THE REPORT ON TRAINING NEEDS ASSESSMENT OF BULGARIAN MUNICIPALITIES Submitted to: U. S. Agency for International Development Prepared by: Chemonics International Inc. March 1996 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page SECTION I INTRODUCTION I-1 A. Scope of Assignment I-1 B. Methodology Used in the Study I-2 C. Constraints Encountered and Limitations of Study I-4 SECTION II IDENTIFICATION OF TRAINING NEEDS OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES II-1 A. Overall Training Strategy and Approaches II-1 B. Training Needs of Municipal Officials and Employees and Proposed Modules II-3 C. Options in the Selection of Modules II-24 SECTION III RECOMMENDED TRAINING STRATEGY AND PLAN III-1 A. Overall Training Strategy and Approaches III-1 B. Needs Based and Demand Driven Training III-4 C. Module Size and Composition of Participants III-14 D. Module Duration III-16 E. Proposed Schedule for Delivery Program III-19 F. Location, Participants’, Costs, and Training Equipment Needed III-21 G. Training Materials III-25 H. Characteristics and Sources of Local Trainers III-25 SECTION IV INSTITUTIONALIZATION OF THE TRAINING PROGRAM IV-1 A. Review of Capacity and Potential of Institutions and Relevant Training Offered IV-1 B. Strategies for Institutional Development and Sustainability IV-9 SECTION V CONCLUSIONS AND WORK PLAN V-1 A. Conclusions V-1 B. Work Plan V-3 ANNEX A LIST OF INSTITUTIONS AND PERSONS CONTACTED A-1 AND INTERVIEWED ANNEX B TRAINING INSTITUTIONS AND GOVERNMENT MINISTRIES B-1 INTERVIEW FORMAT ANNEX C LGI MUNICIPAL OFFICIALS AND STAFF INTERVIEW FORMAT C-1 TABLE OF CONTENTS (continued) Page ANNEX D TRAINING SURVEY FOR OFFICIALS, MANAGERS, AND STAFF D-1 IN THE MUNICIPALITY HEADQUARTERS ANNEX E SUMMARY OF THE AGGREGATE RESULTS OF THE TRAINING E-1 SURVEY FOR OFFICIALS, MANAGERS, AND STAFF IN THE MUNICIPALITY HEADQUARTERS ANNEX F INDICATIVE CONTENT OF MODULES F-1 ANNEX G PROPOSED CHANGES IN THE DELIVERY ORDER SCHEDULE G-1 SECTION I INTRODUCTION SECTION I INTRODUCTION A. Scope of Assignment The Chemonics team, constituting the training component of the Local Government Initiative (LGI) program in Bulgaria and composed of Hossein Naficy, resident training advisor, and G. Thomas Wrasse, short term training specialist, arrived in Sofia on November 9, after receiving a briefing in Washington D.C. (Vladimir Evtimov, a Bulgarian professional, joined the team in mid December). Their scope of work was to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the training needs of municipal officials and staff with emphasis on the municipalities assisted by the LGI program. Based upon the information gathered, the team was to produce a useful and insightful needs assessment report that could form the basis for the development of the training modules foreseen in the delivery order, as well as other training interventions in the public administration and government management sectors sponsored by USAID as part of the LGI program. The report was to achieve the following objectives: · Identify skills which needed to be developed for municipal officials and staff. · Summarize current local training for municipal officials and staff. · Recommend a training strategy for local government in Bulgaria and a work plan for implementing this delivery order. · Analyze an d summarize institutional options for the institutionalization of future training. · Evaluate the general framework for municipal training currently used in Bulgaria for developing municipal staff capacity. · Recommend steps to develop long term institution building, financial support structure and a work plan/business plan for maintaining a locally identified training institution. Specific tasks to be undertaken during the first six week period and documented in the training needs assessment report included: · Form a local government training/working group to help identify concerns, needs, and resources needed to develop municipal staff capacity. · Develop a training plan outline which identified the structure, approach, duration, class size, class composition, training intent, facilities and equipment, and schedule for each module required under the work order. · Identify and outline the third and fourth training modules, which will complement the first two training modules already specified in the delivery order, namely finance/ budgeting and procurement. The third and fourth modules to be considered could I-1 Training Needs Assessment of Bulgarian Municipalities Chemonics International Inc. include a core module covering such subjects as local governance and management, as well as human resource management, and information systems management, communication, and public relations subjects, etc. · Give special attention to the identification of qualified Bulgarian trainers and institutions