Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governance (KPG) Project Monthly Progress Report July 2016

The project was awarded to DAI in March 2015 with a budget of $22.6 million. The main purpose of KPG is to support transitional activities in the KP Province that reinforce stability, counter extremism, promote democratic advances, and create opportunities for gender equality and women's empowerment. The project is designed to achieve seven objectives outlined in the KP Government's Strategic Development Partnership Framework (SDPF). These objectives include economic growth and job creation, peace building and rule of law, tangible progress in pro-poor sectors, improved participation and bringing the state closer to the citizen, improved transparency and accountability, enhanced fiscal space for economic and social development, and gender equity. DAI will deliver KPG results by developing complementary packages of assistance that reinforce both the supply and demand side of governance, through four main instruments: grants under contract, programmatic short-term technical assistance, direct distribution of goods and services (DDGS), and training. During the month of July 2016, workplan activities continued at pace with a new grant initiated and proposals and ideas being further developed. Five of the six active grants approved by USAID continued to implement substantial workplan activities, including the grants 'Institutional Strengthening of Peshawar City District Government' (G-Pes-002), 'Improving Citizens Right to Information' (G-Pes-003), 'Enhancement of Development Projects Management System (DPMS) - KP Annual Development Plan (ADP) Management System' (G-Pes-004), 'Automated Information & Reporting System (AIRS) for Directorate of Information and Public Relation' (G-Pes-006), and 'Strengthening of the KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority' (G-Pes-007). The sixth grant 'Bridging Gaps between Citizens and State' (G-Pes-008) is about to start. The obligated amount to project activities exceeded $1,000,000 by early August 2016, and KPG expects this figure to rise further in the months ahead given the number of concepts and proposals in the pipeline that are expected to materialize as grants. Highlights from this reporting period of the project include the following: the Institutional Strengthening of Peshawar City District Government (G-Pes-002) project is now being closed after receiving approval for all three reports submitted to LGE&RDD in June 2016; the Improving Citizens Right to Information (G-Pes-003) project has completed complaint tracking system testing and customization of software, and training for Public Information Officers (PIO) was carried out on the Right to Information Act 2013 and Roles and Responsibilities of PIOs. The Enhancement of Development Projects Management System (DPMS) - KP Annual Development Plan (ADP) Management System (G-Pes-004) project has completed the System Requirement Specification (second deliverable) and submitted it to the Planning and Development Department for approval. The Support of Automated Information & Reporting System (AIRS) for Directorate of Information and Public Relation (G-PES-006) project has conducted a pre-deployment assessment, and the report is awaited. The Strengthening of the KP Provincial Disaster Management Authority (G-Pes-007) project has completed documents and literature review and analyses, and an instrument for key informant interviews and Focused Group Discussion (FGD) has been developed. The Bridging Gaps between Citizens and State (G-Pes-008) grant has been awarded, staff mobilized, and provided project orientation. Numerous stakeholder consultations and meetings were held to discuss new concepts and proposals. The security situation in terms of terrorism remained comparatively calm, with no major incidents reported across the region. However, target killings of high-profile dignitaries and policemen are on the rise, and many lost their lives in violent incidents. The latest situation on the Torkham border, the killing of an army officer, and injuries of Pakistan citizens have escalated tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.