported by the projects, Teachers and school principals, voucher beneficiaries, etc.
42 Cumulative Target Values** Description Responsibil (indicator PDO Level Results Unit of Baseline Data Source/ ity Frequency definition, etc.)
Indicators* Core Measure *** YR 1 YR2 YR3 YR4 YR5 Methodology for Data Collection
Intermediate Indicators
Intermediate Result indicator One: Number 0 10 15 20 25 30 Reports of the Implementing DMTVET/ As of date 94 NOSS Number of NOSS that are Certifying Partner Third Party have been benchmarked to International Agency (Third developed but they Standards Party) are not mapped to Every year international standards. The process of mapping and benchmarking is what will be monitored and the output measured Intermediate Results Indicator Numbers 570 720 870 1020 1170 1400 Six-monthly Reports of Examining Two sets of Two: (i) Number of Technical Examination Agency/ examinations to be Teachers trained in relevant Agency DMTVET conducted per year pedagogic techniques and obtaining over all the skills Satisfactory Completion Certificates from the Technical Teacher Training Institute Intermediate Result indicator Number 102 200 400 600 900 1200 Annual Project MIS Skills Target values are Three: Number of beneficiary /Impact Team/Third annual students from the Voucher Program Evaluation Party Surveys Intermediate Result indicator Four: Number 0 66 133 175 200 Semi-annual Project MIS DMTVET Training in school Number of School Administrators Reports (SSMS) management and Trained administration Intermediate Result indicator Five: Average on 1 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 3.5 Six-monthly Third Party Third Party Qualitative Satisfaction of private sector an surveys Reports evaluation; non- representatives with the increasing conducted by cumulative effectiveness of their inclusion in scale of 1 Third Party school governance and management to 5 matters Intermediate Result indicator Six: Text N/A First Final Issued by Begin Expanded Six-monthly DMTVET DMTVET Target values are TVET Plan and strategy Draft Draft MOE impleme implementati annual Develop Exposed ntation on ed Intermediate Result Indicator percent 0 10 30 40 60 Annual Skills Skills Training received Seven: Percentage of Monitoring Evaluation Team/DMTVET Team/DMTVE by inspectors and and Inspection department personnel T change in institution trained attention to relevant skill building
43 Cumulative Target Values** Description Responsibil (indicator PDO Level Results Unit of Baseline Data Source/ ity Frequency definition, etc.)
Indicators* Core Measure *** YR 1 YR2 YR3 YR4 YR5 Methodology for Data Collection
Intermediate Result Indicator Percent Baseline to Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline Baseline + Annual Surveys Tracer Study DMTVET/ Duration of Eight: share of employed graduates be + 10% + 15% + 20% + 25% 30% /Impact Third Party employment of who are still employed after one year determined Evaluation graduates from of employment. survey supported institutions Intermediate Result Indicator Nine: Text M&E M&E M&E M&E Annual and Half School Project Unit A MIS system Improvement in M&E systems System system implemen system yearly Reports data/direct being developed within DMTVET Designe Tested in ted fully survey/Third and fully d aided functiona M&E system Party monitoring operational institutio l fully ns and at functional Center Intermediate Result Indicator Ten: Number 10 25 35 35 35 Periodic Reports Reports from DMTVET Flyers prepared No of Provinces covered by the by DMTVET campaign firm about the TVET Public Awareness campaign project, advertisement through medias
44 Annex 3: Summary of Estimated Project Costs
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
1. Summary of Project Component Costs:
Project Component Cost (US$ IBRD or % of million) IDA Financing Financing Component 1:Strengthening the TVET institutional system 8.5 IDA 100% Component 2: Improving Performance of TVET schools IDA and institutes 26.8 100% Component 3: Improving Teacher Competencies 6.9 IDA 100% Component 4: Project Management, M&E and Public IDA Awareness 5.5 100% Total Component Costs 47.7 Incremental Operating Costs 4.1 IDA 100%
Salaries of Teacher Trainees and Support Staff 5.0 Borrower 100% Total Base Costs 56.8 Contingencies 3.2 IDA 100% Total 60.0
The counterpart funding will essentially cover salaries of teachers and other civil servants attached to the project. Specifically, there are 750 teacher trainees who will be trained through the project. Monthly salary of a technical teacher is about $300. Each teacher will be attached to the TTTI for 8 months. The salary to be paid by the government would be thus 2400 x 750 or $ 1.8 million. In addition there will be 60 master trainers with same average salary who will be at the TTTI for 2 years each. This will cost about USD 400,000 approx. The balance will be used to pay for the salaries of about 300 staff belonging to the civil service who will be attached to the project supported schools and institutes in various capacities and also to the Skills Team itself (e.g., accountants to be posted to supported schools and procurement personnel to posted schools).
45 Annex 4: Operational Risk Assessment Framework (ORAF)
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
Project Stakeholder Risk Rating Substantial Description: Risk Management: 1. The project period covers the Transition process in -Introduction of an information, communication and media/civil society relations 2014 and the national elections Post Transition and program in the MOE to regularly deliver information to stakeholders and Elections, there could be a change in overall reform beneficiaries, and collect feedback, through multiple channels. programs and budget allocations. -MOE will continue regular consultations with heads of the DMTVET TVET 2. Institutional centralization is entrenched in the institutes on the reform programs. Afghan bureaucratic culture. This project is designed to -Project Steering Committee and the Governing Councils of the TVET schools and enhance decentralization and autonomy, and therefore institutes will include private sector representatives. may face resistance from internal stakeholders -The project design includes the up-front establishment and regular meetings of including the TVET institutes themselves who might steering committee to ensure coordination, provide direction and oversight, and for resist change, and the DMTVET. This may result in trouble shooting. dilution and/or distortion of implementation actions. -Regular consultations between the development partners and the Government of 3. Vested interests and nepotism may result in poorer Afghanistan. implementation of the voucher and incentive programs -Donor coordination Group will be established. resulting in poor targeting. Responsibility: Stage: Due Date : Status: 4. There is a lack of coordination among government MOE and Bank Prep aration / 6/30/2018 Ongoing stakeholders to facilitate convergence among Bank Implementation supported projects that have a bearing on this project. 5. Views on the project design and process may not be fully aligned among development partners. Implementing Agency Risks (including fiduciary) Capacity Rating: Moderate Description: Risk Management: 1. MOE has substantial experience in implementing - The Skills Team will be strengthened through competitive recruitment from the major donor funded projects. It is among the few open market to fill key positions and the unit will remain in the DMTVET throughout Ministries that are allowed under the Public project implementation. Procurement Law to do its own procurement. The -Strengthening of TVET institution capacity will be an important part of the Skills Team has also been reviewed positively in terms Institutional Development Plans which they will submit in order to be eligible for of Procurement and FM, and has been able to showcase grants under the project. two of its major projects as well as the NSDP - The steering committee will provide oversight and support and ensure administered programs. However, since the current accountability as necessary to keep implementation on track. project is of a higher financial magnitude, FM and - A Contract Management Officer has already been recruited to add to the checks on procurement as well as Safeguards functions have to be procurement. It is proposed to set up a small Internal Audit Cell attached to the Skills
46 strengthened. Team to monitor accounts and transactions in the project. The Internal Audit Cell will 2. Weak performance of the governing councils at the be in place by September 30, 2013. TVET institutes may lead to poorer implementation of Responsibility Stage: Due Date: Status: the elements of institutional reform. MOE Prep aration/ 06/30/2018 On-going 3. The capacity of the TVET institutes accredited by Implementation DMTVET for managing procurement and FM is low or non-existent. The project will help build these capacities but there is a risk of capacity remaining low. 4. Weak internal controls may lead to misappropriation of funds and delay in preparation and submission of acceptable financial reports, thus delaying disbursements and implementation. Governance Rating: Substantial Description: Risk Management: 1. Insufficient transparency in personnel -The Bank will continue to closely monitor the recruitment processes for management. In MOE, there is an expressed desire transparency. Ministry Leadership will continue to be kept apprised of decisions by to institutionalize systems at the Ministerial levels. lower levels that may affect implementation processes adversely. However, levels below often resort to practices - For monitoring and evaluation, the Skills Team in DMTVET will recruit detrimental to effective administration. international monitoring and evaluation specialists to design and establish adequate 2. There are weaknesses in the system and M&E systems. The M&E by the ministry will be supplemented by independent third- measurement of DMTVET institutes. Weak party firms in selected areas. Regular progress reports will be submitted to the monitoring and evaluation systems particularly in steering committee and the Bank. MOE/DMTVET may affect decision making for -The Monitoring and Inspection unit of the DMTVET itself will be strengthened and ensuring effective management of the formal actions taken to build its capacity. training programs and service delivery. - The Project Steering Committee will regularly oversee project progress and 3. There is slow decision making and follow-through troubleshoot significant implementation issues as they arise. on decisions/actions to demand improvements in - Private sector will be adequately represented in the steering committee and the service delivery performance. governing councils of the TVET institutes participating in the project. 4. There is inadequate or no representation of the - The project design includes a proactive information and communication program to private sector and industry in the management of raise awareness of the project design features and inform the stakeholders on project the TVET institutes to encourage demand implementation progress. responsiveness and improvements in service - An Internal Audit Cell will be created within the DMTVET reporting directly to the delivery performance. Minister. - Project staff & other stakeholders will be trained in methodology of the incentive payments and the voucher program. - Names of the recipient students and the type and amount of incentives and vouchers will be posted in a timely manner on the ministries’ websites and announced in the newspapers and radio programs. - Measurement of project implementation progress and performance on a regular basis
47 through third party reviews, validations, and evaluations, embedded into the results based activities. Responsibility: Stage: Due Date: Status: MOE Preparation/ 06/30/2018 On-going Implementation Project Risks Design Rating: Substantial Description: Risk Management: 1. Project includes activities and actions that are new -Actions that require complex coordination will be phased over the implementation and technically complex. period to allow learning from early phases to inform subsequent project actions. 2. There is a risk that guidelines for giving incentives -Project includes TA to provide technical and advisory support and capacity building may be diluted or distorted during implementation of the MOE. and a risk of elite capture is real. -Regular strengthened monitoring and evaluation, independent third-party reviews, 3. To fully realize gains in outcomes requires ensuring validations and evaluations of the key activities. synchronized and sustained implementation. The -Grievance Redressal Mechanism and whistleblower options have been incorporated activities also need to be underpinned by sufficient in the project design. technical, advisory and capacity support. -Bank Team supervision will be on monthly basis including by the TTL and Team 4. Turning project design into satisfactory members based in Kabul. Apart from standard supervision approaches, third party implementation requires intensive implementation monitoring particularly and VC if security conditions were to deteriorate, will be supervision and support in a difficult security used. environment, challenged by the transition and the -Use of ICT to support monitoring and evaluation and capacity building services in elections in 2014. DMTVET. Responsibility: Stage: Due Date: Status: MOE and Bank Preparation/ 06/30/2018 On-going Implementation
Social & Environmental Rating: Substantial Description: Risk Management: 1. Given the scope and nature of the project, there are - ESMF provisions will be incorporated in bidding/contract documents with low environmental and social safeguards risks accompanying translation in local languages and will be reviewed with contractors by because the project includes limited construction and Skills Team management prior to start of construction and renovation work. renovation work. However, Environmental and social Moreover the project shall ensure compliance with the World Bank/IFC's General safeguards management and (especially) Environment, Health and Safety guidelines as applicable to mitigate construction implementation in Afghanistan are weak because related impacts. The environmental indicator should be included in their monitoring their value-added is not yet fully realized or and evaluation system appreciated. - A proper complaint management system will be established covering both TVET 2. Complaint Handling Mechanism: lack of school, vocational education training and construction sites. Such a Grievance complaint handling mechanism and or inefficient Redress system will provide trainees, teachers as well as laborers a formal venue for
48 complaint handling mechanism may lead to raising their grievances and concerns, as well as a mechanism for timely and adequate dissatisfaction among trainees, teachers as well as solution or mitigation of these. The Skills Team will maintain records in a database to workers. enable complaint tracking and review. Social and Gender Expert and Environmental 3. Further attention to and compliance monitoring of Safeguards expert are already in the process of recruitment. hygienic and sanitation aspects of the TVET - Compliance monitoring with the environmental aspects will be enhanced through institutes are required. quarterly progress reports to the inter-ministerial steering committee and the Bank by 4. No acquisition of land and resettlement will be the above expert and independent review by a consultant. undertaken under the project. - ASDP II falls in Environmental Category B. There is only limited construction 5. Despite the specific focus on attracting girls into work anticipated and no acquisition of land or resettlement issues are envisaged. formal TVET programs, they may not sign for Responsibility: Stage: Due Date: Status: training or they may not subsequently use the skills MOE Prep aration/ 06/30/2018 ongoing acquired. Implementation
Program & Donor Rating: Moderate Description: Risk Management: 1. ASDP is widely recognized in the donor The Bank team has kept the donors informed during project preparation and will community, and high level of interest has been continue this practice by proactive sharing of implementation experience and results maintained with satisfactory performance. There are of project activities. indications of continued donor interest and support in Responsibility: Stage: Due Date: Status: ensuring complementarily between the ASDP project MOE and Bank Preparation/ 06/30/2018 On-going and donor supported TVET projects. Implementation Delivery Monitoring & Sustainability Rating: Substantial Description: Risk Management: 1 There is a risk that quality of training offered by the -The risk of low quality or relevance of formal training by the TVET institutes beneficiary TVET schools and institutions remains accredited by DMTVET participating in the project will be mitigated by: (i) requiring low. that the offered training is focused on the sectors/ occupational areas demanded by or 2. Project monitoring quality of the formal TVET relevant to the labor market needs, (ii) requiring the participation of industry, private sector (TVET institutes participating in the project) has sector enterprises, and other key stakeholders in the governing councils of the suffered from low prioritization and lack of controls/ institutes, (iii) performance benchmarks in the MOUs between the Skills Team in absence of checks. DMTVET and the beneficiary TVET institutes, (iv) undertaking employer surveys 3. Contract management by the Skills Team needs and training needs assessments, (v) enhancing accountability via independent strengthening. monitoring by the third party consultants of the TVET institutes’ performance, and 4. Sustainability of the formal TVET sector is at risk (vi) strong M&E with third party monitoring of employment outcomes. because of the proliferation/unchecked expansion of -A strong M&E program will be established within the Skills Team. the TVET institutes without due attention to the need -The Skills Team has recruited a contract management specialist. for delivery of quality services (quality teachers, -Inclusion of an information and communication program in the project to raise financial resources, curricula, relevance of the training awareness and enhance relations with the stakeholders. offered, and involvement of the employers in the -Regular consultations with the stakeholders particularly the private sector and public
49 governance of the TVET institutes). sector employers. -The project includes the development of a TVET sector strategy and plan to provide clear direction to TVET sector development. - The Bank will continue to measure project progress and discuss any remedies to the implementing agencies in case any issues are detected as a mechanism to mitigate risks. Responsibility: Stage: Due Date: Status: MOE Prep aration/ 06/30/2018 On-going Implementation Overall risk following review: Implementation Risk Rating: Substantial
Comments: The ASDP II project builds on the implementation experience of the ongoing ASDP project. The Government is strongly committed to the project. Main risks during implementation to the achievement of the PDO include the following: (i) high level of uncertainty will continue until Transition and elections during 2013 and 2014, and possibly for some time after that; (ii) governance risk will remain substantial until capacity of the civil service and adherence to institutional systems improve; (iii) some project actions such as improving the governance of the TVET institutes require careful implementation and it may prove to be difficult politically and because of the vested interests; and (iv) M&E and planning and implementation capacity at the beneficiary institute level as well as in DMTVET is weak. The project has strong measures to mitigate these and other risks, but the overall country environment will be the overriding factor in assuring the achievement of the PDO.
50 Annex 5: Financial Management and Disbursement Arrangements
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
1. The Bank has gained substantial experience and understanding of the financial management environment in Afghanistan through the large number of projects under implementation over the past eleven years. The Public Financial Management Reform II is the primary instrument to continue and enhance the fiduciary measures put in place during the past years to help ensure transparency and accountability for the funding provided by the Bank and other donors.
2. A PFM performance rating system using 28 high-level indicators that was developed by the Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability (PEFA), a multi-agency partnership program comprised of the World Bank, IMF, EC, and several other agencies, was initiated in Afghanistan in June 2005, and updated in June 2008. The system is structured around six core dimensions of PFM performance: i) budget credibility, ii) comprehensiveness and transparency, iii) policy-based budgeting, iv) predictability and control in budget execution, v) accounting, recording, and reporting, and vi) external scrutiny and audit. Afghanistan’s ratings against the PFM performance indicators generally portray a public sector where financial resources are, by and large, being used for their intended purposes. This has been accomplished with very high levels of support from international firms; this assistance will continue to be needed over the medium term if these ratings are to be maintained. There is also much room for improvement.
3. In spite of undeniable gains made in reconstruction since the end of 2001, the challenges facing Afghanistan remain immense; not least because of the tenuous security situation in the region and continued prevalence of a large illegal and illicit economy. The policy framework benchmarks have not yet been fully costed so various priorities are funded through the annual budgeting process. The rising costs of the security sector constitute the major constraint on attainment of fiscal sustainability. With regard to executive oversight, the national assembly will play an increasingly active role. All in all, the new national strategy has created high expectations of the executive which could prove to be quite difficult to meet.
4. The public sector, in spite of considerable efforts to reform its core functions, remains extremely weak outside of Kabul. The lack of qualified staff in the civil service and the absence of qualified counterparts in the government after 30 years of war and conflicts are binding constraints. Delays in reforming the pay structure and grading of civil servants have severely crippled the public administration of the country. Domestic revenues lag behind expenditures by a factor of ten to one. Large-scale corruption could emerge to undermine the government’s efforts to enhance aid flows through national accounts. Capacities to track expenditures and monitor expenditure outcomes have improved, but they need rapid and substantial strengthening if progress toward the attainment of national development targets is to be monitored. Currently, 75% of external revenues bypass government appropriation systems.
5. The World Bank is financing a Financial Management Advisor to assist the Ministry of Finance, an Audit Advisor to assist the Control and Audit Office, and a Procurement Advisor to assist in Procurement-related activities. Also an Internal Audit function is being developed within the Ministry of Finance with World Bank financing. USAID, and earlier the Indian Aid
51 Assistance Program, is financing a team of consultants and advisors to assist the Da Afghanistan Bank in local as well as foreign currency operations. The activities carried out under the existing Public Administration projects have helped the Government to ensure that appropriate fiduciary standards are maintained for public expenditures, including those supported by the Bank and the donor community.
6. Progress has been slower than expected in shifting from operations support provided by the three Advisors to capacity development and knowledge transfer to the civil servants. It is expected that the Advisors will continue to be required for the medium term. Challenges still remain in attaining the agreed upon fiduciary standards and also to further enhance them. And to make matters more complex, the regulatory environment in Afghanistan has advanced significantly in the past three years. Unfortunately, even mastery of basic skills in the early environment does not fully qualify the civil servants to work effectively in the new emerging environment. 7. Financial Management, Disbursements and Procurement will continue to be the responsibility of the Skills Team, as earlier stated. The arrangements are already in place, and have been reviewed and apprised several times by FM and Procurement Teams from the Bank. FM staff in the Skills Team is conversant with Bank requirements including submission of IUFRs, and other financial statements.
Risk Assessment and Mitigation
8. The table below identifies the key risks that the project may face and indicates how these risks are to be addressed. The overall FM risk rating is high but the residual risk rating after application of the mitigating measures is substantial.
Risk Risk Risk Mitigation Measures Residual Condition of Rating Risk Negotiations, Board or Effectiveness (Y/N) Inherent Risk Country H Approval of a modern Public Finance S N Inherent Risk and Expenditure Law (2005) and its regulations (2006), together with the checks and controls built in the computerized systems, provides a good control framework, especially for budget monitoring and control Project H Ensure Designated Accounts are not S N Financial excessive and remain active with regular Management expenditure reporting. Risk Key fiduciary functions to be performed by the Skills Team. The Skills Team is already staffed with qualified and
52 Risk Risk Risk Mitigation Measures Residual Condition of Rating Risk Negotiations, Board or Effectiveness (Y/N) experienced FM consultants. Simultaneously, the capacity of the civil servants will also be strengthened Perceived H Government commitment, internal S N Corruption controls and internal audit will help to reduce the high level of perceived corruption.
Improving the systems and strengthening the FM capacity in DMTVET will also help to reduce the high level of perceived corruption. Overall Inherent H S Risk Control Risk Weak H The Implementing Agency is the S N Implementing DMTVET in MOE. Project will utilize Entity the services of the Skills Team which is performing satisfactorily. Project unit will have a separate Internal Audit function to ensure checks and balances as stipulated in the FM Manual are fully complied with.
Oversight functions for the project shall be performed by the Project Steering Committee chaired by the Minister of Education. Funds Flow S Payments will be made to consultants, M N suppliers, etc. from the DA by SDU- MOF. In addition to payments out of DA funds, the implementing entities can also request the SDU to make (i) direct payments from the grant account to contractors, consultants or consulting firms, and (ii) special commitments for contracts covered by letters of credit. Project sub-grants will also be transferred to the schools and institutes under the DMTVET through provincial mastufiats (branch of MOF). These payments would only be made by SDU after due processes and proper authorization from MOE.
53 Risk Risk Risk Mitigation Measures Residual Condition of Rating Risk Negotiations, Board or Effectiveness (Y/N) Budgeting S Ensure that project funds are allocated in M N the annual Government Development Budget. In addition, MOE should also ensure that the unutilized budget amount at each year end is carried forward to the next year. Further, MOE would ensure that approved carried forward budget is used at the beginning of the new year, and that disbursements are made while waiting for the Parliament’s approval of the new year’s budget.
A budget committee will be appointed to coordinate the preparation of annual work plan and the derivation of annual budget there from. The Budget committee shall comprise of representatives of the relevant departments of DMTVET and shall report to the Steering Committee. Accounting S Project will follow international M N Policies and standards. Project accounting procedures Procedures and details of the FM arrangements will be documented and incorporated in the FM Manual to be prepared by DMTVET and to be approved by the Bank Internal Audit H Project unit will have a separate Internal S N Audit function to ensure checks and balances as stipulated in the FM Manual are fully complied with. The internal audit unit of MOE as well as that of the Skills Team will review compliance with internal control systems on a continual basis. External Audit H Will be audited by Supreme Audit Office S N with support from Audit Advisor Reporting and H Strengthening the SDU is a priority S N Monitoring under the FM Advisor contract, to provide information that will comply with agreed format of financial reports. This will be facilitated by the computerized accounting system that will be utilized by the DMTVET/Skills Team to maintain records and generate required reports.
54 Risk Risk Risk Mitigation Measures Residual Condition of Rating Risk Negotiations, Board or Effectiveness (Y/N) H S OVERALL CONTROL RISK DETECTION S Adequate accounting, recording, and M N RISK oversight will be provided in project procedures.
Accounting/ Recording/ oversight by SDU – MOF of all advances/M-16 supported by Financial Management Advisor. Risk rating: H=high risk; S=substantial risk; M=modest risk; L-low risk
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths 9. The Government provides assurance to the Bank and other donors that the measures in place to ensure appropriate utilization of funds will not be circumvented. The Government strongly supports reforms through the Public Financial Management Reform Projects to enhance financial management in Treasury operations, public procurement, internal audit in the public sector, and external audit by the Auditor General.
10. The implementing line ministry, MOE has implemented and is implementing other Bank funded projects, so it has experience in implementing Bank projects in various provinces following Bank procedures. For the fund transfers to beneficiary institutes and schools under the project, the fiduciary responsibility for accounting and reporting of expenditures will largely rest on the finance officers in the mustofiats who are already being trained under the HRCDP (Human Resource Capacity Development Project) component of the Public Financial Management Reform Project II.
Weaknesses
11. The main weakness in this project, as in many others in Afghanistan, is the limited capacity within the civil service staff of DMTVET/MOE, and the inability to attract and retain suitably qualified and experienced counterpart staff especially for financial management. The utilization of the Skills Team, additional staff to be funded by the project to handle the expanded scope of duties under ASDP II, provision of a computerized financial management system for Finance function, together with initiatives included in this project under the systems development component to train and build the capacity of the civil service staff are expected to strengthen the fiduciary arrangements for the project.
12. Due to the weak capacity in the TVET schools and institutes generally, the fiduciary responsibility for accounting and reporting of expenditures under the sub-grants will largely rest
55 on the finance officers in the mustofiats. Their capacity is currently being strengthened under PFMR II.
13. Action Plan – To be reviewed at ‘Initial Supervision’
Significant Action Responsible Completion Weaknesses Agent Date Shortage of qualified Recruitment and retention of the FM DMTVET Hired and experienced FM staff in ASDP II unit (MoE) staff
Project internal Financial Management Manual DMTVET September controls and developed, reviewed, and agreed with (MoE) 30, 2013 procedures need to be the World Bank defined Interim reports need Un-audited interim financial report DMTVET Confirmed to include required formats for the project confirmed (MoE) information Shortage of Recruitment of an internal auditor DMTVET September experienced internal (MoE) 30, 2013 auditors at DMTVET
Implementing Entity
14. The implementing entity is the DMTVET of the MOE. There is an existing Skills Team in that Deputy Ministry which looks after the implementation of the ongoing ASDP. This unit will be strengthened to handle the more complex ASDP II, keeping in mind that for one year, ASDP and ASDP II will be running simultaneously.
Project Coordination and Monitoring
15. DMTVET has the responsibility for project coordination and monitoring for the whole project. Actions will be taken by the Skills Team as per the PIM, and the FMM and regular reports will be provided to the Standing Committee on ASDP II. This will assure smooth execution of the project. Monitoring of financial matters will be done at the Skills Team level, and there will also be regular monitoring by the Finance Department of the MOE. Several coordinating bodies will be set up for this project, and there will be Third Party Monitoring for critical components. Details are provided in Annex 7 to this document.
Project Oversight
16. The whole project will be overseen by a Project Steering Committee chaired by the Minister of Education. Day to day matters will be overseen by a Standing Committee on ASDP
56 II chaired by the Deputy Minister of TVET. The Steering Committee will approve of project progress reports. Finance reports to be sent to the Association will be approved by the Standing Committee. Details of the Committee compositions and brief TORs for the committees have been provided in Annex 7 on Implementation Arrangements.
Budgeting
17. In terms of operationalization, the Budget Committee of the DMTVET will coordinate the preparation of annual work plan and the derivation of annual budget. This committee will be made up of representatives from relevant departments of the implementing entity, and shall report to the respective implementing entity’s oversight body. The Budget Committee shall also coordinate quarterly budget reviews to ensure adequate budget discipline and control. The committee will be responsible for ensuring that project expenditures for each fiscal year are captured in the Governmental Development budget of that fiscal year. The MOE shall get approval from the presidential office and the parliament and attach them to B27 and PCS forms at the time of requesting yearly allotments for contracts under the project to avoid delays in payment processing.
Funds Flow
18. The standard funds flow mechanism in Afghanistan will be followed in this project. Project funds will be deposited in the Designated Account (DA) to be opened and maintained at the Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB). The DA, in keeping with Afghan law and current practice for other projects in Afghanistan, will be operated by the Special Disbursement Unit (SDU) in the Treasury Department of MOF. Requests for payments from the DA will be made to the SDU by the implementing entities when needed.
19. In addition to payments out of DA funds, the implementing entities can also request the SDU to make: i) direct payments from the Grant Account to contractors, consultants or consulting firms, facilitating partners, NGOs; ii) advances to other accounts; and iii) special commitments for contracts covered by letters of credit. These payments will follow World Bank procedures. All payments will be made either through bank transfers into the account of such firms or by check.
