Annual Review - Summary Sheet

Title: Strengthening Political Participation in Bangladesh (SPP)

Programme Value: £26.2m Review Date: September 2014

Programme Code: 200593 Start Date: 2009 End Date: 2016 (June)

Summary of Programme Performance

Year 2012 2013 2014Programme Score A A ARisk Rating M H H

Summary of progress and lessons learnt since last reviewOn 5 January 2014, Parliamentary Elections were held in accordance with Bangladesh’s Constitution but with over half of the seats uncontested more than half the electorate was unable to express its will at the ballot box. Since the election the UK has consistently encouraged all political parties to work together urgently to reach a sustainable political settlement and find ways to strengthen democratic accountability. Upazila elections – held over six rounds in the first half of 2014 – were also marred by violence and suspected fraud.

In early 2014 we carried out a review of Strengthening Political Participation (SPP) programming with the intention of adjusting our programming to better reflect the post-election context. As a result we made three strategic programming decisions: Parliamentary work should focus on Parliament as an institution, and systems and skills in the

Parliament Secretariat, but not build capacity of MPs. Work that was planned with political parties in Parliament is not appropriate at this time. Work with the Election Commission (ECB) should be reduced and should focus only on ensuring

sustainability of key technical achievements, and on promoting electoral reform where there is genuine possibility of success.

A summary of progress under each of the main target areas for SPP follows and further details are available under individual output descriptions:

Political Parties: Significant progress has been made against the project’s defined output of promoting internal political party democratic practices, including election of representatives on party councils, greater attention paid to research and public opinion, and improved representation of women.

Elections: Throughout the pre-election period ahead of Parliamentary elections in January 2014, it was hoped that consensus would be reached on how elections would be conducted, and all efforts were directed toward ensuring that conditions were in place to promote and support participatory and credible elections. Once it was clear that the elections were going to be uncontested in half of the country, we scaled down our technical support to election preparations. With limited international observation, our support to local civil society observers assisted the main independent observation of the January elections and subsequent local elections. In the post-election period programming has been reviewed and redesigned to reflect the changing political context and lessons learned from the elections. The main lesson was the limited impact of technical support to the Election Commission in a context where the main political parties have not been able to reach a consensus on how elections should be conducted.

Parliament: Parliamentary strengthening work has been cut back to a minimum in response to both the political context and a lack of progress with integrating civil society and legislative components of the project. Work within this programme will end altogether in April 2015, the planned end date for PRODIP, the main Parliamentary strengthening project in SPP.

Anti-Corruption: Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) continues to mobilise volunteers effectively to tackle local level corruption, and to advocate with some success on national policies and legislation.

Summary of top priority recommendations for the next year

Political Parties: A Fellowship programme working with mid-level party representatives from the main political parties

is showing potential for promoting cross-party advocacy, and prevention of political violence. DFID should organise a review mission by end of December 2014 to investigate in more depth how effective the Fellows’ and alumni Fellows’ initiatives have been and could be beyond the immediate set of activities they entail.

There has been some progress on increasing women’s representation in political parties, but the parties remain a long way from their stated target of 33% female representation. DFID should meet with Democracy International (DI), the project manager of the political parties component, by 31 October 2014 to identify ways in which both the project and the UK government more broadly can have a positive influence toward achieving the programme target of 20%.

DI has collaborated effectively with several SPP partners. Given the central positioning of engagement with political parties in the SPP portfolio, DFID and DI should meet with USAID and SPP partners by 31 October 2014 to look at whether there are ways to build in more systematic collaborative initiatives with DI and other SPP partners in the remainder of the programme.

Elections: DFID’s Governance Adviser should actively contribute to designing the SEMB impact monitoring

framework, which should be in place no later than 31 October 2014 in order to be relevant for decision-making.

Several SPP partners are working on issues relating to electoral reform. DFID should ensure effective coordination between partners to maximise impact, and should consider where DFID itself can and should exert influence. DFID should map advocacy initiatives and establish a coordination mechanism in conjunction with USAID by 31 October 2014. SEMB should develop a “donor engagement strategy” and agreed key messages to emphasise with the ECB, by 31 October 2014.

Parliamentary Strengthening: DFID Governance Adviser should meet PRODIP team by 31 October 2014 to review progress on the

sustainability aspects of the workplan such as allocating funds in the Parliamentary budget for Parliamentary Steering Committee public hearings and for the Budget Analysis Monitoring Unit.

Anti-Corruption: DFID should work with TIB to consolidate progress made, particularly on monitoring and evaluation;

to ensure a smooth transition from the project supported under this programme to a new project under the newly approved Transparency & Right to Information Programme; and to ensure that theoretical commitments are converted into practical changes in programming.

Risk Management: Decisions on election programming have been taken but DFID should continue to monitor progress

closely in order to respond appropriately. SEMB Project Steering Committee should meet as soon as donors have agreed the workplan.

A. Introduction and Context

DevTracker Link to Business Case: DevTracker Link to Log frame:

http://iati.dfid.gov.uk/iati_documents/4353510.xls

Outline of the programmeThe UK is providing up to £26.1 million for the Strengthening Political Participation in Bangladesh programme (SPP, 2009-2016). SPP is working with: The main political parties to review their internal communication and decision-making structures, and

encourage them to pay more attention to the needs and interests of their supporters and the public; Politically active women and young people, to help more of them gain representation in politics; The Election Commission of Bangladesh (ECB), to put in place the conditions necessary for

credible, transparent and inclusive elections, and to support post-election reform initiatives; Parliament, particularly Parliamentary Standing Committees to bolster their oversight role and the

Parliament Secretariat to improve their analysis and communications; and Bangladeshi NGOs to promote anti-corruption advocacy and awareness, improve the quality of their

input to policy making and legislation, and prepare for scrutiny of future elections.

SPP is implemented in partnership with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Projects are implemented by Democracy International (DI), International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), International Republican Institute (IRI), National Democratic Institute (NDI), The Asia Foundation (TAF), Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

The SPP programme will contribute to a Bangladeshi political system that is more capable, accountable and responsive, especially to the needs of the poor and marginalised. Success will be shown by: Political parties and candidates showing more responsiveness to citizens and grassroots

interests; The delivery of credible elections that further strengthen confidence in the Bangladesh

Election Commission and the electoral process; More substantial dialogues on policy issues, across and within parties, and involving civil society and

other actors; and More, and more effective, channels of accountability.

SPP was designed to consolidate the achievements of the Parliamentary Elections of December 2008, which were acclaimed as an important step forward for Bangladeshi democracy, with European Union international observers commenting that: “professionalism, transparency and credibility were the hallmarks of the election and the election broadly met international standards”. Important changes in context since 2008 changed the environment for subsequent elections. A 2011 Constitutional amendment removed the provision for elections to be held under a neutral Caretaker Government (CTG), a provision which had previously been accepted by all the main political parties. New Election Commissioners limited their role to technical management of elections and were unable to cultivate the same public perceptions of independence from political influence that their predecessors achieved.

Without a provision for a CTG, the Awami League (AL) and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) were unable to reach an agreement on the form that an election-time government would take. When AL called elections, the BNP declined to take part, but elections went ahead on 5 January 2014 with more than half of the seats uncontested.

In six rounds of local (Upazila) elections after the Parliamentary elections, in the first half of 2014, the ECB’s failure to respond to escalating violence and suspected fraud exacerbated perceptions of political bias.

In response, in 2014 DFID undertook an in-depth post-election review of SPP elections programming, as well as aspects of SPP projects working with Parliament and with political parties. Major changes were: Parliamentary work should focus on Parliament as an institution, and systems and skills in the

Parliament Secretariat, but not build capacity of MPs, half of whom did not compete for their seats. Work that the political parties project had planned with parties in Parliament was not appropriate at

this time because of the limited representation in the current Parliament. Work with ECB should be reduced and should focus only on ensuring sustainability of key technical

achievements, and on promoting electoral reform where there is genuine possibility of success.

Other adjustments to programming are discussed under outputs below.

B: PERFORMANCE AND CONCLUSIONS

Annual outcome assessment A tense and disrupted pre-election period followed by non-participatory parliamentary elections and upazila elections fraught with violence and suspected fraud have had a negative impact on the election-related component contributing to the SPP outcome of Political institutions that are more capable, accountable and responsive, especially to the needs of the poor and marginalised. DFID uses a qualitiative scoring matrix to assess progress in preparing for credible elections against key electoral principles of independence from political influence, inclusiveness, transparency and accountability, as well as technical capacity. There has been deterioration in the scores for the Election Commission, as well as on transparency and accountability across the board, only partially offset by improved performance of civil society election observers. On indicators reflecting the other three aspects of programming – work with political parties, with parliament and on anti-corruption, SPP is on target to achieve its outcome indicators by the end of the programme.

Indicator Projects Target (2015)

Progress (2014)

Likelihood of success

Updated Target for 2016

1. Proportion of women represented in political parties

DPR 20% 2% Medium 20%

2. Extent to which issues of concern to citizens are represented in political party platforms

DPR Medium (45%)

N/A High Medium (45%)

3. Quality of preparations for Elections – (scoring matrix – post-election focus is on environment conducive for credible elections)

BESA; SEMB; CSSED; EWG; DPR, 10th Parl. Elections

2.8/4 (2014)

2.2/4 (August 2014)

Not achieved (2014 target)

2.6/4

4. # of public forums resulting from project assistance in which national legislators and members of the public interact (annual)

PRODIP 12 (2014)0 (2015)

21 Achieved(Revised target due to reduced budget)

N/A (project to close)

5. Reformed public policies in institutions of vital national interest for the fight against corruption (cumulative)

PDC 15 (2014) 25 Achieved N/A (project to close)

In addition to the outcome indicators in the SPP logframe, since 2012 we have been working with our partners to identify examples of behaviour change in four areas, particularly those that cut across outputs. Some examples are outlined below:

Political Parties and candidates showing more responsiveness to citizens and grassroots interests:

DI has used surveys, other evidence and the relationships it has built with the main political parties to convince them to hold internal elections for political party council positions for the first time. The process is well under way and there are already signs that women and first-time representatives are gaining seats. Internal democracy and greater responsiveness to membership can increase political stability by increasing politicians’ awareness of public interests and concerns, reducing elitist decision-making that does not take public interests into account, reducing inequality of access to opportunities for participation in democratic systems, providing outlets for frustration with the status quo that are less disruptive and potentially violent, and increasing the legitimacy of – and support for – political leadership within those parties.

The delivery of credible elections that further strengthen confidence in the Election Commission of Bangladesh and the electoral process:As noted above, technical support to the Election Commission helped to establish essential pre-conditions for elections, but could not be expected to to deliver participatory elections in the absence of agreement between the main parties on the way those elections should be conducted.

In a disappointing environment, other initiatives supported by the programme have yielded a more positive impact.

IFES’s People Against Violence in Elections (PAVE) training programme (more details in output 2 below) has worked with influencers in business, civil society, politics, etc. as a way to increase confidence in the electoral process. PAVE training combines conflict resolution techniques with education on topics such as the structure of the ECB, the appointment of Commissioners and other issues related to the conduct of transparent, credible, inclusive and secure elections, thereby equipping key electoral stakeholders to become more informed participants in – and advocates for – a credible electoral process.

The introduction of sample-based election observation methodologies through DI and then TAF/EWG, and NDI’s work on expanding representation for disadvantaged and minority groups (see output 2), has improved the quality of and representative nature reporting on election standards, thereby increasing confidence in election observer groups’ analysis of elections and offering a more consistent benchmark against which the public can measure ECB performance.

More substantial dialogues on policy issues, across and within parties, and involving civil society and other actors:DI’s cross-party work with political parties at regional and district levels has led to advocacy campaigns on local policy issues (primarily linked to service delivery) as well as on prevention of electoral violence. Beyond the substantive value of these processes for the decisions they can generate, the process itself promotes development of cross-party communication channels and relationships, beginning to break down the political polarisation that commonly undermines most opportunities for policy dialogue.

PRODIP has supported Parliamentary Standing Committees (PSC) to organise public hearings and promote the principle of public engagement with PSCs. When a building housing thousands of garment workers collapsed in April 2013, PRODIP was able to help the PSC for Labour and Employment to respond with a public hearing at which over 75 witnesses testified, including academics, garment owners associations, civil society activists on rights, health and occupation health safety, the International Labour Organisation, major buyers in Bangladesh, unionists, suvivors and representatives of garment importing countries. With support from PRODIP and two other donor-funded projects working with other PSCs, the practice of holding Standing Committee hearings in public has become more accepted, even though it has yet to be formally recognised and institutionalised in the Parliamentary Rules of Procedure.

NDI’s ongoing work to capture perspectives on election administration and electoral reform priorities is helping to integrate political party voices into ongoing disussions about advocacy priorities, as well as to understand better the feasibility of a range of electoral reform issues.

More, and more effective, channels of accountability:

TIB’s local level volunteer activism work through its Committees of Concerned Citizens (see output 4) focuses on increasing the range and quality of opportunities for public engagement with local authorities, whether in local government, health or education. Tools include citizen report cards, open budgeting sessions, mothers’ gatherings and Face the Public sessions, coordination meetings with authorities, oath taking at schools, satellite advice and information desks, street theatre and cultural events, debate competitions, rallies and human chains, RTI fairs, citizens charters and information boards. TIB is able to demonstrate links between its engagement and improvements in key governance processes and outcomes – including school attendance, teacher absenteeism and prevention of overcharging for free or subsidised services and resources.

