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LuxDev, Luxembourg Development Cooperation Agency

• 2020
• • 18 August
  • By Siphachanh THYTHAVY
  • 
  • Asia Office LAO/033
  • Governance
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  LAOS - Ministry of Planning and Investment launches Website

  The Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has launched a new website on 14th August 2020. The launching ceremony was chaired by Mr. Sonsai Siphandone, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Planning and Investment, accompanied by Vice Minsters, former leaders, Director Generals, and other relevant parties. 

  The opening of the ministry’s official website (www.mpi.gov.la) provides a platform for official planning and investment related information for the public

  

  

  The website was created based on the government’s common G-web platform with the technical support from the E-government Department, Ministry of Post and Telecommunications and with financial support from Project LAO/033, titled ‘Strengthening the Effectiveness of ODA Management in Lao PDR’.

  

  Previously, MPI did not have a modern website that highlighted the Department of International Cooperation and its function. A web-page is a necessary channel for communicating on the country’s development plans and for circulating national policies, strategic documents including the National Socio-Economic Development Plan (NSEDP) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to various actors, including civil society, the private sector as well as the general public. The website is a part of the process of enhancing transparency surrounding the NSEDP and Official Development Assistance.

   

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• • 27 July
  • By Vjosa Morina
  • 
  • KSV/019
  • Governance
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  KOSOVO - Human Capacity Development Facility (HCDF) activities during the months of global uncertainty

  Regardless the difficulties caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, with the new measures in place, some activities continued and some started being implemented on the different Acquis Chapters and horizontal measures that HCDF covers. Those chapters are the Freedom of Establishment, Food and Veterinary and the horizontal measure on Public Administration Reform.

  On Freedom of Establishment chapter, a technical assistance was provided to the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST) in the field of Regulated Professions. This expertise serves as the grounds of MEST’s work on finalizing the sub-legal acts foreseen in the law and in taking all actions and measures to begin full implementation of the Law on Regulated Professions.

  On Food and Veterinary chapter, trainings were provided to the Food and Veterinary Agency including veterinary inspectors, border veterinary inspectors and contracted veterinarians on five different regions of Kosovo. These 5 trainings were held focusing on the importance of enforcing the regulation on animal identification and registration at the levels of premise/farm, livestock markets, slaughterhouses and livestock transport. The trainings started their implementation in March but due to the pandemic they had to stop and start again in June.

  Whereas, for the Public Administration Reform, two expertise and a training were provided to the Ministry of Finance to enhance the capacities of Public Finance Management Coordination Group to draft the Public Finance Management Reform Strategy. These interventions will assure the timely and a qualitative reporting system on Public Finance Management implementation.

  

  ↑ To the top
• • 27 July
  • By Siphachanh THYTHAVY
  • 
  • Asia Office LAO/033
  • Governance
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  Workshop Strengthens Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Anti-Corruption Efforts

  Through Project LAO/033, the Lao government is continuing to develop capacity among officials from the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) through a two-day anti-corruption workshop, with a focus on the dangers of unethical practices and criminal behaviour in the country.

  Deputy Director General of the Department of Inspection of MPI, Mr Phouxay Phetsikham, who is also Vice President of the Ministry’s Inspection Committee, attended the anti-corruption workshop held in Vientiane from 21-22 July 2020. During the training, participants shared national and regional experiences in tackling corruption complaints. The meeting helped MPI officials to acknowledge their role and responsibilities towards fighting corruption.

  

  The workshop took place under the framework of the cooperation programme between the Lao and Luxembourgish governments to build the capacity of the country’s planning and investment officials. Specifically, the project is titled LAO/033 - Strengthening the Effectiveness of Official Development Assistance (ODA) Management in Lao PDR.

  Speaking at the opening ceremony, Mr Phouxay stated that the government was placing utmost importance on carrying out inspections and monitoring expenditure, which is a key part of its anti-corruption operations.

  

  

  “The meeting is important for improving the knowledge and experience of the officials who undertake inspections, namely those from the Ministry of Planning and Investment,” he said. Corruption causes great loss to the state and individuals while hindering and delaying the socio-economic development of a country, according to the Ministry’s Inspection Committee. Corruption means the act of an official who opportunistically misuses their position, powers, or duties to embezzle, swindle or receive bribes or any other type of reward. The Lao government is aiming to improve its capacities, both in terms of legislation and human resources, to continue its fight against corruption.

