Regional Workshop for National Liaison Officers (NLOs) and AFRA National Coordinators (AFRA NCs) on Enhancing the Efficiency and Effectiveness of the IAEA Technical Cooperation Programme
10-14 January 2010, Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
This event of the utmost importance was scheduled as part of on-going effort to further improve the management of the Technical Cooperation (TC) programme in Africa (national and regional components) and to increase further the efficiency of IAEA deliverables and the effectiveness of IAEA supported activities at the national and regional levels. The Workshop covered relevant aspects related to the on-going TC Programme and to the preparations for the upcoming TC programming cycle for 2012-2013. These include strategic planning, programme formulation, project design, implementation arrangements and processes, monitoring and evaluation with a view to increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of programme delivery. The Workshop also addressed issues concerning TCDC partnerships and regional cooperation.
The Workshop had a three-fold objective:
1. Strengthening common understanding on and adherence to the key concepts of technical cooperation and the principles governing the management of the TC Programme and achieving conformance to the relevant policies, guidelines, operational modalities and procedural requirements of the IAEA TC mechanism;
2. Promoting open discussion and exchange of information and experiences among the participants with a view to drawing lessons, identifying and adopting best management practices;
3. Setting a solid base and achieving commitment for each Member State towards (i) the efficient implementation of the 2010 and 2011 components of the 2009-2011 TC Programme (national and regional projects); (ii) the development/early finalization of Country Programme Frameworks (CPFs) for those Member States with no valid CPF at present; and (iii) the required upstream work for the development of the 2012-2013 TC Programme.
The Workshop was attended by 50 NLOs and AFRA-NCs from 32 Member States (Algeria, Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Botswana, Central African Republic, Chad, Cameroon, Democratic Rep. of the Congo, Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mauritania, Mali, Malawi, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa Sudan, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, and Zimbabwe).
The Chair of AFRA, Dr. Augustin Simo (Cameroon) and the Chairs of the three AFRA Committees (Human Resources Development & Nuclear Knowledge Management (HLSC); Programme Management Committee (PMC); Partnership Building and Resource Mobilization Committee (PBMRC)) Dr. Edward Akaho (Ghana), Dr. Shaukat A. Abdulrazak (Kenya) and Dr. Abel Julian Rwendeire (Uganda) attended the Workshop.
The Workshop was conducted through a participatory and consultative approach. The discussions focussed on how best to improve the way the TC programme is managed with pro-active involvement of NLOs and AFRA NCs and to reach mutual agreement on concrete and measurable follow up actions in order to achieve a more efficient delivery of the programme and a more effective cooperation between the IAEA and Member States. The Workshop also contributed towards building a common understanding on relevant aspects related to the preparations for the upcoming TC programming cycle for 2012-2013.
It is expected that the tangible results of the Workshop reflected through the Plan of Action which was adopted by the NLOs and the AFRA NCs, will lead to improved management of the programme (national and regional components), higher efficiency of IAEA deliverables in 2010 and 2011 under the on-going TC projects and increased effectiveness of IAEA supported activities at the national and regional levels. The Workshop deliberations have also set a solid base for the required upstream work for the 2012-2013 TC programme cycle.
The final report of the Workshop and Plan of Action adopted by the NLOs and the AFRA NCs are attached.
Relevant Documents: