Management Response

: Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (Thailand)
: 2010 - 2011 , Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (Thailand) (RO)
: Mid-Term Evaluation of the Integrated Programme for Women in Politics and Decision-Making (IPWPDM)
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: Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (Thailand)
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: Approved
Recommendation: UN Women will empower the Timor-Leste Office to function as a full Country Office, with delegated authority to manage the IPWPDM programme, make decisions and submit reports on behalf of the regional office and headquarters, and itself enforce the agency?s quality control procedures. The IPWPDM programme document will be updated to include the interventions for the 2012 national and 2013 municipal elections, as well as continued support to the women-led suco councils and the GRC. The evaluation has pointed out the need to delegate authority and make decisions to UN Women Timor-Leste due to the slow pace of programme implementation as caused by lengthy and time-consuming management system. The centralized structure of UNIFEM/UN Women and the perceived need to perform quality control over the affairs of the office by the regional office and headquartes that complicated the process more and thus contributed to the delays. The evaluation cited that there are inefficiencies in the centralized management system that increased the number of transactions that contributed to the inability of UNIFEM/UN Women Timor-Leste to deliver the expected results in a timely manner. It is likewise noted however, that the weaknesses demonstrated by some NGO implementing partners had likewise contributed to the lapses in project planning and operational delivery. Another factor that has been described as a cause for delay are the flaws in the programme design including the operational challenge in the time frames of the projects and the unavailability of funds including different funding modalities that have to be followed.
Management Response: UN Women is partly in agreement with the recommendation. Whilst there were operational delays due to the layers of response or approval from the UNIFEM/UN Women regional office in Bangkok and headquarters in New York, some new systems and procedures were gradually put in place with the necessary accompanying guidelines to meet deadlines and thus obtain approval for implementation. In 2009, the UNIFEM/UN Women Office in Timor-Leste, was in transition to include decentralization of certain functions that started with the gradual phasing-in of a senior-level head of office, from Country Programme Manager (from Programme Coordinator to Country Coordinator) and later to a Country Representative in 2011. Following this change, there were some aspects of management that were gradually delegated to the country office. In addition, delays in reporting are not solely due to the lack of delegation of decision making authority of the Country Office. It is also partially due to the lack of systems in place for tracking of donor reporting and submission of the same for clearance to Regional Office. In line with the interventions required for the 2012 national (presidential and legislative) and the 2013 municipal elections, the UN Women Timor-Leste country team will take the responsibility of reviewing and revising accordingly, the interventions that were already reflected in the IPWPDM programme document. On the basis of available programme funds, UN Women will continue to support the women representatives in suco councils and the Centre for Capacity Building and Information for Gender Equality or CEGEN (formerly the Gender Resource Centre/GRC).
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Not applicable
Operating Principles: Internal coordination and communication
Organizational Priorities: Not applicable, Culture of results/RBM
UNEG Criteria: Efficiency
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Put in place tracking systems to ensure timely submission of reports to donor UN Women Country Office (CO) 2012/12 Completed
2. Amend agreement with donors to include achievement of outputs towards the National Elections and Municipal Elections UN Women Country Office (CO) 2011/12 Completed
Recommendation: Gender-related interventions on the 2012 national elections and the 2013 municipal elections will form the components of a separate programme to be implemented by UNDP or UNEST, with technical support from UN Women. UN Women will continue to provide post-election support to the women-led suco councils and the GRC, using the unexpended portion of the IPWPDM programme funds. The evaluation has cited the need to respond to the national elections especially in view of the new quota system and lessons learned from the 2007 national elections and to closely collaborate with UNDP/UNEST on support to the electoral process. The programme design does not include any envisioned gender-related interventions prior, during and post-election for to the 2012-2013 proposed elections.