which might be able to supply trainers. · Consider the content needed for a special training of trainers module, to help Bulgarian trainers become better acquainted with adult participatory training methodologies. The development of the needs assessment report was to be accomplished and delivered during the first six weeks of in-country activity. A draft was to be delivered to the Chemonics home office by January 3, with a revised draft copy submitted to USAID by January 12. USAID comments on the report were due back to the Chemonics home office by January 24. The final needs assessment report was to be revised and delivered to USAID by February 8. These dates have since been revised. B. Methodology Used in the Study The Chemonics team’s approach to the needs assessment task utilized four main needs assessment tools for rapid assessment in the limited time available. These included: the review of secondary sources and studies which proceeded Chemonics arrival in Bulgaria; intensive interviews with representatives of universities and NGOs; interviews with the mayors of the ten pilot cities; and the preparation of a municipal government staff survey. B.1 Studies and Reports used in the Completion of the Needs Assessment The literature used in the study included a particularly informative was an in-depth municipal needs assessment report prepared for USAID in May 1995, by James G. Budds, U.S.C.; Michael L. Hoffman, Urban Institute; and Lisa McLean, The National Democratic Institute, based upon interviews with Mayors, Deputy Mayors, and other key staff in the 10 LGI municipalities. These key informant interviews provided a rich background of material in the following seven areas: · Management Information Systems Development · Budget and Fiscal Analysis · Personnel and Administration Development · Economic Development · Public Relations and Public Participation · Tourism · Urban Planning, Infrastructure and Environmental Assistance Based upon the above information, the report specified the priority administrative, economic, and training needs of each municipality. It identified eight possible training modules in the following areas: · Basic Management Training · Asset Management · Personnel Administration I-2 Section I: Introduction Chemonics International Inc. · Municipal Procurement · Municipal Role in Economic Development · Training of Trainers · Management Information Systems · Service Delivery Another source used as background information was a report entitled: Local Government Reform in Bulgaria: Current Issues, Constraints & Opportunities, prepared by ICMA for USAID in September 1994. Also consulted was a report presented by Club Economika 2000, a private think-tank, and commissioned by USAID, which expressed in quantitative terms the relative social and economic status and local capacity of the ten LGI cities, and suggested objective criteria for allocating government subsidies to various municipalities. Also used was a University of Delaware study, prepared by Danilo Yanich, which utilized a survey comparing mayors’ and deputy mayors’ attitudes and perceptions with those of other respondents in the business community. The questions asked were in the general public administration services area, covering topics such as government management, public policy, governmental relations, political process, and other specific priority areas. B2. Interviews Conducted with Representatives from NGOs, Universities Donor Agencies Interviews were conducted with knowledgeable informants from NGOs, universities, donor agencies and projects, Bulgarian Government Ministries and Institutes, and other LGI components (see Annex A, Contact List, and Annex B, Training Institutes and Government Ministries Interview Format). The questions asked were intended to elicit information about training currently available in Bulgaria for local government officials and staff and the organizations active in providing such training. Another aim of the interview was to identify institutions that would provide trainers, facilities, or other support for the training program. Considerable information and insight were obtained on problems and needs of municipalities, and the types of training that could be effective. A broad range of organizations were surveyed, possessing considerable experience in Bulgaria and in-depth knowledge of local government. However, the limitation of interviewing only the representatives of the different organizations mentioned above is that that the people directly involved with the day-to-day operations of local government were not accessed. B3. Interviews Conducted with LGI Mayors The third assessment tool was intended to partly address the limited access of local government officials by conducting semi-structured yet open-ended interviews in the field