  The government is continuing to improve the legislation to combat corruption, via the Law on Anti-Corruption and the establishment of state inspection authorities at all administrative levels and sectors, while enacting the Law on Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing, the Law on Extradition, and the amended Penal Code.

  Laos signed the United Nations Convention against Corruption on December 10, 2003, and ratified it on September 25, 2009, alongside 186 State Parties, according to the State Inspection and Anti-Corruption Authority.

   

   

   

   

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• • 2 July
  • By Siphachanh THYTHAVY
  • 
  • Asia Office LAO/033
  • Governance
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  LAOS - Rendering Official development assistance (ODA) coordination and management more effective

  On 23 June 2020, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) officially launched the new ODA mobilisation strategy 2030. The promulgation ceremony took place in Vientiane Capital and was chaired by Dr. Kikeo Chanthaboury, Deputy Minister of MPI and co-chaired by Mr. Sam Schreiner, Chargé d´Affaires of the Embassy of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in Vientiane. The development of the ODA Strategy is part of the ongoing support provided by the Government of Luxembourg under the project LAO/033 - Strengthening the Effectiveness of ODA Management in the LAO PDR, which aims to increase the effectiveness of Lao key agencies in managing and coordinating ODA.

  

  While there have been many achievements over the last years, there is still a need to continue improving development cooperation effectiveness in Lao PDR, to improve the effectiveness of the national Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Secretariat and strengthening MPI’s Department of International Cooperation’s capacity to manage ODA effectively as well as to further improve working practices with national and international stakeholders. 

  In order to manage ODA more effectively, there is a need to clarify the regulatory framework around ODA and to develop a comprehensive ODA mobilization strategy. Coordination with other actors, particularly the line ministries, provinces and the development partners needs to be strengthened.

  The recent Mid-Term Review of the Lao PDR’s 8th National Socio-economic Development Plan (NSEDP) showed that, with the least-developed country (LDC) graduation expected by 2024, ODA will likely be declining in the next years. Therefore, it is even more important to adapt this new development context and to use ODA resources effectively.

  For ODA to be a more effective resource for the implementation of the NSEDP and the SDGs, the key Lao agencies in charge of managing and coordinating ODA in the Lao PDR need to be able to carry out that role effectively.

  Having more effective ODA financing for the implementation of the national development plan and the achievement of SDGs will naturally benefit the entire population of Laos, and in particular the poor.

  The Lao government recognises the past difficulties of aligning development planning and financing. In the next cycle of the NSEDP, the government is committed to ensure that funding allocation is timely and aligned with the country’s overall development priorities.

  Reflecting all ODA financed interventions in the national budgets is not only contributing to enhanced transparency, but also supports harmonisation of planning and financing. Ensuring public funding contribution provided by the government in ODA interventions will in turn cater for greater commitment of the Government and improved sustainability.

  

  Developing an ODA Strategy will provide a vision and priorities for Department of International Cooperation (DIC) in terms of ODA management and coordination. Additionally, it will provide clarity on aspects such as ODA mobilisation, harmonisation of planning and financing, reflecting ODA in the budget, national funding for ODA interventions, among others.

  At the event, Mr. Sam Schreiner also informed the participants, that the Embassy of Luxembourg to Lao PDR has officially launched the identification mission for the next Lao-Luxembourg medium-term development cooperation strategy, the Indicative Cooperation Programme V (ICP V). The next ICP seeks to deepen and strengthen the existing priorities of the Laos-Luxembourg development cooperation by further strengthening alignment with the SDGs and the Agenda 2030, as well as with the next NSEDP, in order to contribute to the overall goal of alleviating extreme poverty.

   

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• • 15 June
  • By Johnson Ong Chee Bin & Nguyen Thi My Ngoc
  • 
  • Asia Office LAO/031
  • Governance
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  LAOS - Assessor training workshop for programme assessment at the Faculty of Law and Political Science, National University of Laos

  First Ever Assessor Training via Online Facilitation

  The 3.5-day Assessor Training Workshop for Programme Assessment (Online) was held from 2 - 5 June 2020 and was jointly organised and hosted by Project LAO/031 - Support Programme for Legal Teaching and Training and to the Promotion of the Rule of Law Concept in Lao and the Faculty of Law and Political Science (FLP), National University of Laos (NUoL). This forms part of the objective to uplift the quality of legal education in Lao PDR to ASEAN standards, based on the Quality Assurance Framework of the AUN-QA Network.