57 Figure 5.1: Funds Flow Chart
World Bank / IDA Direct payments
Provides SOEs with supporting Consultants/ suppliers/ documentation, contractors etc. reconciliations, IDA/ & requests replenishment Replenishes transfers to Designated Designated Account, OR requests Direct Accounts Payments
IDA SDU (MoF) Designated Accounts
MOE/DMTVET
Provincial DBD/ MoE DaB
ASDP/ MoE
Invoices Request for funds transfer
20. The Finance and Administration department of DMTVET will develop an MIS system for management of all grants and incentives available under the project. The MIS will gradually be expanded in scope to cover all financial transactions under the DMTVET and will be linked to AFMIS during the period of the project. Development Support Grants (included under Sub- grants for the project) awarded to schools (DSG) will be posted in the system and would be available for drawdown by the recipients according to the schedule finalized by the Grants Committee. Conditions for disbursement of grants and incentives will be further detailed in the Project Implementation Manual.
21. It is expected that the MIS system will be built to capture accounting and financial data. The system will also have the capability to capture non- financial information including training record, school performance, student data, etc. The PIM will also detail validation checks and controls for ensuring data quality, including reporting formats, input and access controls, etc.
22. Business plans submitted by the schools will also include a procurement plan, which will be the basis for establishing the schedule of disbursements for the DSG’s.
23. Procurement of eligible items will be achieved through a centralized procurement approach under which similar items will be procured, delivered and installed at respective schools by competitively selected vendors. This will help in achieving process efficiency, and will also allow the project staff to manage the procurement process by limiting the vendors involved. The schools using the approved procedures, which will be detailed in the PIM, will procure all other minor items, limited to 15% of each grant award. These 15% only apply to civil work as detailed arrangement will be described in the PIM. Expense thresholds will be established for use of the grant funds.
24. The schools will be provided with an imprest cash advance (in USD or its equivalent) for minor purchases from the DSG. The imprest cash mechanism will be operated through the
58 Mustofiats. The outstanding balance in the imprest cash account cannot at any time exceed the limit established for each school (US$ 5,000 or any other limit). At periodic intervals or as soon as the advance reaches a minimum level, the schools can submit a Statement of Expense (SoE) for replenishment of the advance.
25. The formats for the SoE and procedures for submission, replenishment and advance acquittal will be detailed in the Financial Management section of the PIM. The PIM will also provide rules and procedures for ensuring safekeeping of cash in schools. The reconciliation of petty cash between the DA (to be managed by SDU/MOF) and all Mustofiats involved is already being implemented by projects and will be detailed in the FMM.
26. Schools and institutes that receive a DSG award will be required to maintain basic books of accounts, supporting documents and will comply with procurement and reporting procedures detailed in the IM for all items that are provided through DSG funds. Necessary formats for record keeping and reporting will also be contained in the IM. The project will support the schools and institutes through recruitment of an accountant (national) in each school for which a DSG is approved. The accountant will be responsible for undertaking book keeping tasks related to the imprest account, and towards developing a small accounting cell.
Legal Requirements for Authorized Signature
27. Ministry of Finance has authorization to disburse funds from the Grant. Specimen signatures of authorized signatories in MOF are on file.
Accounting
28. The SDU will maintain a proper accounting system of all expenditures incurred along with supporting documents to enable the Association to verify these expenditures. The Skills Team, will: i) supervise preparation of supporting documents for expenditures, ii) prepare payment orders (Form M16), iii) obtain approval for M-16s by the Minister or Deputy Minister depending on the payment amount, and iv) submit them to the Treasury Department in MOF for verification and payment. Whilst original copies of required supporting documents are attached to the Form M16, the project is required to make and keep photocopies of these documents for records retention purposes. The FM Advisor in the MOF/SDU will use the government's computerized accounting system, AFMIS, for reporting, generating relevant financial statements, and exercising controls.
29. The Skills Team will maintain essential project transaction records using computerized accounting system/Excel spreadsheets and generate required monthly, quarterly, and annual reports.
30. The ASDP II’s FM Manual is being prepared and will be completed by September 30, 2013. It will include: i) roles and responsibilities for all FM staff, ii) fund flow procedures for sub-grants, (iii) documentation and approval procedures for payments under the overall project grant as well as sub-grants, iv) project reporting requirements, and v) quality assurance measures to help ensure that adequate internal controls and procedures are in place and are being followed.
59 31. The FM Manual will also establish project financial management in accordance with standard Afghan government policies and procedures including use of the government Chart of Accounts to record project expenditures. The use of these procedures will enable adequate recording and reporting of project expenditures. Overall project accounts will be maintained centrally in SDU, which will be ultimately responsible for recording of all project expenditures and receipts in the Government’s accounting system. Reconciliation of project expenditure records with MOF records will be carried out monthly by the Skills Team.
Internal Control & Internal Auditing
32. Project–specific internal control procedures for requests and approval of funds will be described in the FM Manual including segregation of duties, documentation reviews, physical asset control, and cash handling and management.
33. The Head of the FM unit in the Skills Team will be responsible for coordinating FM activities of the project with the SDU, through the Finance Department of the MOE.
34. Annual project financial statements will be prepared by SDU/MOF detailing activities pertaining to the project as separate line items with adequate details to reflect the details of expenditures within each component. The project financial management systems will be subject to review by the Internal Auditor assigned to DMTVET as well as the newly-established internal audit department of the MOE, according to programs to be determined by the heads of the department using a risk-based approach.
35. The project will also support the development of a small internal audit cell that will be responsible for ensuring sanctity and accuracy of all information maintained and reported by the aided schools, project support unit. The cell will comprise of an internal auditor with appropriate support. The internal audit cell will provide an independent and objective assurance of the compliance framework developed for the project.
36. The internal audit scope will include conducting tests to ensure accuracy, completeness and eligibility of expenses submitted in SoEs by the covered by a DSG. The Internal audit will also conduct reviews of the control environment, including reporting structures, to ensure accuracy in all reports (internal and external use) emanating from the project. The cell will conduct performance audit of the various activities carried out by the Beneficiaries. The internal Audit cell will report to the Deputy Minister of TVET.
External Audit
37. The project accounts will be audited by the Auditor General, with the support of the Audit Advisor, with terms of reference satisfactory to the Association. The audit of the project accounts will include an assessment of the: (a) adequacy of the accounting and internal control systems; (b) ability to maintain adequate documentation for transactions; and (c) eligibility of incurred expenditures for IDA financing. The audited annual project financial statements will be submitted within six months of the close of fiscal year. All agencies involved in implementation and maintaining records of expenditures would need to retain these as per the Bank’s records retention policy.
60 38. The following audit reports will be monitored each year in the Audit Reports Compliance System (ARCS):
Table 5.1: Audit Reporting
Responsible Agency Audit Auditors Date MOE SOE, Project Accounts and Auditor General June 30 of each Designated Account year 39. The Bank-funded projects already or currently being implemented by the Ministry of Education have no overdue audit reports; key issues raised in previous audit reports are being resolved.
Financial Reporting
40. Financial Statements and Project Reports will be used for project monitoring and supervision. Based upon the FM arrangements of this project, Financial Statements and Project Reports will be prepared monthly, quarterly, and annually by the Skills Team. These reports will be produced based on records kept on the project’s computerized accounting system or Excel spreadsheets after due reconciliation to expenditure statements from SDU (as recorded in AFMIS) and bank statements from DAB.
41. The quarterly Project Reports will show: (i) sources and uses of funds by project component, reconciled with the Bank account and (ii) expenditures consolidated and compared to governmental budget heads of accounts, DA balances reconciled with the bank records. The project will forward the relevant details to SDU with a copy to the Association within 45 days of the end of each quarter. The government and the Association have agreed on a pro forma report format for all Bank projects; a final customized format for ASDP II will be agreed prior to project negotiations.
42. The annual project accounts to be prepared by SDU from AFMIS after due reconciliation to records maintained at the project, will form part of the consolidated Afghanistan Government Accounts for all development projects. This is done centrally in the Ministry of Finance Treasury Department, supported by the Financial Management Advisor.
Disbursement Arrangements
43. Disbursements procedures will follow the World Bank procedures described in the World Bank Disbursement Guidelines and the Disbursement Handbook for World Bank Clients (May 2006). Table 5.2 shows the allocation of IDA proceeds by category of expenditure. The final disbursement date will be four months after the closing date. During this additional 4-month grace period, project-related expenditures incurred prior to the closing date are eligible for disbursement or documentation against outstanding balance in the designated account.
44. Retroactive Financing. Retroactive financing is not requested for this project.
45. Estimated Disbursements. Estimated Disbursements are shown in the Table below:
61 Estimated disbursements (Bank FY/US$m) FY 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Annual 11.6 14.5 15.6 10.5 2.8 Cumulative 11.6 26.1 41.7 52.2 55.00
Table 5.2: IDA Financing by Category of Expenditure
Category Amount of the Percentage of Grant Allocated Expenditures to be (expressed in SDR) Financed (inclusive of Taxes) (1) Goods, works, non-consulting services, 29,210,000 100% Academic Vouchers, Incremental Operating Costs**, Training and consultants’ services for the Project (other than for Sub-grants)
(2) Goods, works and consultants’ services for 6, 490,000 100% of amount disbursed Sub-grants
TOTAL AMOUNT 35,700,000
** “Incremental Operating Costs” means incremental recurrent expenditures incurred on account of the Project implementation including office supplies, fuel and maintenance of vehicles and motor cycles, maintenance of equipment, telephone and other communications charges, advertising expenses, insurance for vehicles, bank and services fees, student internships and travel costs, office rentals, remuneration of the contracted staff in the Skills Team other than consultants included in Procurement Plan, but excluding salaries of officials of the Recipient’s civil service.
46. Summary Reports. Summary reports in the form of Summary Sheet will be used for expenditures on contracts valued at USD 500,000 or more for civil works, US$ 200,000 or more for goods, US$ 100,000 or more for consulting firms and US$ 50,000 or more for individual consultants. Supporting documents, such as invoices or receipts, etc., will be required for claims of these project expenditures. Project expenditures on contracts below the above thresholds, training programs and operating costs will be claimed through the Statement of Expenditures.
47. Designated Account. A single segregated designated account will be opened at DAB in US Dollars for a ceiling of advance to the designated account up to four (4) months' worth of project expenditures to be financed out of the funds in the designated account. The SDU in MOF will manage payments from and new advances/replenishments to this account. Cash advances and transfers to other accounts may be taken from the Designated Account, and held and managed by the Skills Team or other agencies or contractors approved by Government. The Skills Team’s controls for holding and accounting for cash advances, and preparation of Summary Reports (SOEs) have been assessed as satisfactory. New cash advances will only be made when all other prior cash advances have been justified through submission of SOEs to the SDU. The designated account will be replenished on a monthly basis.
62 48. Direct Payments. Third-party payments (direct) and Special Commitments will be permitted for amounts exceeding US$200,000 in the Designated Account. All such payments require supporting documentation in the form of records (copies of invoices, bills, purchase orders, etc.).
49. Preparation of Withdrawal Applications. The Skills Team will prepare Summary Reports and forward those reports to the SDU for further processing into withdrawal application. The SDU will review withdrawal applications for quality and conformity to Treasury procedures, and then obtain signature. Selected finance staff from the Skills Team and SDU staff have already been registered as users of the World Bank Web-based Client Connection system, and take an active hand in managing the flow of disbursements.
Financial Management Covenants
• MOF shall submit audited financial statements for the project within six months of the end of each fiscal year. The Project’s audit report will cover the financial statements, the Designated Account, and SOEs, in accordance with terms of reference agreed with the Association. • Consolidated project interim financial reports will be submitted by the Skills Team on a quarterly basis to the World Bank and a copy to SDU-MOF within 45 days after the end of each quarter. • The Ministry of Education and the DMTVET will ensure that key FM staff (FM Specialist and FM Officer) who are in place already for ASDP, will continue to be engaged for ASDP II are retained throughout the duration of the project in order to ensure smooth project implementation. • The Ministry and DMTVET shall also ensure that Internal Audit Cell is created in the Skills Team by September 30, 2013, and shall be retained throughout the tenure of the project. • All selected TVET institutes and schools are required to set up their Governing Council and signing an MOU with the DMTVET prior to receiving any project fund.
Regular Supervision Plan
50. During project implementation, the Bank will supervise the project’s financial management arrangements. The team will:
• Review the project’s quarterly interim financial reports as well as the project’s annual audited financial statements and auditor’s management letter. • Review the project’s financial management and disbursement arrangements (including a review of a sample of SOEs and movements on the Designated Account and bank reconciliations) to ensure compliance with the Bank's minimum requirements. • Review agency performance in managing project funds to ensure that it is timely, accurate, and accountable. Particular supervision emphasis will be placed on asset management and supplies. • Review of financial management risk rating and compliance with all covenants.
63 Concluding Remark Based upon the structures described above, the FM arrangements including the systems, processes, procedures and staffing are adequate to support the project.
64 Annex 6: Procurement Arrangements
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
1. The Bank has gained substantial experience and understanding of the procurement environment in Afghanistan through its involvement in the interim procurement arrangements put in place under the Emergency Public Administration Project (2002) and though working with the institutions currently responsible for procurement functions, including the Afghanistan Reconstruction and Development Services. As part of the broader review of Afghanistan’s Public Finance Management (PFM) system, the Bank carried out two assessments, in June 2005 and September 2007, of the procurement environment in the country based on baseline and performance indicators developed by a group of institutions led by the World Bank and OECD/DAC.
2. The first key issue identified through the procurement assessments was lack of ownership and lack of a procurement champion in the Government, which is a serious impediment to reform and to inter-ministerial dialogue. A second, related issue is the lack of capacity in the line ministries, as evidenced by their inability to define and communicate effectively their desired functional specifications/terms of reference in their procurement. The lack of capacity is also evident in the local private sector—while the number of bids is reasonably high, there is a lack of understanding about how to apply public procurement rules.
