UNDG Joint ProgramsUNDG Joint ProgramsLessons LearnedLessons Learned

Pooled Parallel Pass-through

What are the Joint Programmes? What are the Joint Programmes?

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Joint Programme document

Steering Committee

Administrative Agent

Standard legal documents

Key elements of a Pass-through JPKey elements of a Pass-through JP

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Nearly 90% of the 526 JPs in the current records of MPTF Office, UNICEF and UNFPA are funded on a pass-through basis.

Distribution by modalityDistribution by modality

Total of each Modality of Joint Programme

Modality of JP Quantity Value

  Number Percent USD million Percent

Parallel 263 26% 184 6%Pooled 178 17% 352 11%Pass-through 539 52% 2,391 77%Combination 40 4% 163 5%Total 1031 100% 3,090 100%

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The peak during the 2007-2009 period is linked to the establishment of the MDG-F.

Pass-through JPs became a constant feature of the funding architecture.

Evolution over 10 yearsEvolution over 10 years

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Year Pass-through Others Total value($ million)

2002 and prior 2 17 8.22003 4 32 18.0 2004 12 78 122.3 2005 28 121 491.8 2006 16 51 79.4 2007 83 55 483.8 2008 102 31 617.8 2009 104 27 537.5 2010 62 20 261.5 2011 65 9 272.3

• 41 UN Organizations have been involved in JPs.

• The five UN Organizations that most frequently participate are:–UNDP (present in 68% of the JPs)–UNICEF (57%) - WHO (27%)–UNFPA (44%) - FAO (23%)

• The number of Participating UN Organization in any given joint programme ranges from 2 to 16.

• 72% JPs involve 4 or less agencies (82% 5 or less).

Who participates? Who participates?

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Where? In what contexts? Where? In what contexts?

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Country Income Level Number of JPsLow Income Country 367Lower Middle Income Country 453Upper Middle Income Country 204High Income Country 7

Input from staff dealing with JPs in the headquarters of 10 UN Agencies

An on-line survey that received responses from 329 UN staff at country-level

A mission to three case countries (Ecuador, Nepal and Uganda) to obtain national Government and donor perspectives

The surveyThe survey

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• “Good fit for the programme” is definitely the best reason. The programme must drive the funding.

• Other reasons are not necessarily bad but we (donors, HQs, RCs, Government) must be careful about not creating undue pressure if the modality is not the right fit.

• To increase effectiveness, the programme must drive the funding mechanism.

Reasons to establish a JP Reasons to establish a JP

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The current JP guidance note is in the spirit of Paris and Accra: national Government is given a key role (signatory of JP document, member of Steering Committee).

However, some respondent to the survey perceived guidance as too UN-centric. Revision should emphasize the aid effectiveness benefits and the role of Governments.

Aid effectivenessAid effectiveness

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Limited number of UN Participating Organizations:-Balance between inclusiveness and effectiveness-More than 80% of survey respondents indicate that the number of PUNOs should never exceed 4 to 5

A significant budget:-Frequency of very small JPs has fallen over the year -Still 39% of JPs post 2008 have a budget below $1 million.-Small JPs may have a political value or fulfill specific purposes-Below a certain threshold, transactions cost are too high (to be discussed)

Factors of success (1)Factors of success (1)

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Sufficient time: -designed for development programming and not for quick impact projects.-60% of respondent indicate that duration should be at least three years (75% two years)

Strategic engagement with Non-Resident Agencies:-NRAs can provide valuable technical expertise -JPs can provide an excellent point of entry-Lack of regular presence is an obstacle to participation in management and coordination structures.

Factors of success (2)Factors of success (2)

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Joint Programmes and Aid Effectiveness by Fund Experience(vertical axis: 2=Strongly Agree, 1=Somewhat Agree, -1=Somewhat Disagree)

Transaction costsTransaction costs

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Lack of joint accountability is a weakness: targets remain agency targets, neither AA nor the PUNOs are accountable for the JP as a whole

This should be addressed through:•Strengthening of the governance structure•An indicative allocation of 3% to 5% of the budget for M&E•Providing an overview of the full budget (beyond JP budget)

Joint accountability for resultsJoint accountability for results

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Currently: -Guidelines only make reference to the Steering Committee-In practice, many different models with some degree of confusion

For large JPs, the report recommends:-A policy-level Steering Committee with donors and Government-An operational coordination committee-A coordination unit

The governance/coordination structureThe governance/coordination structure

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Selection:-Selection of the AA purely on administrative not programmatic capacity -all agencies are not currently equipped to provide the same level of services. -Being entirely dedicated to perform the AA functions, the MPTF Office offers the highest quality of services.

Closure of JPs:-Financial closure is a major challenge for AAs. -Handling of unspent balance is problematic and should be agreed beforehand.

The Administrative Agent functionThe Administrative Agent function

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Recommendation:

Official reporting (narrative and financial) on an annual basis

Informal reporting more frequent (quarterly or semi-annual) to strengthen joint monitoring/management by the coordination structure.

ReportingReporting

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Revision of the UNDG guidelines on Joint Programmes:

- Issue of threshold- Closing procedures- Management/coordination structure

Continue training efforts:- Understanding of the modalities- Strategic use of Joint Programmes

What next?What next?

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Thank youThank you