IRI’s work with civil society on monitoring campaign finance spending prior to the final round of upazila elections and with media on reporting on campaign finance issues has take first steps toward shifting perceptions of campaign finance away from an electoral compliance issue (i.e. was the candidate asset declaration submitted or not) toward a much broader understanding of how political stakeholders can and should be held accountable.

Overall output score and description

Key lessonsIn 2014 DFID completed a post-election review of programming, which was accompanied by an internal review of management of SPP to see if the team could have picked up problems earlier or responded differently for a more favourable outcome. It is clear that DFID’s influence over the political dynamics that led ultimately to flawed elections was extremely limited, but from a management perspective there were three key lessons:1. Programme management challenges (e.g. delays, recruitment problems, poor reporting) can

disguise significant problems in programme design and/or relevant changes in (political) context. It is important that donors have enough information to distinguish between programme performance problems and challenges associated with stakeholders.

2. In practice programmes often depend on donor involvement for oversight and donors need to make sure they have enough information to respond. This is particularly pronounced where programmes are implemented in conjunction with government, where implementing partners are expected to maintain long-standing positive relationships with their counterpart, and where there are well-documented structural problems with the institution involved.

3. Political governance programmes such as SPP are particularly vulnerable to external triggers and changes that may require revision of programming, whether actions that may call into question key assumptions such as a change in key personnel (e.g. the selection of Election Commissioners in 2011/12) or actions that open up opportunities such as a decision indicating a positive shift in political will (e.g. ECB publication of candidate asset returns prior to the Parliamentary Elections). Programme Delivery Plans should identify when a review/rethink of programming should be triggered outside the formal Annual Review framework.

Key actions SPP lead Adviser and Programme Manager should:

Output Score Impact Weighting (2013-14)

Proposed Impact Weighting 2014-15

1. Political parties are more responsive to citizens and their interests

A+ 25% 50%

2. Technical preparations and checks and balances in place for more credible, transparent and inclusive Elections

A 30% 25%

3. Work of Parliamentary Standing Committees is more open and effective

B 20% 15%

4. Citizens are aware of, use and advocate for anti-corruption measures

A+ 25% 10%

Review SPP risk assessment and assumptions in the logframe to identify (positive and negative) trigger points for the programme by October 2014.

Develop an updated Delivery Plan for the remainder of SPP by January 2015. DFID’s should review its long-term approach to political governance programming to factor in

lessons learned from this period including the need to balance technical and political programming, the challenges of applying the electoral cycle approach to programming in an unstable political environment, and the need to track political will as part of assessing ongoing programme viability, and the need to integrate political parties’ work more closely with other aspects of political governance programming. A review of options for future programming will be completed by March 2015.

Has the logframe been updated since the last review? YES.

The logframe has been updated as follows: Implementation of updates recommended by the SPP Annual Review (AR) 2013 Updates to indicators for Output 2 (Elections) and Output 3 (Parliamentary Strengthening) to reflect

programming cuts following the 2014 post-election review. Revisions took place in March-April 2014 as DPR, BESA, TAF-EWG and PRODIP work plans were agreed.

SEMB indicators have not yet been finalised as the annual work plan is not yet agreed and SEMB is designing a more in-depth impact monitoring framework against which to measure project progress.

In terms of the balance of programming, parliamentary strengthening work (PRODIP) is severely reduced and will conclude in April 2015. TIB work will move into a new 5-year project under another DFID programme in October 2014. Elections work will continue, but has somewhat reduced prominence during the post-election phase of the electoral cycle. Unless there is a significant shift in the political environment or unexpected elections are called, political parties work will therefore be the primary focus of SPP during the remaining 1-2 years of the SPP programme.

C: DETAILED OUTPUT SCORING (1 page per output)

Output Title Political Parties are more responsive to citizens and their interests

Output number per LF 1 Output Score A+

Risk: High Impact weighting (%): 25%

Risk revised since last AR? N Impact weighting % revised since last AR?

N

Indicator(s) Milestone (2014)

Target (2015)

Progress Score

1.1. # of local party branches participating in DPR women’s activities

35 64 64 A++

1.2. # of research tools developed to help parties gauge citizens’ interests

5 5 6 A+

1.3. # of networking and coordination initiatives undertaken with support of the programme

200 300 463 A+

Key PointsDemocracy International’s Democratic Participation and Representation (DPR) project promotes broader participation in political parties, particularly by women and young people, and greater accountability to the grassroots and internal democracy. The project works with the main political parties, offering the same menu of options for technical assistance to all participating parties.

Pre-election period: Over the past year, DI has maintained the fast-paced implementation that has characterised the DPR project to date. In 2013 DPR focused mainly on election-related activity including: Supporting women political leaders as aspirants for parliamentary elected office and as members of

political party committees at local levels through its Narir Joye Shobar Joy campaign; Working with the political parties on designing and managing public opinion polls and

surveys to test campaign messaging and decisions, and monitoring media coverage of party messaging;

Developing and distributing training materials for political party polling agents; Preparing for a nationwide Statistically Based Observation (SBO) of the parliamentary

elections. Facilitating District Grasroots Representative Conferences (DGRC), gathering grassroots

membership to engage with district-level leadership. DI has documented a series of DGRC recommendations that were incorporated into the Awami League manifesto ahead of the election.

In accordance with USAID regulations,1 DPR put all campaign-related activities on hold 30 days before the parliamentary election on 5 January, 2014.

A decision was taken to cancel the SBO shortly before the election because security concerns made it impossible for DI to guarantee to cover a statistically representative sample of polling stations. However, DI was able to use its SBO methodology for upazila elections, for which it trained and mentored the Election Working Group (a network of 29 Bangladeshi civil society organisations, also funded by DFID) to pilot and implement a series of observation missions covering all but the first phase of the upazila elections. The impact on the quality of EWG reporting has been substantial.

Post-election period: In the post-election period, DPR has resumed its work on promoting women’s representation. DPR is working with party leaders to develop long-term roadmaps to comply with the 2009 Representation of the People Order (RPO) to sit women leaders in a minimum of 33% of party committee positions by 2020. To date party leaders have committed to appointing over 170,000 women

1 USAID Political Party Development Assistance guidelines specify: “USAID programming should conclude or revert to clearly non-campaign activities within 30 days prior to an upcoming election.” (http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACR216.pdf - p29)

to leadership positions by 2015 and DPR is working with them to achieve this goal through more inclusive and democratic (s)election of representatives for internal party councils (see outcomes above).