Governmental Procurement Reforms
3. A new Procurement Law (PL) was adopted in November 2005 that radically transforms the legal and regulatory framework. In accordance with the law, GIROA established a Procurement Policy Unit (PPU) under the Ministry of Finance to provide oversight for the PL’s implementation. PPU has issued several circulars regarding implementation of the PL including “Rules of Procedures for Public Procurement” (Circular: PPU/C005/1386 of April 12, 2007) and “Procurement Appeal and Review Mechanism” (Circular: PPU/N001/1385 of March 18, 2007). PPU and MOF have developed several standard bidding documents (SBDs), standard requests for proposal (SRFPs), standard requests for quotation (RFQs) for national and international procurement of goods/works and consulting services following national procedures as per the PL’s Glossary of Procurement Terms in English and Dari. MOF has now mandated the use of: (i) SBDs for Goods and Works (Circular PPU/C024/1388 of June 10, 2009); (ii) SRFQs (Circular PP/C026/1388); and (iii) SRFPs (Circular PPU/C029/1388 of January 13, 2010). A Procurement Management Information System (PMIS) has been developed and is being piloted in three line ministries. In addition, a PPU Web site will facilitate publication of procurement notices and contract awards in addition to similar action being done under the ARDS-Web site and the Web sites of the line ministries, as applicable.
4. In the absence of adequate capacity to manage procurement activities effectively, a central procurement facilitation unit (ARDS–PU) has been established under Ministry of Economy to support line ministries and project implementing agencies. The Bank and the Government have agreed on a program for country-wide procurement reform and capacity building, leading to the transition from centralized to decentralized procurement services. The above was implemented by an international consultant under the supervision of PPU/MOF and
65 financed under the Public Administration Capacity Building Project (PACBP) and the Public Finance Management Reform Project (PFMRP). The consultant has conducted several basic, intermediate, and advanced level training programs. The implementation of the procurement reform component of the PACBP/PFMRP should be considered with due priority to ensure that fiduciary standards are further enhanced and that capacity is developed in the Government to maintain these standards.
5. The Procurement Law has been revised in July 2008 and amended in January 2009 and issued as a new Law by the Ministry of Justice and was published in the Official Gazette Number 957, 29.10.1387 (18 January 2009). The revised “Rules of Procedures for Public Procurement” have been issued as circular PPU/C027/1387 of November 18, 2009.
General Procurement
6. Procurement for the project will be administered in accordance with the World Bank’s Guidelines: Procurement under IBRD Loans and IDA Credits dated January 2011, Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers dated January 2011, and the provisions stipulated in the Financing Agreement. In addition, the World Bank’s Guidelines on Preventing and Combating Corruption in Projects Financed by IBRD Loans and IDA Credits and Grants dated October 15, 2006, revised in January 2011 has been shared with the recipient. The World Bank’s Standard Bidding Documents, Requests for Proposals, and Forms of Consultant Contract will be used. Civil works and goods following National Competitive Bidding (NCB) procedures shall be procured using the agreed Standard Bidding Documents (SBDs) for Afghanistan. It has been agreed by both parties that in the event of a conflict between IDA Procurement/Consultant Guidelines, as per Article 4 (2) of the Procurement Law July 2008 (Amendments in January 2009 incorporated) of the GIROA, the IDA Procurement/Consultant Guidelines shall prevail.
Procurement of Works
7. Works procured under this project, would include: Dining Halls for Boys and Girls, Construction of new building for Accounting School at Jangalak, Construction of outside Toilets for staff, Construction of Auxiliary Water Tank, Additions to Research Building at Deh Boori, House for Warden, Boys' Hostel, Construction of International Faculty Hostel, Extension of TTTI Bldg for Workshop, Recreation Room for Students and gymnasium, Landscaping and other works for NIMA Campus and Women's Hostel.
8. The procurement will be done using the Bank’s Standard Bidding Documents (SBD) for all ICB and National SBD agreed with (or satisfactory to) the Bank. Threshold for ICB civil works will be equivalent or more than US$ 5,000,000 per contract; threshold for NCB works will be less than US$ 5,000,000 per contract. Contract below USD 100,000 for civil works may be procured following shopping procedure as elaboration in the paragraph 3.5 of the procurement guidelines.
66 Procurement of Goods and Non Consulting Services
9. Goods to be procured under this project would include: Mini Vans, Furniture, Teacher Training Institute Equipment, Office Equipment, IT Equipment, Generators, Containers and Audio-visual equipment for teaching and for the Auditorium.
10. Procurement of the goods will be done using Bank’s SBD for Goods for all contracts following International Competitive Bidding (ICB) procedures. National SBDs agreed with, or satisfactory to the Association, will be used for the procurement of goods following National Competitive Bidding (NCB) procedures. Shopping shall be in accordance with paragraph 3.5 of the Bank’s Guidelines. Any contract estimated costing more than US$200,000 shall be procured following ICB procedures. Any contract estimated to cost more than US$50,000 equivalent and less than US$200,000 shall be procured following NCB procedures. Any contract estimated to cost less than US$50,000 equivalent shall be procured following shopping procedures. Goods that meet the requirements of paragraph 3.7 of the World Bank Procurement Guidelines may be procured following direct contracting procedures with prior agreement with the Association.
11. Procurement of small Value Goods and Works through School/Institution Shura:
12. The project will have two sub grants for schools/institution during the course of the project life. All the schools/institutions will be asked twice during the project life and each time for submission of proposals/business plan and each time seven of the total proposals will be shortlisted for the grant. A grant of maximum USD 400,000 will be provided to each of the school/institute who submits successful proposal. Out of the USD 400,000 each school may spend to maximum of 15% (USD 60,000) on the renovation of schools/institution etc. The rest of the grant will be used for goods and training.
13. The committee and the procedure of inviting proposal shortlisting will be fully elaborated in the operational manual which will be prepared by the MOE and will be reviewed and agreed by the Bank.
Selection of Consultants
14. The proposed grant would finance several consultancy assignments.
15. Firms: The following consultancy firms will be hired under the project: Management and Technical Consultant- Examination and Certification –[Agency], IP for NIMA, Third Party Monitor Services for various sub-components, Public Awareness Campaign, Impact Evaluation, and Capacity Building for MIS cell and for cells in supported Institutions.
16. Individual consultants: Key managerial, technical, and fiduciary, individual consultants will be hired under the project, ,
17. Hiring of managerial, technical, procurement, financial management and legal staff shall be prior reviewed by the Bank regardless of contract value.
18. MOE under the current project has hired national and international individual consultants. MOE will conduct a performance appraisal for each consultant and keeping in mind the result of
67 the performance the consultants either will be terminated or will be rehired following SSS under the ASDP II.
19. Short lists of consultants. For services estimated to cost less than US$100,000 equivalent per contract may be composed entirely of national consultants in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2.7 of the Consultant Guidelines. The selection methods applicable for consultants are QCBS, QBS, CQS, LCS, FBS, and SSS for firms as per Section V of the Bank’s Guidelines for Individuals. The threshold for CQS will be less than US$200,000 equivalent per contract.
Operating Costs
20. The operating costs which would be financed by the project would be procured using the implementing agency’s administrative procedures, which were reviewed and found acceptable to the Bank. The operating costs correspond to recurrent expenditures incurred on account of the Project implementation including office supplies, fuel and maintenance of vehicles and motor cycles, maintenance of equipment, telephone and other communications charges, advertising expenses, insurance for vehicles, bank and services fees, student internships and travel costs, office rentals, remuneration of the contracted staff in the Skills Team other than consultants included in Procurement Plan, but excluding salaries of officials of the Recipient’s civil service.
Assessment of the Agency’s Capacity to Implement Procurement
21. The MOE will have overall responsibility for all procurement under the project.
22. An assessment of the capacity of the current procurement staff of the ASDP project has been carried out by Rahimullah Wardak, Procurement Specialist on December 19, 2012.
23. The current ASDP project has five procurement staff. The same staff will be responsible for conducting procurement under ASDP-II. The staff are (i) a national Procurement Specialist, (ii) a contract management officer, (iii) procurement assistant, (iv) Senior HR officer, and (v) HR assistant. The education of procurement staff are as following: Procurement Specialist: BA (Economics), Procurement Assistant: BA (in progress), Contract Management Officer: Bsc (Civil Engineering), Sr. HR Officer: BBA (HR Management), HR Assistant: BBA (in Progress).
24. Capacity of the above staff were reviewed and the findings are as follows:
• The procurement specialist has more than six years of procurement experience in civil works, Goods (ICB & NCB) and hiring consultancy firms. The procurement specialist recently received training for management of civil works from ILO-Turin. • The contract management officer has around six (6) years’ experience in civil works contract management. Both the staff was involved in procurement of civil works under the current project and has gotten considerable experience. • The staff responsible for hiring of individual consultants i.e. Sr. HR Officer has more than five (5) years of experience in recruitment of (International & National) consultants under various donor funded projects such as GIZ, Dutch Government, NAEC project,
68 DANIDA, UNESCO, USAID, World Bank and others. He is assisted by qualified HR Assistant. 25. These procurement staff have received training on international and national level from different organizations.
26. Moreover, MOE is one of the ministries which have been accredited by the Procurement Policy Unit (PPU) to handle procurement independently without going through ARDS. Also the MOE is planning to hire a procurement consultant [firm] to do procurement of the ministry and develop capacity of the procurement directorate of the ministry.
27. Therefore, keeping in mind the decree 45 of the president and to streamline the procurement units of the ministry, the current ASDP procurement staff will gradually be transferred to the MOE Procurement Directorate but will be working solely for ASDP project. This will help to further develop capacity of the procurement directorate of MOE. As soon as the consultancy firm is hired the procurement under ASDP II will be conducted through procurement directorate of the MOE with close coordination/guidance of the firm.
28. Based on the above capacity the procurement risk under the ASDP II will be Moderate.
Procurement Risk Mitigation Monitoring Plan
29. MOE will ensure that all invitations for bid, EOIs are given wide publicity using its own website, ARDS, United Nations Development Business UNDB and national newspapers. Further for individual consultants the REOI/vacancy notice will be published on the following websites www.ards.af\ www.acbar.org, www.devnetjobs.org and www.reliefweb.int
30. With regard to procurement complaints, MOE will be guided by Article 71-72 of Procurement Law-2008 and Bank Guidelines. MOE will inform the Association as soon as a procurement complaint is received and the final outcome of the inquiry into the substance of the complaint. At a later stage, MOE should have system to register and monitor the receipt and resolving of complainants. The progress of such action will be reviewed by the Association during supervision missions.
31. MOE will prepare a Procurement Monitoring/Activity Schedule for Procurement of goods, works and Selection of consultant. The Monitoring/Activity Schedule shall be updated on a monthly basis. The above schedules will facilitate to monitor the time taken for procurement/selection activities and take remedial actions for delays. It has been agreed that all bid/proposal evaluations will be completed within: (i) 5-7 working days following shopping procedure; (ii) 15 – 20 working days following NCB/ICB procedures; (iii) 10 working days for individual consultants; and (iv) 15 working days for firms for REOI evaluation, 21 working days for Technical Evaluation Report (TER) and 20 working days to conclude the contract negotiations. There will be no more than 20% deviation between planed and actual procurement conducted under the project.
32. All the above indicators will be monitored during Implementation Support Mission for the project.
69 Governance and Anticorruption (GAC) agenda
33. All the contract opportunities and contract awards will be widely published in the internet, ARDS website, and when required in the UNDB.
34. MOE will set up a system to ensure that staff/consultants who handled the procurement process/contract management/contract execution do not join the consultants/contractors. This will be reviewed during supervision missions. Other actions are: (a) implementing agencies’ officials / staff to be alerted about any fraud and corruption issues; (b) bidders to be alerted against adopting fraud and corruption practices; (c) award contracts within the initial bid validity period, and closely monitor the timing; (d) take action against any corrupt bidder in accordance with law of the Government of Afghanistan; (e) preserve records and all documents regarding public procurement, in accordance with the Procurement Law provisions; (g) publish contract award information in UNDB online, ARDS’s website and agencies’ websites within two weeks of contract award; (h) ensure timely payments to the suppliers/contractors/ consultants and impose liquidated damages for delayed completion and, (i) enforce a procurement filing system.
Procurement Plan
35. The Borrower, at appraisal, developed a Procurement Plan for project implementation that provides the basis for the procurement methods. This plan has been agreed between the client and the Bank’s Task Team on January 13, 2013 and is available at the ASDP office. It will also be available in the Project’s database and on the Bank’s external website. The Procurement Plan will be updated in agreement with the Project Team annually or as required to reflect the actual project implementation needs and improvements in institutional capacity.
Frequency of Procurement Supervision
36. There will be two Implementation Support Missions per year, in addition to the usual ongoing prior review supervision to be carried out from Bank office.
37. Procurement Audit. In addition to prior review, Bank staff or Bank appointed consultants shall carryout post procurement audit once per annum.
70 Appendix: Procurement Plan
I. General
1. Country: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Borrower: Ministry of Education (MOE) Project Name: Afghanistan: Second Skill Development Project (ASDP-II) Grants No: TBP Project Implementation Agency (PIA):
2. Bank’s approval Date of the procurement Plan: January 7, 2013; Revision: February 7, 2013
3. Date of General Procurement Notice: February 28, 2013
4. Period covered by this procurement plan: (18 months)
II. Goods and Works and non-consulting services.
1. Prior Review Threshold: Procurement Decisions subject to Prior Review by the Bank as stated in Appendix 1 to the Guidelines for Procurement:
Procurement Method Prior Review Threshold Comment (US$) 1. ICB and LIB (Goods) All All regards of value 2. NCB (Goods) 200,000 Equivalent or above 3. ICB (Works) All All regards of value 4. NCB (Works) 500,000 Equivalent or above 5. ICB (Non-Consultant Services) All All regards of value 6. NCB (Non-Consultant Services) 200,000 Equivalent or above
Procurement Method Threshold Comment for procurement methods (US$) 1. ICB and LIB (Goods) 200,001 Equivalent or above 2. NCB (Goods) 200,000 Equivalent or less 3. ICB (Works) 5,000,001 Equivalent or above 4. NCB (Works) 5,000,000 Equivalent or less 5. ICB (Non-Consultant Services) 200,001 Equivalent or above 6. NCB (Non-Consultant Services) 200,000 Equivalent or less 7. Shopping (Goods) 50,000 Equivalent or less 8. Shopping (Works) 100,000 Equivalent or less
71 2. Prequalification. No contracts are foreseen to require prequalification at this point. Should contracts at a later stage require prequalification, bidders shall be prequalified in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs 2.9 and 2.10 of the Guidelines.
72
4. Procurement Packages with Methods and Time Schedule 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Procure- Pre- Domestic Review Expected Comments Contract Estimated ment qualification Preference by Bank Bid- Package ID (Description) Cost Method (yes/no) (yes/no) (Prior / Opening Post) Date Mini Van DMTVET/G-1 80,000.00 NCB No No Post 10-Jun-13 (2) Furniture for Teacher $278,000.00 Training Institute DMTVET/ Class room $50,000.00 G-2.1 Furniture DMTVET/ Office DMTVET/G-2 $40,000.00 G-2.2 Furniture ICB No No Prior 20-Jun-13 DMTVET/ Library $50,000.00 G-2.3 Furniture DMTVET/ Furniture for $40,000.00 G-2.4 Computer lab Teacher DMTVET/G-3 Hostel $70,000.00 NCB No No Post 04-May-14 furniture Teacher Recreation DMTVET/G-4 $15,000.00 S No No Post 30-Jun-13 room Furniture Teacher Hostel DMTVET/G-5 Reading $10,000.00 S No No Post 30-Jun-13 Room Furniture
73 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Procure- Pre- Domestic Review Expected Comments Contract Estimated ment qualification Preference by Bank Bid- Package ID (Description) Cost Method (yes/no) (yes/no) (Prior / Opening Post) Date Hostel Security DMTVET/G-6 $3,000.00 S No No Post 10-Jun-13 Room Furniture Teacher Training Institute $1,190,000 Equipment Electrical,
Mechanical DMTVET/G-7 $600,000.00 ICB No No Prior 10-Aug-13 Workshop
Machines, Metalworkin g and DMTVET/G-8 Welding $250,000.00 ICB No No Prior 10-Jun-13 Workshop Machines Carpentry DMTVET/G-9 Workshop $70,000.00 NCB No No Post 20-Jun-13 Machine Civil Engineering Lab and DMTVET/G-10 $190,000.00 NCB No No Post 20-Dec-13 Work shop Equipment
Cabling and DMTVET/G-11 Switchgear $70,000.00 NCB No No Post 20-Jun-13 for
74 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Procure- Pre- Domestic Review Expected Comments Contract Estimated ment qualification Preference by Bank Bid- Package ID (Description) Cost Method (yes/no) (yes/no) (Prior / Opening Post) Date Workshops Recreational DMTVET/G-12 Equipment $10,000.00 S No No Post 10-Aug-13
for Teachers
Office Equipment $115,000 DMTVET/G-13 Telephone $10,000.00 S No No Post 20-Aug-13 Instrument Binding and DMTVET/G-14 Laminating $5,000.00 S No No Post 20-Aug-13
Machines Digital DMTVET/G-15 Cameras and $15,000.00 S No No Post 20-Aug-13 Audio Equipment LCD DMTVET/G-16 Projector and $10,000.00 S No No Post 20-Aug-13
Screen DMTVET/G-17 Scanners and $5,000.00 S No No Post 20-Aug-13 Fax machine Heavy duty DMTVET/G-18 and small $40,000.00 S No No Post 20-Aug-13
photocopiers Printer, DMTVET/G-19 Scanner, $30,000.00 S No No Post 20-Aug-14
Computer
75 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Procure- Pre- Domestic Review Expected Comments Contract Estimated ment qualification Preference by Bank Bid- Package ID (Description) Cost Method (yes/no) (yes/no) (Prior / Opening Post) Date Computers $350,000 Computer for DMTVET/G-20 $200,000.00 NCB No No Post 04-Nov-13 TTTI
Computers DMTVET/G-21 for supported $150,000.00 NCB N0 No Post 04-Sep-13
Instts.(MIS)
IT Equipment other than Computers $445,000 DMTVET/G-22 UPS- $70,000.00 NCB No No Post 20-Aug-13 Stabilizer DMTVET/G-23 Misc. IT S $25,000.00 No No Post 5-Sep-13 items V-Sat Dish & DMTVET/G-24 Relevant $300,000.00 NCB No No Prior 5-Sep-13
Hardware Cabling DMTVET/G-25 Switches, $100,000.00 NCB No No Post 5-Sep-13
Hubs etc Generator Sets for DMTVET/ NIMA DMTVET/G-26 01-April- G-26-1 Campus, $365,000 ICB No No Prior 14 International Hostel, ANIM
76 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Procure- Pre- Domestic Review Expected Comments Contract Estimated ment qualification Preference by Bank Bid- Package ID (Description) Cost Method (yes/no) (yes/no) (Prior / Opening Post) Date
DMTVET/ Solar Power G-26-2 for NIMA- ANIM
Student’s hostel furniture $85,000.00 DMTVET/ Dormitory $65,000.00 G-27-1 Furniture DMTVET/G-27 Recreation NCB No No Post 1-Sep-14 DMTVET/ Room $20,000.00 G-27-2 Furniture
Procurement of Modified DMTVET/G-28 Containers for use as $50,000.00 S No No Post 15-Sep-13 Stores and Security Rooms
Furniture and Equipment for International $190,000.00 Faculty Hostel Furniture and DMTVET/G-29 Fixtures for $80,000 S No No Post 05-Nov-13 Rooms Equipment DMTVET/G-30 $30,000 S No No Post 10-Mar-14 for Kitchen Lounge DMTVET/G-31 $40,000 S No No Post 20-Mar-14 Furniture DMTVET/G-32 Recreational $10,000 S No No Post 20-Mar-14
77 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Procure- Pre- Domestic Review Expected Comments Contract Estimated ment qualification Preference by Bank Bid- Package ID (Description) Cost Method (yes/no) (yes/no) (Prior / Opening Post) Date Equipment Security Equipment DMTVET/G-33 for $30,000 S No No Post 01-Apr-14 International Hostel DMTVET/ Library $100,000 G-33. 1 Books DMTVET/G-33 One-time cost NCB No No Post 05-Dec-13 DMTVET/ of Journal $40,000 G-33. 2 subscriptions DMTVET/G-34 ANIM Instruments $350,000 ICB No No Prior 05-Nov-13 Accessories ANIM DMTVET/G-35 $87,000 NCB No No Post 10-Nov-13 Instrument Concert Hall Stage Items DMTVET/G-36 $40,000 NCB No No Post 15-Nov-13 ANIM
Total $3,575,000
78 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Ref. No. Review Procurem Domestic Expected Contract Estimated Prequalificati by Bank ent Preference Bid-Opening Comments (Description) Cost on (yes/no) (Prior / Category Sub-Category Method (yes/no) Date Post) 2 Nos Dining Halls DMTVET/W-01 $800,000.00 NCB No No Prior 30-May-13 for Boys and Girls
Construction of new 30-Jun-13 DMTVET/W-02 building for $650,000.00 NCB No No Prior
Accounting School at Jangalak Construction of outside Toilets for DMTVET/W-03 $105,000.00 NCB No No Post 30-Jun-13 staff, and Auxiliary Water Tank Additions to Research DMTVET/W-04 Building at $400,000 NCB No No Post 15-Jun-13 Deh Boori
House for DMTVET/W-05 $150,000.00 NCB No No Post 30-July-13 Warden DMTVET/W-06 Boys' Hostel $900,000.00 NCB No No Prior 15-Apr-13 Construction DMTVET/W-07 of $800,000.00 NCB No No Prior 15-July-13 International
79 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Ref. No. Review Procurem Domestic Expected Contract Estimated Prequalificati by Bank ent Preference Bid-Opening Comments (Description) Cost on (yes/no) (Prior / Category Sub-Category Method (yes/no) Date Post) Faculty Hostel Extension of DMTVET/W-08 TTTI Bldg $300,000.00 NCB No No Post 30-Oct-13 for Workshop Recreation Room for DMTVET/W-09 $150,000.00 NCB No No Post 30-Oct-13 Students and gymnasium Landscaping and other DMTVET/W-10 works for $300,000.00 NCB No No Post 1-Jul-13 NIMA Campus Women's $1,200,000. DMTVET/W-11 NCB No No Prior 01-July-13 Hostel 00 Construction of Orphan DMTVET/W-12 $900,000 NCB No No Prior 15-July-13 Hostel for ANIM
Total $6,655,000
80 III. Selection of Consultants
1. Prior Review Threshold: Selection decisions subject to Prior Review by Bank as stated in Appendix 1 to the Guidelines Selection and Employment of Consultants:
Selection Method Prior Review Comment Threshold (US$) 1. Competitive Methods (Firms) 100,000 Equivalent or above 2. Individual Consultant 50,000 Equivalent or above 3. Single Source (Firms) or individual All Regardless of value
2. Short list comprising entirely of national consultants: Short list of consultants for services, estimated to cost less than $100,000 equivalent per contract, may comprise entirely of national consultants in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2.7 of the Consultant Guidelines.
3. Any Other Special Selection Arrangements: [Not Applicable]
81
4. Consultancy Assignments with Selection Methods and Time Schedule
Expected Review Estimated Procurement Proposal- Ref. No. Contract (Description) by Remarks Cost Method opening Bank Date
DMTVET Consultancy Services Consultant for Strategy and June 30- DMTVET/C-1 $150,000 IC Prior For 12 months Planning 2013 Consultant for TVET School June 30- DMTVET/C-2 $450,000 IC Prior For 36 months Development and Implementation 2013 48 months Coordinator for Technical Teacher June 30- DMTVET/C-3 $290,000 IC Prior @6000 per Training 2013 month, National 10 Faculty @ June 30- DMTVET/C-4 Faculty Technical Teacher Training $1,800,000 IC Post 6000 for 30 2013 months June 30- DMTVET/C-5 Procurement Consultant (Int’l) $150,000 IC Prior 2013 15 nos @3200 per month for 48 June 30- DMTVET/C-6 NIMA Faculty (15 nos.) $2,300,000 IC Prior months, it will 2013 be separated once specified it will be June 30- DMTVET/C-7 ANIM Faculty (7 nos) $1,000,000 IC Prior separated once 2013 specified June 30- 40 DMTVET/C-8 Procurement Officer $88,000 IC Prior 2013 months@2200 DMTVET/C-9 Internal Auditor $120,000 IC Prior 31-May-13
82 Expected Review Estimated Procurement Proposal- Ref. No. Contract (Description) by Remarks Cost Method opening Bank Date DMTVET/C- April 30- ASDP Manager $190,000 SSS Prior 10 2013 It will be DMTVET/C- Maintenance Assistants for Teacher Sept 30- $576,000 IC Post separated once 11 Training Institute (10) 2013 specified DMTVET/C- April 30- Financial Management Specialist $170,000 SSS Prior 12 2013 DMTVET/C- April 30- Procurement Specialist $170,000 SSS Prior 13 2013 DMTVET/C- May 31- 5000per month MIS Specialist $120,000 IC Prior 14 2013 for 24 months DMTVET/C- Expert on Vocational Training for Aug 31- 8000 per month $96,000 IC Prior 15 Visually Impaired (Int’l) 2013 for 12 months DMTVET/C- Consultant for low vision training Aug 31- 8000 per month $32,000 IC Prior 16 (Int’l) 2013 for 4 months DMTVET/C- Consultant for Mobility training Aug 31- 8000 per month $32,000 IC Prior 17 (Int’l) 2013 for 4 months Curriculum Development Specialist DMTVET/C- Aug 31- 8000 per month for Pre-School Education of Blind $48,000 IC Prior 18 2013 for 6 months Children (Int’l) DMTVET/C- Environmental & Safeguard Sep 15- $90,000 IC Prior 19 Specialist 2013 DMTVET/C- Sep 15- Gender Specialist $90,000 IC Prior 20 2013 Management and Technical TOR will include DMTVET/C- June 30- Consultant- Examination and $7,000,000 CQS Prior facilitation of NOSS 19 2013 benchmarking and Certification –[Agency] Certification process MOE- IP for NIMA [Firm] $3,000,000 FBS Prior June 30-
83 Expected Review Estimated Procurement Proposal- Ref. No. Contract (Description) by Remarks Cost Method opening Bank Date TVET/C-20 2013
MOE- Third Party Monitor Services for Sept 30- $1,000,000 QCBS Prior TVET/C-21 various sub-components [Firm] 2013 MOE- Sept 30- Public Awareness Campaign [Firm] $1,500,000 FBS Prior TVET/C-22 2013 MOE- Sept 30- Impact Evaluation [Firm] $600,000 FBS Prior TVET/C-23 2013 Capacity Building for MIS cell and MOE- Sept 30- for cells in supported Institutions $250,000 FBS Prior TVET/C-24 2013 [Firm] to cover 30 institutions in DMTVET/C- Consultant (Business Planning) June 30- $1,000,000 QCBS Prior phases and to 27 [Firm] 2013 participate in evaluation 15 coordinators for 36 months DMTVET/C- Institution Coordinators (15) June 30- @2500 per $1,350,000 IC Post 28 National, Individual Consultants 2013 month, it will be separated once specified Total $23,662,000
84 IV. Implementing Agency Capacity Building Activities with Time Schedule
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 No Expected outcome / Estimate Estimated Start Closing Activity Description d Cost Duration Date Date Comments (US$) 1 Procurement Training Training will in outside of the take place country for civil from 1-Jan- Min 3 days and 1-Jan- 30-Jun- service procurement 25,000 13 till 30- max 4 weeks 13 14 staff involve in Jun-13 procurement of ASDP-II 2 Procurement training Training will in world bank take place Min 1 day and 1-Jan- 30-Jun- No cost from 1-Jan- max 1 week 13 14 13 till 30- Jun-13 3 Procurement training The training by PPU will take Min 1 week and 1-Jan- 30-Jun- No cost place from max 3 weeks 13 14 1-jan-13 till 30-jun-13
Agreed Procedures for National Competitive Bidding: I. Standard bidding documents approved by the Association shall be used. II. Invitations to bid shall be advertised in at least one (1) widely circulated national daily newspaper and bidding documents shall be made available to prospective bidders, at least twenty eight (28) days prior to the deadline for the submission of bids. III. Bids shall not be invited on the basis of percentage premium or discount over the estimated cost. IV. Bidding documents shall be made available, by mail or in person, to all who are willing to pay the required fee. V. Foreign bidders shall not be precluded from bidding. VI. Qualification criteria (in case pre-qualifications were not carried out) shall be stated on the bidding documents, and if a registration process is required, a foreign firm determined to be the lowest evaluated bidder shall be given reasonable opportunity of registering, without any hindrance. VII. Bidders may deliver bids, at their option, either in person or by courier service or by mail.
