What?

How?

1. Capacity development at core of sector and thematic development

1.1 Focus on capacity development as a critical factor within the mainstream of sector  and thematic development

·       Mandate a multi-stakeholder working group on capacity development (CD)

·       Consider a long-term perspective aimed at sustainability

·       Define actionable capacity development objectives

·       Integrate CD objectives into mainstream sector plans

·       Allocate adequate and reliable funding

2. Systemic factors that enable or undermine CD

2.1  Identify the systemic issues that undermine capacity development and agree on joint action to address them

·       Identify the systemic factors that enable or undermine CD

·       Establish clear priorities for addressing them

·       Support leaders and champions for a CD agenda

·       Agree on collective action to overcome systemic constraints

2.2  Reform incentive systems for better acquisition, use and retention of capacities

·       Rationalize domestically systems of Human Resource Management

·       Manage schemes of selective motivations transparently

·       Regulate incentive schemes by external partners coherently

·       Address labour migration, support brain retention and brain gain strategies

2.3  Promote effective participation in the development process and accountability to domestic constituencies

·       Reinforce the capacity of representative bodies to guide capacity development

·       Strengthen systems and rules that allow civil society actors to engage actively

·       Ensure transparency and access to high quality data and information

·       Motivate government agents to pay attention to perspectives of civil society

·       Set up voice and accountability mechanisms and access to recourse

2.4  Assess capacity and measure progress in CD in particular at country level with locally agreed measures

·       Jointly develop a realistic country based M&E framework and indicators

·       Make CD a results area in sector, thematic and national programmes

·       Support country agents to lead assessments and carry out analysis

·       Invest more in establishing evidence for sustainable development results

2.5  Strengthen country aid management with a view to improving the quality of aid relationships and contribution to effective development

·       Strengthen aid management systems and processes

·       Improve the quality and integrity of aid relationships and synergies

·       Allocate adequate resources to manage systems and align donors

·       Seek effective ways of moving away from money driven relationships

·       Agree on evidence based, independent monitoring of CD efforts

·       Consider and independent country mechanisms for recourse and mediation

3. Relevance, quality and choice of CD support (including Technical Cooperation)

3.1  Ensure “good fit” approaches to support CD and better deployment of existing capacity assets

·       Agree on processes to identify existing assets as basis for supporting CD

·       Ensure that CD support is monitored within mainstream results frameworks

·       Use project implementation units only where stakeholders agree that their use is justified

·       Negotiate collective rules to guide the use of TC funds in the country

·       Make locally tailored use of South-South and North-South-South cooperation

·       Make results framework suitable for long-term, systemic change processes

·       Make donor systems conducive to draw on local support services

3.2 Establish professional standards and accountability for CD support including technical cooperation to ensure technical rigour and systematic use of state-of- the-art approaches. 

·       Agree on common quality standards for CD support (including TC)

·       Ensure synergies between individual, organizational and systemic efforts

·       Explore country accreditation for CD service providers

·       Ensure CD is rewarded and bad performance is sanctioned

·       Use a gender sensitive approach and involve women as agents of change

·       Explore ways to establish international professional standards for CD support

·       Development agencies ensure good practice and quality support

3.3  Ensure real choice of suppliers for CD services, including through South-South, N-S-S cooperation

·       Agree on ways to optimize choice of support services

·       As rule, choice of CD support should include South-South cooperation

·       Strengthen local and regional agents to provide CD support

·       Domestic decision and accountability to replace tying and conditionality

·       Donors simplify contractual relationships for Southern suppliers

4. Civil society and the private sector as agents for CD

4.1  Strengthen Civil Society and Private Sector Agents as important forces and service providers for capacity development

·       Make arrangements for participation of civil society including legal recognition

·       Agree on funding flows to strengthen Civil Society Organization capacities

·       Establish impartial mechanisms to manage funding to CSOs

·       Develop think tanks and CS service providers for CD

·       Agree on rules for working with civil society

·       Strengthen ability to engage with Aid for trade agenda

·       Supportive measures for private sector as long-term basis for CD

5. Situations of fragility as particular challenge for CD support

5.1  Conceive operations to achieve optimal capacity development impact in fragile situations and establish temporary mechanisms to remain accountable to stakeholders

·       Agree on priority state capabilities attuned to the respective phase

·       Establish temporary arrangements for coordination and accountability

·       Agree on gap filling while keeping CD objectives in mind

·       Start support aimed at CD earlier and sustain for longer periods.

·       Create a fertile interface for knowledge acquisition by domestic agents

·       Increased transparency in particular in resource rich countries

·       Invest in research and learning on how CD can meaningfully be supported

6. Concerted efforts to change operational practice

6.1 Engage at the country level in a concerted effort to translate what is known about effective support to CD into practice.

·       Form alliances of CD champions to spearhead a CD dialogue an agenda

·       Invest in broadening a common understanding and learning

·       Agree on specific planning and learning events focused on CD

·       Invest in local knowledge architecture

·       Donor agents should engage in learning with domestic stakeholders

6.2  Agree on a concerted international effort to broaden and deepen CD knowledge and to change operational practice in development cooperation

·       Establish a broad partnership to carry a concerted effort post Accra

·       Strengthen complementarities and synergies between CD initiatives

·       Broaden and deepen further the knowledge base on CD

·       Invest in open access CD knowledge increasing space for South-South learning

·       Pursue opportunities for learning and skill development on CD

6.3  Agree on a concerted effort for upgrading the capacity of donors and their agents to engage effectively in CD

·       Invest in an inclusive learning process for field staff (60% by 2010)

·       Agree on measures to increase effective use of country systems

·       Support action learning and innovative CD practices

·       Revisit TC policies and incentive systems

·       Involve emerging donors in dialogue and learning