NSDS Progress Report September 2008 PARIS21 Secretariat I would now like to present the NSDS progress report, which can be found in your document pack starting on page 27. This presentation also covers the NSDS Status Table, which is available in colour on the documents desk.

Report Objectives Monitor country progress in preparing and implementing NSDSs. Serve as an input for the design of support programmes to countries. Inspire NSDS country teams themselves to report in greater detail on their own strategic planning efforts. This report monitors country progress in preparing and implementing NSDSs. Our hope is that this report will serve as an input for the design of partner support programmes to countries and will inspire NSDS country teams to report in greater detail on their own strategic planning efforts. It should be noted that, for simplicity’s sake, in this report we focus our monitoring on the 78 International Development Association borrower countries.

Information Sources NSDS Worldwide Progress Report NSDS Status Table NSDS Country sheets The information contained in this report has been gathered through discussions with countries and partners and the analysis of existing country documents. From this information, we have compiled our country NSDS sheets, which in turn help us produce the NSDS Status Table and the Worldwide NSDS Progress Report I’m presenting right now. We are certainly not under the illusion that this information is infallible, so we invite you to share more up-to-date or more accurate information with us. Direct contacts with countries Discussions with partners Review of Documentation

Summary of Results AFRICA 21 53% 17 42% 2 5% 0% 40 ASIA and PACIFIC 12 Countries currently implementing a strategy Countries currently designing a strategy or awaiting adoption Countries with strategy expired or without strategy and currently planning an NSDS Countries without a strategy nor planning one TOTAL No. % AFRICA 21 53% 17 42% 2 5% 0% 40 ASIA and PACIFIC 12 44% 3 11% 9 33% 27 LATIN AMERICA & CARIBBEAN 22% 4 EUROPE 1 50% 37 47.5% 23 29.5% 15 19% 4% 78 So what are the results? Of the 78 IDA countries, 37 are currently implementing a strategy (47%), 23 are currently designing an NSDS or have designed one that awaits government adoption (30%), 15 do not have a strategy in place but are planning to design one (19%), and 3 neither have a strategy in place nor are planning to design one (4%). Countries in the midst of an NSDS process — that is, those who are designing, awaiting adoption of, or implementing strategies — therefore account for 60 of the 78 total IDA countries (77%). This represents the sum of the two columns on the left. Only 3 countries (4%) have not yet been convinced of the need to design an NSDS. You will notice that the regions with the lowest percentage of countries engaged in NSDS processes are Asia and LAC, with 55%. The highest percentage can be found in Africa, with its 95%. It should be noted that most of the countries that are not in the midst of an NSDS process are special cases, for example, fragile states or small island economies. International Development Association borrower countries only

Emerging Issues Design Process: Funding: Implementation: Continuous, consultative processes System-wide coverage Integrated into larger development policy processes Results-focused Funding: Inflexibility in timing, which over-emphasises the final product rather than the process. Identifiable costs and financing plan Implementation: Need for effective and realistic implementation plans Including donors in the design of implementation plans Although I will not go through all the emerging issues that are presented in the paper, I would like to highlight a few: Regarding the design process, we’ve found that NSDSs are most likely to be effective if they are not only consultative but viewed as being a continuous process, not merely one to produce a simple document but one targeting quantifiable results. Part of the consultative process also means covering all sectors and the full NSS. On funding issues, we’ve found that inflexibility in the timing of the availability of funds has created obstacles for countries and furthermore over-emphasises the final product of a single NSDS document rather than a continuous process. Some current NSDSs also lack identifiable costs and financing plans, which of course makes it difficult for donors to get on board. Regarding implementation, many NSDSs lack realistic, effective implementation plans --- that is, a clear indication of how to move from an NSDS document to an actual activity programme to implement the strategy. The design of these implementation plans should of course include donors so that countries have a realistic picture of the “when” and the “how much” of potential funding.

Recommendations for PARIS21 Secretariat Prepare guidance to assist fragile states and small island economies in designing NSDSs Prepare guidance and facilitate training on preparing a sequenced and prioritised action plan Develop guidance on preparing a costing and financing plan for an NSDS Although the paper highlights some recommendations for countries and partners, for the sake of brevity, I would just like to present here some of the recommendations for the Secretariat. It is proposed that the Secretariat prepare NSDS guidance for fragile states and small island economies. You’ll recall that those are generally the countries who have not yet engaged in NSDS processes. Also, preparing guidance on sequenced and prioritised action plans for going from an NSDS document to the actual implementation of an NSDS. This guidance should include costing and financing elements. If I may again ask the chair’s indulgence, I would like to hand the floor to Jean-Marc to briefly present the NSDS website.