85 VIII. All bidders shall provide bid security or a bid security declaration form as indicated in the bidding documents. A bidder’s bid security or the declaration form shall apply only to a specific bid. IX. Bids shall be opened in public in one place preferably immediately, but no later than one hour, after the deadline for submission of bids. X. Evaluation of bids shall be made in strict adherence to the criteria disclosed in the bidding documents, in a format, and within the specified period, agreed with the Association. XI. Bids shall not be rejected merely on the basis of a comparison with an official estimate without the prior concurrence of the Association. XII. Split award or lottery in award of contracts shall not be carried out. When two (2) or more bidders quote the same price, an investigation shall be made to determine any evidence of collusion, following which: (A) if collusion is determined, the parties involved shall be disqualified and the award shall then be made to the next lowest evaluated and qualified bidder; and (B) if no evidence of collusion can be confirmed, then fresh bids shall be invited after receiving the concurrence of the Association; XIII. Contracts shall be awarded to the lowest evaluated bidders within the initial period of bid validity so that extensions are not necessary. Extension of bid validity may be sought only under exceptional circumstances. XIV. Extension of bid validity shall not be allowed without the prior concurrence of the Association (A) for the first request for extension if it is longer than four (4) weeks, and (B) for all subsequent requests for extensions irrespective of the period in case of prior review. XV. Negotiations shall not be allowed with the lowest evaluated or any other bidders. XVI. Re-bidding shall not be carried out without the Association’s prior concurrence in case of prior review; and XVII. All contractors or suppliers shall provide performance security as indicated in the contract documents. A contractor’s or a supplier’s performance security shall apply to a specific contract under which it was furnished.
86 Annex 7: Implementation Arrangements
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
1. Institutional Set-Up: An institutional set up is already in place in DMTVET under the MOE, for implementation of current ASDP. This existing arrangement, which implements the ongoing ASDP, is not proposed to be changed for ASDP II. However, the need has been felt for some time now to augment the capacity of the Skills Team within the DM TVET which manages ASDP and this is proposed to be done through providing TA. The unit has already functioning systems for FM and Procurement which have been periodically assessed and audited, and comments received have been favorable.
2. Implementation Period: The project will be implemented over a period of five calendar years and five fiscal years (World Bank) from July 1, 2013 to June 30, 2018.
3. Government’s Capacity for Project Execution: The DTVET has the capacity to take on the responsibility of the implementation and delivery of this project. The Bank team did consider other alternatives, such as, employing a Facilitating or Implementation Partner to manage and help implement the entire project. This idea was discarded in favor of using Government systems, which have already been working well and which will simultaneously help further build capacity within the Government to undertake such tasks in the future. Furthermore, in a post-conflict setting and with Transition approaching, there is a critical need to explicitly demonstrate that the Government is both in control and capable of taking key decisions aimed at improving the lives and welfare of the population. This project therefore aims at visibly establishing Government presence across the country.
4. Implementation Arrangements: No Program Implementation Unit (PIU) will be established for the execution of this project. Given the nature of the project and its strategic importance, the large number of activities to be completed within the time frame of the project, and the still limited capacity of the government to be able to coordinate and monitor program implementation, the following institutional arrangements have been agreed to ensure that funds disburse quickly, multi-sectoral objectives are reached, and transparency of all transactions is maintained. As far as reporting is concerned, the Skills Team shall submit a Quarterly Progress Report to the Association through the DMTVET within 30 days from the end of the quarter in a format included in the FM Manual annexed to the PIM.
5. All project components are within the domain of the DMTVET, which is a fully established department within the MOE with a total number of staff of about 2460 across the country and about 140 staff members managing the Department headquarters in Kabul. The Skills Team within the DMTVET will continue to play the main fiduciary roles related to program activities, such as, all procurement, financial management and reporting as well as all project related coordination with other line departments, such as, planning and M&E. The DMTVET also has its own Engineering and Design department which has been looking after the construction works of the Deputy Ministry. This includes overall technical guidance on the rehabilitation and construction of schools and institutes. While it is anticipated that, under the reform package stated in Component 2.2, schools will gain increasing autonomy as the DMTVET moves to a more decentralized management style, the impacts of such developments
87 on implementation arrangements is necessarily vague. The MOF has agreed in principle to allow project supported institutions under the DMTVET to have access to imprest cash to help ensure operational flexibility in the implementation of programs. However, this more laissez-faire management style will have to be supported with intensive monitoring of project implementation and outcomes, and evaluation of program success.
6. ASDP II Steering Committee: The whole project will be overseen by a Steering Committee chaired by the Minister, at the policy level. The ASDP II Steering Committee will provide overall strategic guidance and enabling support to ASDP II and serve as forum for high- level decision making and an interface with the Ministry of Finance (MoF), Ministry of Labor, Social Affairs, Martyred and Disabled (MOLSAMD) and the private sector. The Committee will be chaired by the Minister of Education and will comprise the Deputy Minister, TVET; one representative from the MOF; Director General, Finance and Administration, MoE; two representatives from the private sector; and three representatives from donors. Head of the Skills Team in DMTVET will serve as Secretary to the Steering Committee. The Committee, to be established by July 15, 2013, will (i) provide policy guidance, (ii) facilitate coordination with the Ministries including the MOF and MOLSAMD, other projects in the TVET sector, emerging government policies with a bearing on jobs and skills, and with organizations such as AISA, Chamber of Commerce and others with respect to emerging sectors that have need for skills, (iii) take decisions on issues arising out of project interventions in disturbed and conflict affected districts or provinces, (iv) provide guidance for the framing of the TVET policy and strategy taking into account priorities of the Government of Afghanistan, private sector and donors, and (v) review project progress reports and monitor implementation performance.
7. ASDP II Standing Committee. The Standing Committee in DMTVET will oversee implementation of the ASDP II on a regular basis including adherence to the agreed guidelines and implementation schedule, help resolve implementation issues, appoint and terminate national project staff, make decisions on the award of sub-grants in accordance with the procedures in the PIM, and review/approve financial and project progress reports to be sent to the Bank. It will be established by July 15, 2013 and chaired by the Deputy Minister, TVET; it will comprise of Director General, Finance and Administration, MOE; FM Specialist, Skills Team; Procurement Specialist, Skills Team; and two representatives of the private sector and industry. The Head of the Skills Team will serve as member-secretary. The Chairman can also nominate up to two other members to the Standing Committee.
8. The following Table summarizes the composition of the two Committees on oversight;
Steering Committee Standing Committee for ASDP II
Minister of Education Chairman Deputy Minister of Chairman TVET Dy. Minister, TVET Member Skills Team’s head Member-Secretary Representative of MOF Member Director General Member (Finance and Admin.) of MOE Director General of Finance and Member Finance Management Member Admin., MOE Specialist, ASDP
88 Steering Committee Standing Committee for ASDP II
Donor Representatives Member Procurement Member (3) Specialist, ASDP Private Sector and Industry Member Representatives of Member (2) Representatives (2) Private Sector and Industry (other than those are member of Steering Committee)
9. Donor Coordination Group: The Bank team will support the MOE in establishing a Donor Coordination Group. This Group would (i) help coordinate interventions of different donor funded projects in the TVET sector with a view to eliminate overlap and shortcomings, (ii) discuss matters that concern the Government’s TVET sector policy and strategies, and share its views with the Government, (iii) discuss the implementation progress of donor funded TVET projects, in particular ASDP II, and recommend ways to accelerate implementation, and (iv) discuss other matters concerning the TVET sector that are of particular interest to the Group. The Group is expected to include six members from the development partners and will be convened by the Ministry of Education. The Head, ASFP unit will serve as Secretary to the Group.
10. The ASDP II will promote involvement of the private sector in the governance and management of the project supported TVET schools and institutes. An essential part of project design is the involvement of the private sector in school and institution governance and management. Schools and institutes will set up Governing Councils (GCL) before the first tranche of sub-grant for school/institute is disbursed. The GCL may have a maximum of seven (7) members, one of who shall be the Chairman. The GCL will have at least three (3) representatives from the private sector, not more than three (3) persons from the school/institute, and not more than one (1) representative from the Ministry. The Chairman of the GCL will be a private sector representative, and the Principal or Administrator of the school or the institute will be the Deputy Chairman. The Governing Council will meet at least once every two months. Any committees constituted under the GCL will mandatorily have a private sector member. Co- options to such committees should be done in such a manner that there is increasing representation of the private sector in managerial decision-making in the school/institute.
11. Government shall also ensure that the decisions taken by the Governing Councils are implemented. To do this, it is proposed that the Ministry provides clear-cut directions to the schools/institutes so that they may act on all decisions whose impacts are internal. Recruitment and termination will however continue to be done at the central level.
12. Finally, it is proposed that the autonomy to be granted to the schools/institutes be carried to fiduciary functions also, particularly finance and accounting. It is understood that this cannot be done in one shot, and that the process of devolution of financial autonomy will take place over a period of time. The project covenants that the Government devises a plan for gradual devolution of financial autonomy by June 30, 2014.
89 Results Monitoring and Evaluation
13. The Skills Team in DMTVET already has a Management Information System (MIS) but it needs strengthening. The Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system for ASDP II will support management of the DMTVET/MOE in decision making, monitor implementation progress, generate lessons and potential mid-course corrections, and support accountability by all implementing agencies. The system will establish and exploit a logical link between inputs, activities, outputs, and the sequence of outcomes through a clear results framework which will track progress against pre-defined targets. The system also outlines the institutional arrangements for ME&L and the roles and responsibilities of stakeholders involved.
14. The M&E system of the proposed project would consist of the following broad components: (i) concurrent monitoring of physical and financial progress; (ii) results monitoring of PDO and intermediate outcome indicators, through major surveys at baseline, mid-term, and project completion, and smaller annual surveys in interim years; (iii) participatory monitoring; and (iv) Impact Evaluation studies and specialized thematic studies to rigorously establish the impacts of the project. The entire system will be supported by a computerized management information system (MIS) designed to (a) capture progress and achievements on various indicators as defined in the Results Framework and described in Annex 1, (b) provide alerts and reports to resource persons to facilitate activity planning and decision making, (c) support to institution level staff for decentralized data entry to enable data collection at appropriate levels, (d) aggregate data at levels that allow insightful analysis, and (e) provide a framework for information reporting, including generating reports on demand and at regular intervals. In addition, the investments made in building of capacity of the Monitoring and Inspection Team of the DMTVET is expected to yield results in terms of high quality inputs on institution and school performance on a regular basis.
15. Given the general non-availability of verifiable data and the non-reliability of data generated in-house, ASDP II proposes that services of Third Party firm be requested to provide monitoring of project outcomes. These will of course be complemented by the DMTVET’s own data generating and monitoring system which will then benefit also from the methodology and rigor of the Third Party surveys.
Sustainability
16. The sustainability for this project revolves around the ability of TVET institutions to sustain their reforms and improve academic and institutional management as well as market linked skills delivery in the future. This, in turn, is dependent upon (a) clear policy guidance, (b) sufficient autonomy for innovation and operational flexibility at the institution level, (c) continuing robust market links, and (d) a credible system that certifies graduates from the institutions. ASDP II is focused on all these four elements. Each project component addresses one of these issues. Further, ASDP II provides a clear strategy for continuing to incentivize performing institutions through its process of Recognition of schools that implement Good Practices. In addition, it may be noted that the proposed in-service training of teachers and the creation of a cadre of Teacher-trainers will contribute positively to the growth of a more professional cadre of VET teachers as a whole and this is also sustainable since the Teacher- trainers would already be permanent employees of the Government.
90 17. Risks to sustainability however remain and these are discussed in Annex 4.
91 Annex 8: Project Preparation and Appraisal Team Members
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
Name Title Specialization Unit Bappaditya Chakravarty Task Team Leader Institutional Development SASED Leopold Remi Sarr Co-Task Team Leader Senior Economist SASED Samantha De Silva Senior Social Protection Social Protection/Education SASSP Specialist Guillemette J. Sidonie Senior Private Sector Private Sector Development SASFP Development Specialist Kamran Akbar Senior Rural Development Rural Development SASDL Specialist Zohra Farooq Financial Management Financial Management SARFM Specialist Chau Ching-Shen Senior Finance Officer Financial Management CTRLN Marjorie Mpundu Senior Counsel Legal LEGES Rahimullah Wardak Procurement Specialist Procurement SARPS Md Yasin Noori Social Development Social Safeguards SASDS Specialist Obaidullah Hidayat Environment Specialist Environmental Safeguards SASDI Ivena John Program Analyst Monitoring and Evaluation HRHSD Palwasha Mirbacha Operations Officer Operations SASED Julie-Anne Graitge Program Assistant Administrative/Operations SASHD Asif Qurishi Team Assistant Administrative/Operations SASHD Mariam Haidary Program Assistant Administrative/Operations SASHD Surendra K Agarwal Consultant Operations SASED Vishal Gandhi Consultant Financial Management New Delhi Brijesh Bamalwa Consultant Financial Management New Delhi
Amitabho Roy Consultant Evaluation New Delhi
Rajiv Agarwal Consultant Architecture New Delhi Sonia Eqbal Consultant Monitoring and Evalaution Kabul
Peer Reviewers Venkatesh Sundararaman Sr Economist Education LCSHE Peter Darvas Sr. Edu. Economist Education AFTEW Gustav Reier Program Coordinator TVET GIZ
92 Annex 9: Environmental and Social Safeguards Framework
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
Safeguards Issues 1. ASDP II is a category B project according to the World Bank’s Environmental Policies and OP/BP 4.01 is triggered. The minor construction work under the project is not expected to cause any significant negative environmental impact. The location and details of the planned physical works are not known at project appraisal and therefore a framework approach has been adopted to address potential social and environmental issues and ensure consistent treatment of social and environmental issues during its implementation. Any new small buildings under the project will be on land that already belongs to the MOE. The identified potential adverse impacts if any would be localized in spatial context and will be of short duration, and would be manageable through implementation of proper mitigation measures.
