GOVERNMENT OF SOUTHERN SUDAN STRATEGIC CAPACITY BUILDING STUDY JUNE 15, 2010 This publication was produced for review by the United States Agency for International Development. It was prepared by Management Systems International. GOVERNMENT OF SOUTHERN SUDAN STRATEGIC CAPACITY BUILDING STUDY Management Systems International Corporate Offices 600 Water Street, SW Washington, DC 20024 Contract No. DFD-I-00–05–00251–00, Task Order No. 2 Project Title: Services under Program and Project Offices for Results Tracking (SUPPORT) 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 Acronyms ....................................................................................................................................... ii I. Executive summary ................................................................................................................. 5 II. Introduction and overview ....................................................................................................... 7 III. Current major capacity building providers and institutions in Southern Sudan ............................................................................................................................ 12 IV. Findings related to capacity building approaches and measurement ............................... 26 V. Recommended approaches ..................................................................................................... 36 VI. Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 52 Annex I .......................................................................................................................................... 53 Annex II ......................................................................................................................................... 81 Annex III ....................................................................................................................................... 89 Annex IV ....................................................................................................................................... 96 Annex V ....................................................................................................................................... 106 Annex VI ..................................................................................................................................... 110 Annex VII .................................................................................................................................... 112 Annex VIII .................................................................................................................................. 113 Annex IX ..................................................................................................................................... 114 Annex X ....................................................................................................................................... 116 Government of Southern Sudan: Strategic Capacity Building Study i ACRONYMS AED Academy for Educational Development AfDB African Development Bank ARD Associates for Rural Development CANS Civil Authority of the New Sudan CBOS Central Bank of Sudan CBTF Capacity Building Trust Fund CCSS Coordinating Council of Southern States CNPC China National Petroleum Corporation CPA Comprehensive Peace Agreement CSR Civil Service Reform CSC Civil Service Commission DAC Development Assistance Committee DFID Department for International Development EC European Commission FA Functional Assistance FMS Financial Management System GATC Government Accountancy Training Center GFS Government Financial Statistics GONU Government of National Unity GOSS Government of Southern Sudan HED Higher Education for Development HELM Human Empowerment and Labor Management HR Human Resource HRD Human Resource Development HRIS Human Resource Information System ICOSS Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan IMAC Inter-Ministerial Appraisal Committee IMF International Monetary Fund Government of Southern Sudan: Strategic Capacity Building Study ii INC Interim National Constitution ITP Interim Training Plan JAM Joint Assessment Mission JDT Joint Donor Team KCA Kenya College of Accountancy, now called KCA University MDG Millennium Development Goal MDTF Multi-Donor Trust Fund MOLPSHRD Ministry of Labor, Public Service and Human Resource Development MOFEP Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning MOLACD Ministry of Legal Affairs and Constitutional Development MOTR Ministry of Transport and Roads MWRI Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation NGO Non-Governmental Organization OD Organizational Development ODI Overseas Development Institute OECD Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development PALAMA Public Administration Leadership and Management Academy SEADGOSS Support to Effective Administrative and Democratic Governance In Southern Sudan SLA State Legislative Assembly SPLA Sudan People‘s Liberation Army SPLM Sudan People‘s Liberation Movement SSCCSE Southern Sudan Commission on Census, Statistics and Evaluation SSLA Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly SSRRC Southern Sudan Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Commission SSP Social Service Providers SRRC Sudan Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Commission TA Technical Assistance TIDP Training and Institutional Development Plan TSST Transition Support Systems Training UN United Nations Government of Southern Sudan: Strategic Capacity Building Study iii UNDP United Nations Development Program UNV United Nations Volunteer USAID United States Agency for International Development WSA Wealth Sharing Agreement Government of Southern Sudan: Strategic Capacity Building Study iv I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY As the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) continues to gain experience and the memories of governing while sitting under trees begin to fade, both the GOSS and the international community are aware of the uneasiness of the present situation. On the one hand, Southern Sudan‘s government institutions have undergone breathtaking development since 2005. On the other hand, the nascent capacities and power balances are fragile and easily disrupted. Fieldwork for this study was conducted from mid-March to mid-May 2010 through the USAID/Sudan Services Under Program and Project Offices for Results Tracking (SUPPORT) project, implemented by Management Systems International (MSI). This report was written by Suzanne Bond Hinsz, team leader and change management and organizational development expert, with research assistance from Salla Emmanuel Mike and Mohammed Shakir. The study methodology included (1) a detailed capacity analysis of several capacity building providers, including universities and implementers; (2) a literature review of over 150 papers and project documents; and (3) interviews and written correspondence with over one hundred GOSS officials, implementers, development partners, and educational institutions. While every attempt was made to secure a wide variety of program evaluations, few were shared with the team and many evaluations were internal rather than external. Additionally, a number of parties provided evaluations on the condition that the information in the evaluation was not to be linked to their organization. Furthermore, there is little baseline data with which to assess overall capacity building performance to date. Sudan presents a particularly challenging environment for capacity building, since capacity building requires trust between the provider and the recipient of those efforts. While many NGOs and agencies have operated in Southern Sudan continuously during the war, there are also a host of new organizations and new faces. To compound matters, international staff have short tenures, and GOSS staff are frequently transferred or switch positions. Lastly, although development partners once had easy access to senior GOSS officials, the increasing sophistication in government operations has meant that GOSS ministers and undersecretaries have by necessity come under pressure to push these interactions onto lower level staff (while often retaining decision-making power). Capacity building is thus at a pivotal moment in the GOSS‘ institutional development, a point further evidenced by the recent election that demanded a great deal of attention, time, and capacity on the part of the GOSS and much of the international community. The referendum that is set to take place in 2011 will certainly demand even more resources. If the outcome of the referendum is separation, this may spur an influx of donor resources for programming to benefit the people and government of a new Southern Sudan, and the GOSS will have a host of additional performance burdens, such as the need to run a central bank. While neither the international community nor the GOSS is particularly well-positioned to deal with such additional responsibilities, this is a likely scenario. Capacity building efforts in Southern Sudan are currently neither strategic nor focused. With few exceptions, its objectives are sweeping, unspecific, detached from actual performance, impossible to measure, and thus unlikely to succeed. One evaluation of a high-quality training provider noted that, ―the absence of a clear set of desired outcomes (capacity building for what purpose)‖1 means it is difficult to recommend