Development Cooperation Ireland - Irish Aid · 2020. 2. 19. · Ireland was appreciated as a collaborative partner. The DAC referred to the Irish commitment to development and said

Development Cooperation Ireland

annual report 2003

CONTENTSAbbreviations 3

Foreword 5

The DAC Peer Review of Ireland 2003 7

New Challenges 1 10

The Millenium Development Goals: How far have we come ?

Bilateral Programme 13

Ethiopia 15

Programme Summary 15

Country Focus: From emergency response to long-term development 16

Lesotho 19


Country Focus: Education 20

Mozambique 23


Country Focus: Harmonisation in action 27

Tanzania 29


Country Focus: Tanzania’s Second Poverty Reduction Strategy 30

Uganda 33


Country Focus: Education 35

Zambia 39


Country Focus: Northern Province – feet on the ground 40

Timor-Leste 43


Country Focus: Commission for Reception & Truth and Reconciliation 46

Other Countries 49

South Africa 50

Zimbabwe 53

The Balkans and the CIS 55

New Challenges 2 56

Kosovo: Young People Speaking About Themselves

Palestine 58

New Challenges 3 60

Harmonisation and its contribution to Aid Effectiveness

Emergency and Recovery 63

Emergency Relief and Recovery Assistance 64

www.dci.gov.ie page 1

Partnership with Civil Society 69

APSO 74

A New Focus on Human Rights and Development 75

New Challenges 4 77

Disability and Development

Multilateral Development Assistance 79

United Nations 80

UN Agricultural and Food Agencies 82

European Union 84

Co-financing with the Multilateral Agencies 85

New Challenges 5 87

The Development Dimension of the WTO Trade Talks

Specialist Expertise in the Development Cooperation Ireland Programme 90

Evaluation and Audit 91

Development Education 93

Communications and Information 96

The Advisory Board for Development Cooperation Ireland 97

Fellowships & Training 99

APSO Training and Resources Centre 2003 101

New Challenges 6 102

HIV/AIDS

ABPs Area-based ProgrammesACBF African Capacity Building FoundationADEA Association for the Development of

Education in AfricaAfDB African Development BankAMSCO African Management Services CompanyAPSO Agency for Personal Services Overseas

CGIAR Consultative Group on AgriculturalResearch

CHAL Christian Health Association of LesothoCIS Commonwealth of Independent States

DAC Development Assistance Committee

EU European Union

FAO Food and Agriculture Organisation

HIPC Heavily Indebted Poor Countries

IAVI International AIDS Vaccine InitiativeICOS Irish Council for Overseas StudentsICRC International Committee of the

Red CrossICTs Information and Communications

TechnologiesIFAD International Fund for Agricultural

DevelopmentIIEP International Institute for Education

PlanningILO International Labour OrganisationIMU Irish Missionary UnionIMRS Irish Missionary Resource Service

MAPS Multi-annual Programme SchemesMDGs Millennium Development Goals

NGOs Non-Governmental Organisations

ODA Overseas Development AssistanceOECD Organisation for Economic Cooperation

and DevelopmentOSCE Organisation for Security and

Cooperation in Europe

PFA Plan for AfricaPRS Poverty Reduction StrategyPRSPs Poverty Reduction Strategy

Plans/Papers

RC/RC Red Cross/Red Crescent

SPA Special Programme for AfricaSWAps Sector-wide approachesUN United NationsUNAIDS United Nations AIDS AgencyUNDP/HDI United Nations Development

Programme/Human DevelopmentIndex

UNEP United Nations EnvironmentProgramme

UNESC United Nations Economic and SocialCouncil

UNHCHR United Nations High Commission forHuman Rights

UNHCR United Nations High Commission forRefugees

UNICEF United Nations Childrens’ FundUNRWA United Nations Relief and Works Agency

WB World BankWFP World Food ProgrammeWHO World Health OrganisationWTO World Trade Organisation


ABBREVIATIONS

annual reportpage 4

Mkata Road between Kilosaand Melele in Tanzania. © DevelopmentCooperation Ireland/Pieternella Pieterse


The year 2003 saw a number of important milestones forthe Government’s programme of assistance to developingcountries, Development Cooperation Ireland.

First, in November 2003 our programme was stronglycommended by the OECD’s Development AssistanceCommittee for its quality and effectiveness and its sharpfocus on poverty reduction. This very positive judgementpassed by our peers confirmed Ireland’s place at theforefront of international aid donors. As the Minister withresponsibility for the Development Cooperation Irelandprogramme, I was delighted with the warm endorsementof our work from the internationally recognised arbiter ofquality and standards in development assistance. TheDAC Peer Review was a tribute to the Government for thecommitment we have shown in responding to the majordevelopment challenges of our time and for the qualityand impact of our efforts on behalf of the poorest peopleon earth.

Second, I took a number of steps to enhance publicawareness of our programme, beginning with a change ofname and the creation of a dedicated website.

Third, I charted new directions for the programme, takingit into a number of areas which will extend our skills andexpertise and enhance the impact we have on thereduction of poverty in the developing world.

Building on my previous experience as Minister of Statefor Trade, I saw opportunities for our programme to takeadvantage of the major changes in the Irish economy overthe past decade or so and to learn lessons from thisprocess which would help us to make more rapid progresstowards our development objectives.

In Ireland we have benefited greatly in recent years fromthe evolution of Information and CommunicationsTechnologies (ICTs). Both foreign and domestic ICTcompanies are major employers. The technologies arehelping to increase our national productivity and tostrengthen our competitiveness. They are also at thecentre of a major effort to bring the delivery ofGovernment services into the modern age.

In my many meetings with Ministers from our programmecountries in sub-Saharan Africa, Ireland’s success inharnessing ICT to promote its own development isconstantly mentioned. While these Ministers appreciate

the generous aid Ireland gives totheir countries, what theirGovernments want above all is tohave thriving economies withvibrant private sectors which cangenerate the resources to fightpoverty.

In discussion of these issues withrepresentatives of the Irish privatesector, I have been struck by thewillingness of many people in theprivate sector, including in the ICTfield, to offer their servicesvoluntarily and to use theirexpertise for the benefit ofdeveloping countries.

During 2003 I launched threeinterlinked initiatives which opened up new perspectivesfor Development Cooperation Ireland in these variousareas.

I established a Task Force on ICT and Development toadvise me on a strategy for our programme in this area.The Task Force, under the effective chairmanship of MrAidan Eames, included representatives of the private andpublic sectors, NGOs, development experts andacademics. Its report and the ICT and Developmentstrategy were published in December 2003. The ICT andDevelopment strategy focuses on four key areas: broadand equitable access to ICTs, ICT policy, strategy andregulation, good governance and effective and efficientuse of ICTs in public service provision. It also takes intoaccount the possible use of volunteers from the Irishprivate sector in the delivery of assistance.

A second and related initiative involved the promotion ofvoluntarism. In taking this initiative forward (which isentitled “Volunteer 21"), I was particularly inspired by theselfless commitment of thousands of volunteers whichmade the Special Olympics such a success, and by themany enthusiastic offers of support from potentialvolunteers in the private sector.

I announced the “Volunteer 21" initiative on 5 December2003, International Volunteer Day. Its purpose was tomodernise and update our response to the continuinginterest of many Irish people in providing their time and

FOREWORD

skills on a voluntary basis to help to reduce poverty andsuffering in the developing world. It takes forward anddevelops the remarkable work done over three decadesby APSO, which was integrated with DevelopmentCooperation Ireland at the end of 2003.

My third initiative was designed to bring DevelopmentCooperation Ireland and the Irish private sector closertogether. I see great value in strengthening our links withthe increasingly globalised Irish private sector andexploring how we can work together in order to combatglobal poverty and inequality. I have therefore establisheda Private Sector Forum, under the chairmanship of MrLiam Fitzgerald, which brings together DevelopmentCooperation Ireland, interested private sector companiesand Enterprise Ireland. I see the Forum as a vehicle fordialogue and partnership with the Irish private sectorwhich, inter alia, will help to build the capacity of theindigenous private sector in our programme countries andwill contribute, therefore, to the latter’s development. TheForum will focus in the first instance on the ICT sector andon agriculture and food production.

Taken together, I believe that these three initiatives, ICTsand Development, “Volunteer 21" and the Private SectorForum have launched the Development CooperationIreland programme in exciting new directions. They aim tomodernise our programme, to respond to the demandswe are receiving from our developing country partnersand to use the deep pool of expertise we now have inIreland in high technology. They provide a basis forstrengthening the links between DevelopmentCooperation Ireland and the globalised modern Irisheconomy. And they ensure that Ireland makes an evenmore effective contribution to the hugely challengingwork of improving the conditions in which the poorestpeople of the world live.

Tom Kitt T.D. Minister of State for Development Cooperation andHuman Rights

annual reportpage 6

For the second time in four years Ireland last year earnedthe plaudits of its fellow donor countries for the qualityand professionalism of its official developmentprogramme.

In a review in 1999 the Development AssistanceCommittee of the OECD (the DAC) found that the Irishprogramme was consistent with best practice, thatpoverty reduction was at its centre, that there was astrong emphasis on health and education, that genderwas being mainstreamed throughout the programme andthat the promotion of good governance was integratedacross all country programmes.

Four years later in 2003 the DAC commented on the longtradition in Ireland of solidarity with the poor anddispossessed which has influenced the shape of the Irishprogramme. For the second time the DAC said that theprogramme distinguishes itself by a sharp focus onpoverty reduction and a focus across the programme onthe Millennium Development Goals.

It noted that Ireland channels half of its whole programmeallocation to least developed countries, the highestproportion of all DAC members. It went on to say that thepriority focus of the Irish programme on health andeducation was now complemented by a strongcommitment to addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Itadded that assisting ‘forgotten emergencies’ remains apriority and that in Tanzania the DAC had found thatIreland was appreciated as a collaborative partner.

The DAC referred to the Irish commitment todevelopment and said that it was important to build publicawareness and ownership of the programme’s vision,achievements and challenges.

Turning to the allocations issue and the UN target, theReview noted the huge growth in funding in recent years,acknowledged the challenge implicit in meeting the UNtarget by 2007 and suggested that the programme beginplanning for how it would manage the €1 billionallocation which the UN target would bring. It

recommended that there be a sizeable funding increase in2005 as crucial to restoring some momentum towards theUN target. The DAC also noted with regret the lapsing ofa three-year commitment on allocations for the IrishProgramme which was in operation at the time of the lastPeer review and recommended its re-instatement.

On where the programme should focus, the DACrecommended that Ireland should broaden and deepen itsengagement with its current seven ‘Programme Countries’and continue its cautious approach to extending itsgeographic reach.


THE DAC PEER REVIEW OFIRELAND 2003

The Peer Review Process

The OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (theDAC) represents twenty-two donor countries andundertakes periodic reviews of the developmentprogrammes of individual member states, with eachmember reviewed every four years.

The Review is carried out by representatives of twoDAC members assisted by officials from the DACsecretariat.

There are a number of stages to the review. The countryinvolved provides a comprehensive memorandumoutlining the programme. The Review team visits aprogramme in the field. Later a visit takes place to thecapital where all stakeholders are interviewed.

The Review team prepares a draft report and this leadsto a meeting of the full DAC at which DAC membersquestion senior representatives of the programmeunder review. The final report is issued shortlythereafter.

In Ireland’s case the reviewers were Belgium andSwitzerland and an innovation in the field visit (toTanzania) was the joint assessment of the programmesof four donor countries, Denmark, Finland, Japan andIreland.

