Scaling Up the Fight Against Rural Poverty - FIDAfrique
Scaling Up the Fight Against Rural Poverty - FIDAfrique
Scaling Up the Fight Against Rural Poverty - FIDAfrique
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facilitating management for results. 25 COSOPs are documents in which IFAD reflects on <strong>the</strong> various<br />
instruments which it can apply in order to support a country program: investment projects, country<br />
dialogue, knowledge sharing, policy reform efforts, and partnerships with o<strong>the</strong>r actors. COSOPs are in<br />
principle <strong>the</strong> principal documents in which IFAD would explore <strong>the</strong> pathways for scaling up and how<br />
<strong>the</strong>se instruments can be used to support a scaling up agenda. This section <strong>the</strong>refore reviews <strong>the</strong><br />
approach to COSOPs in some depth.<br />
1. The COSOP document<br />
A set of guidelines approved by <strong>the</strong> Executive Board on September 13, 2006 (as a living document<br />
subject to improvements in lights in light of experience), lays out <strong>the</strong> current format and processes for<br />
Results Based Country Strategic Opportunities Programme (COSOP). (IFAD 2006a) Since <strong>the</strong><br />
approval of <strong>the</strong>se guideline,s i.e. between April 2007 and September 2010, a total of 37 Results Based<br />
COSOPs were prepared and submitted to IFAD executive Board for review.<br />
Compared to earlier guidelines, a key innovation of <strong>the</strong> 2006 is a focus on results and hence on <strong>the</strong><br />
results management matrix. Ano<strong>the</strong>r objective of <strong>the</strong> 2006 guidelines was to make COSOPs more of<br />
an instrument for management, learning and accountability. A fur<strong>the</strong>r intention was to pay more<br />
attention to <strong>the</strong> national policy environment and <strong>the</strong> actions of o<strong>the</strong>r donors, potentially elements of a<br />
scaling up approach, but not explicitly introduced as such.<br />
COSOPs are now also <strong>the</strong> internal clearance instrument for new projects. An obligatory appendix<br />
contains a “Project Pipeline”, which provides details on projects to be implemented during <strong>the</strong> COSOP<br />
period. Projects included in <strong>the</strong> project pipeline attached to <strong>the</strong> COSOP do not need a separate OSC<br />
(Operational Strategy and Policy Guidance Committee) review process.<br />
2. The COSOP process<br />
COSOP guidelines lay out <strong>the</strong> preparation process, annual reviews and evaluations of <strong>the</strong> COSOPs<br />
with eight separate steps for COSOP formulation and six steps for COSOP implementation. Specific<br />
guidelines have also been developed for <strong>the</strong> COSOP Quality Review Process. (IFAD, 2008)<br />
There appear to be significant divergences among regions and CPMs in <strong>the</strong> importance <strong>the</strong>y attach to<br />
<strong>the</strong> COSOP. For some COSOPs CPMs and regional directors spend little time and resources. For<br />
o<strong>the</strong>rs, substantially more time and resources are invested. Preparation costs in <strong>the</strong> COSOP guidelines<br />
are estimated at about US$ 45,000. (IFAD 2006a, Appendix XII, page 60) Some CPMs stated that <strong>the</strong>y<br />
have spent as little as US$20,000, but o<strong>the</strong>rs have spent more than <strong>the</strong> amount estimated in <strong>the</strong> 2006<br />
guidelines.<br />
Country Program Management Teams (CPMTs) are expected to play a crucial role in COSOP<br />
preparation and monitoring. Here again, <strong>the</strong> practices vary widely. Some CPMs employ <strong>the</strong> prescribed<br />
processes to build country teams, seek engagement of <strong>the</strong> counterparts and stakeholders in <strong>the</strong> country.<br />
They use <strong>the</strong>se processes not only for COSOP preparation but also as a platform for later consensus<br />
building for different IFAD interventions. The elaborate processes followed for <strong>the</strong> preparation of <strong>the</strong><br />
Vietnam COSOP serves as one example. O<strong>the</strong>r CPMs hardly involve CPMTs.<br />
3. The role of COSOPs<br />
25 Most COSOPs cover a seven-year period. Not all countries do need to prepare COSOPs. For countries with<br />
minimal PBAS allocations or countries with a small country programme no COSOP needs to be prepared. This<br />
applies to about 30 percent of IFAD projects that are thus exempted from COSOP requirements.<br />
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