DPR’s Fellowship programme works with mid-level party representatives at a regional level, offering sustained training, mentoring and internships within their parties over a 6-month period. In the pre-election period, former Fellows – of whom there are now over 100 – undertook ad hoc cross-party work to speak out against political violence. DPR has helped “alumni” Fellows to set up an Association, elect representatives, and develop joint workplans targeting cross-party advocacy, dialogue and prevention of political violence. This initiative is in its early days but is showing promise.

Recommendations DFID should organise a review mission by end of December 2014 to investigate in more depth how

effective the Fellows’ and alumni Fellows’ initiatives have been and could be beyond the immediate set of activities they entail.

DFID should meet with DI by 31 October 2014 to identify ways in which both the project and the UK government more broadly can have a positive influence toward achieving 33% female representation in political parties.

DI has collaborated effectively with several SPP partners. Given the central positioning of engagement with political parties in the SPP portfolio, DFID and DI should meet with USAID and SPP partners by 31 October 2014 to look at whether there are ways to build in more systematic collaborative initiatives with DI and other SPP partners in future.

Output Title Technical preparations and checks and balances in place for more credible, transparent and inclusive elections

Output number per LF 2 Output Score A

Risk: High Impact weighting (%): 30%

Risk revised since last AR? N Impact weighting % revised since last AR?

N

Key Points

Indicator(s) Milestone (2014) Progress Score2.1.1 # of new voters registered 7.5% increase by

20138.5% increase in 2013 (91.9m registered voters).

A (2013)

2.1.2 Quality of voter register, by independent audit

A No independent audit in 2014

Not possible to score: C

2.1.3. Reach and effectiveness of ECB communications as measured by:(i) # of additional ECB website users following the increase in functionality(ii) # of copies of the quarterly newsletter distributed(iii) Change in public knowledge for key election issues as measured by the survey in SEMB

No formal baseline set – will be established in October 2014 once reprogramming is complete

No progress Not possible to score: C

2.2.1. % of ECB officials who received training and self-report increased knowledge & understanding in their end of course feedback in the areas of:(i) campaign finance(ii) security(iii) dispute resolution

30% N/A – training in these areas not yet started

B

2.2.2. # of of SPP-supported community based peace events

10 21 (8 organised directly, 13 organised as a result of previous support)

A++

2.3.1. # of observers trained and deployed (cumulative) (LTO= long term observer, STO = short term observer)

STO 16200; LTO 60

STO 18,137 (21,733 trained); LTO 209

A++

2.3.2. % of EWG LTOs providing complete and timely data to the EWG Secretariat for monthly “Eye on Elections” reports.

95% 98% A+

2.4.1. # of polling officials receiving higher quality training as a result of project support (cumulative)

700,000 – revised to 300,000 shortly ahead of the election

306,503. A

2.4.2. # of districts/upazilas linked up to and able to use computerised Results Management System (cumulative)

64/200 60/253 (no elections in 4 districts)

A+

2.5. # of server stations constructed/purchased with DFID support at upazila/district/thana/regional level.

U-2; D-10; T-3; R-8

U-2; D-10; T-3; R-5

B

Elections have been the main focus of SPP throughout the review period. Changes in the working context and in workplans have made reporting against output indicators very difficult for this output. Some activities did not take place, others were scaled back – details are below. Milestone 2.2.2. was updated after the election. All others are unchanged since 2013.This output is covered by the following projects, although other SPP partners have also been active on election issues:

Project Partner(s) Area(s) of Focus for 2013/14 IndicatorApproved under SPP original framework (2009)Strengthening Election Management in Bangladesh (SEMB)

UNDP (NIM)

Work with the Election Commission of Bangladesh (ECB) to improve its core election management capacity including: strategic planning, training, ICT, communications and outreach, and voter registration.

2.1.1, 2.1.2, 2.1.3

Bangladesh Election Support Activities (BESA)

IFES, IRI, NDI

Campaign finance regulation; electoral knowledge (research, polling, media monitoring); election observation; election security planning, electoral dispute resolution; and tracking/reduction of electoral violence.

2.2.1, 2.2.2, 2.3.1

Democratic Participation and Reform

DI (see Output 1 above)

Statistically Based Observation of Parliamentary Elections

2.3.1

Strengthening Civic Engagement in Elections and Political Processes (referred to as TAF-EWG)

TAF Support to the Election Working Group for electoral reform advocacy and national election observation (short- and long-term observers).

2.3.1, 2.3.2

Approved under SPP extension (June 2013)10th Parliamentary Elections Support Project

UNDP (DIM)

Training of polling officials; results and candidate management systems; BEC voter education; logistical support and procurement of Election Day equipment.

2.4.1, 2.4.2

Construction of Server Stations for Electoral Database (CSSED)

UNDP Physical infrastructure to support decentralisation of voter registration and other electoral services – a follow up to the Preparation of the Electoral Roll with Photographs project, which ended in 2008.

2.5.1

Pre-election period: 2013 was characterised by uncertainty and high political tension. Efforts to reach agreement between the main parties (Awami League (AL) and Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)) on the form of government under which elections would be held took place in a context of intense, and often violent, political activism. When the parties failed to reach an agreement, the government went ahead with elections on 5 Janaury 2014, which the BNP boycotted. 153 of 300 elected seats were uncontested. The third largest party – Jatiya Party – was split over participation but ultimately offered enough “opposition” to secure 34 seats in Parliament, while AL has a vast majority with 233 seats.

While the elections were held in accordance with the constitution, over half the electorate did not have an opportunity to participate and, even where elections did take place the turnout was very low. According to the ECB, turnout was around 40% - compared with 86% in 2008 – but it has not yet declared an official figure for turnout.

SPP projects were badly affected. Many activities were impossible or severely limited by the tense pre-election environment – by security restrictions, non-participation of stakeholders or stakeholders’ refusal to address or even discuss politically sensitive issues (especially the Election Commission of Bangladesh - ECB). Pre-election support activities such as training of polling officials did take place but when it became clear that Parliamentary elections would be uncontested in more than half the seats, UNDP and its development partners agreed with ECB that the numbers of officials to be trained should be significantly reduced. This and other reductions in the scope of UNDP’s 10th Parliamentary Elections Support Project resulted in a saving of £2.5 million on the budget originally committed by DFID.

In the run-up to Election Day, given the deteriorating security environment and non-inclusive nature of the elections, international election observation plans were cancelled. Limited observation by the Bangladeshi Election Working Group (EWG) continued.

The SPP Annual Review in 2013 recommended exploring options for funding monitoring of election-related violence and violence against minorities. DFID did not launch additional activities before the election because of the uncertain political context, but some existing projects were able to address this issue through their existing networks and activities.

Six phases of upazila elections followed in the first half of 2014. Although upazila elections are formally non-partisan, in practice all parties actively support their candidates. The BNP participated and did well in the first two phases, which were relatively trouble-free. In contrast, in phases 3 and 4 observers reported widespread and escalating violence and suspected fraud – much of it blatant. The Acting Chief Election Commissioner refused to acknowledge any challenges or concerns.

