Project assistance completion report : resources for industrial development project (REDI), project no. 596-0128

By helping ICAITI develop several new systems and strengthen existing ones, the project has developed ICAITI as a center of excellence. ICAITI now has firm leadership, an improved organizational structure, improved methods of resource allocation, and a solid menu of services. ICAITI has become a more aggressive institution with the administrative and technical capabilities to achieve self-sufficiency. Financial sustainability, however, will take time to achieve. Specific project achievements include: (1) preparation of a 5-year institutional plan and of a market assessment; (2) development of important linkages with U.S. and Canadian institutions, ensuring that ICAITI's technological know-how is up-to-date and that Central American industry has access to high-level technical backstopping; (3) establishment of a Private Sector Advisory Committee, the existence of which ensures that ICAITI's programs address industry's most pressing needs, and which strengthens in particular the Total Quality Management Program which ICAITI operates in each Central American country; and (4) improvement of administrative and financial systems, which has led to important cost-cutting actions. Project training included courses for all ICAITI staff to reinforce the administrative, organizational, and technical changes occurring under the project, and establishment of a permanent career development program, designed to motivate employees to obtain the training they need for advancement. The following lessons were learned. (1) Institutional improvements require a strong internal authority structure; ICAITI went through a period of uncertainty and infighting because it lacked a confirmed director. Once the Director was confirmed, the project gained momentum and institutional improvements began to occur. (2) Long-established habits in a quasi-governmental institution are difficult to change. Success in this area requires a clear understanding of project objectives and the complete participation of all the organization's personnel. (3) The project faced some problems because it employed weak indicators of project success. Institution-building projects should employ indicators that inspire human drive, competition, and collaboration in achieving project objectives.