Policy and administrative reform

The project will support policy and administrative reforms through four avenues: (1) studies and analyses of priority economic and administrative issues; (2) fora for public and public-private dialogue; (3) the development of strategic plans for implementing policy reforms; and (4) training of public and private sector personnel. The project will support, either through direct TA or a grant mechanism, 10 studies of priority economic issues, and 20 studies of priority administrative issues. Areas of study will include public finance reform, the operations of key ministries (e.g., the Ministry of Economy and Finance), reform of the foreign trade regime, financial management and accountability, public enterprise reform, tax and customs administration, civil service efficiency, decentralization, economic equity, and land tenure and reform. The project will have two phases; during Phase I, studies will be more exploratory in nature, e.g., data gathering, feasibility analysis, etc.; studies in Phase II will be of more focused and implementation-oriented, based on the results of Phase I. The results of the studies will be reviewed in 25 seminars and roundtables bringing together staff of involved ministries, as well as representatives of various professional associations and interest groups (e.g., the Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Agricultural Producers), to discuss government priorities and analyze possible reforms. A key output will be the development of 5 strategic implementation plans for policy and administrative reform. To some extent, the planning process will include analysis of the structure and operations of the Executive Branch itself. To support implementation of these reform plans, the project will provide training for 400 persons, mostly from the public sector. Training will be in the form of in-country, U.S., or third- country short courses or study tours, addressing topics such as financial management, personnel management, and economic analysis. In the private sector, training will focus on strengthening the capabilities of local consulting firms in these same skills.