2. The Environmental and Social Management Framework (ESMF) has been developed specifically for ASDP II to avoid, reduce or mitigate adverse social or environmental impact. Consistent with existing national legislation and the World Bank Operational Policies on environmental and social safeguard, the objective of the Framework is to help ensure that activities under the project would:
• Protect human health; • Prevent or compensate any loss of livelihood; • Prevent environmental degradation as a result of either individual subprojects or their cumulative effects; • Minimize impacts on cultural property; • Enhance positive environmental and social outcomes; and • Comply with the National and World Bank Safeguards policies 3. The project will finance minor civil works, such as modification or rehabilitation of existing infrastructure, and some small new buildings for one set of beneficiaries. However, there will be construction activities in the institutes that are currently being supported under ASDP and will continue to receive support under the new project. No land acquisition will be funded under the project, and in the case of new constructions, these will be built on existing land that already belong to MoE. Adverse social impacts of construction works may thus only arise in case of informal settlers (e.g. squatters) or other uses of the government land in question. Since the location of any new facility is not known at appraisal, the ESMF includes guidelines for compensation in the rare case that negative livelihood impact is suffered by project affected people (PAPs).
4. The selection, design, contracting, monitoring and evaluation of construction projects will be consistent with the following guidelines, codes of practice and requirements as detailed in the ESMF:
93 • A negative list of characteristics that would make a proposed subproject ineligible for support; • Guidelines for livelihood and compensation for loss of assets; • Relevant elements of the codes of practice for the mitigation of potential environmental and social impacts; • The requirement that confirmation is received through the Regional Mine Action Center that areas to be accessed during reconstruction and rehabilitation activities have been demined; • Environmental Guidelines for Contractors; and • Grievance Redress Mechanism.
Grievance Handling Management
5. ASDP II will review and enhance the current Complaint Handing System (CHS) at TVET schools and institutes and dormitories. The strengthening of CHS will focus on multiple grievance uptake channels and establish a grievance redress committee in each beneficiary TVET school and institute, and in dormitory. During implementation of ASDP II, the beneficiary TVET school and institute will maintain a complaint record database to enable complaint tracking and review. There will also be a complaint handling committee at each construction site. Such a Grievance Redress system will provide trainees, teachers as well as laborers a formal venue for raising their grievances and concerns, as well as a mechanism for timely and adequate solution or mitigation of their grievances and concerns. The revised grievance handling procedures are included in the ESMF.
Disclosure
6. By appraisal of the project, the ESMF will be disclosed by the ASDP II Unit in DMTVET in Dari and Pashto languages as well as English on the MOE’s website and in relevant locations in the country as required by law for information and comments. The Public Relations Unit in the MOE will be responsible to publicize the ESMF document via media and other sources. The English version of the ESMF as well as the ISDS will be disclosed at the World’s Bank InfoShop by Feb 15, 2013. The Government of Afghanistan has made all project documentation publicly available to the relevant stakeholders through the Afghan Information Management System (AIMS) and the MOE’s websites.
Potential Adverse Social and Environmental Impacts:
7. The ASDP II project will finance minor civil works, such as modification or rehabilitation of existing TVET schools and institutes, and some new structures which will take place within the available land that belong to the MOE. The proposed work is not anticipated to cause significant adverse impacts on the environment or community. The identified potential adverse impacts would be localized in spatial extent and short in duration, and would be manageable by implementing proper mitigation measures.
8. No land acquisition will be funded under the school development grants, and in the case of new construction, these will be built on land owned by the beneficiary TVET School or
94 institution. Adverse social impacts of construction works, if any, may thus only arise in case of informal settlers or other uses of the government land in question
Safeguards Policies Triggered
9. The project is categorized as Environmental category B in accordance with World Bank operational policy (OP) 4.01 (Environmental Assessment). OP/BP 4.01 is triggered for the project because of the possibility of minor physical works. Activities under the proposed project are not anticipated to cause significant and negative environmental & social impacts. However, the construction activities may cause limited, temporary and localized negative impacts due to depletion or degradation of natural resources such as stone, earth, water, etc. used for construction.
10. The project will apply the ESMF developed for the project. The ESMF provides guidance on the approach to be taken during implementation for the selection and design of physical subprojects/proposed investments and the planning of mitigation measures, guidelines and codes of practice for the environmental mitigation measures to be incorporated in the design, contracting and monitoring implementation of sub-projects. Guidelines for consultation and disclosure requirements are also included to ensure due diligence and facilitate consistent treatment of environmental and social issues by all participating stakeholders.
11. OP 4.12 is not triggered and no land acquisition will be funded under the project. In case of new construction, these will either be built on existing land belonging to the MOE. Adverse social impacts of construction works may thus only arise in case of informal settlers or other uses of the government land in question. OP 4.10 is not triggered as there are no communities which can be classified as Indigenous Peoples in Afghanistan.
Safeguard Screening and Mitigation
12. Compliance with the safeguard provisions and the negative list will be ensured through an environmental, social and risk screening procedure (check lists) required for sub-project proposals, and by the monitoring of the internal inputs, processes, and outputs monitoring, independent external monitoring by consultants, and by Bank supervision missions.
13. The ESMF is based upon the national Environmental Act, its EIA regulations and the World Bank’s Operational Policies (OP/BP 4.01) which provide general policies, guidelines, codes of practice and procedures to be integrated into the implementation of the proposed operation for providing assistance, while at the same time ensuring due diligence in managing potential environmental and social risks.
14. The ESMF sets out guidelines and procedures for the following:
• Assessment of potential adverse E&S impacts commonly associated with the sub- projects and guidelines for how to avoid, minimize or mitigate them; Establishment of clear procedures and methodologies for the E&S planning, review, approval and implementation of sub-projects;
95 • Development of an initial Environmental and Social screening system to be used for subprojects; and • Specification of roles and responsibilities and the necessary reporting procedures for managing and monitoring sub-project E&S concerns. 15. The ESMF stipulates that contractors hired in the project should:
• Minimize negative impacts on local communities and the environment during construction. • Ensure appropriate restoration of areas affected by construction. • Prevent any long term environmental degradation and deal adequately with environmental, social, health and safety issues during rehabilitation works.
16. Contractors must declare themselves conversant of all relevant national environmental and social legislation and Bank regulations as well as of their environmental and social obligations as stipulated in the ESMF. Further, the contractor shall ensure compliance with the World Bank/IFC’s General Environmental, Health and Safety Guidelines as applicable to mitigate construction related impacts. The ASDP II project in consultation with the engineering team in the DMTVET through the designated Environmental and Social and Gender Focal persons will monitor the civil works under the project.
17. While OP 4.10 is not triggered, issues of equity across different ethnic/religious groups are important. The Skills Team is being reinforced through the recruitment of a Social and Gender Focal person to ensure adequate attention to the social safeguards aspects during project implementation.
18. Employment opportunities within the project will be available on an equal basis to all on the basis of professional competence, irrespective of gender, ethnic or religious group. In all project activities which require consultations with local communities or beneficiaries, consultations will be conducted to elicit the views of both the male and the female population, and separate consultations will be conducted with women.
Responsibilities for Safeguards/ESMF Implementation and Mitigation
19. The overall responsibility of project implementation rests with the Ministry of Education while the Skills Team is in charge of the implementation of ESMF activities.
20. The Social and Gender, and Environmental Focal persons will work closely with the entire Skills Team and the various departments of DMTVET. These two focal persons will be responsible for coordinating and monitoring the joint efforts of all relevant stakeholders during implementation of the project activities and making sure that the work is in accordance with the provisions of the social and environmental management framework. The focal persons will regularly report on the gaps and constraints in the implementation of the ESMF to the Skills Team.
96 Organogram
ASDP Project DMTVET/MOE
Social and Gender Focal Person Engineering Team
Environmental Focal Person
Gender
Monitoring of ESMF Implementation
21. The Environmental and Social and Gender Focal persons, in collaboration with engineering team, will be responsible for monitoring the environment and social performance aspects supported by the ASDP project. They will undertake random visits to monitor construction activities and will provide technical advice to site engineers on social and environment issues if needed. They will also provide training on health and hygienic for the students at the dormitories of the beneficiary TVET schools and institutes. They will also collaborate closely with the World Bank Safeguards team and will share quarterly progress reports on safeguards issues in the Project.
22. The cost of implementing and monitoring the ESMF is included in the overall budget of the ASDP II project, including the cost of a full time Environmental Focal person, a Social and Gender Focal person, and of capacity building activities. The World Bank team will provide training to the two focal persons, relevant staff of engineering team of the Skills Team and contractor(s) on the application of the ESMF. During project supervision, the World Bank’s safeguards specialists will assess the implementation of the Framework directly or through a third party, and if required, will recommend additional strengthening.
23. The Safeguards Focal Points will undergo training in the application of the ESMF.
97 Annex 10: Economic and Financial Analysis
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
Labor Market Context of Afghanistan
1. In Afghanistan, workers in the formal sector account for about 20% of an estimated total workforce of 7 million – about 1.5 million. This is expected to increase further as the economy formalizes more over time, and also to some extent owing to the anticipated growth of the number of secondary (e.g., construction) and tertiary (e.g., service industries) sectors. In addition, the formal sector has grown from 1139 private registered enterprises to 5465 between 2004 and 2011 as shown in the graph below.
Source: Afghanistan Investment Support Agency, 2012.
2. Afghanistan experienced a significant economic growth averaging 9 percent in the past decade. Despite a slight decline in the growth rate in the past two years, the economy is ranked the 20th fastest growing economy in the world (cf. Afghanistan Economic Update, World Bank 2011. This fivefold growth rate has been mainly driven by the construction and service industries, for both domestic and foreign companies. This growing size of the formal economy is likely to have boosted the demand for skilled workforce. A 2012 USAID survey of business owners and managers of 959 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) located in six major cities of Afghanistan, coupled with an employee survey22 revealed that 53% of enterprises interviewed desire to hire new employees.23 About 90% of enterprises think that hiring employees with
22 A cluster sampling was developed in which each of the six cities were split into four geographical zones divided each into two to six clusters based on the degree of concentration of businesses. The six cities are Kabul, Jalalabad, Mazar, Herat, Kandahar, Kunduz and the businesses covered comprised of agribusiness, textiles, medical and cosmetology, construction, electronics and technology, non-clothing/non-electronic consumer goods, energy and transportation, and non-technical services and hospitality. 23 A similar percentage (i.e., 57%) was found by the recent survey carried out by the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE).
98 specialized training is likely to make the company more profitable. In particular, skills were seen as a major bottleneck by 36% of enterprises.
3. In addition to this growing need for skilled labor, employers highlighted the need for more training for their current and prospective workers in some specific areas. In particular, businesses have indicated that their workers need more training in general skills so that they can be used flexibly, literacy and language skills, management and administration, and marketing and sales. This demand, of course, varies across provinces. For instance, the top five skills demanded in Kabul city are business skills (38%), IT/computer, electronics programming and repair skills (13%) and general knowledge (8%).
4. The study also highlighted that a non-trivial number of available skilled jobs are not filled due to the lack of adequate skills in the country. Only 7% of respondents indicated that they are “always” able to find adequately trained and skilled employees, while 26% of enterprises stated that they were “never” able to find employees with the right set of skills and adequate training. Moreover, about a fourth of all enterprises revealed that they had to hire foreign skilled labor due to the lack of adequate skills in the domestic market. Employers also admitted that they are willing to pay more to hire Afghan workers with the same skills as foreign employees if such domestic skills were available.24
Rationale for Public Investment
5. These findings suggest that the training provided is of low quality and does not respond to the needs of a growing formal economy. Therefore, government intervention may be needed to invest in the TVET sector for the following reasons:
• Institutional Reform. With an estimated 140,000 high school graduates who cannot access the higher education system due to the limited available seats, many of these graduates are turning to TVET, for lack of better educational opportunities. This is likely to downgrade the quality of skills training offered as education is free, putting youth at high risk of unemployment and exacerbating insecurity. Therefore, the need to improve delivery in TVET education system is pressing and the government has a key role to play to reform its TVET schools and institutes and to foster private sector participation in school management and decision making. • Imperfect information. The USAID data suggest that both employers and workers only have partial information about the supply and demand for particular skills in the labor market (75% of respondents had no idea about skills development opportunities in their area). In such context, government intervention could be instrumental in making available and improving the information about skills supplied and demanded in various sectors of the economy. • Imperfect capital markets. With 36 percent poverty rate in Afghanistan, many households cannot afford to send their children to private training institutes beyond grade 14 to enhance their skills and better prepare them for skilled jobs and higher earnings. Therefore, the government could create incentives for students to want to invest in further
24 USAID report, op.cit.,pp.44,’While a significant percentage of employers have hired foreign workers…respondents seemed predisposed to hire Afghan workers if they had better skills and training even if they were more expensive than foreign workers”
99 professional training to increase their productivity and their chance of finding a decent job. • Coordination failures. The need to raise productivity through hiring more skilled workers as the formal sector grows is impeded by the reluctance of enterprises to employ professional workers due to the relatively high cost of skilled labor in Afghanistan, which is itself caused by the low supply of professional workers. As a result, individuals are less likely to invest in further skilled training. This coordination failure could be addressed by government intervention through subsidizing the training of low skilled graduates in the formal TVET system. • Contribution to growth: The formal sector has grown fivefold between 2004 and 2011 and represents about 20% of total labor force. For Afghanistan’s economy to raise its productivity and sustain its growth process, it needs to significantly increase its pool of skilled and professional employees as the demand for skilled labor is rising. Therefore, the government could impart more market relevant skills to high school students and hence contribute to the overall growth of the country.
6. Furthermore, the rationale for public investment lies in the imperative to build on ASDP achievements as four formal training institutes that have benefited from the IDA support over the past four years have laid the foundations for more market responsive training programs. The first cohort of NIMA graduates followed has shown that most of them were able to find employment six month after graduation. Some impact evaluations of the program are also underway and should inform about the effectiveness of the training programs in raising worker productivity and earnings potential of the youth.
7. Finally, with the political transition in 2014 marked by the drastic reduction in foreign assistance, the growth predictions are likely to drop to 4-6 percent per annum over 2013-18, threatening to jeopardize the education achievements made under an enabling environment of security and relative political stability.25 This situation calls for government intervention to create an enabling business environment that will attract private investors through strengthening education systems and improving the delivery of TVET service providers.