The Review Report was published in December 2003.

annual reportpage 8

Dugda School is one of more thana dozen primaries to have beenbuilt by Self Help DevelopmentInternational with the support ofDevelopment Cooperation Irelandin Ethiopia in the past decade.Courtesy: G. Jacob, SHDI

Similarly, in relation to its partnership with UN agencies,the DAC suggested the continuation of a strategic andprogrammatic engagement with a select number ofagencies. On HIV/AIDS, the Review advocated a scalingup of the current engagement and an evaluation of theimpact of efforts to date.

The DAC noted that, in comparison with other donorcountries, Ireland devotes a relatively large share of itsOfficial Development Assistance (ODA) to NGOs. Itsuggested that the current strategic approach to partnershipwith NGOs should continue with a greater focus onmainstreaming cross-cutting issues (gender, governance,HIV/AIDS and the environment), and more systematicauditing, monitoring and evaluation by NGO partners.

The DAC noted the more strategic approach of the Irishprogramme to managing its engagement withemergencies and post-emergency recovery. Itrecommended continuation of this and suggested inaddition, the development of clearer guidelines, includingan exit strategy for humanitarian engagements or, whereappropriate, continued support integrated into longer-term post-conflict development strategies.An area of concern for the DAC was coherence betweendevelopment policy and other aspects of foreign policy(agriculture was a particular focus of their enquiries) andwelcomed the establishment of a coherence unit withinthe programme to coordinate efforts to address the issue.

Lastly, the DAC noted that there had been someimprovement between the Peer Reviews in 1999 and2003 in the management capacity of the Irish programme.It said, however, that Ireland must further increase staff,specialist expertise and development management skillsto cope with a growing programme.


Professor Jeffrey D. SachsDirector, The Millennium ProjectSpecial Advisor to U.N. Secretary-General onthe Millennium Development Goals

At the Millennium Assembly in September 2000, theworld’s leaders signed onto a global compact to reduceextreme poverty in the Millennium Declaration. TheMillennium Development Goals (MDGs), which aredrawn from the Millennium Declaration, call for a decisivereduction of extreme poverty in its key dimensions –income, hunger, disease, environmental degradation, andlack of access to basic services and infrastructure.Importantly, the MDGs specify a clear timetable forprogress, with 2015 as the main deadline for halvingpoverty. They also specify that rich and poor countries arecommitted to working together to achieve those goals.

We are now entering the final decade of thatcommitment, with just ten short years left until 2015.Despite the stakes involved – international goals solemnlyreached in a world desperate for progress against ancientand modern scourges – we are far off track fromaccomplishing the Millennium Development Goals inmany parts of the world. In almost all of sub-SaharanAfrica, countries will miss some or most of the goals ifcurrent trajectories continue. Other regions – notably inCentral Asia, the Andes, parts of the Caribbean Basin, andparts of South and East Asia – are home to vast numbersof very poor people whose lives are still essentiallyuntouched by the promise of poverty reduction.

This is not to say that little has been accomplished in theworld. Many regions have experienced dramatic economicand social progress, notably parts of East Asia and SouthAsia, previously gripped by widespread and extremepoverty. This progress, indeed, gives hope that the goalscan be achieved in all parts of the world. The MDGs arenot, however, a challenge to achieve progress in someregions or some areas. The argument that the developmentglass is "half full" because of rapid progress in China is little

consolation to the AIDS orphans of Africa. The world hascommitted to help nations in all regions to root out extremepoverty. Yet hundreds of millions of people, in the world’spoorest places, are still being left behind.

The Millennium Project, which I have the honor ofdirecting on behalf of the Secretary-General, makes onebasic diagnosis of the situation, and offers one over-arching recommendation. Our basic diagnosis is that theglobal processes in which the world’s rich and poorcountries interact to tackle poverty are not yet up to thetask of achieving the MDGs. The MDGs have not yetbecome operational targets for poverty reduction. Publicinvestments, policy reform, data collection and monitoringare not sufficiently bold to achieve the MDGs. At theinternational level, the practices of donor agencies,multilateral institutions, development assistance programs,trade policies, and private sector engagement, are not yetfocused on achieving the MDGs. In all of these inter-related processes and activities, the MDGs are referred toas a normative goal, but not yet as a basis for practicalpolicy making.

Our recommendation is to put the MDGs at the center ofnational and international poverty reduction strategies.We must move from words to action. If this is done, theMDGs can still be achieved in every country. Ten years isstill enough time, but only just enough, for the keystakeholders in this process – governments in the low-income countries, their development partners,international institutions, the private sector, civil society,and the world’s scientific and technological associations –join forces in an operational manner to achieve the goals.There are several steps donors can take to help catalyzeprogress towards the MDGs.

First, donor countries need to take the MDGs seriously asminimum targets over a 10 year horizon. The MDGsshould be at the center of national and internationalpoverty reduction strategies and at the centre of bilateralassistance strategies. Second, donor countries must

annual reportpage 10

NEW CHALLENGES 1THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS – HOW FAR HAVE WE COME?

support needs-based approaches to the MDGs. Untilnow, developing countries’ Poverty Reduction Strategies(PRSs) have not been goal-oriented or needs-based; theyhave started with a given level of external finance fromthe donors, and done the best possible with that level ofresources. Instead, in order to achieve the MDGs, everycountry in the world that still suffers from extreme povertyshould adopt a PRS that works backwards from the 2015targets to identify the sequence of investments and policychanges needed to achieve the goals. This will typicallyyield much bolder PRSs than those being produced today,and will require much larger levels of donor support.

The Millennium Project is working with a series ofdeveloping countries (including Cambodia, DominicanRepublic, Ethiopia, Ghana, Senegal, Tajikistan, Tanzania,Uganda, and Yemen) to support them in designing MDG-based PRSs. These countries have all committed to theMDGs, they have empowered their governmentministries, civil societies, and other stakeholders to worktogether transparently and vigorously towards writingserious needs-based plans. Donor countries need tosupport this need-based approach in every developingcountry, even if the end result exposes a financing gapbetween what developing countries require in order toachieve the MDGs and what they can afford domestically. Third, donors will need to begin honoring theircommitment to give adequate (i.e. significantly increased)levels of finance. Many low-income countries not on trackto meet the MDGs are stuck in a poverty trap, wherebythey lack the prerequisite health, education, and physicalinfrastructure to achieve economic growth. Although poorgovernance is an issue in many countries, there are manywell-governed countries whose economic growth andprogress towards the MDGs has been too slow. Thereality is that many of these countries are too poor to payfor the investments needed to achieve sustainedeconomic growth and meet the MDGs, which is whydonor financing plays such a critical role.

Donor countries have repeatedly signed internationalcommitments to increase official development assistance(ODA). In the 2002 Monterrey Consensus, theyspecifically pledged to make "make concrete effortstowards the target of 0.7 percent of gross nationalproduct [in official development assistance]" – while inreturn the developing countries committed themselves tosound governance and use of resources. A few monthslater, at the World Summit for Sustainable Development in

Johannesburg, the member countries of the UnitedNations reaffirmed their commitment to reducing povertyand protecting the environment, again placing the MDGsat the center of international development policy.However, levels of funding are not at a level bold enoughto allow a breakthrough. Only five countries so far havereached the 0.7% commitment. Ireland will send a clearand decisive message to the world as it moves towardsthat target from its current level of 0.4%, reaching 0.7% in2007 as it has promised.

Finally, donors will greatly improve the efficiency of theiraid efforts by relying on mechanisms of aid delivery provento work well. The International Development Association(IDA) of the World Bank should be a major focal point forexpanding the aid flows. Specifically, the next round ofIDA flows (the so-called IDA-14 replenishment), shouldtriple IDA outlays from around $8 billion per year today,mainly in loans, to around $25 billion per year, mainly ingrants, during fiscal years 2006-8.

IDA already provides an enormously successful form ofdevelopment assistance and it can be made even better. Itdoes five important things. First, it provides the world’ssingle largest flow of low-cost development assistance topoor countries, though not enough of it and not at lowenough cost. IDA currently makes commitments ofaround $8 billion per year, of which 80% is low-interestlong-term loans and the remainder outright grants.Second, it directs its outlays towards the prioritiesidentified by the recipient countries. Third, IDAharmonises donor resources. Typically, the 22 rich-countrydonors torment recipient governments by insisting onseparate aid projects that allow each donor to "show theflag". In the case of IDA, however, the donor governmentsagree, wisely, to pool their resources into a single basketthat can back the specific strategy of the recipient country.Fourth, IDA commits its resources over a three-year timehorizon rather than a one-year donor budget cycle typicalof bilateral aid. Fifth, it aims to base its allocations on goodperformance, using indicators for governance andeconomic management.


Time for a BreakthroughDuring the last year, the international agenda has beenoverwhelmingly dominated by issues of security,terrorism, and war. The U.S., for example, is spendingaround 30 times more on the military than it is ondevelopment assistance, roughly $450 billion per yearcompared with $15 billion. This is despite the clear truththat global stability critically depends on lifting the poorestof the poor out of subhuman conditions by providing safedrinking water, access to sanitation, adequate nutrition,education, and health care. These steps would do farmore towards tackling instability around the world thanany military approach, and would cost far less. In fact,preliminary estimates of the Millennium Project indicatethat the MDGs could be reached in the well-governedcountries of the world for around $50-75 billion ofadditional ODA each year (which would still leave donorcountries below their commitment of 0.7% of GNP).

The Millennium Summit was a landmark occasion of globalconsensus on a new development agenda. Now what isneeded is a global breakthrough on action. The year aheadprovides the opportunity for that breakthrough,particularly the high-level summit on progress since theMillennium Declaration that will take place at the UnitedNations in the fall of 2005. At this event, the world needsto sign off on a "business plan" to achieve the MDGs in thedecade that remains. We must move from words to action.If this is done, the MDGs can still be achieved in everycountry. Ten years is enough time, but only just enough,for success assuming that the key stakeholders in thisprocess – governments in the low-income countries, theirdevelopment partners, international institutions, theprivate sector, civil society, and the world’s scientific andtechnological associations – join forces in an operationalmanner to achieve the goals. Donors can hold their side ofthe bargain by significantly scaling up their efforts and stoptalking of "donor fatigue" before expanded efforts towardthe MDGs have even begun!

Ireland can play a tremendous role in galvanizing thedonor community towards supporting needs-basedapproaches and increased ODA. Ireland’s moralleadership on these issues has been outstanding –including the vigorous voices of Mary Robinson and Bonoheard round the world, as well as the thousands of Irishaid volunteers that toil among the poorest of the poor.

For much less than 1% of GNP of the rich world, we cancreate a breakthrough towards the MDGs and, soonerrather than later, to the end of extreme poverty itself. Thisis the key to a safer world. The first step is to take theMillennium Development Goals seriously and to act onthem decisively in the coming years.


Bilateral Programme

page 13

Cecilia Alphonso uses waterfrom shared standpipe of KilosaTown Water Supply Company inTanzania © DevelopmentCooperation Ireland/Pieternella Pieterse


Wosena Girma and her family are small-holding farmers who have been working with Self HelpDevelopment International in Ethiopia for the past three years. Courtesy: H. McDonagh, SHDI

Programme Summary

Ethiopia is one of the poorest countries in the world,ranked 169th out of 175 countries on the UNDP HumanDevelopment Index. It is heavily dependent on rain-fedagriculture, which has made it very vulnerable to externalshocks such as drought or commodity price fluctuations(both problems having hit hard in 2003). Malnutrition iswidespread and the calorie intake for half the populationis below the recommended minimum. Resource needs areimmense at every level and development assistance playsan important part in the Ethiopian economy. However, thevolume of assistance received is small in relation to thecountry’s population and its level of poverty. Moreover, asizeable proportion of this assistance is set aside forhumanitarian purposes, which means that there is less leftover for the promotion of long-term, sustainabledevelopment.