Management Response: UN Women is partly in agreement with the recommendation. The IPWPDM has mentioned support to the 2012 national elections and UN Women had collaborated with UNDP under its Suco Election Project and later with UNEST after it was created by UNDP since the 2004-2005 suco elections. This collaboration will continue under IPWPDM given available funding support from donors. UN Women is therefore not in agreement that support to the national election which has traditionally been provided by UN Women on enhancing women?s candidacy as well as voter education from a gender perspective should form a separate programme. On the basis of the IPWPDM targets until end of 2013, it will continue to support not just the women-led councils but to include women representatives in suco councils and GMPTL and male MPs through the centre at the National Parliament.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Advocacy
Organizational Priorities: Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Work in collaboration with UNEST in activities leading up to the National Election 2012 UN Women Country Office (CO) 2012/06 Completed
2. Provide support to women-led sucos to include other women representatives in suco councils based on lessons learned from the national elections and other community development interventions UN Women Country Office (CO) 2011/12 Completed
3. Conduct follow-up discussions with women MPs (members of GMPTL) in the implementation of their work plan following the 2012 legislative election. UN Women Country Office (CO) 2012/12 Completed
3. Conduct follow-up discussions with women MPs (members of GMPTL) in the implementation of their work plan following the 2012 legislative election. UN Women Country Office (CO) 2012/12 Completed
Recommendation: The contribution agreements on the programme and the remaining projects are not extended, and new funds are granted to UNDP or UNEST for them to continue the activities related to the GRC and the women-led suco councils. UNDP or UNEST will also be the implementer of the interventions related to the 2012 national and 2013 municipal elections. UN Women may continue to be the Technical Adviser on Gender for the successor programme. As already mentioned under strategic recommendations 2, the evaluation has cited the need to respond to the national elections especially in view of the new quota system and lessons learned from the 2007 national elections and to closely collaborate with UNDP/UNEST on support to the electoral process. The programme design does not include any envisioned intervention for the period covering 2007-2013.
Management Response: UN Women is not in agreement with the recommendation. Support to women?s leadership and decision making should continue to be channeled to UN Women. The collaboration with UNDP/UNEST, particularly with the remaining projects and newly-approved funds will continue as a component of IPWPDM. The project will be implemented in partnership with UNDP/UNEST?s implementing partners, the Electoral Management Bodies (EMBs) - STAE and CNE. UN Women will continue to provide technical support on the gender perspective to the electoral process.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Advocacy
Organizational Priorities: Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Develop project document on women in politics, identifying strategic interventions following the national elections UN Women Country Office (CO) 2012/12 No Longer Applicable
Recommendation: Support to the GRC Project should continue and should consider the changes to be brought about by the 2012 parliamentary elections and the effects on future state budgets due to the advocacies raised in the 2011 Human Development Report. The evaluation cited the average-to-high level of satisfaction of the women parliamentarians to the support extended to them through the programme in collaboration with UNDP. Noted were the active intervention by the women MPs in ensuring that the 2010 budget was gender responsive and their proactive participation in pursuing the necessary ground works for the drafting of the gender equality law (GEL) in 2009.
Management Response: UN Women is in agreement with the recommendation. In collaboration with UNDP, support to the women and men MPs through the Centre for Capacity Building and Information on Gender Equality or the CEGEN (formerly GRC) will continue beyond the approved 3-year joint initiative with UN Women and the National Parliament. Particularly at this time that the centre has been officially considered as an integral part of the Secretariat under the Directorate for Research and Technical Information following Organic Law 08, the Parliamentary and Service Act of the National Parliament. The IPWPDM programme in synergy with the GRB programme of UN Women, support to the 2012 parliamentary elections and the preparation of future state budgets will continue.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Advocacy
Organizational Priorities: Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Official transfer or handover of assets of the GRC to the Secretariat of the National Parliament; and UN Women CO and UNDP 2012/07 Completed
2. Provide technical assistance as needed and requested by the GMPTL and men MPs through the CEGEN including on CEDAW, review of laws on a gender perspective and GRB UN Women and UNDP 2015/12 Completed
Recommendation: Support to the suco councils should focus on the ten (10) women-led suco councils. Succeeding activities should address the needs expressed by the women suco chiefs and their councils during the course of this evaluation. These include suco-level and suco-specific training activities for all the council members, and assistance in the facilitation/liaison/follow-up of their project proposals on infrastructure and other basic facilities which were already submitted to the district administrators and national government offices. In general, the programme should assist these women-led suco councils in order for this model to succeed, and to publicly promote this model for later emulation by other women in the communities of Timor-Leste. The evaluation cited the large effort undertaken by the IPWPDM programme to increase the quota for women in the suco councils starting in the 2009 election. The programme has implemented thorough consultations and IEC activities in the districts with the new law. On enhancement of capacity of the women suco council representatives, there has been development on basic leadership skills (not yet the transformative) particularly in the area of public speaking. Personal confidence was also reported to have been built which could be due to the close support provided by partner NGOs.
