PLANNING AND LOCAL GOVERNANCE PROJECT (PLGP) IN ALBANIA FIRST ANNUAL REPORT (JANUARY–SEPTEMBER 2012) October 30, 2012 This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared by Tetra Tech ARD. Prepared for the United States Agency for International Development, USAID Contract Number AID-182-C-12-00001, Albania Planning and Local Governance Project (PLGP) Tetra Tech ARD Contact: Adrienne Raphael [email protected] Tetra Tech ARD Home Office Address: Tetra Tech ARD 159 Bank Street, Suite 300, Burlington, VT 05401 Tel: 802 658-3890, Fax 802 658-4247 www.ardinc.com PLGP Address: Planning and Local Governance Project in Albania St. Dervish Hima, 3 Towers near Qemal Stafa Stadium, Tower No. 1, Apt. 91, Tenth Floor, Tirana, Albania Tel: + 355-04-450-4150, Fax: + 355-04-450-4149 www.plgp.al PLANNING AND LOCAL GOVERNANCE PROJECT (PLGP) IN ALBANIA FIRST ANNUAL REPORT JANUARY–SEPTEMBER 2012 OCTOBER 30, 2012 DISCLAIMER The author’s views expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Agency for International Development or the United States Government. CONTENTS CONTENTS ................................................................................................................................ i ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ...................................................................................... ii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................... iv PROJECT OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................ IV START UP ACTIVITIES ........................................................................................................... IV PROGRAMMATIC ACTIVITIES ................................................................................................... V CHALLENGES FOR YEAR TWO .............................................................................................. VII 1.0 KEY ACTIVITIES CARRIED OUT DURING THE FIRST YEAR ........................................ 1 1.1 SELECTION OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT UNITS ..................................................................... 1 1.2 MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING SIGNING CEREMONY ................................................ 4 1.3 THE NATIONAL TERRITORIAL PLANNING AGENCY ACTION PLAN ......................................... 5 1.4 ICT ASSESSMENT AND ACTION PLAN ............................................................................... 5 1.5 ACTION PLANNING WITH PARTNER MUNICIPALITIES .......................................................... 6 1.6 WHITE PAPER ON FISCAL DECENTRALIZATION .................................................................. 7 1.7 WATER UTILITIES BASELINE ASSESSMENT AND ACTION PLAN ........................................... 7 1.8 “LOCAL GOVERNANCE ORIENTATION” WORKSHOP WITH PEACE CORP VOLUNTEERS .......... 8 2.0 YEAR ONE ACHIEVEMENTS AND KEY YEAR TWO PROPOSED ACTIVITIES FOR EACH COMPONENT.......................................................................................................... 9 2.1 COMPONENT 1: DECENTRALIZATION ................................................................................ 9 2.1.1 Achievements for the First Year ....................................................................... 9 2.1.2 Key Activities Proposed for the Second Year ................................................ 10 2.2 COMPONENT 2: LOCAL GOVERNANCE ............................................................................ 11 2.2.1 Achievements for the First Year ..................................................................... 11 2.2.2 Key Activities Proposed for the Second Year ................................................ 12 2.3 COMPONENT 3: UTILITY MANAGEMENT .......................................................................... 13 2.3.1 Achievements of the First Year ...................................................................... 13 2.3.2 Key Activities Proposed for the Second Year ................................................ 15 2.4 COMPONENT 4: URBAN PLANNING ................................................................................. 15 2.4.1 Achievements of the First Year ...................................................................... 15 2.4.2 Key Activities Proposed for the Second Year ................................................ 17 3.0 PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING ................................................. 19 3.1 MILESTONES................................................................................................................. 19 3.2 PERFORMANCE INDICATORS .......................................................................................... 22 4.0 BUDGET EXECUTION ..................................................................................................... 24 5.0 ADMINISTRATION AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT ..................................................... 25 ANNEX 1: LIST OF COUNTERPARTS AND BENEFICIARIES ............................................ 27 ANNEX 2: LIST OF REPORTS, ASSESSMENTS, AND OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS ................................................................................................................... 30 PLGP IN ALBANIA: FIRST ANNUAL REPORT (JANUARY–SEPTEMBER 2012) i ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS AAC Associations of Albanian Communes AADF Albanian American Development Fund AAM Association of Albanian Municipalities CAP Citizen Advisory Panel CEZ Albanian Electric Power Supply Company COM Council of Ministers COP Chief of Party COR Contracting Officer’s Representative CSO Civil Society Organization DCM Decision of the Council of Ministers DO Development Objective DP Democratic Party of Albania DSDC Department of Strategy and Donor Coordination EU European Union ICT Information and Communications Technology IT Information Technology GDP Gross Domestic Product GIS Geographic Information System GIZ Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH GoA Government of Albania GNTP General National Territorial Plan LGPA Local Governance Program in Albania LGU Local Government Unit LoPWP Life of Project Work Plan MCM Municipal Capacity Matrix ii PLGP IN ALBANIA: FIRST ANNUAL REPORT (JANUARY–SEPTEMBER 2012) MoF Ministry of Finance MoI Ministry of Interior MOU Memorandum of Understanding MP Member of Parliament NDI National Democratic Institute NGO Non-Governmental Organization NTC National Territory Council NTPA National Territorial Planning Agency OSCE Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe PCVs Peace Corps Volunteers PLGP Planning and Local Governance Project PMP Performance Monitoring Plan PPP Public-Private Partnership RDA Regional Development Agency SDC Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation SHUKALB Water Supply and Sewerage Association of Albania SoW Scope of Work SP Socialist Party of Albania STTA Short-Term Technical Assistance TP Territorial Planning TPL Territorial Planning Law UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization USAID United States Agency for International Development USG United States Government VAT Value-Added Tax WRA Water Regulatory Agency PLGP IN ALBANIA: FIRST ANNUAL REPORT (JANUARY–SEPTEMBER 2012) iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY PROJECT OVERVIEW The Planning and Local Governance Project in Albania (PLGP) is a five-year United States Agency for International Development (USAID) project designed to contribute to USAID/Albania’s Development Objective #1 (DO#1), Strengthened rule of law and improved governance, as elaborated in Albania Country Development Cooperation Strategy 2011–2015. DO#1 supports the strengthening of democratic institutions in the country by improving the judiciary and governance of health care, deepening the decentralization process, and rooting out corruption, with the goal of advancing democracy in the country while meeting key criteria for Albania’s accession to the European Union (EU). In this framework, the goal of the PLGP in Albania is to provide technical assistance and training to the Government of Albania (GoA) and Albanian local government institutions to help the GoA and local governments units (LGUs) successfully implement decentralization legislation, policies, and reforms. The Project will achieve this goal through the implementation of the four components: Component I: Decentralization, the main goal of which is to support the GoA’s work to implement effective government decentralization policies and legislation. Component II: Local Governance, which has a goal to improve the efficiency, transparency, and accountability of local government operations. Component III: Utility Management, which will focus its work in improving local government management and oversight of selected public utilities to provide services in accordance with EU standards. Component IV: Urban Planning, of which the main goal is to strengthen the capabilities of the GoA and local governments to plan and manage urban and regional growth. On January 3, 2012, Tetra Tech ARD was awarded the five-year USAID Planning and Local Governance Project in Albania. Per the Tetra Tech ARD Contract with USAID, this First Annual Report covers the period from the Contract effective date of January 3, 2012 through September 30, 2012, coinciding with the remainder of the United States Government (USG) Fiscal Year 2012. START UP ACTIVITIES The arrival of the Chief of