Tournament Approaches to Policy Reform: Making Development Assistance More Effective

Appendix C: Anatomy of a PIJC Application

325 What would the project design of a full-fledged PIJC application look like? This appendix describes the methodology and work plan for the Morocco case study described in section 4.2.3. This text draws from a field guide prepared by IRIS, a think tank at the University Maryland, for UNIDO and was drafted for an implementation proposal for the U.S. State Department’s Middle East Partnership Initiative, to which UNIDO planned to contribute substantial technical assistance in kind. The reader may therefore interpret “donor” for MEPI and UNIDO, and “implementer” for IRIS.1 Project Start-Up Upon receipt of project award, the international consultant project team (referred to hereafterastheProjectTeam)wouldimmediatelycommencethefollowingactivities. Set Up the Project Implementation Unit Aided by the Center for Regional Investment (CRI) and other local experts, the staff of the project implementation unit (PIU) will be recruited and trained.2 The Anatomy of a PIJC Application C APPENDIX 1. Meagher and Zinnes (2004) provide a detailed step-by-step field guide, complete with focus group and other protocols, for implementing the PIJC described in this appendix. 2. PIUs now are regarded as undesirable, as illustrated by a target in the Paris Declaration agenda that specificallypostulatesareductioninthenumberofPIUs(Linn2008,privatecommunication).However, this view is principally held for the case where they are free-standing entities. In the case of Morocco, the PIU was firmly within and collaborating with the rest of the investment promotion bureau (CRI) and, as such, its objective was closely aligned to that of the government agency within which it was situated. 11601-10_AppC-rev.qxd 5/4/09 11:38 AM Page 325 PIU would be a small team of Moroccan professionals and support staff. It would be responsible to the Project Team for managing and ensuring implementation of all phases of the project on an ongoing basis, including supporting and working with the Project Team home office, visitors from the Project Team, the steering committee, and all participating communes. The PIU will also coordinate the work of Moroccan expert teams during focus group sessions, surveys, convocations, and technical assistance workshops. The PIU will be housed in and supported by the CRI located in Safi, which would provide office facilities as well as personnel. This is a natural partnership in that it provides the most appropriate location and support for the project while building on the strengths of the CRI, which is mandated to facilitate business start-up and operations. Develop Detailed Project Schedule The proposal work plan and schedule to implement the project will be further refined by the Project Team and its partners at the start of the project. Convene Steering Committee As the senior decisionmaking body of the project, the steering committee will be convened to approve the work plan and schedule. This committee comprises the CRI director, directors of each partner organization, the Project Team’s project director, the UNIDO Investment Promotion Office director for Morocco, as well as several senior government officials. The steering committee brings together relevant leaders and experts from both government and civil society and ensures the necessary legitimacy as well as in-depth country guidance and support to the project. The steering committee would meet on a quarterly basis to review progress and would be available for consultation as needed. Preparation for the Tournament For tournament incentives to function properly, key issues of the design, including the choice of tournament tasks, and the nature and structure of rewards, as well as the logistical and procedural rules of the game, must be developed with care. While much of the hard design work was carried out during the UNIDO-sponsored phase of project conception, these insights need to be fine-tuned and drafted into tournament documents and implementation procedures. It is important to understand that all aspects and procedures of the tournament must be clearly stated to participants in advance to establish the right incentives and legitimacy of the enterprise. Tournament Documents The main document to be prepared is the tournament rule booklet. In addition to containing the steps and procedures of the “game,” this document will describe 326 appendix c 11601-10_AppC-rev.qxd 5/4/09 11:38 AM Page 326 the menu of tasks from which the communes may select, the types of technical assistance available during the tournament in support of the reforms they select, and the types of rewards that winners, runners up, and placers will receive. The rule booklet...