2003 was a difficult year for Ethiopia. The country wasaffected by the worst drought since 1984/85, with almost14 million people (out of a total population of 70 million)requiring food assistance. However, effective functioningof the early warning and crop forecast systems and timelyand appropriate donors’ response averted humanitariancatastrophe. Resolution of Ethiopia’s border dispute withEritrea did not make much progress and intenseinternational diplomatic effort was put into preserving thefragile peace process.

Despite these challenges however, the Government ofEthiopia managed to maintain its focus on attempting tomeet the country’s immense development needs. Thegovernment’s policies for poverty reduction, economicgrowth, reform of the public administration and politicaland administrative decentralisation were further

elaborated and implemented. A real partnership began toemerge between government and donors around theEthiopian Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) –called the Sustainable Development and PovertyReduction Programme.

A number of key changes in Ethiopia, in particular theEthiopian government’s ongoing decentralisationprogramme, demanded a review of DevelopmentCooperation Ireland’s approaches to delivering assistance.The decentralisation programme, which effectivelyremoved the zonal level of administration, renderedunworkable the Area-Based Programmes which had beendelivered through the zones. As a result, DevelopmentCooperation Ireland closed down its programmes in theSidama, Gurage and Siltie Zones and the Eastern andNorthern Zones of Tigray and developed a newprogramme to be delivered through the Tigray Region.This new regional programme aims to accommodate thebest features of ABP programming, while at the same timerespond to new realities. Development CooperationIreland invested €5.185m in support of the Tigray Regionin 2003 and €6.843m in the course of its phasing out ofdirect engagement in Siltie, Sidama and Gurage ofprogrammes in SNNPR (Southern Nations, Nationalitiesand People’s Regions). Despite the withdrawal from thetraditional ABPs in the South, Development CooperationIreland maintains a significant level of investment in theregion through support for sectoral investments in Health,Education and HIV/AIDS. Furthermore, we plan tohonour our commitments to the zones by supporting thecompletion of a number of infrastructure projects in 2004.

In 2003, Development Cooperation Ireland responded tothe humanitarian crisis by providing €6.25 million foremergency interventions in the areas of health, nutrition,water and sanitation. However, vulnerable populations in


BILATERAL AID TO ETHIOPIA IN 2003: €25.77 million POPULATION (2003): 70 million 2003 HDI: 169 (out of 175)

ETHIOPIA

Ethiopia continue to face emergency levels of malnutrition,critical threats to their livelihoods though the erosion ofassets and vulnerability to morbidity and mortality.Accordingly, food insecurity was a major issue for policydebate and action in Ethiopia in 2003. DevelopmentCooperation Ireland actively participated in the high-levelTechnical Working Group for the New Coalition for FoodSecurity in Ethiopia together with government, otherdonors and civil society representatives. (See countryfocus below.) The group compiled a package of foodsecurity actions aimed at tackling the root causes of foodsecurity within a three to five year period. DevelopmentCooperation Ireland allocated €870,541 in direct supportto food security programmes in 2003, in particular to theTigray Region’s Integrated Food Security Programme.

Development Cooperation Ireland continued with itssecond year of its support to the three-year Governmentof Ethiopia Health Sector Development Programme,allocating €4.1m to it, while spending €1.2m on Healththrough the Area Based Programmes. Areas supportedincluded the supply of pharmaceuticals, immunization,malaria control, human resource development and healthmanagement and information systems.

Development Cooperation Ireland continued to addressproblems related to the poor quality of Education inEthiopia, problems which have been caused in part by theincrease in enrolments and attendance. DevelopmentCooperation Ireland allocated €2,845m to the Educationsector supporting the purchase of textbooks, as well asinvestment in a multi-donor funded teacher developmentprogramme.

Ethiopia’s HIV/AIDS prevalence rate is estimated to be6.6%. Development Cooperation Ireland allocated€1.255m to this sector, providing funding and advice tothe National HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Officetowards the implementation of the Government’s nationalstrategic plan. Development Cooperation Ireland also tooka lead in strengthening the role of Civil Society actors inthe response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic, within thecontext of the national strategic framework.

Development Cooperation Ireland supported a number ofactivities in the area of political and economicgovernance, spending €1.52m. These activitiesincluded the Parliament Capacity Building Project(enhancing the capacity of Parliament in law-making and

oversight), the Public Sector Capacity BuildingProgramme (supporting civil service reform, capacity-building and decentralization) and support to the electoralprocess (through support for civic education activities).We also assisted the participation of indigenous civilsociety organisations in major public issues and fundedprojects proposed by them.

Other areas supported by Development CooperationIreland included Roads, Water, Jimma University andMicro-Finance.

Country Focus: Dealing with the hardfacts: Recognising the need to movefrom Emergency Response to LongerTerm Development

For more than two decades, Ethiopia has experiencedchronic and acute malnutrition, a growing population, anincreasing frequency in droughts, and repeated cycles ofhumanitarian crises. Even in times of good rains and socalled ‘normal’ years, up to six million people requirehumanitarian assistance. In response, Ethiopia has receivedassistance in the form of increasingly massive quantities offood aid. However, experience shows that food aid doesnot provide a sustainable solution for tackling chronicpoverty. The 2003 humanitarian crisis promptedrecognition for a need for a paradigm shift, moving awayfrom an annual emergency appeal system and food aidbias and towards a system of social protection as anapproach that both protects against destitution and lays afoundation for development. It was within this context thatthe Ethiopian government took the initiative to establishthe "New Coalition on Food Security in Ethiopia" in 2003.

2003 Emergency ResponseThe 2003 humanitarian crisis can be characterized as oneof the most widespread and severe emergencies ever tostrike Ethiopia. While a major drought occurred in2002/2003 period, the source of the humanitarian crisiswas as much related to social, economic, political andenvironmental processes. Although predominantlyconsidered a food crisis, the vulnerable populations inEthiopia also faced critical threats to their livelihoods,while vulnerability to morbidity and mortality was directlylinked to a crisis in the health care system.

The combined response to the emergency from theGovernment of Ethiopia, international donors, UN


agencies, NGOs and Ethiopian communities (valued atapproximately US$554 million in 2003), helped vulnerablepopulations to avert the worst of the humanitarian crisis.The main activities supported by DevelopmentCooperation Ireland (in its €6.25 million package ofhumanitarian interventions) included the provision ofemergency food rations through WFP, support foremergency therapeutic and supplementary foodstuffs andemergency water interventions through UNICEF, support toIrish NGOs for food and health emergency interventions,support for government partners for emergency seeddistributions, malaria preparedness, and training for healthworkers on therapeutic feeding. In spite of the formidablechallenges, the humanitarian interventions saved manylives, kept families together, and maintained the faith of thepopulation in the will of the Ethiopian Government andinternational community to assist people in their time ofneed. Most importantly, assistance was delivered topeople’s homes, thus preventing vulnerable populationsfrom gathering together in large camps and feedingcentres, where the risks of disease and death are greatest.

The emergency response however also marked a turningpoint in how the government and donors now perceivethe nature of the almost annual crises affecting Ethiopia.There has been a growing realisation amongst donors andgovernment that we can no longer afford to be surprisedby emergencies which hit Ethiopia every other year. Also,

there has been a recognition that we have a caseload ofbetween 6-7 million people who need food aid on anannual basis. The challenge is to respond in a morepredictable way to these ongoing chronic needs as well asprovide support that will build the assets of vulnerablehouseholds for the future

Learning from the past, responding to thepresent and preparing for the futureTogether with government partners, other internationaldonors and NGO representatives, DevelopmentCooperation Ireland actively participated in the Coalitionfor Food Security’s high-level technical working groupin compiling a package of urgent food security actionsaimed at tackling the root causes of food security within athree to five year period. An important output of theCoalition’s work is the formulation of a National Safety NetProgramme to transit five million people out of theemergency food aid system and into a multi-annual safetynet programme that will deliver timely, adequate andguaranteed resources to households (both cash andfood). It is expected that the Safety Net programme willbecome operational in 2004 and that DevelopmentCooperation Ireland, together with Government and otherdonors, will support the implementation and financing ofthis programme. Support for productive safety nets will bea major element of a new programme approach to beinitiated by Development Cooperation Ireland in 2004.


Dugda Primary School, which was built by Self Help Development International in Ethiopia with the support of DevelopmentCooperation Ireland, has seen its classroom population grow in the past five years from jst 40 to a current level of 1,600 pupils.Courtesy: H. McDonagh, SHDI


Schoolboys in the highlands of Lesotho. Courtesy Tara Shine

Programme Summary

In the decade since the ending of apartheid, Lesotho hasmade significant progress. Although still among thepoorest 50 countries in the world, a series of reformmeasures introduced in recent years has helped to alterthe political and economic outlook for the better. A stableclimate now prevails, following a successful generalelection in 2002 which produced a multiparty NationalAssembly with a functioning all-party committee system.Many commentators regard the 2002 election as a majorturning point in Lesotho’s history. In addition to stabilisingthe political situation, it offered Lesotho the opportunity ofsignificantly advancing a range of reform andmodernisation measures which, if successfully carried out,should go a long way towards countering the debilitatinglegacy of a difficult post-Independence period.

Established in 1975, Lesotho is Development CooperationIreland’s longest running bilateral country programme.Ireland is now the lead bilateral donor in the country,having provided financial support in excess of €10 millionin each of the past three years. Appropriately in a countrywhich is still in the least developed category, the Irishcontribution is targeted mainly on poverty reductionmeasures in health, education and improving ruralinfrastructures. Development Cooperation Irelandcontinues to respond to the HIV/AIDS crisis by way ofincreased support to community-based organisations andto the mainstreaming efforts of several Ministries.

Our development partnership with the Government ofLesotho has undergone strategic re-orientation in the pastfive years. The bulk of our resources are now channelledthrough relevant sector Ministries and a number of non-governmental partners, in particular CHAL, the Christian

Health Association of Lesotho. Development CooperationIreland staff now spend much time interacting withcounterparts in various Ministries and other agencies,supporting planning efforts and programmeimplementation, including reporting and evaluation.

The main components of our support in Lesotho arehealth, education, rural access, HIV/AIDS and publicsector reform and governance.

Health SectorIn 2003 financial resources were provided to supportHealth Ministry and CHAL programmes in the areas ofprimary health care and infrastructural improvements.Examples are: the National Measles ImmunisationCampaign; training and re-training of community healthworkers; the Integrated Disease Surveillance andResponse programme; the HIV Sentinel Surveillanceprogramme, which disclosed a national average of 30%prevalence rate among attendees at anti-natal clinics. Inaddition, substantial support was offered to the Ministry’soverall Health Sector Reform Programme, alongsidesupport from a range of donors including the World Bankand the UN agencies. In the matter of capacity-building,Development Cooperation Ireland continued its supportfor (and advocacy of) a much closer arrangementbetween the Ministry and CHAL which is designed tobring a more integrated and uniform health service to thepeople of Lesotho in all parts of the country.

EducationWhile Development Cooperation Ireland continued tohelp fund the Government’s Free Primary Educationscheme introduced in 2000, the emphasis has beenturning more and more towards issues of qualitystandards and institutional capacity. We ensured that themore remote areas of the country received attention in the


BILATERAL AID TO LESOTHO IN 2003: €10.68 million POPULATION: 1.8 million 2003 HDI: 137 (out of 175)

LESOTHO

matter of new school buildings and the provision ofteaching and learning materials. At the institutional level,we advocated greater emphasis on policy issues andrelated administrative matters. With support fromDevelopment Cooperation Ireland , work commenced onthe setting up of a National Qualifications Authority andthe strengthening of the Education Ministry’s PlanningUnit. This approach will be maintained in the coming yearsas we try to ensure that all donors work more closelytogether in order to achieve not only quantitative targetsbut also quality and service delivery targets.

