Hotel “Besiana” in Podujevo, 22.-24.07.2005
TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR THE TRAINING IN EUROPEAN PUBLIC POLICY, POLICY ANALYSIS AND POLICY MAKING
BACKGROUND
General:
The public administration reform in the Balkans is one of the most contingent issues. The most burning issues are: the development of a motivated and professional civil servant, knowledgeable in the field of policy analysis and policy making. Such a problem exists as a legacy of the previous system where civil servants received wages with little relation to the quality of the output they produced while the policies made on the central level (frequently influenced by the communist party’s officials) left the administrators in the former Yugoslav republics without any skills of analysing policies, trends, mitigating risks and designing policy solutions responsive to the social, political and economic changes in the countries. In the past fifteen years their Governments have not been willing to push any reforms through except those imposed by political and ethnic conflicts.
As a result today there is data showing that most of the civil service in the Balkan countries is loaded with daily administration which distracts them from efficiently implementing their strategic functions such as policy formulation, policy analysis, finding feasible policy solutions monitoring and evaluation of policy implementation and long-term planning.
In fact, many development agencies (mostly foreign) are running policy dialogue and set policy priorities for the Governments of Kosovo, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina in various areas (by their development programs, and projects with staff hired on consulting basis). This approach actually makes these countries civil service more dependent in the long-run on the support of the foreign development agencies, as investment has not been made in the upgrading of their skills to develop policies that will be responsive to the new social developments and the challenge of European Integration. This problem will especially grow in the forthcoming period when the governments will try to meet European set criteria to become EU member states.
To alleviate this situation and build the capacities of the Kosovo civil service in policy analysis and policy making with special emphasizes on the European decision making system and institutional setting the Office for European Integration of Kosovo together with KIPA will together with experts from the Macedonia based think-thank Centre for Research and Policy Making, CRPM deliver a training in policy analysis and policy making for the Kosovo civil service. Measurable indicators for achieving progress concerning this question would be the number of persons trained in the policy cycle analysis.
Specific:
The training will be delivered in two and a half days within four modules targeting specifically policy analysis; decision making (European and Kosovo context), the policy cycle; decision making tools; writing policy papers; building efficient and transparent public service; public debates on proposed policy solutions; lobbying; and decision making. In this regard the participants will contribute with their opinion on the current decision making practices, the capacities of the Kosovo civil service to formulate policies and the challenges coming out of the European Union integration process.
DESCRIPTION OF THE ASSIGNMENT
Beneficiary
The main beneficiary of this exercise is the Kosovo Civil Service.
General and specific objectives
The general objective of the assignment is:
· To build the capacities of the Kosovo policy makers and
· To facilitate their analytical support to the identification and preparation of the new priorities in the framework of European Integration.
The specific objectives of the assignment are:
This assignment will have the aim to build the capacities of the Kosovo civil service in policy analysis, identification and formulation of policy solutions, writing policy papers, advocating policy solutions to various stakeholders in the civil society and finally making decisions that are transparent, efficient and in accordance with the European policies. This objective will be achieved trough a training seminar, to briefly introduce the group members to a policy cycle in a European context, the system of EU decision making, to find out similarities with the Kosovo system of decision making and to eventually train them to conduct analysis in all policy areas, identify policy alternatives, engage various stakeholders in the decision making process and make decisions that are adequate and efficient. So the activities under this assignment can be classified in two components:
· Preparation of a ready-for-delivery training seminar on policy analysis and writing policy papers and,
· Delivery of training seminar in policy analysis and writing policy papers.
Requested services:
In order to best train the Kosovo policy makers in policy analysis, policy cycle, decision making, writing policy papers, and advocacy of policy solutions the Office for European Integration of Kosovo together with KIPA intends to subcontract a local institution from Macedonia that has extensive experience in this area and that could prepare and deliver the training seminar. The training is planned to start on 22nd July and to end on 24th July 2005.
Preparing the training in policy analysis and writing policy papers
The experts should develop the training materials and prepare an interactive, learning by doing type of training in policy analysis, policy cycle, decision making, writing policy papers, and advocacy of policy solutions that will be comprehensive to the target audience. The training materials has to be prepared in accordance with: the following handbooks: “Writing effective policy papers” by Eoin Young and Lisa Quinn, for LGI Budapest “How to be a better policy advisor”, by NISPACee, Bratislava and the Policy Development and Research on Conflict Issues and in post-conflict societies, by INCORE, Ireland.