Management Response: UN Women is in agreement with the recommendation. The activities, based on the needs as specified by the women suco chiefs/representatives on leadership and political participation will be implemented by Alola Foundation, Rede Feto (women?s network) with its women-NGO members, as well as the Forum ONG Timor-Leste (FONGTIL) or NGO Forum on community outreach as part of the UN Women-led component of the joint UN support to the 2012 electoral process in Timor-Leste, are all addressing the abovementioned recommendation. In addition to supporting women suco chiefs, it is also important to provide capacity building support to female aldeia chiefs and male suco chiefs who are potential gender advocates.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Provide technical support to partners in the timely implementation of project activities in support to the participation of women suco and aldeia chiefs and women representatives UN Women CO 2012/12 Completed
Recommendation: In the delivery of support services to the suco councils, the programme may explore a tie-up with The Asia Foundation or the Paz Y Desarrollo. The Asia Foundation is implementing a suco council-based Governance, Election and Civil Society (GECS) Project until September 2011. This project is being implemented in the districts of Bacau, Ainaro, Oecussi and Bobonaro, and is staffed by district coordinators and facilitators. It was reported that UN Women also has an agreement with Paz Y Desarollo along the same line of services. The evaluation has pointed out that the interventions for support to sucos has stopped when the UNDEF-supported project ended in 2010. The women suco chiefs and women representatives in suco councils have reported that they are being supported by international NGOs such as The Asia Foundation for capacity building, as well as GTZ and World Vision for their small infrastructure projects. There were women leaders who articulated that whilst they have participated in training sessions and learned additional knowledge organized by UN Women and its partner NGOs, they were not able to apply accordingly with their constituencies. Also, not all of the council members were able to attend the training that there are cases they are not able to get support from them.
Management Response: UN Women is in agreement with the recommendation. Collaboration with The Asia Foundation (TAF) had commenced in early 2009 to prepare for the October 2009 suco election districts. Through UN Women?s support to Rede Feto and its women-NGO members in the 4 districts covered by TAF, areas for joint implementation were initially identified to include: the assessment of performance of outgoing suco councils, selection of 24 facilitators and the facilitation of orientation meetings and community dialogue to prepare community development plans in the 4 districts. With Paz y Desarrollo (PyD), UN Women participates in the National Steering Committee for Women in Politics and attends its regular monthly meetings including national meetings that are organized with nationwide representation from national and local government officials, civil society, the religious sector, academia and the international community.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Governance and planning (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Impact
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Explore continued collaboration with TAF; and UN Women CO 2012/12 No Longer Applicable
2. Continue participation in PyD?s National Steering Committee for Women in Politics and explore possibilities for new joint projects and activities. UN Women CO 2012/12 Completed
Recommendation: The programme may also consider working through the UNEST network in the continuation of activities under the suco support project.