Post-election period: In March 2014 DFID contracted an external elections expert for a post-election review, which concluded: “Recent electoral processes in Bangladesh have become increasingly problematic with indications of very high levels of fraud and violence. The ECB has not sufficiently addressed problems arising, has not provided for transparency, and has essentially deferred responsibility to returning officers from the executive, thus rendering the institution more akin to a logistical support service. Systemic problems with a lack of institutional independence and insufficient legal safeguards mean that problems are likely to continue unless addressed politically and then legally. The impact of technical support to the institution has been severely limited due to decisions of the ECB leadership.”

In response, the SEMB donors (EU, DFID, UNDP, USAID) have cut back project work plans for 2014 to focus on learning lessons and ensuring the sustainability of key technical achievements, and on promoting electoral reform where there is genuine possibility of success. SEMB is developing an “impact monitoring” framework that will tie proposed project activities to targeted reforms, and will also distinguish between changes that the ECB has control over (e.g. transparent publication of all election results) and changes that are beyond its control (e.g. system for selection of Commissioners). Continued funding for SEMB beyond 2014 will be contingent on a Needs Assessment in December 2014 and on donor agreement that there has been significant relevant progress. The impact monitoring design process also offers an opportunity to tackle issues highlighted in the SPP AR 2013 such as updating of risk logs, record keeping on advice and actions and strengthening monitoring and evaluation.

BESA programming also came under review in early 2014 as the partners developed their 2014-15 work plans. Current programming includes the following: Campaign finance: IRI piloted a campaign finance monitoring methodology with Bangladeshi CSOs

during upazila elections. It also trained media professionals. IFES completed an assessment in 2013 and are working with the ECB to decide which recommendations if any it is feasible to take forward.2

Election Observation: NDI is mentoring and training five CSO partners for election observation and electoral reform advocacy focused on the needs of women, youth, minorities and disabled people.

Electoral Knowledge: IRI is supporting election-related polling and research, and has set up a “Research Academy” to train CSOs in methodologies such as focus groups, surveys and polling.

Election Security and Electoral Dispute Resolution: IFES is working with the ECB on GIS mapping of polling centres as part of setting up a response mechanism, and on a lessons learned review of the recent elections. IFES is also working on analysis of complaints management.

Election-related violence : IFES works with a range of stakeholders including the political parties (through DI) providing training on prevention of election-related violence and to promote principles of “building demand for better governance”. Their People Against Violence in Elections (PAVE) training

2 IFES has been asked to ensure that its work with the ECB is consistent with the principles applied to SEMB.

now includes sessions on free and fair elections (including selection of commissioners) as well as facilitation skills.

The Asia Foundation’s post-election work with the Election Working Group has been a major success story. As recommended in the 2013 Annual Review, TAF brought in an experienced elections expert as Programme Manager. With the support of DI, the Programme Manager has helped EWG shift to a statistically-based observation model and integrate rapid reporting of results by SMS. As a result EWG reporting is more accurate and EWG is better able to demonstrate that its findings are based on evidence. Updated information is available internally throughout Election Day and EWG preliminary reports are also released much more quickly – usually within a day of the election. EWG’s decision to observe the January 2014 elections improved its relationship with the ECB, and it is now well placed to launch electoral reform advocacy initiatives over the coming year. EWG has also done some voter education for the 2014 voters list update, working in conjunction with the ECB. EWG also expects to complete formal registration with NGOAB by the end of 2014.

Construction of Server Stations for Electoral Decentralisation (CSSED) is building a network of Election Commission offices across the country. Construction will be completed by the end of 2014 and all completed offices are open and functional. However their relevance has been undermined by the current political environment. The buildings are in place and well constructed, but the ECB has not yet followed them up with practical steps towards systemic decentralisation of voter registration or other electoral services. The resource has great potential and marks an important shift away from ECB dependence on local government, but there is no point in supporting further decentralisation initiatives unless there is a clear shift in positioning and attitudes.

Recommendations DFID’s Governance Adviser should contribute to designing the SEMB impact monitoring framework,

which should be in place no later than 31 October 2014 in order to be relevant for decision-making. The post-election period has opened up space for advocacy on electoral reform issues. Several

SPP partners are working on related issues. DFID should ensure effective coordination between partners to maximise impact, and should consider where DFID itself can and should exert influence. DFID should map advocacy initiatives and establish a coordination mechanism in conjunction with USAID by 31 October 2014. SEMB should develop a “donor engagement strategy” and agreed key messages to emphasise with the ECB, also by 31 October 2014.

Output Title Work of Parliamentary Standing Committees is more open and effective

Output number per LF 3 Output Score B

Risk: Medium Impact weighting (%): 20%

Risk revised since last AR? Y Impact weighting % revised since last AR? Y

Key PointsPromoting Democratic Institutions and Practices (PRODIP) is a parliamentary strengthening programme co-funded with USAID and implemented by The Asia Foundation (TAF) with State University of New York (SUNY). PRODIP has two complementary components – one working directly on legislative strengthening and the other working on civil society engagement with parliamentary processes.

Following the January 2014 elections, at which over half of MPs were elected uncontested, the UK decided that its parliamentary strengthening work should no longer engage directly with MPs. Work with Parliamentary Standing Committees (PSC) and with the Parliament Secretariat was retained but refocused on ensuring sustainability. A mid-term evaluation of PRODIP (2013) raised concerns about the links between the legislative and civil society components. In 2013, the civil society component budget was reduced and PRODIP developed a synergy plan to ensure closer coordination between the components. While some progress was made, in the context of other donor budget cuts it was insufficient to continue funding, and in 2014 the civil society component was removed. Due to the reduced workload, TAF now implements without SUNY.

In March 2014 a final year workplan and budget was agreed. It limits PRODIP to work with PSCs, targeted capacity building for the Parliament Secretariat and work with the Budget Analysis and Monitoring Unit (BAMU). DFID has encouraged PRODIP to focus on sustainability. Ways in which PRODIP intends to respond include use of training-of-trainers to build in-house capacity; publication of a Briefing Handbook, Committee Activity Briefs and a Development Compendium to help MPs and staff understand development planning; and advocacy for public hearings. PRODIP is preparing a proposal for the sustainability of BAMU. Indicator milestones were adjusted to reflect the reduced funding and expected activity. However delays in the forming of PSCs have led to postponement of relevant activities to September 2014. Legislative strengthening has been a strength for PRODIP and, within the parameters of the revised workplan, we expect PRODIP to achieve these targets by the end of 2014.

Factors preventing PRODIP from achieving appropriate synergies between its components included: Coordination between implementers: Activities for the two components were implemented separately

by TAF and SUNY with limited coordination. A clear distinction was made between two teams of staff, and responsibility for implementation was also split. Senior management failed to bridge this gap. As a result opportunities to link aspects of both teams’ work were consistently missed.

