Essien Abel EssienDirector, Strategic Planning ECOWAS Commission

VISIONING AND THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS: JOURNEY SO FAR

1. Objectives of the Town Hall session

2. ECOWAS Vision 2020

3. Linking the Vision to our role

4. SPU’s Strategic Mandate

5. What we need to do

6. Best Practices vs. the Current Reality of the Commission

7. So where are we now?

8. Development of the 2010-2014 Strategic Plan

9. Pyramids of Success and Translation

10. Role of Staff

• To communicate the ECOWAS Vision 2020

• To communicate the strategic planning process

• To indicate the role of each individual within the pyramids of success and translation developed as backbones to the strategic development process

• To examine critical success factors for achieving an efficient implementation of the strategy

• To ensure a participatory approach in the implementation of the strategic plan

• To create a borderless, peaceful, prosperous and cohesive region, built on good governance and where people have the capacity to access and harness its enormous resources through the creation of opportunities for sustainable development and environmental preservation

KEYWORDS

• Borderless

• Peace

• Prosperity

• Cohesion

• Good governance

ENABLERS

• Access

• Harnessing

• Creation of opportunities

OBJECTIVES

• Sustainable development

• Environmental preservation

KEYWORDS

Borderless

Peace

Prosperity

Cohesion

Good governance

Trade Dept. etc.Political Affairs, Peace & Security Dept. etc.

All DepartmentsMacroeconomic Dept., Human Development Dept. & Gender Dept. etc.Political Affairs, Peace & Security Dept., ECOWAS Court of Justice, and Parliament, etc.

ENABLERS

Access

Harnessing

Creation of opportunities

Infrastructure Dept. etc.All Departments

Macroeconomic Dept., Human Development Dept. etc.

WHO ADMINISTERS AND PAYS FOR THE PROCESSES?

Administration & Finance Dept.

MANDATE 1

Formulate a regional strategy based on regional integration and aligned with the development agenda of the NEPAD Framework

MANDATE 2

Ensure conversion into operational, sectoral, regional and national programs

MANDATE 3

Develop a detailed regional strategic plan indicating key implications and strategic options for implementation

MANDATE 4

Develop short/medium and long term work plans

MANDATE 5

Develop a mechanism for facilitating coordination of the Commission strategic plans in collaboration with the Commissioners and Directors.

How are we going

to do this?

We need to be clear about the objectives of ECOWAS region/Commission

Allows us to consciously be responsive to the demands of the Communitiy

We need to appreciate the resources we have available to meet these objectives

• Determine our main strategic mandate

• Determine our strategic vision & mission

• Carry out a SWOT analysis to appreciate our strengths and identify our obstacles

• Define our critical issues

• Decide what resources are required

• Define goals and intermediate and short-term objectives

• Develop a strategy profile for the future

• Draw an action timetable

Strategy lies in making the tough decisions about what is most important to achieving success.

What we need to do

BEST PRACTICES

Decentralized planning system

Large workforce to address competing pressures

Modern IT Infrastructure

Knowledge-Based Institution

Community Projects

Project Generated Funds

CURRENT REALITY

Low Capacity to Decentralized

Lack of Competencies/Prioritizing

Financial Resources/Knowledge

Meeting-Based Institution

Absence of Projects

Donor Dependency

The region has adopted the 2020 Strategic Vision which sets out a clear strategic direction

So where are we now?

Other plans such as the Capacity Building Plan, Communication Plan etc. to support and announce the strategies are being developed

We have commenced the preparation of the medium term action plan that will define the activities under the Strategic Plan

The 2010-2014 Strategic Plan has been submitted to Management

We are clear about our main strategic mandate, vision and mission

We have aligned the strategic plan with the 2020 Vision

We have started defining the programs/projects/ activities under the Strategic Plan

Established an Institutional Framework Arrangement

Development of the 2010-2014 Strategic Plan

• Management Committee

• Strategic Planning Steering Committee

• Strategic Planning Operational Committee

• Participatory Approach

• Ownership

• Acceptability/Commitment

• Stakeholders Confidence

Defined a clear process strategy

Documented and submitted Draft 0 Version of the Strategic Plan

Develop an Action Plan

Communicate Strategic Plan to internal and external customers

Develop Capacity Building Plan having identified capacity gaps

Institute a planning and programming system within a program planning cycle

• ECOWAS Commission Agenda

• Mission

• Core Values

• Environmental Scan

• Strategic Framework

• Implementation Strategy

• Identify Short Term, Medium to Long term planning issues

• Integrate into a multi-year budgetary framework

• Develop a capacity building plan

• Monitoring and Evaluation System

• Supportive ICT infrastructure

• Implementation Review Reports

• Midyear Execution Report

• President’s Annual Review Reports

Activities

Details• Set up

different Stakeholder Forums

Pyramid of Success

VISION

MISSION

STRATEGY

CAPABILITIES

ARCHITECTURE

How should we structure our capabilities to realize value and work efficiently as an organization?Our capabilities can be structured into 3 key sub-architectures: Processes, Technology and Organization

Where are we going?A borderless, peaceful, prosperous and cohesive region, built on good governance, and where people have the capacity to access and harness its enormous resources through the creation of opportunities for sustainable development and environmental preservation.

What are we here to do?Coordinate all activities leading to the promotion of cooperation and integration among member states in order to raise the living standards of its people, by enhancing their capacity to access and harness resources, maintain political and economic stability, through the pursuance of sound economic management and good governance, and adopting dialogue as a means of fostering relations among member states.

How are we going to achieve this?...What plan should we follow?...How do we know when we have met our goals?...How do we keep on track?

Good Governance

Processes

Good Governance

Institutions

Technology

Facilities

Funding

Organization

Culture

People

How do we do this?The methods and tools necessary to achieve our mission. It involves preparing the best way to respond to the circumstances of the organization's environment, whether or not these circumstances are known in advance

Pyramid of Translation

PROGRAMS /PROJECTS

FINANCE (management)

PEOPLE MGMT SYSTEM

ICT FACILITIES CULTURE

PROCESS MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

FINANCE (mobilization of resources)

ECOWAS VISIONSTART POINT of Delivery to ECOWAS Citizen

END POINT of Delivery to ECOWAS Citizen

A process management system defines how a business operates and the way in which it delivers value to both to its internal and external customers.Processes involve both manual and automated activities, and integrating these activities into a seamless and harmonious flow provides process excellence and competitive/cost cutting advantages.

CON

TROL SYSTEM

(Components – M

&E, AU

DIT, ICT etc.)

Business Rules/Authority Limits/

Operations Manual

Having defined the vision, finances must be sourced in-house and through external channels to translate the vision into reality.

These are key drivers of an effective process management system as they continuously ensure that the right people occupy the right positions, and they possess the right tools to carry out their duties.

There is a need to ensure that only viable programs/projects (aligned to the vision) are embarked upon, internal resources are properly directed for effective implementation, and resources are properly managed to ensure program/project sustenance over time.

Programs/projects can only be successfully delivered to ECOWAS citizens within an established program management framework.

Ownership/Responsibilities

Business Process Manual

Reports

DataForms

Key Performance Indicators

Automation Support

Managing the financial resources for the programs and projects

ECOWAS CITIZENS

Our Role in the Implementation of the Strategic Plan