  In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the workshop was held at Donnokkhoum Campus with strict observation of social distancing and wearing of personal protective equipment (such as face shields and face masks) coupled with online facilitation platform.  The workshop was presented by Mr. Johnson Ong Chee Bin, International Curriculum Development Specialist and Dr. Nguyen Thi My Ngoc, Regional Curriculum Development and Quality Specialist with Dr. Thanongsack Duangdala as the interpreter. It is the first ever assessor training held via online facilitation.

  Online Facilitation with Social Distancing Measures

  

  The Workshop Facilitators

  Experiential Assessor Training

  To equip participants with the strategic competencies to carry out quality assessment of study programmes based on the AUN-QA programme framework, the training workshop was designed to give the participants a hands-on experience following the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, with the key areas of training focusing on strategic competencies in desktop assessment, interviewing techniques, document reviews, and assessment report writing.

  Participant Presenting and Sharing the Desktop Assessment

  Stakeholder’s Interview - Role Play

  The expected learning outcomes of the workshop encompassed:

  • the principles of quality assessment;
  • distinguishing between rules-based and principles-based quality assessment;
  • demonstrating the competences to carry out the PDCA approach to study programme assessment; formulating questions;
  • conducting desktop assessment for a study programme;
  • conducting site assessment including stakeholders’ interviews, site tour and documentation review; and
  • writing quality assessment feedback and report.

  The workshop was graced and opened by the Vice Dean, Assoc. Prof. Bounthieng Phommachanh, with the active participation of 30 participants and 11 observers including the Dean, Vice-Deans, heads and faculty members and staff of administrative offices from the FLP and NUOL. 

  Group Photo

  Recommendations for Further Improvements

  During the workshop, some key issues were raised by the participants and the project experts, including the need to review and update the current vision and mission of the faculty to keep in alignment with NUoL and with the future timeframe beyond 2020. The elements of the vision, mission and educational philosophy are to be better aligned to the expected learning outcomes (ELOs) of the study programme. The definition of the category of knowledge, application, and skills for the ELOs need to be made clearer to ensure that there is no overlap and ambiguity between them. Besides, the faculty needs to have a policy to determine full-time equivalent (FTE) of academic staff so that the manpower resources needed for each study programme can be accurately accounted for. Tracer studies for graduates and benchmarking of outputs (pass rates, drop-out rates, employability, average time to graduate, research, stakeholder’s satisfaction) within and outside FLP need to be carried out in seeking best practices for continuous improvement.

  On the final day of the training, the workshop ended with an encouraging closing speech by the Dean of FLP, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Viengvilay Thiengchanxay, after the presentation of certificates.

  Building a Pool of Internal Quality Assessors

  With the completion of the assessor training, FLP and NUoL have nurtured a pool of internal quality assessors to carry out self-assessment of their study programmes within the university and faculty. This capacity development exercise strengthens and enhances the capability of FLP and NUOL in quality assurance.

  Dean of the FLP, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Viengvilay Thiengchanxay

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• • 12 June
  • By Siphachanh THYTHAVY
  • 
  • Asia Office LAO/033
  • Governance
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  LAOS - The upgrading of IT capacity and equipment reduces downtime and enhances productivity

  On 10th June 2020, Project LAO/033 – Strengthening the Effectiveness of ODA Management in Laos, handed over IT equipment to the Department of International Cooperation (DIC) and the Department of Inspection (DOI) of the Ministry of Planning and Investment as well as to the Department of International Organization (DIO) and the National Sustainable Development Goals Secretariat of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

  The upgrading of the IT systems and equipment is one of the priorities set out in the 2020 annual operational plan. This support is based on the findings and recommendations of the IT capacity assessment carried out jointly by LuxDev, DIC, DOI and SDG Secretariat in late 2019. The new IT equipment will enable DIC and the two other departments to better maintain their IT systems and to ensure the effective running of the iOffice system.