Tying civil society engagement to parliamentary strengthening achievements : The initial project design required both components to contribute to parliamentary strengthening but the workplans did not require them to share outputs and indicators. The civil society activities had value in terms of other objectives but did not consistently strengthen patterns of engagement with parliament.

Recommendation

Indicator(s) Milestone (2014)

Progress Score

3.1. Number of research or policy briefs prepared and distributed to MPs, staff or ministry personnel (annual)

8 8 A

3.2. Number of policy specialists trained in committee hearing presentation skills and committee procedures (annual)

35 (30M:5F)

0 B

3.3. Number of public hearings held by project-assisted committees 1 0 B3.4. Number of annual work plans for committees developed with PRODIP assistance

1 0 B

DFID’s Governance Adviser should meet PRODIP team by 31 October 2014 to review progress on the sustainability aspects of the workplan including securing budgets for Parliamentary Steering Committee public hearings, and staffing and budget for the Budget Analysis Monitoring Unit.

Output Title Citizens are aware of, use and advocate for anti-corruption measures

Output number per LF 4 Output Score A+

Risk: Low Impact weighting (%): 25%

Risk revised since last AR? N Impact weighting % revised since last AR?

N

Key PointsUnder its Paribartan – Driving Change (PDC) project and with support from DFID (51%), Sweden, Switzerland and Denmark, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) carries out research and advocacy for key national reforms, including campaigns for/against legislative changes, and supports local citizens’ action to demand accountability in health, education and other services at the local level.

TIB has successfully sustained its core activity throughout the disruption of the pre-election period and the uncertainty of the post-election period. Over the past year: 15,000 people participated in TIB activities and TIB now has over 6,000 core activists (28% female). Over 21,000 people (37% female) received information on health, education and local government

services from Satellite AI Desks. 11 working papers contributed to public awareness and advocacy for institutional/policy reforms. The Cabinet Secretary and Information Commission ordered Deputy Commissioners to assist with

TIB Information Fairs. 6,000 people attended (38 fairs), of whom 2,100 learned to fill out RTI forms. TIB engaged in advocacy with like-minded organisations for implementation of the RTI Act, on the

Information and Communication Technology (Amendment) Act and on a Code of Conduct of MPs. TIB has also been active in debates over the proposed Foreign Donations Act.

The current project ends in 2014. TIB has requested DFID support for another phase, called BIBEC – Building Integrity Blocks for Effective Change. A six-month extension has been approved while TIB seeks official approval. The SPP 2013 Annual Review encouraged TIB to develop a programming model to build on its pilot experiences of addressing corruption at the local level. TIB has developed the concept of “amplification” –how to give its work relevance and impact beyond the individual school, hospital or union parishad, without scaling up the number of volunteers. Options include showcasing good practices for replication by other institutions, developing good practice toolkits, rewarding good practice, and engaging central authorities to find opportunities for systemic application of TIB models.

The Review also recognised TIB’s monitoring and evaluation challenges. With support from external experts, TIB has made impressive progress. The BIBEC proposal has a much clearer articulation of results chains linked to outcomes and outputs, and also clearly recognises the need for qualitative indicators and complex approaches to measuring behaviour change. BIBEC also recognises the need for programming to improve local-national linkages and communication; and to make more strategic use of volunteers, in particular the enthusiasm of Youth Engagement Support (YES) groups.

Recommendations Initially under SPP/PDC and later under BIBEC (if approved), DFID should work with TIB to

consolidate progress made, particularly on monitoring and evaluation; to ensure a smooth transition from PDC to BIBEC is approved; and to ensure that theoretical commitments are converted into

Indicator(s) [reporting to June 30 2014] Milestone (2014)

Progress Score

4.1. Number of people (women, men and children) actively engaged in rights claiming initiative (year Apr-Mar, annual)

100,000 186,187 A++

4.2. Number of institutions targeted to promote transparency in the provision of public services (cumulative)

30 30 A

4.3. Number of research reports disseminated on anti-corruption issues

27 32 A+

practical changes in programming. A comprehensive results framework for BIBEC should be in place within 6 months of the start of the project.

D: VALUE FOR MONEY & FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE

Key cost drivers and performance Cost drivers have not changed significantly in this period. Over 90% of total costs are incurred by project partners, with the remainder reserved for technical assistance to partners, monitoring and evaluation. Major cost drivers are project activity implementation costs including technical capacity building; public and media campaigns; events and research. Management costs are less than 15% overall.

VfM performance compared to the original VfM proposition in the business case For SPP VfM economy focuses on ensuring that partners continue to implement policies that take into account VfM considerations. All recent budget revisions have been assessed on this basis. Collaboration between partners –particularly IFES, IRI and NDI– has also produced savings as expertise from one organisation is used to support another and visit costs are shared across programmes. Efficiency has been more challenging for SPP in the context of the flawed January 2014 elections: Pre-election disruptions: Many activities were not feasible or appropriate to implement in the pre-

election period. To mitigate the damage, where possible activities were cancelled before large expenses were incurred. In other cases, activities could be refocused on upazila elections.

Delays while redesigning: After the elections, DFID and its partners reviewed and redesigned election work over several months. As a result the first quarter of 2014 was a period of low activity. Work plans are now in place and activity is accelerating again, taking advantage of the improved security environment and greater willingness of stakeholders to engage on electoral issues in a less highly charged political environment.

A more serious question is whether SPP elections programming has been effective. The failure to agree on conditions for 2014 elections, the decision of opposition parties not to field candidates, and the resulting low-participation, as well as ECB’s failure to respond to fraud and violence during upazila elections, have shown that political context rather than technical capacity is the major limiting factor for credible elections in Bangladesh. That being said, while the elections cannot be declared a success, SPP did play a role in ensuring that the technical pre-conditions for credible elections were met. The voters’ list, for example, was a major sticking point in 2006/7, but in 2014 was not a factor in BNP’s decision not to take part. It was updated in 2013 with SEMB assistance. In 2014, the ECB is undertaking another update, after which SEMB will commission an independent audit of the list. SPP’s contributions to elections beyond its work with the ECB are also relevant. For example, EWG’s observation of upazila elections provided valuable information for understanding the extent of violence and suspected fraud. IFES is now working with the ECB on election security improvements that could help to prevent deaths in future.

The post-election environment has had other implications for effective programming. Given the current context, PRODIP programming has been cut to reflect recognition that the project has reached the limits of what it can achieve, while DI-DPR has been expanded in an effort to sustain internal democracy and responsiveness to citizens within the parties even as spaces such as Parliament become less relevant.