Rural Infrastructural Improvements Lesotho’s infrastructural deficits are enormous; it will takemany decades before the basics are spread reasonablywell throughout the country. During 2003 we continuedour substantial support for improvements in rural accessand water supplies in more remote areas. Forty ninevillage water schemes were completed, bringing safewater supplies within easy distance to a total population ofover 26,000. We maintained our support for the Ministryof Works rural roads improvement programme, while atotal of nine new footbridges were constructed withDevelopment Cooperation Ireland funds in 2003.However, it is the capacity-building side which is nowbeing emphasised. We are leading the effort to better co-ordinate more effective donor inputs in both the waterand rural roads/bridges departments of the Ministry.

HIV/AIDSLesotho remains one of the worst affected countries in theworld, with an estimated prevalence rate of over 30%.Towards the end of 2003, the Government decided to setup a National AIDS Commission designed to co-ordinatethe national effort more effectively and bring moreurgency to the response of all stakeholders. Meanwhile,pending establishment of the new structures, weconcentrated our support on a number of well-regardedNGOs, in particular Positive Action, and on the HIV/AIDSrelated work of the Ministries of Education andAgriculture. A behavioural survey of mine-workers,traditionally regarded as one of the main carriers of thevirus, was also supported. An in-house workplaceprogramme was instituted by Development CooperationIreland management, while the mainstreaming of AIDSinto all aspects of our programme also commenced in2003.

Governance and ReformAs our support for the Government’s own national sectorprogrammes has grown, governance and administrativeissues have become an important part of our programme.However, this is still a relatively new area for us. Lesothohas a number of ongoing modernisation and reformundertakings, one of which, the Public SectorImprovement and Reform Programme (PSIRP), is anobvious vehicle for donor participation. We havesupported the human resources side of the PSIRP forsome years with good results. Other activities receivingDevelopment Cooperation Ireland support are: thefinalisation of two important documents, viz. the NationalVision and the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper, both ofwhich are due to be published in the first half of 2004; thePublic Financial Management reform programme beingcarried out by the Ministry of Finance; and the work of theOmbudsman’s Office and the Anti-corruption Unit of theMinistry of Justice.

Country Focus: Education

On the eve of the Millennium, the Government of Lesothoannounced the introduction of free primary education ona phased basis as part of its response to the challenge ofthe Millennium Development Goals. For the first time inthe country’s history, the State decided to take fullresponsibility for the provision of basic education. As inmost other African countries, education in Lesotho wasprovided mainly by the different churches beginning inthe mid 19th century and lasting until Independence.During the colonial period, a few secondary schools wereconstructed by Government which in all other respectsremained largely indifferent to the country’s educationalneeds. After independence in 1966, the new Governmentof Lesotho formed partnerships with the Churches andparents to help finance the provision of education.

With the introduction of FPE (Free Primary Education) inLesotho in 2000, Development Cooperation Ireland, themajor bilateral donor in the country, quickly adapted itsapproach in response to the new situation. Instead ofsupporting small individual school projects in remote areasof the country, it began a comprehensive dialogue withcentral Government aimed at helping the Ministry ofEducation to plan and implement the new FPE policy. TheIrish support focused mainly on issues of access,classroom construction and provision of teacher training,


with a bias towards the mountain areas of Lesotho wherethe most marginalised and disadvantaged communitieslive. An accelerated schools’ construction programme hasbeen underway in Lesotho since 2000, with strong Irishsupport. Traditionally, Basotho girls have been bettereducated than boys, the latter being obliged to spendmost of their boyhood years herding cattle. For boystherefore the introduction of FPE opened up an entirelynew scenario with major socio/economic as well aseducational implications. Reports now indicate improvedattendance by boys, even in winter months, and animprovement in enrolment generally, in all areas whereclassrooms have been provided.

With improved access, quality issues have begun toattract attention. Therefore, since 2002, DevelopmentCooperation Ireland has increasingly focused on teachertraining and on the provision of teaching/learningmaterials. Ireland has supported the establishment of a

National Qualifications Framework. A draft ParliamentaryBill designed to set up a Qualifications Authority inLesotho was prepared during 2003, following extensiveconsultations with relevant stakeholders. The consultationprocess was largely financed by DevelopmentCooperation Ireland. A similar national consultationexercise on teacher education took place in 2003 and adraft policy was prepared, with the help of Irish funding.

Education plays a critical role in the fight againstHIV/AIDS; therefore support for mainstreamingHIV/AIDS in the sector is crucial. Irish-funded bursarieswere awarded to high school pupils in remote mountainareas through a programme implemented by LesothoSave the Children. It incorporates community-based andschool-based HIV/AIDS support for affected pupils.Teachers and communities are equipped with basicsupport skills designed to help children continue inschool, even in cases where parents are ill or have died.


Sorghum terracing in the mountains of Lesotho. Courtesy Tara Shine


(left to right) Former US President Bill Clinton, Mr. Ira Magaziner, Minister of State Tom Kitt TD and Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, TD, at the launch of the Clinton Foundation – Ireland HIV/AIDS partnership for Mozambique, in Dublin in July 2003 (photo: Maxwells)

Programme Summary

Although Mozambique remains one of the poorestcountries in the world, the Government of Mozambique is strongly committed to reducing poverty and inequality.This commitment is articulated in the Action Plan forAbsolute Poverty Reduction 2001-2005 (the PARPA).Since the end of the civil war in 1992, the country hasachieved rapid economic growth and recent surveysindicate that the combined efforts of the Government and donors are beginning to have an impact on poverty levels1.

Development Cooperation Ireland began a programme ofassistance to Mozambique in 1996, working at centrallevel and in the provinces of Inhambane and Niassa. Theprogramme has grown rapidly since then and the budgetof over €32 million in 2003 reflected the encouragingpolitical, economic and institutional context within which development assistance is being provided inMozambique. The current Country Strategy Paper (CSP)is clearly aligned with the PARPA and a strong emphasis isplaced on supporting the Government in theimplementation of the PARPA. During 2003 the process ofdeveloping a new CSP covering the period 2004-2006was completed.

HealthHealth is a key element of the PARPA, which makes thelink between better health and breaking the povertycycle. As a result of the weakness of the Mozambicanhealth system, Development Cooperation Irelandassistance has focused on the sector as a whole. Support

at central level is provided through pooled fundingarrangements. In the Provinces of Inhambane and Niassa,we provide funding directly to the Ministry of Health.During the year, both Provinces, as well as the centralMinistry of Health, finalised and launched their healthsector strategic plans. The pooling mechanisms havesucceeded in harmonising planning and budgeting as aprecursor to the preparation by the Ministry of acomprehensive annual operational plan and budget forthe health sector.

Education The PARPA’s main objectives in the education sector areto expand access, to improve quality and efficiency, andto reduce the costs of education provision. In 1998, theGovernment launched the Education Sector StrategicPlan. The plan, which targeted all levels of education, hasa strategic vision for the sector and contains clearobjectives and priorities. Development CooperationIreland, together with other donors, is engaged inassisting the Ministry of Education (MINED) to implementthe strategic plan. This involves helping to strengthen theplanning and financial management capacity of educationofficials at national and provincial level. The process hasrecently taken a significant step forward with theestablishment of the Education Sector Support Fund(ESSF) and we are one of a group of nine donors whichhas pledged to channel its financial support for educationthrough this central Fund. In 2003, we continued toprovide funding in support of the national primary schoolbook distribution system.


BILATERAL AID TO MOZAMBIQUE IN 2003: €32.93 million POPULATION: 19.6 million 2003 HDI: 170 (out of 175)

MOZAMBIQUE

1 The 2003 Household Survey has concluded that absolute poverty levels have dropped from 69% in 1997 to 54% in 2003, with the most significantfalls being in rural areas.

Agriculture and Rural DevelopmentGiven the importance of agricultural activities for themajority of Mozambican people, agriculture and ruraldevelopment is a key area of support for DevelopmentCooperation Ireland. This support is channelled throughPROAGRI, the national agriculture developmentprogramme. PROAGRI has been successful in establishingthe institutional capacity required to enable the Ministryof Agriculture to take responsibility for the developmentof the sector. It has also allowed donors to move awayfrom the traditional practice of supporting stand-aloneprojects in favour of a more coherent and transparentform of support. Under PROAGRI, financial managementsystems have been established, planning processes haveimproved and there has been a steady increase in thedecentralisation of resources to Provincial Offices.

Governance and Public Sector ReformThroughout 2003, Development Cooperation Irelandsupported the government and its partners, including theUNDP, in the areas of Justice, Law and Order, Parliamentand media development. We also supportedMozambique’s fledgling civil society to strengthen itsinvolvement in the monitoring of corruption and thepromotion of human rights and democracy.

We are a member of a group of donors involved insupporting the public sector reform process inMozambique. In 2003, the group promoted the reformprogramme in three ways: by helping to improve theeffectiveness of the Public Administration TrainingProgramme; by supporting the technical unit responsiblefor implementing public sector reforms (UTRESP); and bycontributing to the UNDP programme aimed at improvingpublic sector performance at provincial level.

Macroeconomic and Financial PoliciesIn 2003 we focussed on consolidating our position as amember of the budget support group, which expanded innumber from eleven to fourteen during the year. Thegroup provides general budget support to Mozambiqueon the basis of a Joint Programme agreed between theGovernment and donors in 2001. Through the provisionof direct budget support, the Joint Programme has beensuccessful in helping the Government to achieve rapideconomic growth within a stable macroeconomicenvironment. This has led to improvements in socialservice delivery, infrastructural development, and humanresource capacity. The significant achievements in 2003

were: (i) the development of the Performance AssessmentFramework (PAF) as the instrument to assess the progressof the Government in the implementation of the PARPA;and (ii) the development of a Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) which specifies the terms of thepartnership between Government and its budget supportpartners.

HIV/AIDSAlthough the disease was slow to take hold, Mozambiqueis now among the ten countries most affected byHIV/AIDS in the world. Development Cooperation Irelandhas responded to this situation in a flexible andcoordinated manner. The response includesmainstreaming HIV/AIDS concerns across our entireprogramme, increasing our input into the development ofthe Ministry of Health’s Strategic Plan for HIV/AIDS,continuing our support to the National AIDS Council andproviding direct financial assistance to selected NGOsinvolved in prevention and education activities.

Clinton FoundationIn 2002, Ireland signed a partnership agreement with theClinton Foundation. Under the Agreement, Ireland iscommitted to providing $ 40 million over five years to theMinistry of Health in Mozambique for the rollout of anintegrated programme on HIV/AIDS that will see theintroduction of a care and treatment component. An initialpayment of €1 million was made in 2003. In preparationfor the rollout, we were actively involved in supporting thedevelopment of a HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan for the healthsector, which will be the comprehensive framework forexpanding HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment activities.

GenderAn assessment of gender equality in the Mozambiqueprogramme was undertaken in early 2003. Theassessment made recommendations for gender trainingand identified ways in which gender equality issues couldbe better integrated into the country programme. Agender strategy was developed and adopted during theyear with the objective of mainstreaming gender equalitythroughout the programme.

Area Based Programmes (ABP)We have maintained our support for two of the mostimpoverished provinces in the country – Niassa in thenorth, and Inhambane in the south. The strategic objectiveof both programmes is to improve the institutional and


human capacity at all levels of provincial government andlocal communities, in order to provide quality services thatare transparent and accountable to the people andresponsive to their needs. In 2003, a review of theInhambane programme concluded that Area-BasedProgrammes are highly relevant, given the centralisednature of government in Mozambique, which means thatmany key policy and funding decisions are taken inMaputo. This leads to a situation where poorer regionstend to receive insufficient resources from central

government. A key activity during the year was supportfor the continued development of the annual operationalplan of the Provincial Government. The plan focussed onkey poverty alleviation sectors, in particular, health,education, water and sanitation, rural roads, HIV/AIDS,agriculture and demining. During 2003, we furtherharmonised our procedures with those of the ProvincialGovernment and other donors, with the aim of reducingthe administrative burden on key government officials inthe management of donor support.


