DISTRICT PARTNERSHIP POLICY AND REVIEW FRAMEWORK (DPPRF)

 

The Reform Support Unit (RSU), an integral part of the Education & Literacy Department, Govt. of Sindh, is providing the technical assistance under Sindh Education Reform Program (SERP)- based on the GoSindh approved Sector Strategy- for implementation of School Rehabilitation Program (SRP) with effect from FY 2006-07.  Hence the RSU works as a main institution of the E & L Department (Govt. of Sindh) to steer the sector reforms within donor coordinated environment for achieving sector objectives.

The DISTRICT PARTNERSHIP POLICY & REVIEW FRAMEWORK (DPPRF) is based on the following fundamental pillars of the Sector Strategy for District Partnerships, providing coverage under RSU Steering Committee ( headed by the Chief Secretary Sindh) approved Policy Instrument – the Terms of Partnership (TOP) agreement, to all prospective activities including the current ones in hand such as the School Rehabilitation Program, Distribution of Fee Text Books, Girls’ Stipends Delivery, Annual Schools Census under SEMIS, FMIS. The prospective activities of donors interested in avoiding duplication are expected to come within its purview in the foreseeable future. The European Commission’s grant assisted interventions have already been negotiated within this framework.

The cornerstone of the Sector Strategy for District Partnerships is based on District-Province Partnerships (DPPs) implemented through a negotiated Terms of Partnerships (TOP). The strategy however has broad scope of activities, which mainly provides for the following areas of activities:

 

  • DISTRICT PARTNERSHIPS (DPs) based on agreed Terms of Partnership (ToP) instrument, which provides for a built-in mechanism for regular consultation and dialogue with the partners/stakeholders for their increased ownership of the program activities as well as for achieving improved service delivery.
  • THE COVERAGE TO ALL CURRENT AND PROSPECTIVE ACTIVITIES BASED ON BUDGETARY SUPPORT OR OTHER MECHANISM to partner governments may fall within the scope of this policy instrument. The activities may be carried out by govt. or any other sector agency, including current/prospective donors - the WB, the EC and others, only after prior consultation for alignment in line with the donor coordination objectives  set out in the  Sector Strategy. During the FY 2006-07, Rs. 100 million conditional grant(education sector) as budgetary support WB DPC-I) was released to partner district governments as envisaged in the signed TOP agreement for the relevant year,  for implementation of the School Rehabilitation Program (SRP/SII) for provision of missing facilities.

 

  • SECTOR RESOURCE PLANNING & MANAGEMENT (SRPM)including SCHOOL INFRASTRUCTURE & QUALITY INVESTMENT PLANNING (SIQP) based on systematic, detailed analysis of available   SEMIS Database school profiles for identification of infrastructural gaps – shelter less schools, additional class room requirements and  missing facilities (electricity, water, boundary wall and toilets/lavatory blocks)- for further investment, to achieve ‘minimum functionality’ in terms of physical facilities, as well as proposing investments in the quality domain for better school environment, teaching and learning outcomes.
  • TEACHER RATIONALIZATION IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS (TRIPS) initiative provides for sharing of analysis on rationalized teacher deployments based on identified gaps. It also encourages partner governments to fix minimum availability of teachers at each school based on minimum student/teacher ratio. This should help in management of transfer-posting of teachers within rural-urban schools on a transparent policy basis. In the first year, an experimental analysis was shared with the partner governments to invite their serious attention to the pressing problem and seek their feedback for future policy action.

 

  • DISTRICT CAPACITY BUILDING(DBC) initiatives provides for  sharing technical information/ expertise and holding workshops, trainings and conferences on sector issues and challenges with government and donors’ support. EMIS Toolbox, a planning and decision making software, developed by USAid ESRA & RSU technical team is a case in point which is being considered for mainstreaming its use at district level. Under the EC funded initiatives, trainings are being planned for both provincial and district level officers and staff in the coming years.
  • DISTRICT DONOR COORDIANTION (DDC), in line with the Sector Strategy, provides scope for all interested donors including the World Bank, EC, and other prospective donors such as USAid, UNICEF, so on, to engage in consultation with the Department of Education/RSU to adapt and align their program interventions in line with the Sector objectives and challenges facing Govt. of Sindh in its mission to achieve sector specific Millennium Development Goals.  The initiative aims to aggregate all district interventions within the District Partnership Policy & Review Framework based on TOP instrument, and help align all donor funded district sector interventions, control duplication, facilitate exchange of information/expertise, help build capacity of district governments in their mission of effective service delivery, and make the partner governments/agencies accountable for their performance.

MONITORING & EVALUATION (M&E) envisages for effective governance as well as help partner governments in avoiding deviations and problems in program implementation. It also includes evaluation of funds utilizations in terms of performance goals. This framework also provides for District Performance Appraisal (DPA) Missions, on regular basis, for continuous dialogue with the partner governments/their agencies/nominated focal persons.  Third Party monitoring/Evaluation including sample Research Studies also fall within the scope of the major activity.

On the whole, this policy initiative aims for a broader consensus of the sector players in terms of aligned and donor coordinated interventions within the partner district governments in alignment with broad objectives of the Sector Strategy, in order to achieve effective utilization of resources – both government and donors’, ensuring improvement in system delivery and its procedures with accountability and transparency.