Assessment of whether the programme continues to represent value for moneyOn the basis of this analysis, and taking into account the recent changes to programming, SPP continues to represent value for money. Over the coming year, DFID should pay particular attention to: The implementation pace, quality and effectiveness of revised project workplans; Monitoring SEMB performance to ensure that the project remains relevant; and Ensuring that projects pay attention to sustainability and wherever possible to institutionalising

progress during their final 1-2 years of implementation.

Quality of financial managementUSAID is responsible for tracking financial management for co-funded SPP partners and reports that all reporting requirements have been adhered to. DFID funds TIB and TAF through accountable grants.

Both organisation have followed all financial procedures and had their accounts audited annually. There were no qualified observations from the auditors. UNDP follows its own procedures.

TAF-EWG (AG) TIB – PDC (AG)Date of last narrative financial report 31 August 2014 30 June 2014Date of last audited annual statement Currently under way June 2014

E: RISK

Overall risk rating: High

Overview of programme riskWith no national elections scheduled for two years (union parishad elections are due in early 2016), the political situation has stabilised. There is still risk of violence and disruption, but hartals are unpopular and their impact on programming is likely to be lower than before the election.

Three strategic decisions to reduce reputational risk have been made in the post-election period: Parliamentary work should focus on Parliament as an institution, and systems and skills in the

Parliament Secretariat, but not build capacity of MPs, half of whom did not compete for their seats. Work that DI had planned with political parties in Parliament is not appropriate at this time because of

the limited representation in the current Parliament. Work with ECB should be reduced and should focus only on ensuring sustainability of key technical

achievements, and on promoting electoral reform where there is genuine possibility of success.

DPR continues to maintain excellent working relationships with all its political party partners. It adheres to DFID principles of responding to local initiatives, ensuring inclusivity and impartiality by offering equal opportunities to all parties, being transparent about its activity, and careful financial management with no direct funding for political parties. DI’s cross-party work could pose a higher risk for confrontation but DI has high level consent and allows party representatives to lead the process.

TIB continues to come under pressure in the media and from government officials but it has consistently demonstrated its capacity to manage such situations.

In terms of reducing the risk of fraud or corruption, USAID is responsible for oversight over its partners and DFID is satisfied that its procedures meet DFID requirements. DFID recently updated its Due Diligence Assessment for TIB. The findings were encouraging and a plan for implementing recommendations has been agreed with TIB. TAF follows its own procedures which meet international standards according to recent USAID Due Diligence completed in advance of funding PRODIP. Partner reporting has been consistently on time. The SEMB Project Steering Committee has not met since the elections but should resume meetings shortly.

Outstanding actions from risk assessment Decisions on election programming have been taken but DFID should continue to monitor progress

closely in order to respond appropriately. SEMB PSC should meet as soon as donors have agreed the workplan.

F: COMMERCIAL CONSIDERATIONS

Delivery against planned timeframeStart-up delays for several SPP components were flagged in previous Annual Reviews. In this review period, projects progressed as planned except where affected by the January 2014 elections, and for planned work on violence against minorities, which was not set up before the election and was deemed no longer the best use of resources after the election.

These reductions have affected project spend. Unspent funds were reallocated to upazila elections (Feb.–May 2014) but an underspend remains. SPP is being adjusted as follows: At DFID’s behest, USAID has reallocated unspent funds to DI-DPR as the highest performing project

under SPP and the most relevant in the post-election environment. A final £300,000 will be allocated in 2015 once we have more evidence of performance and need.

UNDP anticipates an underspend of up to £2.5m on the 10th Parliamentary Elections project, which will be returned to DFID once the project concludes in December 2014.

TAF-EWG is anticipating an underspend of up to £300,000 (of DFID’s contribution). Discussions are underway about a possible No Cost Extension through to March 2016.

SPP has been extended to June 2016 to ensure that all results of DFID funding of partnership activities with USAID are recognised.

Performance of partnership(s)DFID and USAID continue to work effectively together with excellent communication and consistent consultation of DFID on all substantive decisions. Donors for TIB-PDC and TAF-EWG communicate jointly on almost all issues and share resources effectively (e.g. recent joint Due Diligence Assessment on TIB). Relationships with implementing partners are strong but most report to USAID so they are often informal. USAID consistently encourages partners to respond to DFID input. The different schedules of USAID, DFID (SPP) and some of the constituent programmes can, at times, cause reporting challenges – particularly in terms of gathering evidence for reporting on output indicators.

The SPP “umbrella programme”: SPP was designed as an umbrella programme under which the work of the component projects would be strengthened by the relationships built within SPP (e.g. more and better sharing of information, collaboration on initiatives, cross-project design of initiatives, more strategic positioning of all work). During the pre-election period (2013), DFID and USAID organised regular coordination meetings for all SPP implementing partners. Since the election, meetings with partners have mostly been held separately but there are still good examples of cross-organisation working, such as IFES provision of training for DI political party Fellows and for EWG, and IRI and IFES using NDI’s partner organisations for their specialist monitoring work on campaign finance and electoral violence.

Despite these encouraging signs of cooperation and collaboration, SPP programmes cannot realistically be described as integrated. Strategic plans are not jointly designed. With one exception (election observation), SPP partners do not share output-level indicators and they only share an outcome level indicator on elections, against which they do not report directly. As a result, we are not able to document effectively the synergies in SPP programming. For example, TIB’s National Integrity Systems focus includes work that is directly relevant to other SPP outputs (e.g. Parliament Watch, National Integrity Systems analysis, pre-election choose-your-candidate work) but there is currently no way of recording these contributions and there has been no integration of TIB’s initiatives with those of other partners (e.g. PRODIP’s civil society engagement work on Parliamentary Strengthening).

Lessons learned from this experience include: Where programmes include diverse components, partners need incentives to cooperate and to link

their initiatives beyond a superficial level that go beyond donor encouragement to do so. Multi-faceted programming under an umbrella programme such as SPP should, where possible,

develop an integrated results framework that encourage all partners to respond to a set of shared indicators at both output and outcome level.

The different timeframes, dynamics and challenges of different types of programming (e.g. intensive election projects vs long-term investment in internal party democracy) affect the patterns of coordination across the programme and limit how much coordination and integration is possible. It may be more effective to ensure that elements included in a single programme are affected in similar ways by external events/stimuli, and are working to similar timetables.

Asset monitoring and control For those projects where DFID is responsible for asset management (TAF/EWG and TIB-PDC), the office conducted the monitoring of assets as per procedures and the overall outcome of the assessement were satisfactory. TAF has procured assets on behalf of EWG in accordance with TAF asset management procedures and keeps an asset register. TAF/EWG does not provide any funds to its subpartners to procure assets and most expenditure is programme related. TIB has undergone a due

diligence assessment that found its asset management was satisfactory and in compliance with its procedures.