  

  The IT equipment handover ceremony is the culmination of a joint initiative from the end of 2019 and was attended by Sisomboun Ounavong, Director General Director of DIC, MPI, and various Director Generals and Deputy Director Generals from DIO and the SDG secretariat. Quentin Bourdeaux, LuxDev Resident Representative, had the honour of handing over the equipment.

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• • 26 May
  • By Vjosa Morina
  • 
  • Kosovo Office KSV/019
  • Governance
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  Kosovo - Gaining best practices from Croatia on credible financial reporting systems.

  During March, the main Kosovo bodies that work on drafting the legislation on financial reporting, accounting and auditing, were part of a study visit in Croatia, with the objective of gaining best practices on creating a credible financial reporting system and empowering public oversight structures of financial reporting and auditing. This activity falls under the “Company Law” Chapter of the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA) of Kosovo.

  
  Meeting with the Croatian Ministry of Finance

  Participants were able to learn more about Croatia’s practices in terms of organisation, implementation of international standards, capacity building in monitoring, regulating, licensing and drafting the annual register of financial reports and their use as a source of information for macro analysis at the national level. The information on the importance of financial statement in the investment sector will affect the orientation of state policies for investments in certain sectors. Furthermore, on the legal side, the participants will be able to contribute to the development of a methodology for quality supervision and control of audit firms and legal auditors, good practices and results of quality control, annual register and their publication.

  
  Meeting with the Croatian Financial Agency

  
  Meeting with the Croatian Ministry of Economy

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• • 28 April
  • By Claude Mauret
  • 
  • Niger Office NIG/027
  • Governance
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  NIGER – En route vers une amélioration de l’efficacité de l’utilisation des crédits budgétaires.

  Au Niger, une dépense de l’état, avant d’être exécutée/payée, est soumise à une « chaîne de la dépense » qui implique plusieurs « contrôles  a priori » conduits par différents services.

  Pour améliorer l’efficacité de l’utilisation des crédits budgétaires, il est donc important que les délais de traitement de chaque service soient les plus courts possible et que les cas de rejet de dossiers soient les moins fréquents possible également.

  Aussi, dans cette optique, le renforcement des capacités à  la fois des agents de cette chaîne et  des demandeurs  (services bénéficiaires des dépenses tels que l’ administration centrale ou déconcentrée, collectivités, établissements publics etc.) est un levier essentiel.

  En jouant sur ces deux tableaux, le renforcement des capacités des agents de la chaîne engendre une meilleure maîtrise des procédures et donc une accélération du traitement des dossiers tandis que le renforcement des capacités des demandeurs leur permet de présenter des dossiers plus complets et de meilleure qualité, diminuant ainsi le nombre de rejets de dossiers.

  C’est précisément ce qu’ambitionne le Projet d’appui au renforcement des capacités de la chaîne des dépenses publiques des régions de Agadez, Diffa, Tahoua et Zinder, NIG/027,

  Par ailleurs, le projet vise également à renforcer la communication entre les acteurs de la chaîne de la dépense, d’une part, et entre ces mêmes acteurs et les administrateurs de crédits, d’autre part.

  À la fin du projet, il est attendu que le fonctionnement et les processus de la chaîne de la dépense au niveau des régions d’Agadez, Diffa, Tahoua et Zinder ainsi que les conditions de travail des acteurs soient améliorés.

  La première réunion du comité de pilotage du projet s’est tenue le 24 janvier 2020 et a constitué le lancement officiel du projet. Depuis, les actions de recrutement d’un bureau pour effectuer un diagnostic des besoins en renforcement des acteurs de la chaîne de la dépense des quatre régions ont été lancées. De plus, actuellement, des architectes préparent un projet détaillé et des plans pour un futur complexe abritant l’ensemble des services financiers régionaux de la chaîne de la dépense au niveau de la ville de Zinder.

  Le Projet d’appui au renforcement des capacités de la chaîne des dépenses publiques des régions de Agadez, Diffa, Tahoua et Zinder, NIG/027, d’une durée de 24 mois bénéficie d’une contribution du Luxembourg à hauteur de 1 467 179 EUR et prévoit un appui aux services techniques déconcentrés du Ministère des finances, à savoir les Directions régionales du budget (DRB), les Trésoreries régionales (TR) et les Services régionaux de contrôle des marchés publics et des engagements financiers (SR/CMP/EF). 