Collecting fodder for his rabbit-breeding project. Courtesy Tara Shine


Mozambican fruit selleron the road from Maputoto Inhambane. CourtesyTara Shine

Country Focus: Harmonisation inAction

The Mozambique poverty reduction strategy (PARPA,2001-2005) was approved by the Council of Ministers in2001. It emphasises economic growth, public investmentin human capital and productive infrastructure, andinstitutional reform to improve the environment for privateinvestment. Implementation of this strategy involves sixpriority areas for action: health, education, infrastructure,agriculture and rural development, governance, andmacroeconomic and financial policies. It is around thisstrategy that the support provided to Mozambique byDevelopment Cooperation Ireland and all other donors isframed. The successful implementation of the PARPAsignals that a major proportion of our investment isyielding dividends. But how does a country measureimplementation and progress in reducing poverty?

Since early 2003 the Government of Mozambique andbudget support partners have been trying to develop asingle monitoring process and an agreed financing planaround the Government’s own procedures and reports,including its budget execution reports, the PARPA, andthe Economic and Social Plan. It was agreed that themonitoring process for participating donors should involvea multi-year Performance Assessment Framework (PAF).The PAF is a matrix of policy and institutional reforms,with results-focused monitoring indicators and progressbenchmarks, for which the Government is prepared to beheld to account and against which donors would agree toprovide budget support in more predictable ways.

The PAF matrix, as agreed in September 2003, includesspecific indicators and benchmarks to monitor progressfor 2004 and indicative indicators and benchmarks forsubsequent years. It is expected to be updated twice ayear, through a two stage consultative process led by theGovernment. The first stage would involve sector-specificworking groups which would identify key sectoralindicators, and the second stage a coordinating workinggroup, chaired by the Ministry of Planning & Finance ,which would combine sector-specific indicators into asingle matrix which clearly indicates overall priorities forthe period under review.

The PAF initiative is a concrete expression of the growingconsensus among development partners around severalaid modalities: (i) PAF donors are committed to providingassistance in ways that are better aligned withMozambique’s own development priorities; (ii) providedthat Mozambique develops a good track record, PAFdonors expect to make aid flows more predictable andlong-term; and (iii) PAF donors agree that predictabilitywill increasingly imply conditionality derived more directlyfrom the PARPA.

In an effort to introduce a higher measure of predictability,certainty and security into the process, a complementaryprocess to the PAF also evolved. During 2003, donorsworked together on producing a Memorandum ofUnderstanding, which was derived from the previouslyagreed Joint Agreement. In December this was sharedwith Government and a final document, laying down theterms of the partnership, was scheduled for 2004, therebyadding another pillar to the harmonisation process, whichis now well underway in Mozambique.



In Tanzania, more children have access to fresh goat’s milk since the introduction of dairy goats© Development Cooperation Ireland/Pieternella Pieterse

Programme Summary

Tanzania's programme of economic liberalisation andreform continued steadily in 2003. However, growth wasset back by a failure of the rains which resulted in aprolonged drought throughout much of the country. Thishas become the most serious drought in Tanzania's recenthistory, resulting in widespread food shortages and foodprice increases. The Government's response was effectiveand served to prevent any unrest, reflecting stability in thecountry. Development Cooperation Ireland responded tothe crisis with a contribution for the purchase of seeds andgrain. The drought impacted not only on growth but also oninflation, the budget and the welfare of the mostvulnerable. However, macroeconomic stability wasmaintained despite the adverse effects of the drought. Theresilience that the economy and public finances exhibitedowed much to the efforts that the Government has made tobring the fiscal deficit under control and to liberalise anddiversify the economy of this largely agricultural country.

Development Cooperation Ireland’s current CountryStrategy Paper (2003-2005) was approved in 2002. Themain components of the programme are: districtdevelopment; governance, human rights &democratisation; agriculture, natural resources &environment; education; health; & poverty reductionbudget support. The programme is aligned closely withTanzania's Poverty Reduction Strategy (2000-2004). 2003saw the start of preparations for the development ofTanzania's second Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRSII),which will cover the period 2005-2009.

District DevelopmentThe Irish programme completed a review of the threearea-based programmes in Ulanga, Kilombero andMuheza that it currently supports. Our funding targets

identified priority sectors: health, education, water supplyand capacity-building for district staff. Support is alsoprovided for the upgrading of roads and projects aimed atimproving agricultural practices and productivity. Initialfindings from the review point to a need for a strategicrestructuring of Irish support to area-based programmesthrough a donor-harmonised approach.

Governance, Human Rights & DemocratisationSupport from the Irish programme for humanrights/democratisation is targeted at increasing bothpeople's awareness of their human rights and theaccountability of State institutions to their citizens. Thegovernance aspect covers a broad range of interventionsincluding support to the Local Government ReformProgramme (LGRP), the District DevelopmentProgramme, the Association of Local Authorities inTanzania, the Integrated Public Service ReformProgramme and the Foundation for Civil Society. Thisblend of intervention allows Ireland, on the one hand, tokeep abreast of developments in relation to the corereforms and on the other, to track the implementation ofthe reforms at district level. The LGRP is aimed atimproving service delivery at local level and buildingeffective mechanisms for fighting corruption,strengthening institutions and improving policies.

Agriculture, Natural Resources & EnvironmentOver 80% of Tanzanians live in rural areas and depend onagriculture, which contributes about 50% of the GrossDomestic Product (GDP) and 54% of the nation's foreignexchange earnings. Agricultural development is crucial toboth national economic development and povertyreduction. Along with the agricultural components of thethree area-based programmes, Development CooperationIreland supports a number of programmes in the sectorand is playing a leading role to ensure harmonisation ofapproach by development partners. The largest Irish


BILATERAL AID TO TANZANIA IN 2003: €20.71 millionPOPULATION: 35.6 million 2003 HDI: 160 (out of 175)

TANZANIA

intervention is support to the Agricultural SectorDevelopment Programme (ASDP). The ASDP has put inplace a framework which empowers local government andcommunities to control their planning processes andestablishes an environment which encourages privatesector investment in all aspects of agriculture. Otherprogrammes supported include the Tanga Costal ZoneConservation & Development Programme, whichcombines coastal zone conservation and communitydevelopment; and Eastern Zone Client Oriented Research& Extension, which seeks to address the demand byfarmers for improved methods of production and to movethe programme towards integration within the ASDP.

EducationThe Government of Tanzania, with the support ofdevelopment partners, is currently implementing a five-yearPrimary Education Development Plan (PEDP) 2002-2006.Support is particularly important because of a recentGovernment decision to abolish all fees for primary schoolchildren. The PEDP is specifically aimed at fulfilling four keyobjectives; enrolment expansion, quality improvement,capacity-building and strengthening institutionalarrangements. Irish support focuses on improvingstandards in primary education and is currently channelledthrough the Basket Fund for primary educationdevelopment. Development Cooperation Ireland alsoprovides assistance to Haki Elimu, a local NGO whichconcentrates on governance at primary school level andmore specifically, strengthening the participation of women,men and children in the running of their education system.

HealthSupport for the health sector includes strengtheningpartnerships with the Ministry of Health and other donors inthe continued development of the Health Sector WideApproach, which prioritises activities and addressesresource allocation and contributions to the Health BasketFund. The main objectives are to increase immunisationlevels; improve medical laboratory and mental healthservices; train anaesthetic officers; improve quality ofparamedic training; develop distance education in the healthsector; promote Tanzania's health sector reform programme;foster relevant operational research; and combat HIV/AIDS.

HIV/AIDSThe Tanzania Commission for AIDS (TACAIDS), under thePrime Minister's office, developed a National Multi-Sector

Strategic Framework on HIV/AIDS (2003-2007), incollaboration with all stakeholders. Irish support forHIV/AIDS interventions has increased substantially inaccordance with the Multi-Sectoral Strategic Frameworkand the Irish Country Strategy for Tanzania. TACAIDSassumed the role of coordinating the national responsefollowing the first national HIV/AIDS survey, whichDevelopment Cooperation Ireland supported. Funding wasalso given to the ISHI1 campaign, a behavioural changeprogramme targeted at youth; the MKV2 project, which isaimed at reducing HIV & STD transmission and unintendedpregnancies among young people; and the School Healthand Education Programme (SHEP), which recruits, trainsand supports school graduates as volunteer peer healtheducators and deploys them in mainly rural secondaryschools and communities for a period of eight months. TheRapid Funding Envelope (RFE) received funds to meet asecond round of proposals from civil society organisations.A review of RFE will take place in June 2004 to determineprogress and to ascertain its usefulness as a mechanism forfunding HIV/AIDS initiatives in the medium term.

Poverty Reduction Budget SupportIreland originally supported debt relief through theMultilateral Debt Fund (MDF), a multilateral initiative,which sought to increase resources available forexpenditure in key social sectors and to help Tanzania meetthe conditions of inclusion under the World Bank’s debtrelief programme, the Enhanced Highly Indebted PoorCountries Initiative (HIPC). This objective was reached latein 2001 when the World Bank announced completionpoint for Tanzania to qualify for HIPC. Having achieved itsobjective, the MDF was transformed into the PovertyReduction Budget Support Facility, a multi-sectoral supportprogramme. The PRBS, which is supported by Ireland andother donors, including the World Bank, provides focusedbudget support to the Government of Tanzania which aimsto assist the latter to ensure a sustainable provision forpriority sectors identified in the Poverty Reduction StrategyProgramme. Disbursement is conditional upon satisfactoryprogress on the Performance Assessment Frameworkwhich is subject to reviews by the PRBS donor group.

Country Focus: Tanzania’s SecondPoverty Reduction Strategy

Tanzania’s first Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRSI) wascompleted in October 2000. The priorities of PRSI,


1 ISHI means to live in Swahili2 MKV - MEMA Kwa Vijani Project - meaning good things for young people in Swahili

covering the period 2000 – 2004, are the reduction ofincome poverty, the improvement of quality of life andsocial well-being, the achievement and sustaining of aconducive development environment, and the promotionof good governance and accountability. PRSI was foundedon broad participation by various stakeholders includingnon-governmental organisations, faith-based groups,representatives from trade unions and the private sector.

In 2004, Tanzania is developing its second PovertyReduction Strategy. PRS II aims to build upon the lessonslearnt in developing and implementing PRS I and todeepen impact on poverty. Crucial for DevelopmentCooperation Ireland and other development partners isthat PRS II is owned and monitored by ordinaryTanzanians and that it represents a comprehensivebusiness plan for Tanzania’s continued development.

Throughout 2003, Development Cooperation Irelandengaged with civil society groups addressing concernsaround land rights and governance, supporting them toengage constructively in the development of PRS II,through evidence-based advocacy.

One example of Development Cooperation Ireland’ssupport was our assistance for a local civil society group,Lawyers’ Environmental Action Team (LEAT), that carriedout research into the impact of large-scale mining onpoverty and the erosion of artisan miners' livelihoods. Thisgroup’s report and subsequent advocacy and awareness-raising has led to calls for action by the mining industry inrelation to poverty reduction. Recommendations includedtaking the voices and perspectives of communities inmining areas into account during the development of PRS

II; supporting mining communities to resist state-sponsored corporate encroachments on their rights andsources of livelihood; and working towards achieving amore effective Human Rights Commission, capable ofinvestigating all claims for compensation, for personalinjury and loss of property rights.