G: CONDITIONALITY

Update on partnership principles (if relevant) With Parliamentary strengthening work being scaled down, support to the Election Commission is the main support to government institutions left in the programme. The scope of this work takes account of the degree of commitment to domestic accountability, both in prioritising the activities within the SEMB project (with an initial focus on learning lessons from the 2014 elections), and in the balance of work within the programme, where we have supported complementary work to strengthen checks and balances alongside our support to ECB.

H: MONITORING & EVALUATION

Evidence and evaluationEvidenceAs part of developing a new Transparency and Right to Information Programme (TRIP), due to be launched shortly, DFID Bangladesh has reviewed evidence linked to TIB’s work. Relevant points are:3

TIB experience and global DFID experience both highlight the need to address in combination weak systems that provide opportunities, contexts that encourage being corrupt and low enforcement, and encourage demand-side engagement as a “sandwich” package with supply side.

Experiences in Bangladesh and globally show that accountability initiatives can produce changes in behaviour of citizens or officials and improvements in service delivery. There is some evidence that projects promoting accountability can contribute to increased state and institutional responsiveness and more inclusive democratic spaces for citizen engagement.

Some studies on the impact of RTI legislation have shown that access to information legislation can have a positive impact if effectively implemented and accompanied by supporting measures such as freedom of press and association, effective enforcement and sufficient political will. Effective implementation depends on both capacity building for public officials and awareness raising activities to inform citizens, civil society, media and companies on how to exercise their right to know.

As TIB-PDC comes to an end in 2014, DFID will rehouse its support for TIB under TRIP in order to improve coordination between TIB’s demand-side engagement and planned initiatives to tackle supply-side (i.e. government) capacity and incentives for change.

Evaluations:While there have been no formal evaluations during the review period, one of the functions of the post-election external review commissioned in March 2014 was to consider whether SPP’s theory of change remained valid for election-related work.

SPP’s investment in elections is based on the understanding that credible, inclusive and transparent elections can strengthen the legitimacy of the elected government and increase confidence in democratic process. This increase in public confidence in public bodies and more inclusive political systems can in turn lead to increased stability and potential for poverty reduction. SPP works with a range of institutions to promote more responsiveness, transparency and accountability, as well as improve the technical capacity they need to fulfil crucial functions related to the functioning of democratic processes in Bangladesh. In terms of elections, this includes both work with the Election Commission and work with checks and balances such as election observation.

As described under Output 2 above, the external review broadly validated SPP’s approach to elections but emphasised the need for programming to recognise the political nature of elections. While technical support to the Election Commission could help establish essential pre-conditions for elections and SPP’s support for civil society could improve public scrutiny of electoral processes, neither could be expected to deliver participatory elections without a shift in the current political context. This limitation was already reflected in the SPP Extension Business Case (June 2013), the major assumptions for which included:

Elections will not be undermined by factors beyond the control of programming; and The Election Commission will have sufficient independence and resources to implement its

activities in a nonpartisan manner.

3 See the Transparency and Right to Information Programme Business Case for details and references

As such it does not invalidate the theory of change but does support the case for greater emphasis on work with political actors in future (see key actions above).

Other upcoming evaluation intiatives include the following:SEMB is currently undergoing a mid-term evaluation, which will be followed by design of an “impact monitoring” framework that will enable programme assessments to consider political context and ECB decision making as well as programmatic outputs. The evaluation is coordinated by UNDP but executed by an independent consultant. DI-DPR will undergo a mid-term evaluation in September 2014, overseen by USAID. It was not possible to bring the DI-DPR evaluation forward to coincide with the DFID Annual Review due to the pressures of the post-election period on DI’s workload.

Monitoring progress throughout the review period

Feedback from stakeholders: DI considers grassroots political party members – particularly women and youth – to be its most important stakeholders and pays particular attention to how well its work is reaching and responding to the needs of this group. Based on DI’s surveys, at least 74% of party members from each of 3 main parties surveyed in June 2014 had heard of DI, and at least 47% had heard of their Narir Joye Sobar Joy campaign. Of those, at least 87% for each party expressed satisfaction or extreme satisfaction with DI’s engagement with their party. Results were within 2% for each category across the parties.

Targeted Reviews: Immediately after the January 2014, and during the upazila elections, DFID commissioned a post-election review of DFID elections programming, with particular focus on its work with the Election Commission of Bangladesh (ECB) through SEMB and BESA (IFES), and to make recommendations on election programming for 2014-15 and beyond. Findings are outlined under Output 2 above.

In May 2014, DFID commissioned a review of TIB’s civic engagement work, The findings were overwhelmingly positive, emphasising in particular the commitment, enthusiasm and capacity of TIB’s volunteers and TIB’s effective coordination of their efforts. Recommendations included: TIB should invest further in its volunteers, including regional (rather than national) gatherings to

share learning and mobilise regional momentum for change. Partnerships between the CCCs and local institutions worked best at lower administrative scale

(union parishad and upazila). TIB should factor in this experience when selecting future targets. Longer term sustainability requires strategic partnerships with Ministers and Director Generals who

hold briefs for the three sectors of interest at the local level; the national media; and, people at the local level who can secure influence beyond single sector institutions.

TIB’s research would benefit from disaggregation of the National Household survey data at the local level and, the aggregation of data from local Citizens’ Report Cards (CRC) to the national level to provide regular ‘state of the sector’ reports in local government, health and education.

Field Visits and Monitoring Visits:

Date Location Project(s) Purpose9 Feb. 2014

Dhaka – Electoral Training Institute

UNDP-SEMB Assessed SEMB engagement on training with the ECB.

16-18 Feb. 2014

Sylhet and Srimangal

TIB-PDC Met CCC/YES Groups to improve donor understanding of TIB’s local level engagement work and its relationship with research, outreach and communications. Findings were factored into design of TIB’s new BIBEC project.

19 Feb. 2014

Sylhet TAF-EWG Monitoring of EWG observer activity for Round 1 of Upazila Elections

24-25 Feb. 2014

Dhaka DI-DPR Observed a DI-DPR event for mid-level party representatives who are alumni of their Fellowship programme, during which they formed an association

and developed a work plan for cross-party engagement at regional level.

23 March 2014

Gazipur UNDP-SEMB Informal observation of ECB performance for Round 4 of Upazila Elections.

9-10 June 2014

Mymensingh DI-DPRUNDP-SEMB and CSSED

Observed a DI Fellowship programme event. Visited regional and upazila server station and met ECB officials to review progress on decentralisation.

11 August 2014

Sylhet TAF-EWG Observed an EWG lessons learned regional workshop.

The Annual Review: This review has been completed by the DFID Bangladesh Governance Adviser and Programme Manager responsible for SPP, drawing on input from external reviews, field visits, project partner reporting and stakeholder feedback. All donors co-funding SPP component projects and all implementing partners were invited to comment on an earlier draft.