Tracking Aid Flows in Malawi: Experiences, Challenges and the Way Forward 21 st October 2009 Hague, Netherlands

Contents This presentation explains how Malawi begun aid monitoring and reporting in the interest of improved resource management. Specifically, we look at: why we collect aid data how we collect the data, and the analyses we undertake the challenges we have encountered our vision for the future

Why collect data? Ministry of Finance began collecting information on aid inflows to Malawi in December Prior to this, only debt data was held The Ministry of Finance consulted with users and providers of data before designing a reporting format in excel which included all information related to donor financing (amount committed, relevant dates, currency and amounts, disbursements etc) Information was initially collected to: Monitor the prevailing macroeconomic programme (PRGF) Provide a basis for project monitoring Improve budget comprehensiveness

Why collect data? As data collection and analysis improved, we did more: Annual reporting on aid inflows by sector, national development strategy theme, donor, modality etc. Quarterly project monitoring reports and Aid Atlas production Calculate indicators of aid effectiveness and dependence: predictability, use of national systems, use of PBAs, % of budget Promote sector-led aid effectiveness reviews as part of national reviewing process of the Malawi Growth Development Strategy

The Evolution of Data Collection Due to the complexity of handling large volumes of aid information using excel spreadsheets, the Government of Malawi decided to adopt a comprehensive AIMS In 2008, with funding from UNDP, the Government adopted the Aid Management Platform (AMP), which is a user-friendly web-based system for tracking aid inflows. AMP has facilities for tracking the financial flows in donor funded programmes as well as the physical implementation progress. It also has a facility for generating customized reports on aid management depending on the needs and requirements of the user. The main attraction of the AMP, however, was our ability to request changes to the system to improve its fit to Malawis specific needs

Why AIMS was adopted AIMS can support poverty reduction through efficient aid delivery as follows: Facilitate decision making on the allocation of resources by providing an overall picture of aid flows; Assist in identifying funding gaps, alerting both the Government and donors on the financing needs; Support the national strategies and MDGs by making information relative to flows contributing to the specific indicators Support national PFMS by interfacing with the national budget; Improving aid predictability through multi-year programming; Foster transparency and accountability by recording and tracking projects and financial flows.

Data Collection Formats The Ministry of Finance consulted with users and providers of data before designing a reporting format (screenshot overleaf). Key elements: All support is reported on, including to NGOs and self- administered Annual projections are provided prior to the FY for all funding streams, quarterly projections for pooled funding, SBS and GBS Actual disbursements are tracked on a monthly basis Technical Assistance should be reported separately Data requests to donors are made on a monthly basis

Data Collection Format Note: A number of columns and rows have been deleted for presentational purposes

Donor ratings: Provision of Info

Data Analysis Annually, the data collected is analysed to provide a comprehensive view of the distribution and effectiveness of aid The reports ( look at: Aid by donor Aid by modality Aid by national development strategy theme and functional sector Aid Effectiveness (Predictability of aid; Proportion of aid administered through the budget) Aid dependency (GDP, budget, development expenditure) Sector level analysis has been done for the 2007/08 FY annual report.

Data Analysis Apart from the annual reports we also produce Quarterly Monitoring Reports for externally funded projects and programmes The Aid Atlas which illustrates as donor involvement at sector level

Aid by Development Partner in 2007/08 FY

Aid by Sector in 2007/08 FY

Aid by MGDS theme in 2007/08

Aid by Mode of Delivery in 2007/08

Aid in Support of Programme Based Approaches in 2007/08

Predictability of Project Support

Predictability of Budget and Pooled Support

Reporting Aid on the budget

Direct Project Support - Analysis by Donor - Av. Disbursement Rates vs Project Ages -

Direct Project Support - Analysis by Sector - Av. Disbursement Rates vs Project Ages -

Direct Project Support - Over-aged Projects -

Achievements November 2008 Government launched the 16 sector working groups as a means of implementing the Development Assistance Strategy (DAS) Donor membership of SWGs enables DPs to participate in monitoring sector performance against mutually agreed objectives Malawi adopted AMP which has deepened the analysis of aid flow as illustrated in the Malawi Aid Atlas. The Atlas illustrates donor involvement at sector level by capturing the level of financial resources disbursed Division of labour is emphasised as a mechanism for reducing fragmentation and enhancing effective delivery of aid

Challenges Progress in Malawi has been made in spite of a number of challenges Some donors remain reluctant or unable to provide data regularly: UN agencies are particularly culpable, but intermittent problems exist with most donors; Quality assurance of data remains difficult: information is taken on trust Whilst there is a criteria of including aid on the national budget there are still exists gaps in definitions Aid flow projections – preferably monthly or quarterly will assist in analysis

Vision for the Future We will strive to improve the process and outcomes of tracking aid through improved collection and analysis of aid data and increased accountability Changing the way donors operate through aligning their procedures/practices with Government systems; Provide limited access to donors to record information directly in AMP, of course this is subject to further discussions with GDI and donors; Extend usage of AMP to implementers of donor funded projects and programmes in Government

Where IATI can Add Value In the case of Malawi IATI would very much help on Information on non-DAC and NGOs in areas of aid predictability and transparency Provide agreed aid information definitions and classifications Given the experiences and lessons, Malawi is well positioned to provide practical pilots to the IATI concepts Capacity building in the Ministries of Finance and Development Planning and Coorperation

Zikomo Thank you