Management Response: UN Women is in agreement with the recommendation. Whilst UNIFEM/UN Women has started working with UNDP/UNEST during the 2007 presidential elections, collaboration in support to activities at the suco level will continue. Specific project activities under the IPWPDM programme in support to 2012 post-election activities will be discussed in further details with UNDP/UNEST and its network.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Governance and planning (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development
Organizational Priorities: Partnership
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Impact
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Explore collaboration with UNDP/UNEST in support to post-election activities in the sucos. UN Women CO 2013/12 No Longer Applicable
Recommendation: The current or new programme document should be revised based on the strategic and operational changes to be adopted for the programme. The results frameworks should be updated and a technical inception should be done. The evaluation cited that there are flaws in the programme design that are contributing to the challenges in implementation of IPWPDM. Unless improvements are made in the programme design, it will be difficult to arrive at a logical culmination of the results from the programme?s framework. There is also an operational challenge in the time frame of the projects vis-à-vis the programme, and the inadequacy of funds actually raised.
Management Response: UN Women is in agreement with the recommendation. On the basis of the rapid roll out brought about by the joint UN Support to the 2012 Electoral Process and the probable changes it would bring to the country?s governance and administrative structure given a new parliament, unfinished activities and unspent funds, necessary revisions will be made to the current IPWPDM programme document. Following most recent developments and additional funding received from Norway and approval of no cost extensions by AusAID and Irish Aid, there is a need to review and repackage collaboration with IPWPDM development partners. Revisions will consistently be aligned with the UN Women Global Strategic Plan, UNDAF, UN Women Country Strategy Note 2012-2013, and Timor-Leste?s Strategic Work Plan 2012-2013. A project document will be developed on women?s leadership and decision making, drawing on lessons learned, strategic areas of intervention, which will integrate a well-defined results framework with SMART outcomes, outputs and indicators.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Governance and planning (SPs before 2018), Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Advocacy, Not applicable
Organizational Priorities: Culture of results/RBM
UNEG Criteria: Sustainability, Efficiency, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
Develop project document on women in politics, identifying strategic interventions following the national elections Un Women CO 2012/12 Completed
Recommendation: Further donor support to the interventions should be granted through programme-level funding. This means that donor contributions ought to be based on the overall programme document and dedicated for the whole programme. The evaluation cited that donors? different funding modalities was apparently a problem in implementing the programme as designed because there are only two donors that provided omnibus funding for the whole programme whilst two other donors provided support to specific components of the programme. The timing of the funding commitments also created difficulties in programming as approvals were apparently based on the individual donor schedules. This resulted in disparate work plans for each approved project and cost-sharing agreement.
Management Response: UN Women is partly in agreement with the recommendation. Whilst the omnibus funding for overall programme would be ideal, with scarcity of funding support from donors, support to set activities as long as they are in line with the goals and objectives of the programme within the framework of the Timor-Leste CSN, may still be useful to consider.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Governance and planning (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Not applicable
Organizational Priorities: Not applicable
UNEG Criteria: Efficiency
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Develop project document on women in politics, identifying strategic interventions following the national elections for resource mobilization UN Women CO 2012/12 No Longer Applicable
2. Continue support to Caucus: Feto iha Politica through the programme?s activities in putting forward the women?s agenda particularly at the local level. UN Women CO 2012/12 No Longer Applicable
Recommendation: The women?s sector in Timor-Leste may continue to be involved in the programme, through involvement of Caucus: Iha Politica or Rede Feto in the Programme Steering Committee (PSC). The evaluation highlighted that the IPWPDM programme document stated that there will be a Programme Steering Committee (PSC) but the committee was not convened and made functional. This has created a gap on information and also participation in setting the directions for the programme that may have contributed to the inefficiencies causing the delays in action-taking and decision-making which were left unchecked. Caucus: Feto iha Politica did not appear to have been involved in the governance of the programme although they participated as NGO implementing partner in Manatuto district under the UNDEF project in support to the 2009 suco election.
