WMO EDUCATION AND FELLOWSHIPS PROGRAMME Monitoring & Evaluation Momadou M. Saho Presented at the 17th Meeting of Senior Fellowship Officers of the UN System and Host Country Agencies (London, UK November 2008) by

WMO EDUCATION AND FELLOWSHIPS PROGRAMME Introduction  Enhances the capabilities of the NMHSs of WMO Member countries by educating and training personnel on specially tailored individual, group and management training programmes, and familiarization visits.  Categories of education and training include basic university and post-graduate degree studies, non- degree studies, specialized training courses, on- the-job training, as well as technical training on equipment.

Main considerations  LDCs, natural disasters and civil strive  Level of development of the NMHSs  Geographical balance  Gender  Regional training facilities, in particular WMO RTCs The WMO Education and Fellowships Programme

San José  Buenos Aires Belem Barbados Caracas Baghdad  Quezon City Cairo Erice Oran  Niamey(+)  Lagos  Nairobi Tananarive Mulemba (+)(AGRHYMET) (EAMAC) New Delhi Tehran  Pune Nanjing Bet Dagan  St.Petersburg Moscow Tashkent Education and Training Fellowships Programme Regional Meteorological Training Centres Florence   University component 22 Ankara

Who are the main actors? Education and Training Office Permanent Representatives Training Institutions Fellows

Who are the main actors? The Education and Training Office  Overall coordination and implementation of the WMO Fellowships Programme  Ensures appropriate communication with Member countries and institutions  Organizes quarterly meetings of the WMO Fellowships Committee (FELCOM)  Carry out daily administrative and financial matters including the award of fellowships

Who are the main actors? Training Institutions  Provide advice on the suitability of a candidate for admission  Carry out the required training and provide regular reports about the fellow and in particular his/ her academic performance  Endorse the fellow’s “Confirmation of fellow’s arrival” form upon his/her arrival at the institution  Submit fellow’s report upon completion of study programme

Who are the main actors? PRs of WMO Members with WMO  Select well-qualified candidates  Make plans for the integration and utilization of the fellow upon completion of their studies  Develop and implement tripartite fellowship schemes or cost-sharing arrangements  Maintain commitment to the monitoring of fellow’s study and evaluation in the post-fellowship period

Who are the main actors? Recipient of Awards (Fellows)  Conduct themselves in a manner consistent with their status as holders of an international fellowship  Carry out their studies within the period prescribed  Refrain from engaging in political activities;  Submit reports as required by WMO;  Return to their home at the end of their award unless authorized by their government to pursue further training

Distribution of fellowships by field of study

The life-cycle of Candidates and Fellows.. Formal Candidate Recommended ETR communication with PRs, training institutions, fellows. Fellowships processing Proposed Candidate Approved Awarded Former Fellow PR ETR-DRAFELCOMSG ETR-REM

Monitoring and Evaluation of Fellowships  In order to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the WMO ETRP and to assess the benefits of WMO fellowships to NMHSs, it is necessary to continuously monitor and evaluate all WMO fellowships.  Various mechanisms have therefore been put in place to ensure effective reporting by:  Training institutions during the fellowship  The fellow during and at the end of the fellowship  The fellow’s PR on the subsequent use made of the fellow’s services

Monitoring and Evaluation of Fellowships (cont.)  It is essential that reports are accurate, completed in full and submitted on time.  The specific objectives of the reports are as follows:  To evaluate the suitability of the study programme and the problems encountered, if any  To determine what action, if any, would be necessary to improve the various aspects of similar study programmes in the future  To help evaluate the contributions made by the WMO fellowships to the socio-economic development of the various beneficiary countries

Types of Monitoring Reports Arrival confirmation  Immediately upon arrival in the host country, the “Confirmation of fellow’s arrival” should be completed by the fellow, signed by the supervisor and sent to the WMO Secretariat.  The form is included in the “WMO fellowship award package” sent to the fellow prior to departure from home or upon arrival at host country.  Payment of subsequent monthly stipend and arrangement for insurance cover depend on how soon the form is received at WMO.

Types of Monitoring Report (cont.) Academic and progress reports  Training supervisors are required to submit reports on WMO fellows at the following intervals:  (a) Short-term fellowships – quarterly reports;  (b) Long-term fellowships – biannual reports.  Progress reports should include:  Information about the fellow’s academic performance and conduct;  A critical evaluation of the fellow’s training programme.  As required, national authorities would be provided with relevant information contained in fellows’ report.

Types of Monitoring Report (cont.) Final report  After finishing his/her training programme, the fellow should complete the “Fellow’s report upon completion of study programme”;  The final report should be submitted to the WMO Secretariat, through the supervisor, within one month of the end of the fellow’s study programme, and preferably before leaving the host country.  A copy could be forwarded to the PR of the beneficiary country, when required.

Types of Monitoring Report (cont.) Final report  The final report should include details of:  The benefits derived from the training and how these benefits could be realized and implemented at home to benefit the fellow’s home country  Any difficulties encountered during the training and those likely to be encountered in the realization and implementation of the acquired benefits in the fellow’s home country  Recommendations and suggestions

Types of Monitoring Report (Cont.) Report on post-fellowship activities  When the fellow resumes duty, the PR should complete the “Report on post-fellowship activities of WMO fellows (three months)”  The report on post-fellowship activities provides  Confirmation that the fellow has returned home after the completion of his/her studies  An assessment of the progress being made in the fellow’s career

Types of Monitoring Report (cont.) Report on post-fellowship activities  The PR is required to complete a second report, the “Report on post-fellowship activities of WMO fellows (18–24 months)” within 18 to 24 months of the officer’s deployment to the relevant department in the Service.  This report seeks to ascertain from the PR information about the extent to which the officer has used his/her knowledge and skills acquired for the advancement of the Service or the country.

Evaluation of the effectiveness of the WMO Fellowships Programme  The WMO Fellowship Committee has agreed to carry out an impact evaluation of the fellowships programme in 2 phases:  Send questionnaires to Members so as to initially have a broad perspective on the matter after analysis of the replies received  Identify external evaluator to undertake an in-depth evaluation by visiting few selected countries that benefited most from the programme

Future Outlook Possible demand ( ) for long-term fellowships (LTF, mainly for basic education and training in meteorology and hydrology), as well as for short-term fellowships (STF, mainly for support of training in specific subjects). The financial resources required to undertake the above-implied education and training activities would be very much higher than the funds that WMO could gather through its ETR Programme.

 Inadequate feedback in monitoring reports, especially from Member countries  Increasing demand for education and fellowships  Rising costs of education and fellowships  Continued decline in available resources Limitations in the fellowship programme

 Continued efforts to improve monitoring and evaluation  Increased collaboration in the development of appropriate impact evaluation mechanism within the UN system  Increased utilization of WMO RTCs and other cost effective regional institutions  Continued encouragement of Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (TCDC) programmes Way forward

Thank you