8. This is why the proposed project is set out to provide support in enhancing the potential for employment and higher earnings of TVET graduates. It would comprise of the following components: (i) strengthening of the TVET system to raise the overall quality of service delivery; (ii) improving performance of TVET schools and institutes through incentives to produce market relevant skills and increase job placements; (iii) improving the quality of the teaching force by building an in-service training institute and rewarding schools that demonstrate high teacher competencies; and (iv) strengthening of project management, building a strong monitoring system, carrying out rigorous impact evaluation studies and a public awareness campaign that stresses the importance of TVET education.
25 Note that the reduction in foreign assistance after 2014 will mainly affect military spending as development budget will continue to support Afghanistan reconstruction and development process at least until 2025.
100 Results of Tracer Studies: ASDP Project
9. ASDP was implemented in 18 provinces in Afghanistan and about one third of the beneficiaries were women. Training was provided to a total of about 20,000 people. Tracer studies were carried out for various interventions under the program – owing to the security situation, these were not undertaken everywhere but in select provinces.
10. One set of beneficiaries comprising vulnerable youth, poor women, and the marginalized were trained in skills relevant to various trades such as food and fruit processing, carpet weaving, tailoring, embroidery, animal husbandry, computers, dairy production, wood processing, beauty parlor, welding, and metal work. The idea was to help marginalized people primarily in rural areas gain skills so that they can find employment or become self-employed to improve their livelihood and have some hope of exiting from poverty. This training was provided through both formal and informal means.
11. Tracer studies conducted under the project revealed that out of these beneficiaries, those receiving training (treatment group) reported significantly higher wages compared to those who had not received training (control group) in most of the training programs carried out. Both the treatment and control group were randomly selected. Key findings of the tracer studies in five provinces (Badakhshan, Bamyan, Samangan, Kandahar and Khost) are the following:
• Badakhshan (625 trainees): Although the employment rate of the trainee graduates (treatment group) at 84% was only slightly higher than that of the control group, the monthly income of the trained group (about AFs 2,500) was about two times higher than that of the control group (AFs 750). • Bamyan (500 trainees): Eighty one percent of the trainees in the treatment group were employed with an average income of AFs 3,435 per month – significantly higher than the control group, where 80% of the individuals were employed. • Samangan (625 trainees): 98% of the trainees in the treatment group were employed with an average income of AFs 2,364 per month. Over 90% of persons in the control group were employed, however the average monthly income was only AFs 600 per month. • Kandahar (750 trainees): Only 48% of those in the treatment group considered themselves employed. On the other hand, 35% of the control group was employed. The average monthly income of those in the treatment group was AFs 7,950 per month compared to AFs 3,300 per month in the control group. • Khost (750 trainees): About 70% of those in the treatment group were employed. The employment rate for the control group was exceedingly low - 14%. The average monthly income of those in the treatment group and in the control group was AFs 8,149 and AFs 9,000 per month respectively.
12. A tracer study was also conducted of the first cohort of the NIMA (National Institute of Management and Administration) students. NIMA, established under the ASDP, has three schools -- management, accounting and ICT delivering two-year programs. With the support of an implementing partner in association with the University of Jyvaskyla (UoJ, Finland), NIMA put in place quality curriculum (developed with the academic support from the UoJ) and rigorous
101 academic admission and examination systems. The tracer study covered and interviewed about 550 graduates. Preliminary analysis shows that about 75% of those in the group were employed. The average starting salary was approximately $400 per month. However, there was no control group for this tracer study. The project also supported several other institutions (e.g. Afghanistan School of Music) but evaluations of the impact of these programs were not carried out.
13. Under the proposed project, a more rigorous M+E approach is being adopted, both in the development of a high quality MIS system, third party evaluations, as well as undertaking rigorous impact evaluations of training programs being supported. These will further inform policymaking. There are several areas where the project will support Third Party Monitoring. This includes a semi-annual survey of the industry representatives who participate in the management functions of various institutions supported under the project. Third Party monitoring will be carried out to evaluate the performance of teachers who would be trained. In addition, two impact evaluation studies to be carried out by an external agency. As part of this component, a MIS system will be developed and institutionalized.
Cost Benefit Analysis
14. The project components described above are expected to generate direct and indirect benefits through (i) improvement in the internal efficiency of TVET institutions in terms of increased graduation rates and trade certification; and (ii) external efficiency via increased skilled employment and better earnings for TVET graduates as a result of higher productivity. The project will also generate positive externalities with more firms interested in hiring newly trained students with relevant competences to take advantage of business opportunities opening up, especially in the service and construction industries (cf. Afghanistan Investment Support Agency, 2012).
15. Similarly, the direct costs associated with the implementation of the proposed project include the cost of improving the overall quality of the formal TVET system, the cost of building an in-service training for teachers of TVET high schools and institutes, the cost of providing incentive/performance grants to deserving TVET institutions, the cost of the voucher program, the management cost of the Skills Team and, the capacity building support accruing to DMTVET. The direct costs also include private education costs incurred by families of students enrolled in the TVET program (i.e., those who would not enroll in the absence of the project).
16. The indirect costs associated with implementing ASDP II include (i) the forgone earnings for grade 13 and 14 students who could have joined the workforce after completing grade 12 and (ii) the earnings forgone by teachers as they undergo the teacher training.
17. Using the economic benefits and costs of the project as defined above, we compute the present discounted net benefit for each year of project implementation, assuming a 10 percent discount rate. Assuming (i) a 30 percent earnings premium for TVET graduates with trade certification, (ii) an average 20 percent higher probability of employment relative to other students in the TVET system and (iii) a lifetime earnings cycle of 25 years, the discounted net
102 present value of the ASDP II project is estimated to be US$ 51.7 million.26 These benefits and costs of the project yield an internal rate of return of 23 percent, which is substantially larger than the cost of capital (10%), making this TVET investment quite attractive.
26 The assumption of a 25 year cycle is based on the premise that after the project closes, TVET graduates continue to benefit from the direct project investments as they start working, earning a wage/earnings premium due to the improved quality of training that would last for the next 20 years through their professional career. For teachers, the benefits are assumed to last for 10 years after project closes.
103 Annex 11: Documents in Project Files
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
Project’s Background Documents
1. Afghanistan in Transition: Looking Beyond 2014, World Bank, September 2012. 2. Afghanistan -Interim Strategy Note FY 2012-2014, World Bank, April 2012. 3. Economy Profile Afghanistan: Doing Business in a More Transparent World, World Bank & IFC, 2012. 4. Afghanistan National Development Strategy 2009 - 2013. UNDP, 2008. 5. National Priority Program 1, November 2012. 6. Tokyo Conference Paper. 2012. 7. National Education Interim Plan 2011-2013, January 2011. 8. Afghanistan Resource Corridor: Skills Strategy Development, Altai Consulting, September 2012. 9. TVET Needs Assessment for AWDP, USAID, April 2012. 10. National Rural Vulnerability Assessment, Afghanistan, 2007. 11. Almeida, Rita, Jere Behrman, and David Robalino eds. 2012. The Right Skills for the Job: Rethink Training Policies for Workers. Washington, DC: World Bank. 2012. 12. World Bank. 2012. World Development Report 2013 Overview: Jobs. Washington, DC: World Bank.
Bank Staff Documents
1. Project Information Document (PID) Appraisal Stage, February 2013. 2. Integrated Safeguards Data Sheet (ISDS), Appraisal Stage, February 2013. 3. Minutes of the Project Concept Note (PCN) Review Meeting, October 2012. 4. Project Concept Note, September 2012. 5. Project Information Document (PID) Concept Stage, September 2012. 6. Integrated Safeguards Data Sheet (ISDS), Concept Stage, September 2012.
104 Annex 12: Statement of Loans and Credits
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
Difference between expected and actual Original Amount in US$ Millions disbursements Project FY(Closing) Purpose IBRD IDA SF GEF Cancel. Undisb. Orig. Frm. ID Rev’d
P089040 2013 Edu Total: 0.00 40.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.95 40.00 39.55 P087860 2012 Water 40.00 22.46 14.47 40.00 4.35
P101502 2012 Health 10.00 0.22 10.00 9.99
P118828 2013 Transport 112.00 0.06 112.00 109.77
P102573 2014 Skills 20.00 3.55 20.00 16.01
P106259 2012 Edu 30.00 0.77 30.00 28.86
P112446 2013 Health 30.00 0.44 30.00 30.48 P110644 2014 Fin 8.00 6.91 8.00 1.55
P113421 2013 SP 7.50 1.98 7.50 5.57
P110407 2015 Rural Dev 30.00 17.85 30.00 11.31
P112446 2014 Customs Reform 50.48 29.66 50.48 21.78
P117103 2015 Rural Dev 40.00 18.01 40.00 24.03 P125961 2013 Rural Dev 40.00 17.24 40.00 21.78
P121755 2017 Market Dev 50.00 44.30 50.00 4.66
P118053 2016 Prvt Sect. 22.00 19.70 22.00 1.85
P122235 2017 Irrigation 97.80 80.46 97.80 14.39
P118925 2016 Resource 52.00 47.25 52.00 3.14
P119047 2014 Fin 19.00 14.63 19.00 3.65
COUNTRY STATEMENT OF IFC’s Held and Disbursed Portfolio In Millions of US Dollars
Committed Disbursed IFC IFC FY Approval Company Loan Equity Quasi Partic. Loan Equity Quasi Partic.
Total portfolio: 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
Approvals Pending Commitment FY Approval Company Loan Equity Quasi Partic.
Total pending commitment: 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00
105 Annex 13: Country at a Glance
AFGHANISTAN: Second Skills Development Project
106 60°E 65°E 70°E 75°E A m u To D UZBEKISTAN Murghob ar Dushanbe ya TAJIKISTAN
To TAJIKISTAN Chardzhev To To Kulob˘ To Shazud Dushanbe To Qurghonteppa˘ AFGHANISTAN TURKMENISTAN FaisabadFaisabad ¯¯ JAWZJANJAWZJAN Pyandzh BALKHB A L K H KKUNDUZUNDU¯Z Taloqan KondozKond¯oz Pamir Taloqan¯¯ h SheberghanShebergh¯an Mazar-eMa¯zar-e Kunduz¯ Taloqan¯ ¯ s Sheberghan¯ Mazar-eSharıfS¯har¯ıf TAKHARTAKHAR ¯ Sharıf¯ BADAKHSHANBADAKHSHAN TirichTiruich MirMir Saripul (7690(7690 mm)) SamanganSamang¯an BaghlanBaghl¯an K Samangan¯ Baghlan¯ To MeymanehMeymaneh Mary Meymaneh SSAMANGANAMANGA¯N BAGHLANB A G H L A¯ N u ¯¯¯ ¯ FARYABF A R YA B duz R ¯on I To Q H d e S Chitral To -y J a BazarakBazarak N n Mashad SARIPULSARIPUL ry Bazarak Morghab a¯ A ¯¯¯¯ 35°N D PANJSHIRP i NURISTANNURISTAN ¯ H 35°N ¯ ¯ Mahmud-eMa¸¸hm¯¯¯ud-e RaqıR¯aq¯ı P BADGHISB A D G H I S KAPISAKA¯¯¯¯P¯ISA¯ NuristanNNuristan¯ur¯¯ista¯n a Bamyan ¯ AsadabadAsad¯ab¯ad Qal‘eh-yeQal‘eh-yeQal‘e Nowh-ye NNowow BamyanBamyan¯¯¯ ¯ PARWANPARW¯AN Asadabad¯¯ r o CCharıkarCharıkarha¯¯r¯ık¯a ¯r¯ LAGHMANLAGHMAN To p KKUNARUNAR Mardan a m g e ¯¯ ¯ KKABULA¯BUL MehtarlamMMehtarlamehtarl¯am¯ i s u R a n ChaghcharanChaghcharanChaghch¯ar¯an BAMYAN KABULKABUL Herat¯ HeratHer¯at s ¯¯ PAKISTAN Harırud JalalabadJaJalalabadl¯a¯¯l¯ab¯a ¯d WARDAKWA R D A K MeydanMeyd¯a¯n SShahrhahr INDIA ¯ KhyberKhyber PassPass ¯ LOGARLOGAR NANGARHARNANGARHAR HERATH E R AT GHORG H O R To Peshawar DAYDAY KUNDIKUNDI Pol-ePol-e ‘Alam‘Alam Nili PAKTIAPAKTIA GhaznıGhaznıGhazn¯ı GardızGGardızard¯ı¯z ¯ KOWSTKOWST To Indus ISLAMIC Helmand GGHAZNIH A Z N I Kohat KowstKKowstowst 0 50 100 150 Kilometers Sharan REPUBLIC SharanSharan ¯ Farah URUZGANU R U¯ Z G A N 050 ¯ Tarın¯ Kowt 100 Miles OF IRAN FARAHF A R A H TarınTar¯ın KowtKowt ¯¯ Harut Farah¯ PPAKTIKAA K T¯¯¯I K A¯ FarahFar¯ah ¯ QalatZABULZ¯A B U L QalatQal¯at
¯
Khash Kandahar¯ ¯ Tarnak Lashkar Gah¯ KandaharKandah¯ar To LashkarLashkar GahG¯ah A Hamun-e¯ ¯ rghandab Zhob AFGHANISTAN Saberı˛¯ ¯
Zaranj Dasht-ID a s h t - I MMargoa r g o PROVINCE CAPITALS ZaranjZaranj HILMANDH I L M A N D NATIONAL CAPITAL NNIMROZ¯¯¯I M R O¯ Z KANDAHARK A N D A H A¯ R To Quetta RIVERS Helmand MAIN ROADS 30°N
Gowd-e RAILROADS IBRD 33358R1 Zereh 30°N OCTOBER 2011 This map was produced by the Map Design Unit of The World Bank. PROVINCE BOUNDARIES The boundaries, colors, denominations and any other information shown on this map do not imply, on the part of The World Bank INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARIES Group, any judgment on the legal status of any territory, or any endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. 60°E PAKISTAN 65°E 70°E