| Overview : The Support to Public Administration Project – IGAD Regional Initiative for Capacity Enhancement in South Sudan- Phase II was designed in line with the 2012-2016 South Sudan Development Plan (SSDP) and the annexed Medium-Term Capacity Development Strategy (MTCDS), the Support Public Administration Project aims to support South Sudan in building its civil service capacity for equitable, responsive, and accountable service delivery. It aims to address the three levels of capacity: enabling environment (policy, legal, regulatory and institutional); organizational level (work procedures and operational arrangements); and individual (skills development) levels. The project is funded by the Government of Norway. Three IGAD countries; Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda contributes experience civil servants who spend two years in South Sudan government institutions. The SSDP provided a framework for achieving critical development outcomes related to Governance, Economic Development, Social and Human Development and Conflict Prevention and Security. Recognizing that the human and institutional gaps are major obstacles to rapid progress, the MTCDS provides a basis for capacitating the new state to deliver on the national development objectives. Essentially, the SSDP and the annexed MTCDS reaffirm the commitment of the government to create a professional, accountable, transparent and responsive civil service. The Support Public Administration Project was, therefore, designed to directly support SSDP priorities related to an improved civil service. The Support Public Administration Project was, until December 2015 aligned with the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) outcome “Core governance and civil service functions are established and operational”, and now to the Interim Cooperation Framework (ICF) outcome “Peace and Governance Strengthened”. The implementation of this outcome is further elaborated in the UNDP Country Programme Document (CPD), Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP) – until June 2016, and Annual Work Plans (AWP). This initiative also resonates with UN General Assembly Resolution on Civilian Capacity in the Aftermath of Conflict; which advocates for civilian capacity reform through regional capacity initiatives by Member States. It notes the importance of drawing on relevant expertise in the development of initiatives to support national capacities when supporting countries emerging from conflict. In his report, after the resolution, the UN Secretary General stressed the urgent need for timely and effective civilian capacities in situations of violence and upheaval. He highlighted the importance of South-South and triangular cooperation in developing national capacities and mobilizing resources for institution building. The Secretary-General noted the Support Public Administration Project as a model partnership in the global South complemented by triangular funding from donor countries (Norway). The RSS/IGAD Initiative promotes the use of regional expertise through the deployment of CSSOs from member countries to support capacity building and reform in South Sudan. The Support Public Administration Project is in line with the ‘New Deal’ advocated by the Group of 7+, championing national ownership for sustainable peace and development in fragile states. It supports inclusive, country-owned and country-led transitions, while recognizing that ‘transitioning out of fragility was a lengthy political process that required country leadership and ownership.South Sudan government institutions are expected to perform core governance functions to foster sustainable peace and facilitate recovery out of fragility. State-building experiences from post conflict countries attest that this cannot be done without a capable and accountable civil service. In this regard, the Support Public Administration Project echoes the ‘New Deal’ by supporting South Sudan’s transition from fragility through civil service capacity building. |