Another example was in Kilosa District whereDevelopment Cooperation Ireland supported aGovernment - commissioned study to analyse the extentand root causes of conflict between pastoralist and farmingcommunities and to develop recommendations on how toaddress the problem. Issues around governance and lackof knowledge of rights under the Land Act of 1999 wereexplored and recommendations agreed on how to moveforward. The report was widely distributed to Governmentand to donors supporting pastoralist issues and hasinformed NGO networks involved in land rights advocacy.In November, we also facilitated a workshop for NGOsinvolved in land rights and governance in order to shareexperiences, promote mutual learning and for participantsto update each other on current initiatives in relation to thedevelopment of PRS II.

In Tanzania, Development Cooperation Ireland and otherdevelopment partners hope to increase direct support tothe government in order to achieve the prioritiesidentified in the PRS. By helping civil society to engage inthe process of developing PRS II, we are ensuring that thevoices and everyday experiences of ordinary Tanzanians,particularly around land rights and governance, areembedded in the PRS, and that these help to shapeTanzania’s development path in 2004 and beyond.


Planting of trees to prevent soil erosion in crop land, introduced through Development Cooperation Ireland assistance to local services. © Development Cooperation Ireland/Pieternella Pieterse


Easy access to safe drinking water for schoolchildren

Programme Summary

2003 saw the beginning of a process of political transitionin Uganda which is expected to culminate in multi-partyPresidential and Parliamentary elections in 2006. Themove to multi-party elections has been welcomed byUganda’s development partners. Unfortunately, theconflict in Northern Uganda intensified in the period,resulting in a humanitarian crisis with more than 1.5million people displaced. Emergency assistance wasprovided by Ireland for displaced persons under thecountry programme for the first time in 2003. Outside itsborders there were improvements in the process ofbuilding stability with the withdrawal by Uganda andother neighbouring countries of all their troops from theDemocratic Republic of Congo in April 2003. With theintervention of the French-led multinational force,replaced by a large UN force (MONUC) in September2003, and progress in the overall DRC peace process,prospects for stability in the region are improving.

During 2003 the Government of Uganda, together withthe donor community, civil society and the private sector,embarked on revising its development framework, thePoverty Eradication Action Plan (PEAP), in order to ensurethat it continues to address emerging challenges andpriorities. While in overall terms, significant progress hasbeen achieved in recent years in terms of povertyreduction, a rise in poverty among rural families has beencausing concern, as has the stagnation of key socialdevelopment indicators. Core priorities for action in thenew PEAP are restoring security and dealing with thecauses of conflict, restoring sustainable growth in theincomes of the poor, addressing quality and drop-out

issues in primary education and improving maternal andchild mortality. 2003 was also the last year ofDevelopment Cooperation Ireland’s Country StrategyPaper for 2000-2003. An independent evaluation of thisstrategy took place in September 2003, in preparation forthe development of the CSP for 2004-2006. Theevaluation endorsed the direction and scope of theprogramme and considered that the shift to sector andbudget support "contributed to significant progress inUganda towards the key Millennium Development Goalsand helped to develop partnership approaches which arenot without risk but which do have the potential tostrengthen Uganda’s institutions and to reinforce itspoverty strategy".

The Development Cooperation Ireland Ugandaprogramme continued to have a strong focus on socialsector development, good governance and conflictresolution and rural development1.

Economic Context.During 2003 Uganda’s economy has demonstratedcontinued stability, with good economic growth and lowinflation. However, growth rates are not as high as in thepast; the drop in world coffee prices over recent years hasadversely affected the economy, with projected growth in2003/04 of 5.6% of GDP compared to an average of 6.5%over the previous decade. The performance of theagricultural sector and the need for diversification in theeconomy will be crucial to further economic growth andpoverty reduction. To this end, the Government ispursuing its Plan for Modernising Agriculture (PMA)which is expected to restructure the sector and producepositive results over the coming years. The Government ispursuing a robust policy to reduce its fiscal deficit, as high


BILATERAL AID TO UGANDA IN 2003: €34.32 million POPULATION: 24.7 million 2003 HDI: 147 (out of 175)

UGANDA

1 Mokoro Ltd. (2003) evaluation of the Uganda Country Strategy 2000-2003, for Development Cooperation Ireland. P.17

levels of public expenditure are seen to be crowding outprivate sector activity in the economy. An importantobjective is to increase domestic revenue generation,which is still low (12.1% of GDP) by sub-Saharan Africanstandards.

Budget SupportThe budget support provided by DevelopmentCooperation Ireland, which is now channelled through thePoverty Action Fund (PAF)2, is designed to enable theGovernment to work for rapid and sustainable economicgrowth, backed by pro-poor policies. Altogether, PAFsupport comprises around one third of the overall Irishcountry programme. Central to this is coordination withother budget support donors and the advanced level ofconsultation with the Ugandan Government on theframing of the annual budget, culminating in the PublicExpenditure Review each May. The World Bank-ledPoverty Reduction Support Credit – which supportsUganda’s Poverty Eradication Action Plan - is themechanism used for the assessment of performance, thesetting of targets and performance indicators and dialoguewith the Government.

DecentralisationFollowing a review of its Area Based Programmes in 2002,Development Cooperation Ireland implemented atransition process, involving the phasing out of directsupport to Kumi, Kibaale and Kiboga Districts andconcentration on the initiatives countrywide of the LocalGovernment Development Project (LGDP II). LGDP II –the beginnings of a comprehensive, coordinated approachto decentralisation involving a number of donors – isaimed at improving the delivery of basic services toengender economic growth and poverty reduction byimproving Government institutional performance.Development Cooperation Ireland Uganda activelyparticipated in the design of this programme. The FiscalDecentralisation Strategy is also being supported byIreland. Meanwhile, the Irish programme is maintaining itspartnership with the three districts through support in theareas of capacity-building, civil society and private sectorsupport, as well as HIV/AIDS mainstreaming.

Agriculture and ProductionIreland has continued to support the agricultural extension

component of the Plan for Modernising Agriculture - theNational Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS). ThePEAP review has revealed the need to invest moreresources in production (agriculture), which is a prioritysector, if the majority of Ugandans are to escape poverty.

Governance and JusticeIn 2003, the Irish engagement in the Governance and JusticeProgramme remained focussed on the Justice, Law andOrder Sector (JLOS), including juvenile justice; humanrights; anti-corruption; conflict resolution; support toParliament; democratisation; and humanitarian assistance.Significant progress was registered in regard to the policy,legal and institutional reforms in these areas. Limited humanand financial resources still remain a challenge to the reformimplementation programme across these sectors.

Ireland and other donors played an active role inadvancing reform programmes with JLOS, the UgandaHuman Rights Commission, the Amnesty Commission, theDirectorate of Ethics and Integrity, the Inspectorate ofGovernment, NGOs and others. Entrenching goodgovernance and its basic tenets of transparency,accountability, justice, participation, openness andlegitimacy across all sectors will be a strong feature of theDevelopment Cooperation Ireland Uganda programmeduring the next Country Strategy phase (2004-2006).

HIV/AIDS Despite declining trends in HIV infection, HIV-relatedillness continued to be the leading cause of mortality inadults 15-49 years old, peaking around 28-34 years. Ofthe estimated 1 million people living with the disease,200,000 are in need of anti-retroviral therapy, while therate of new infections is approximately five people perminute. The current focus for Uganda, therefore, is tobalance prevention strategies with treatment efforts forpeople living with HIV/AIDS.

In 2003 the Irish programme supported the scaling-up ofthe multi-sectoral response to HIV/AIDS at both nationaland district level. Support was channelled through centralGovernment for strengthening national coordination andfacilitating mainstreaming of HIV/AIDS into the educationsector. Three district HIV/AIDS programmes wereevaluated, with the aim of informing the next phase of


2 The Poverty Action Fund was first established as a means of ensuring that funds freed up by debt rescheduling were used to support sectors likehealth and education. In its evolved form the Fund, comprising Ugandan and donor funding and still focused on the social sector, is ring-fenced andprotected against budgetary fluctuations.

district support, while civil society organisations werefacilitated to expand their service delivery coverage.

Health Development Cooperation Ireland’s support for Uganda’shealth sector constituted 17% of the 2003 budget. Of this,85% was earmarked for support for primary health care,while 15% was used to support the implementation of theprimary health care training programme implemented bythe African Medical and Research Foundation (AMREF) incooperation with the Ministry of Health. High maternaland infant mortality rates remain a major cause of concernin Uganda.

Country Focus: Education

Support for education is a major component of the Irishprogramme in Uganda. Since 1997, support has beenprovided for the implementation of Universal PrimaryEducation (UPE). UPE has led to enrolments in primaryschools increasing from 2.9 million to 7.3 million in 2003.It has ensured access to education for poorer families andchildren with special needs. To keep pace with increasingnumbers, the number of classrooms has been increasedthrough the provision of a schools’ facilities grant todistricts. A grant is also provided to schools for basiclearning materials while ongoing efforts are in place to

train untrained teachers and to support the continuousprofessional development of educators. DevelopmentCooperation Ireland’s sector support for education assiststhese programmes. 26% of the budget in 2003 went to theeducation sector.

Improving the quality of educationA key sector challenge is to improve the quality ofeducation and to ensure that children complete primaryschooling. The problem of drop-out and absenteeismamong pupils, as well as teacher absenteeism, needs to beaddressed. Development Cooperation Ireland continuesto support the efforts of the Ministry of Education toimprove quality. In 2003, technical assistance wasprovided for the reform of the teacher developmentstrategy and for the development of a policy and strategyfor incorporating ICT in education. At district level,research was carried out in Kumi, Kiboga and Kibaaledistricts to ascertain why children drop-out and whatcontributes to schools performing well. In the five districtsof Rwenzori, Development Cooperation Ireland supportedan action-research process where local head teachers,inspectors and tutors analysed the factors whichcontribute to school improvement. Reasons for drop-outare complex and relate to both the quality of education inschools and to socio-economic and cultural factors. Thevoices of children tell of the difficulties they face at home.


Minister of State Tom Kitt TD visiting Ntoroko refugee camp, northern Uganda Courtesy Frank Sheridan


A gifted student preparingfor his exams, hoping for aplace at Primary TeacherTaining College in Uganda.Courtesy Anne O’Keeffe

"our parents give us housework to do during the time ofreading books and doing homework. They also say theydon’t have money to buy paraffin"

"There is much work at home e.g. carrying babies,fetching water, washing plates and clothes. Some parentswho make alcohol force you to help in cooking it."

The research findings and the process itself, which helpedto build capacity of local education personnel, is beingused to assist the districts allocate resources moreeffectively to areas which contribute to improved teachingand learning. These include improving schoolmanagement, focusing on reading and writing andimproving school-community linkages. A process ofcurriculum reform at primary level also began in 2003 andthis will be followed by reform of the teacher educationcurriculum. Ireland also completed the renovations ofCanon Apolo Core Primary Teachers College in Rwenzoriin 2003 and began preparations for an ICT in-teachereducation pilot programme.

Access to secondary education Access to secondary education is also important indetermining whether children complete primaryeducation. The first group of UPE children completed the

primary leaving examination in November 2003. In 2002there were only sufficient places in post-primary schoolsto accommodate 50% of primary school leavers. TheMinistry of Education, with assistance from Ireland andother donors, has been working on the expansion of post-primary education as part of the development of theEducation Sector Strategic Plan 2 (ESSP2). In addition,Development Cooperation Ireland carried out a needsassessment of the status of post-primary education inKaramoja, a pastoralist region of north eastern Ugandaand one of the most disadvantaged regions in terms ofaccess to secondary education. DevelopmentCooperation Ireland has held discussions with theMinistry of Education and district authorities in Karamojaon earmarked support for secondary education in thisregion.

The challenges for the futureThe challenge for the Ministry of Education and its donorpartners for the future will be to maintain the gains madesince the introduction of UPE. Improving the quality ofprimary education, expanding post-primary education anddeveloping a tertiary system that is affordable and responsiveto Uganda’s socio economic needs will require thecollaborative efforts of all partners: the Ministry of Education,parents, donors, civil society and the private sector.