Management Response: UN Women is partly in agreement with the recommendation. In the absence of a PSC, the women?s sector was continuously involved in the programme most particularly Rede Feto, as the main and only national women?s machinery for civil society organizations (CSOs) in the country with Caucus: Feto iha Politica as one of its member-NGO. The IPWPDM programme has in fact, extended organizational strengthening support to Caucus: Feto iha Politica as its management structure was very weak then. The setting up of this structure for the programme may no longer be needed as the programme is near completion.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Governance and planning (SPs before 2018), Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Not applicable
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Efficiency, Gender equality
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Ensure that the PSC is integrated into the development of the new project document for resource mobilization UN Women CO 2012/12 No Longer Applicable
Recommendation: When working with NGOs, clear criteria for the selection of NGOs that will undertake the project activities should be set in the programme plans and documents. The evaluation cited that NGOs that were engaged as implementing partners particularly in project activities at the suco level had competencies that are different from the project requirement. Only one NGO (Caucus: Feto iha Politica) has a core competency which in line to women in politics. It was also reported that some NGOs did other tasks which competed with project activities.
Management Response: UN Women is in agreement with the recommendation. It is important to review the existing criteria being used in the selection of implementing partners, with critical consideration on the NGOs? areas of specialization and management capacities to ensure successful implementation of IPWPDM projects and activities. It is evident that the UN Women had engaged almost the same set of NGO-partners given their background and track record or exposure to women or gender responsive projects but in most cases, with limited management capabilities including difficulties in preparing both narrative and financial project reports. This is with particular reference to pre-selected local NGO-partners that were identified by Rede Feto in the implementation of the UNDEF component of the programme which required close technical support and monitoring from the Secretariat of Rede Feto and guidance from the IPWPDM programme team of UNIFEM/UN Women.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018), Governance and planning (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Not applicable
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Review existing criteria in the selection of implementing partners including the assessment format and process being adopted UN Women CO 2012/12 No Longer Applicable
2. Invite prospective NGO partners for a briefing on UN Women?s requirements as part of the screening process. UN Women CO 2012/12 Completed
Recommendation: Engagement with the political parties will be a requirement for the 2012 national and 2013 municipal (and even the preparations for the 2014 suco council) elections. The evaluation cited that the IPWPDM programme has advocated for the adoption of a women?s policy platform by the political parties that were then participating in the 2007 parliamentary elections. A programme for capacity building of women candidates was also implemented and interactive discussions, meetings and seminars were also held for the women candidates to gain confidence. Activities were also done so that political parties will fill up the seats in the list which are reserved for women. Whilst there were engagements with political parties during the 2007 elections and on some post-election occasions, there were no records to show the involvement of political parties in knowledge-sharing about the programme.
Management Response: UN Women is partly in agreement with the recommendation. Engagement with political parties will continue particularly in support to the women?s wings and meetings with the leadership through its Secretary General. UN Women does not agree that there were no records to show the involvement of political parties in knowledge-sharing about the programme since there were reports and minutes of meetings prepared reflecting the follow-up activities that representatives of women?s wings from 12 out 14 registered political parties had conducted with their respective political parties. Through the core group of representatives from the women?s wings of parties, the Grupo Haforsa Feto Politika, Haburas Demokrasia no Unidade (HFPHDU) with a clear set of goals and objectives, the members were able to continue with their activities other party members, starting with the women members or women?s wing of each party.
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Description:
Management Response Category:
Thematic Area: Leadership and political participation (SPs before 2018)
Operating Principles: Capacity development, Not applicable
Organizational Priorities: Operational activities, Culture of results/RBM
UNEG Criteria: Effectiveness
Key Actions
Responsible Deadline Status Comments
1. Review the relevance and value of continuously providing support to the political parties through the women?s wings of wings of political parties UN Women CO 2012/12 Completed
2. To follow-up results of earlier discussions with political party leaders particularly on their suggestions and recommendations to increase and strengthen their support to women members of the party. UN women CO 2012/12 Completed