  Maquette du bâtiment qui sera construit pour abriter les services régionaux de la chaine des dépenses publiques à Zinder

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• • 5 March
  • By Philip Pearce
  • 
  • Asia Office LAO/031
  • Governance
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  LAOS - E-Library at Faculty of Law and Political ScienceGreater access to electronic resources for the National University of Laos

  In a joint undertaking with the University of Luxembourg, the Support Programme for Legal Teaching and Training and to the Promotion of the Rule of Law Concept in Laos, Project LAO/031, has successfully worked with the Faculty of Law and Political Science (FLP) and the organisation Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL) to set up an initial electronic library (E-Library). As a result, faculty members and students connected to the FLP’s Wi-Fi – and soon the Wi-Fi of the other faculties of the National University of Laos (NUoL) – are able to access a range of e-resources and journal articles from digital libraries and databases such as JSTOR, HeinOnline and Taylor & Francis.

  

  In a first step, LAO/031 hired the services of an IT company to increase the network bandwidth at the FLP. This created the conditions for the University of Luxembourg to sign an agreement with EIFL, who in turn provided access to e-resources and an anti-plagiarism software, URKUND, for the National University of Laos as an institution. More specifically, as part of this agreement, access is granted to the external IP addresses of NUoL and its faculties.

  Ms. Rima Kupryte, Managing Director of EIFL, visited the FLP and NUoL’s Central Library on 24th and 25th of February, where, together with representatives from the University of Luxembourg and LAO/031, she met with a range of stakeholders and the Vice-President of NUoL, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Oudom Phonekhampheng. The purpose of her visit was two-fold: First, to promote this initiative, and second, to organise future trainings with librarians and faculty members on the use and management of the e-library and the institutional repository.

  

  While both the e-library and the institutional repository will need to be developed further, the multidisciplinary electronic databases can already be accessed at the FLP. This is an important step in the improvement of higher education standards at the FLP, as it allows faculty members and students to access the knowledge they need for their academic research.

   

  The Support Programme for Legal Teaching and Training and to the Promotion of the Rule of Law Concept in Laos, Project LAO/031, is implemented by LuxDev and funded by the Luxembourg Development Cooperation. 

   

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• • 14 February
  • By Vjosa Morina
  • 
  • Kosovo Office KSV/019
  • Governance
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  KOSOVO - Human Capacity Development Facility in 2019

  Following the planning of Human Capacity Development Fund (HCDF) for 2019, the Ministry of European Integration (MEI), in cooperation with other beneficiary institutions, started with the implementation of different activities within the different chapters it supports.

  During October- December 2019, eight activities were implemented in the chapters of: Free Movement of Goods, Intellectual Property Law, Judiciary and fundamental rights and the horizontal theme on Public Administration Reform.  Around 85 participants benefitted from these capacity building activities.

  Participants have reported on the activities and committed in sharing the gained knowledge and experience with their peers in the respective institutions and departments.

  As a result of these activities:

  • The Government coordinated the work and finalised the Guidelines for drafting the Government Work Plan as foreseen in the Concept Document for the Indicative Forward Work Plan (IFWP);

   

  • The Government has further developed the analysis for the Concept Document on Administrative Burden Reduction, which aims to establish a broad programme for the reduction of administrative burden and modernise the overall legal framework.

  Institutions dealing with human rights protection have increased their capacities in performing reforms and fulfilling obligations towards the European Union Integration (EUI) Process in this field.

  The Agency for Property Rights has gained good practices in promoting industrial property and examining brands based on EU practices as presented in European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) guidelines.

  Officials gained practical experience from National Accreditation Bodies on assessing Conformity Assessment Bodies and evaluation of equipment, as requirements that derive from ISO standards on assessments, in the specified fields of oil and construction products. 
  The Government coordinated the work and developed the Concept Documents based on Guidelines and Manual for Developing Concept Documents. Tool 15 from this manual describes how the policy analysis performed by the European Union can be used to develop Concept Documents and to prepare for the implementation of the EU Acquis in Kosovo

  During 2020, HCDF will continue with the implementation of the activities already planned in the Operation Implementation Plans and work on the planning for the coming project periods.

  

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