Delivery of the training in European public policy, policy analysis and writing policy papers; policy making
The training should be very practical and interactive as it should require active participation from the audience in the analysis of authentic sample policy papers and various discussions. The group of Kosovo policy makers that will attend this training should also receive training in advocating their policy solutions to a wider audience of stakeholders, such as the civil society, different ethnic groups, association of professionals, lobby groups and etc. in order to build consensus on the policy alternatives they are proposing and enhance transparency in the work of the Kosovo Government.
Expected results:
In order to achieve the objective to build the capacities of the Kosovo civil service in policy analysis, identification and formulation of policy solutions, writing policy papers, advocating policy solutions to various stakeholders in the civil society and finally making decisions that are transparent, efficient and in accordance with the European policies, Office for European Integration of Kosovo together with KIPA subcontracts two experts from Centre for Research and Policy Making – CRPM, a Macedonia based think-thank to deliver this training.
Location of assignment: Kosovo, Podujevo.
Time: 22nd July – 24th July 2005
Place: Hotel Besiana
Language: The training, the training materials and all policy papers will be presented in English language.
PROGRAM
Friday, 22.07.2005
10.00 h Departure from KIPA, Prishtina, in an air-conditioned bus
11.30 h Arrival at Hotel Besiana, Podujevo/Kosovo
12.30h Lunch
14.00 h Welcoming remarks & overview of the programme
Hans-Juergen Zahorka
Introduction to public policy; what are policy networks and what is policy cycle
Dr. Zidas Daskalovski/Marija Risteska M.P.A., CRPM, Skopje:
16.00h Coffee break
16.30h The situation of training European Affairs in Macedonia
About teaching on European subjects in Macedonia
Public opinion in Macedonia on Europe before and after the accession application
What people know and think about the accession
Dr. Zidas Daskalovski/Marija Risteska M.P.A.:
17.30 h Brainstorming session on “Euro myths” in Kosovo: What people might have as arguments against the European Union
… and what they had as arguments in Poland
Renata Buchowska B.A. (Krakow University), Poland
18.30 h End of discussions
19.30 h Dinner
Saturday, 23.07.2005
09.30 h Introduction to policy analysis; policy papers – decision making tools
Discussions and analysing samples of policy papers: policy studies and policy briefs.
Dr. Zidas Daskalovski/Marija Risteska MPA
11.00 h Coffee break
11.15 h cont’d
12.30 h Lunch break
13.30 h Writing policy papers; possibly:
Exercise involving writing a draft policy brief in selected policy areas
A (critical) assessment of the state of MK’s accession application and of the Government’s handling of the case
What do people in government/ministries/administration in Macedonia think about it
What does the Macedonian administration to enhance the know-how of the civil servants
Dr. Zidas Daskalovski/Maria Risteska MPA
15.00 h Coffee break
15.15 h Round Table: What people think (and what is the adequate handling of) on (possible) proposals of Albanian unity in one single Albanian state (in Albania, Kosovo and Macedonia etc.) – or: what to say if confronted with nationalist arguments
Moderation: two participants (to be determined)
16.30 h Advocacy of policy solutions
Exercise involving advocating for the policy solutions recommended in the draft policy brief (prepared within the previous module) in selected policy areas
Dr. Zidas Daskalovski/Marija Risteska MPA
18.00 h End of discussions
19.00 h Dinner
Sunday, 24.07.2005
09.30 h Presentation exercises by participants – under the jury of Hans-Juergen Zahorka, Renata Buchowska, Marija Risteska and Zidas Daskalovski
11.15 h Coffee break
11.45 h Marija Risteska M.P.A., CRPM, Skopje:
The economic situation, investment and corruption in Macedonia – how they influence public opinion
12.15 h Brainstorming session: You are requested as a speaker. What you have to respect if you write your Curriculum Vitae
– How to fill out correctly a standardised EU CV
– How to make use of other EU CVs (consultants’ CVs)
12.45 h Preview on the certification criteria of European Affairs trainers in Kosovo
Hans-Juergen Zahorka
13:00h Lunch
14.30 h Departure by bus to Pristina
15.30 h Arrival in Pristina