Renovations at the Canon Apolo Core Primary Teachers College in Uganda which were completed in 2003


Young family in the HIV/AIDS stricken Copperbelt region of Zambia. Courtesy Frank Sheridan)

Programme Summary

The economic situation was dominated by the ZambianGovernment’s difficulties with the IMF on two significantissues. One concerned the populist line taken by thePresident on the issue of the privatisation of state companies,which is central to Zambia reaching certain macro-economictargets. The second came about as a result of a seriousbudget overrun incurred by the Government in its dealingson salary packages with the public service unions. Thiscaused the putting on hold of the IMF’s Poverty ReductionGrowth Facility and the setting back of Zambia’s prospect ofreaching HIPC Completion Point in 2003. Otherwise, therewere some positive economic indicators – copper pricesimproved; the harvest was good, and the growth rate of5.1% exceeded the (albeit modest) target of 4.5%.

HIV/AIDSHIV/AIDS is arguably the greatest threat to overcomingthe chronic poverty experienced by 79% of Zambia’spopulation. Development Cooperation Ireland’s strategyhas been to help support both the affected and infected atall levels from the household to the national level. In 2003we supported Orphans and Vulnerable Childrenprogrammes in two of Zambia’s nine Provinces. Theseinterventions have touched the lives of an estimated50,000 orphaned and deprived children. Support forHome Based Care initiatives has helped not just thosewith AIDS, but also their families who struggle to copewith their emotional and material needs. At a nationallevel, Development Cooperation Ireland has supportedthe effective functioning of the National AIDS Council thatis responsible for coordinating all HIV/AIDS relatedinterventions in the country. Ireland has taken the lead inhelping strengthen the NAC’s coordination function in allnine Provinces. In all of these interventions there is a vitaladvocacy element, which continually confronts people

with the reality of HIV/AIDS infection and how peoplemust destigmatise the epidemic, adopt a compassionateapproach to those already infected, and behave in waysthat will ultimately slow down the spread of a diseasewhich threatens all aspects of Zambian life.

Good GovernanceLike HIV/AIDS, good governance is a cross-cutting issuecritical to sustainable development and one which, if notrigorously pursued, can threaten all efforts to enhance thequality of people’s lives. Grounded in the overarchingobjective of citizens’ participation, Development CooperationIreland’s strategy of support for governance-related initiativesin 2003 focused on four levels. First we have continued tosupport the empowerment of civil society organisations tocontribute to local and national debate on issues of commonsocial interest. Secondly, we have proactively supported theGovernment of Zambia’s new decentralisation policy whichaims to devolve service delivery and developmentcoordination to locally elected institutions. Thirdly, we havefocused on reforming the operations of parliament andparliamentarians with the objective of making electednational representatives more accountable, responsive andchallenging of government policies. Finally, we havesupported the development of radical changes in economicgovernance, in particular the creation of local and nationalfinancial management mechanisms to help ensuretransparency, minimise the potential for abuse of publicresources, and contribute to focusing the national budgetingprocess on Zambia’s Poverty Reduction Strategy.

EducationDevelopment Cooperation Ireland support to theeducation sector in 2003 focused mainly on the Ministry ofEducation Strategic Plan 2003-2007 . Support for the thisPlan was pooled with that of other donors and wasavailable for all sector activities nationwide, while a portion


BILATERAL AID TO ZAMBIA IN 2003: €14.65 millionPOPULATION: 10.8 million 2003 HDI: 163 (out of 175)

ZAMBIA

was earmarked for piloting the decentralization process inNorthern Province, aimed at improving education servicedelivery at district and, subsequently, at school level. Inline with its commitment to facilitate civil societyengagement in the sector, Development CooperationIreland provided funding for civil society initiatives.

The Plan was introduced in 2003 with the objective of“increasing skills for poverty reduction, employment andeconomic growth with the purpose of providing equitableaccess to relevant quality education and training thatincorporates HIV/AIDS interventions” across all three sub-sectors ( basic, high and tertiary). As a result of the pooledfunding mechanism, all basic schools were able to receivefunding each term for school administration intended toenhance education delivery. In addition, the supply ofteaching and learning materials was greatly improved andteachers were able to participate in school-based skillsimprovement activities. Overall, 2003 saw an increase inenrolment at basic and high school levels.

Development Cooperation Ireland is a key partner in theeducation sector in Zambia. We participate in all importantmanagement fora and use these to engage in monitoringand to contribute to programme decision-making. Theearmarked support to Northern Province enabled us tomonitor the implementation of the Plan firsthand and touse the feedback for informed decision-making anddialogue with the Ministry of Education.

HealthHalf of the €2,966,056 invested in the health sector in2003 was expended on the health Sector-Wide Approach(SWAp), which is focused on the development of districthealth systems. The year saw the expansion of the SWApto include all hospitals. Development Cooperation Irelandplayed a pivotal role in facilitating this process bysupporting the inaugural national workshops and thecapacity assessment missions of all hospitals.Concurrently, we continued to strengthen institutionalcapacity at the central level.Building on our past successful interventions inreproductive health, we embarked in 2003, in partnershipwith the Ministry of Health, on a project to expand amidwifery school in the Northern Province in order tocontribute to raising the level of skilled attendance at birth( a key strategy for reducing maternal mortality).

Our support for the improvement of medical laboratoryservices and in particular, the associated human resourcesdevelopment, has continued. The extension of the NdolaCollege of Biomedical Sciences was completed and handedover to the Zambian government in October 20031.

Water and Sanitation With only 49.1% of the Zambian population having accessto safe water and only 14.9% having access to propertoilet facilities, coverage of water and sanitation servicesstill remains very low. Given the importance of adequatewater and sanitation coverage to human development, theGovernment of Zambia recognises the need to improvesector performance in order to raise its social andeconomic standing. The Government, with the support ofDevelopment Cooperation Ireland and other partners,began a process of improving the coordination of nationallevel activities under the sector with a view to facilitategreater support and coordinated funding to lower levelsof government and the communities.

In Northern Province Development Cooperation Irelandsupported the Government’s provincial and districtstructures to facilitate the provision of safe water andsanitation to rural areas. During the year, approximately100,000 people benefited from 348 water points whichwere constructed. 117 new Ventilated Improved Pit-latrineswere constructed at health centres and schools. We alsofacilitated the commercialization of the urban water andsanitation service provision, as one of the ways of increasingaccess to safe water and sanitation to urban poor.

Country Focus: Northern Province –Development Cooperation Ireland’s"Feet on the Ground".

Imagine an area nearly two and a half times the size ofIreland. Imagine an area where 81% of the people live inextreme poverty, where 180 out of every 1,000 childrendie before their 5th birthday, and where, if you are one ofthe luckier ones, you can expect to live to the ripe old ageof 45 years. This is Northern Province in Zambia. This iswhere Development Cooperation Ireland has committeditself to helping communities rise above grinding poverty.


The poverty experienced by most people in NorthernProvince is compounded by the AIDS pandemic, whichhas severely depleted the most productive, age groups.Women and children are the most severely affected.There is a vicious circle of poverty, only slowly beingbroken, whereby AIDS-related deaths and chronicillnesses serve to increase the vulnerability of the poorestto the disease. Development Cooperation Ireland’sapproach to development support thus remains focusedon poverty reduction strategies which are designed inpartnership with local institutions and which take duecognisance of the remoteness of most communities, ofoften impassable roads and of the difficulty of attractingskilled service providers such as teachers and healthworkers. Accordingly, partnerships have been forged withother development partners such as the NetherlandsDevelopment Association (SNV) and the World Bank-supported Zambia Social Investment Fund (ZAMSIF).

The vision underlying our support is "to ensure that thebenefits to the communities are built upon by thegovernment, civil society and the private sector". Inkeeping with this vision, the year 2003 marked theconsolidation of partnerships with communities and localauthorities that address issues of health, education, waterand sanitation, HIV/AIDS, and good governance. Inaddition, Development Cooperation Ireland initiated astudy on "Improving livelihoods of HIV/AIDS-affectedhouseholds in Northern Province". This study will providea basis for developing new strategies that will influencepro-poor development and strengthen the asset base ofHIV/AIDS vulnerable households.

Encouraging developments in 2003 were increasedownership by both communities and local authorities,improved planning capacity, and increased attention tothe quality of governance. Tangible results include: theprovision of 348 water facilities; the provision of radiocommunications to 12 District Education Boards and 10rural health centres; referral time for pregnant mothersfrom remote rural health centres shortened from threedays to four hours (and in the case of nearby healthcentres, from one and half hours to thirty minutes); andsupplementary food support provided to 100 householdsand 500 orphans and vulnerable children.

An important lesson learned from the support we areproviding in Northern Province is that development will notbe achieved by one strategy alone but by simultaneouscross-sectoral approaches in areas such as HIV/AIDSimpact mitigation and prevention. Citizen participation indevelopment management through participatoryapproaches to planning and broad stakeholderconsultation, which enhance community ownership ofprocesses and systems, is also critically important. Inaddition, a constant dialogue must be maintained withother development partners so as to harmoniseapproaches, avoid duplication and ensure that the needs ofcommunities always remain the primary and central focusof our efforts. In many respects, Development CooperationIreland’s support to Northern Province is the mostsignificant face of Ireland’s support to the people of Zambia.



A market trader in Timor-Leste. Courtesy Seán Hoy

Programme Summary

2003 was the first full year of independence for Timor-Leste. Maintaining security and stability remained apriority issue for the Timor-Leste Government at the startof the year, in the context of the downsizing of the UNpeace keeping mission (UNMISET) and the handing overof policing responsibilities to the national police force.

The focus subsequently moved to issues of accountability,transparency and good governance. The Governmenthosted a number of workshops on the justice system, thepolice and an international conference on transparencyand accountability. In addition, fiscal concerns arose abouta delay in the coming on stream of oil and gas productionrevenues. The Government took steps to reduce spendingin their mid-year budget up-date but appealed to thedonor community for continuing support to the budget inthe medium term.

Discussions commenced with Australia on a timetable fornegotiations on their common maritime boundary. Anequitable outcome on the issue of oil and gas revenueswill be vital for Timor-Leste’s capacity to finance its long-term development.

Relations between Ireland and Timor-Leste werestrengthened during the year with an official visit byPresident Xanana Gusmão to Dublin as part of a shortEuropean tour. He had meetings with the Taoiseach, theTanaiste, the Minister of State for DevelopmentCooperation and Human Rights, the Minister of State forDefence and with solidarity groups and NGOs withconnections to Timor-Leste.

In March 2003, the Minister of State for DevelopmentCooperation and Human Rights, Mr Tom Kitt TD,designated Timor-Leste as Ireland’s seventh programmecountry and first programme country in Asia. Thiscoincided with the approval of Development CooperationIreland’s three-year country strategy for Timor-Leste 2003-2005, which aims to support the Government of Timor-Leste and civil society in their efforts to maintain stabilityand reduce poverty through the delivery of services,institutional capacity-building and the strengthening ofgovernance. The programme has five components:

• Transition Support Programme

• Capacity-building

• Local Government

• Gender equality

• Human Rights and Democratisation

Transition Support ProgrammeThe Transition Support Programme allows donor funds tobe channelled into the Timor-Leste national budgetthrough a World Bank trust fund. It provides budgetarysupport for the implementation of Timor-Leste’s NationalDevelopment Plan , which has two main objectives:

1) To reduce poverty in all sectors and regions of thenation; and

2) To promote economic growth that is equitable andsustainable.

The TSP is agreed annually by the Government of Timor-Leste and financing partners. The programme activities aretaken from the Government’s annual action plan andreflect its highest priorities. The key priorities in 2003were:


BILATERAL AID TO TIMOR-LESTE IN 2003: €2.94 millionPOPULATION: 0.74 million 2003 HDI: 158 (out of 175)

TIMOR-LESTETIMOR-LESTE

1. Governance including Local Government, Public SectorManagement, Poverty Reduction Planning and PublicExpenditure Management, Oversight Institutions; Lawand Order; and Justice

2. Service Delivery focussing on Health and Education

3. Job Creation through Private Sector Development,Agriculture and Public Works

The Transition Support Programme is also an importantchannel for dialogue between donor partners and theGovernment on issues such as governance, povertyreduction and quality service delivery. Ireland contributed€1,500,000 to TSP I in 2003.

Capacity-BuildingFollowing independence in 2002, Timorese nationals tookover most of the administrative functions of Governmentfrom the previous UN administration. However, they oftenlacked the necessary skills or experience for their newroles and continued capacity-building support remainedessential in most areas of public administration. This wasprovided in two ways, through the UNMISET civiliansupport programme and through a UNDP DevelopmentPosts programme which placed international advisers ingovernment offices to support and train national staff. Todate, Ireland has funded 22 advisory positions and in 2003contributed €400,000 to the UNDP programme, financingadvisors in the areas of Human Rights, Education, IT,Interpretation/Translation, Finance and Communications.

Ireland also explored other ways to build capacity withinthe public service, focussing on the area of translation andinterpretation, which is of vital importance in a countrywith four operating languages. This resulted in a pilotprogramme to train translators and interpreters for thejustice sector, which may in future be extended to otherareas of government.

Ireland also provided an expert on Foreign Investment andPrivate Sector Development to advise the President’soffice on policy development in these areas and financeda stakeholders’ consultative workshop on the draft foreigninvestment legislation.

In 2003 Development Cooperation Ireland contributed€404,000 for capacity-building activities.

Local Government and Development ProgrammeIn general, government is highly centralised in Timor-Leste, with local administration having no autonomy andlittle resources. There is, however, a constitutionalcommitment to decentralisation and to elected localgovernment which is accountable to the citizens.

At the request of the Timorese authorities, Irelandfinanced a study on the options for a local governmentstructure as a first step to defining a local governmentpolicy. The study, which was completed in 2003, presentsa number of options, with an analysis of how each couldcontribute to achieving the three policy objectives derivedfrom the Constitution and National Development Plan:

• Greater state legitimacy, authority and political stability

• Increased opportunity for citizen voice andempowerment

• Improved delivery of basic services

It also included an analysis of the financial implications ofdifferent options. The study is under consideration by theTimorese authorities. The second phase of the project,which will include policy development, drafting oflegislation and an implementation plan, should start in2004.

Development Cooperation Ireland contributed €372,348towards this programme in 2003.

Timor-Leste Direct Action Programme (ETDAP)The ETDAP is a small grants facility providing grants up toUS$20,000 for community groups, NGOs andgovernment agencies to carry out small, mainlycommunity-based, projects in four districts (Oecussi,Covalima, Ainaro and Viqueque), as well as some nationalinitiatives. The most common projects involverehabilitating classrooms or constructing semi-permanentclassrooms for primary schools. Other projects includehealth posts, water supplies, sanitation, bridges andcommunity halls. A number of training initiatives werefunded for community development officers in the sub-districts. At national level, Development CooperationIreland financed a HIV/AIDS peer educators programme,as well as a HIV/AIDS awareness programme duringWorld AIDS day.

In total, thirty-two projects were funded under theprogramme, which helps in building the confidence and


capacity of local community groups and NGOs andempowering communities to address their owndevelopment priorities. It also gives the DevelopmentCooperation Office a means of monitoring governmentdevelopment programmes and an insight into theconcerns of local people and groups.

Development Cooperation Ireland spent €137,738 onsmall grant projects in 2003.

Promotion of Democracy and Human RightsDevelopment Cooperation Ireland has supported thework of the Commission for Reception, Truth andReconciliation since 2001. In 2003 an initial unearmarkedgrant of €150,000 was provided to support the operationof the Commission. A second grant of €85,000 wasprovided in December 2003.

Promotion of Gender EqualityTimor-Leste has made significant gains since 1999 inmoving towards gender equality, as provided for in theConstitution and the National Development Plan.However, many Timorese do not yet fully appreciatewomen’s rights nor the need to embrace gender equality -

and women continue to be discriminated against,especially in regard to the ownership of assets, access tosocial and economic services and participation in decision-making.

Development Cooperation Ireland has taken a lead role inpromoting and advocating gender equality in Timor-Lesteby supporting the Office for the Promotion of Equality,based in the Office of the Prime Minister, in its efforts tomainstream gender in government programmes, promotegender equality and empower women. This includesproviding a full-time Policy Advisor for the Office. Supportwas also provided to civil society bodies active in this areaincluding REDE Feto, the network of women’sorganisations and Moris Rasik, a microfinance institutionproving loans to poor rural women.

However, despite the strong political commitment togender equality, the capacity at sectoral levels tomainstream gender is weak and continuing efforts andsupport will be required in the long term, to ensure thatthe intentions of the Constitution and NationalDevelopment Plan are upheld.


Agriculture and food production continue to be the mainstay of Timor-Leste’s economy. Courtesty Seán Hoy

Development Cooperation Ireland contributed €154,612to the gender programme in 2003.

Emergency Food ReliefIn addition to the country programme, we contributed€150,000 towards a WFP appeal for emergency foodsupport for certain areas of Timor-Leste where crops hadfailed, due to a combination of drought and floods.

Country Focus: Commission forReception, Truth and ReconciliationThe people of Timor-Leste have suffered a long history ofviolence and human rights abuses from the brief civil warin 1974, through 24 years of Indonesian occupation andculminating in the violence following the UN-sponsoredballot on independence in September 1999.Reconciliation is seen as fundamental to the future ofTimor-Leste. A Commission for Reception, Truth andReconciliation in Timor-Leste was established in July 2001to address the legacy of past divisions, conflict and humanrights violations, with the delivery of justice as a keycomponent.

The objectives of the Commission are:

• To document human rights violations in Timor-Leste byall sides from April 1974 to October 1999 in thecontext of the struggle for Timor-Leste’sindependence.

• To produce a national historical record of past violations,composed of the statements of victims and perpetrators,testimonies made during public hearings, focusedresearch and submissions from outside sources.

• To facilitate community reconciliation processes andre-integration (reception) at the community levelbetween perpetrators of lesser crimes, victims andtheir communities and to support those survivors/victims that participate in the Commission’s processes.

• To produce a final report containing its findings andconcrete recommendations to the Government andthe public to prevent the recurrence of human rightsviolations, to address the needs of victims, and topromote a culture of peace and respect for humanrights.

The Commission’s work has five components: truthseeking; community reconciliation; reception and victimsupport; West Timor outreach; and public communicationand outreach.

Truth SeekingThe Truth Seeking documents human rights violations inTimor-Leste by all sides during 1974-1999 throughsystematic statement-taking in each district, focusedresearch, public hearings, and submissions of documentsand information from outside sources. The Commissionexpects to exceed its planned target of 8,700 statements.Following perusal and codification of the statements by ateam of statement readers, the information is entered on adatabase.

The statements are being analysed under 10 major humanrights themes:

• Famine and forced displacement

• Structure, policies and practices of the Indonesianmilitary and police

• Structure, policies and practices of FRETILIN1 andFALINTIL2

• Political imprisonment, torture and forceddisappearances

• Massacres

• Death toll

• Children and youth

• Women and conflict, both as victims and activists

• Political party conflict and civil war

• The role of international actors on self-determination

Research involves drawing on statements taken in thefield, relevant literature and archival material, and seekinginterviews and submissions from experts, witnesses, keyactors and relevant organizations. The Commission iscollaborating with FOKUPERS, a Timorese women’sorganization, in conducting research on women andconflict. The Commission has engaged the services ofELSAM, a Jakarta-based non-governmental organizationto conduct research on Indonesian policies in Timor-Leste.The Commission has also developed a partnership with acoalition of non-governmental organizations in West Timor


1 FRETELIN, the Revolutionary Front for an Independent Timor-Leste, is the leading political party and forms the Government.2 FALINTIL, Armed Forces for an Independent Timor-Leste, was the pro-independence guerrilla movement

to disseminate information about the Commission’s workin West Timor and to undertake statement-taking amongstEast Timorese still in West Timor.

Under its Truth Seeking mandate, the Commission alsoconvenes public hearings nationally and internationally.These hearings aim to deepen the understanding of boththe Commission and the community regarding key areasor instances of human rights violations and to increasecommunity recognition of certain phenomena and eventsand in this way to contribute to community healing.

Community Reconciliation The Commission facilitates community reconciliationprocesses for less serious crimes and other harmful acts tothe community. The perpetrator must come forwardvoluntarily and admit his or her wrongdoing in a statement.This statement is sent to the Office of the ProsecutorGeneral for confirmation that it is appropriate for acommunity reconciliation process. With this approval, ahearing is organized by the Commission staff in thecommunity. At the hearing the perpetrator, victim andcommunity members all speak before a panel of respectedcommunity leaders, headed by a Regional Commissionerwho facilitates a resolution of the offences committed.

Reception and Victim Support DivisionUnder its Reception and Victim Support mandate, theCommission’s role is to listen to survivors/victims,recognize and respect their experiences, and contributeto the healing process through:

• public meetings in the communities as part of thesensitisation process about the Commission;

• supporting the survivors/victims of human rightsviolations as these persons participate in theCommission’s processes (e.g. giving statements,testifying at public hearings, being a part ofcommunity reconciliation processes);

• facilitating group discussions on the impact of humanrights violations upon the communities, or what iscalled “community mappings”; assisting survivors byreferral to appropriate agencies; and

• identifying recommendations for the Final Report thatrelate to support for victims of human rights violations.

West Timor OutreachThis involves seeking to increase awareness andunderstanding of the Commission’s mandate amongrefugees and key leaders in Indonesian West Timor,including how the Commission can assist in reintegratingthose who have harmed their communities. TheCommission is working in partnership with eighteenmembers of West Timorese non-governmentalorganizations. These NGOs are conducting informationdissemination activities in four districts of West Timor. Theprogramme is being undertaken with the cooperation ofboth the Government of Timor-Leste and the Governmentof Indonesia.

Public Information and Community OutreachBuilding awareness of the Commission’s work is beingdone through a public education and media campaign.The Commission’s radio program, "Dalan ba Dame" ("TheRoad to Peace") broadcasts weekly on Radio Timor-Leste(RTL) and discussions are taking place to have it broadcaston community radio in the districts. TV Timor-Leste (TVTL)provided coverage of a number of communityreconciliation hearings and also covered three nationalpublic hearings. The Commission’s staff has produced T-shirts, stickers, posters, banners and brochures about itscore activities and these materials are used in thesensitisation process in the sub-districts. The staff alsoorganise regular press conferences with the NationalCommissioners and the media and distribute pressreleases about the Commission’s various activities.

DCI Support for the CommissionDevelopment Cooperation Ireland has been supportive ofthe work of the Commission from its very beginnings. Weprovided a small grant of US$1,200 to the Commission tocarry out a building assessment report on Comarca Prisonwhich was then rehabilitated to become the Commission’soffices. This was followed by an unearmarked grant of€150,000 allocated to the Commission in 2002 to markIndependence Day. In 2003 we contributed a further€190,000 to the Commission. In addition, DevelopmentCooperation Ireland has been represented at many of thepublic hearings and other events staged by theCommission and many visitors from Ireland have visitedthe Commission’s offices.



Documents

Development Cooperation Ireland - Irish Aid · 2020. 2. 19. · Ireland was appreciated as a collaborative partner. The DAC referred to the Irish commitment to development and said