Delivering as One in ICT at the Country Level
Scale up Support Proposal
ICT Task Team
United Nations Development Group
DRAFT VERSION
January 2010
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1.
Introduction
1. The Delivering as One approach envisions the development of coherent programmes within countries and
across United Nations agencies. The ability of organizations with diverse mandates and operational processes
to provide a unified approach to development challenges depends on many factors, including the ability to
operate collectively on the administrative level. This includes operations for information and communication
technology (ICT), which provides the enabling environment for many other administrative and programmatic
activities.
2. The range of ICT services normally in place within a country includes the desktop and portable computers,
the servers used to store shared data, the communications infrastructure that allow for communicating
anywhere from across the office to around the world and the expertise to support and manage these services.
With a closer working relationship among agencies, the need to more closely link computer systems becomes
more critical. And the need grows beyond simply linking computing environments, but also extends to a
greater need to share - data, applications, resources, etc. Furthermore, agencies operating in a country
typically operate individual ICT environments, in many cases creating duplicative capabilities which, with some
planning and through the implementation of appropriate governance structures, can become shared
resources, resulting in efficiencies and increased capabilities.
3. The country teams within the eight Delivering as One pilot countries have experimented with models for
developing shared ICT services, and have demonstrated the practical reality behind achieving efficiencies
through cooperative ICT operations. However, they have also shown that reaching the point where these
efficiencies can become realized involves many steps, and the support from many directions, both institutional
and technical.
4. While the ICT Task Team has acted as the key support structure for the pilot countries, as more countries
begin to apply the lessons learned by the pilots, and begin to explore coherent ICT operations, the UN system
will require a more robust capability to support this “scaling up” of harmonization. This document illustrates
on the model that needs to be developed to provide the required support.
2.
Scope
5. The document “Guidelines for Delivering as One in ICT at the Country Level” provides the blueprint that
country teams use to develop a shared ICT capacity. Section 1.5 “General Strategy” describe the steps
necessary to achieve this goal and are summarized below:
a. Establish an ICT working group
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b. Identify operational needs and practices
c. Assess the existing ICT environment
d. Identify opportunities for common services
e. Consult documented guidance and evaluate existing cases
f.
Create a business case for new or consolidated ICT services
g. Implement the changes through a project-based approach
h. Establish sustainable mechanisms to support the new/shared services
6. Each of these steps requires expertise in technical and administrative areas, including ICT architecture and
design, project management, financial assessment, business case development, etc. The models suggested
here are intended to provide support for each step and in areas both technical and administrative. However,
the primary intention of the support model described here is primarily geared towards the assistance needed
to identify and Implement common services, and provide capacity building for ongoing technical support once
those services have been implemented. Organizations may wish to create a separate support model for
ongoing technical support for shared services after implementation. In this way, the model described here can
be considered “time-bound” in that they may no longer be required after all countries have completed the
assessment and implementation phases. While this may take several years to achieve, we can start with the
number of countries performing these tasks in 2010.
7. There are 48 countries that are due to start their UNDAF planning cycle in 2011. Of these, there are 18
countries considered for 2010 funding for the expanded “Delivering as One” funding window for the
achievement of MDG, of which 8 countries form part of the original DAO pilot country list. These 18 countries
are obliged to implement practices to facilitate the establishment of Common Services as part of the Deliver as
One. The plan below defines the inter-agency support model needed to enable this change.
3.
Inter Agency Support Model
8. The types of support required in establishing shared services at country level fall into four general
categories; Business/service development, project management, technical support and training. Each step
within the process requires the organizing of teams of individuals from different agencies to perform specific
inter-related tasks, necessitating knowledge of project management techniques and experience in establishing
new self-sustaining shared services. Apart from business development knowledge, some of the steps require
an in-depth knowledge of a variety of technical areas, including system administration, network design and
configuration and information security to name a few. Very few country teams possess the skills in business
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development, project management and the needed technical areas, which can be gained through either direct
intervention or training.
9. As noted above, providing support to country offices as they gradually progress through the steps requires
a diverse range of skills. An inter-agency support model is proposed that envisages the formation of a
dedicated inter-agency team of specialists, so called Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre (IASCC), to
provide direct support to country ICT teams as they go through this change process.
10. The Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre provides various levels of support depending on the change
capabilities of individual countries. Self-sufficient country teams with appropriate ICT capabilities may require
only high-level business development support and access to existing process guidance. Based on experience
with the Delivering as One pilots, a significant number of countries will require direct business development
and technical development support. Annex 3 outlines the Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre terms of
reference.
11. These specialists which form part of the Competence Centre may either work virtually or come together in
one place, but the concept remains the same – their work plan consists entirely of providing support to
country teams as they develop their common ICT strategies. Clearly, while this approach can result in a high
degree of support to the in-country projects, and may deliver higher quality strategies, it also requires
significant resources, both in the expertise as well as the governance and management of the team.
12. Countries go through the change process at their own pace. Our experience based on the DaO pilots show
that while some countries are able to rapidly assess the business value of consolidating operational ICT
services, most undergo a relatively lengthy process of business and project planning and resource capacity
building before moving to actual implementation. Therefore, the support requirements for 2010 will likely
involve business and project management, with limited technical support required for the current DaO pilots
and other self-sufficient countries.
4.
Roadmap
13. A three-step action plan is required to support the scale up process. First, shortly after the Delivering as
One process guidance is made available, the ICT Task Team conducts a change-readiness assessment for the
larger set of 48 countries due to start their UNDAF cycle on 2011.
14. Second, the Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre must be established by Q3 2010 and resourced to
provide dedicated support for the business development and project initiation needs of 10 countries on the
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priority list. This capability will enable these countries to define their DaO ICT project, making them ready for
implementation in 2011.
15. The first two elements will inform the third step of the plan, envisaged to be in 2011, which is to build
capacity for the Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre to provide not only business and project
management but also full technical support as significant number of 2010 countries go into project
implementation, and a new set of countries starting their 2011 UNDAF cycles go into project initiation.
16. By the end of 2011, the Competence Centre will have targeted and enabled 10 countries to implement
their harmonization efforts and provided full implementation support to the existing 8 pilot countries.
17. The UNDG ICT Task Team will finalize the governance and structure of the Competence Centre as part of
its workplan for 2010.
5.
Resource Requirements
18. One or more agencies are needed to provide hosting and administrative support to the Inter-Agency
Support Competence Centre.
19. To support the first phase of the roadmap, a budgetary requirement of 912,000 US Dollars is required for
2010 for the period of 6 Months. This cost assumes salaries, travel and equipment expenses needed to build
up team of 11 specialists.
20. The second phase is envisaged to require 2,268,000 US dollars for 2011. This sum supports the existing
team, and funds the recruitment of technical specialists to support technical project implementations. This
estimate will be finalized towards the end of 2010, as the Competence Centre and ICT Task Team together
assess the DaO readiness of more countries. Annex 2 shows the detailed components of these costs.
Budget
2010
2011
Staff Salaries
$583,000
$1,826,000
Equipment and Supplies
$140,000
$190,000
Travel
$189,000
$252,000
Sub-total
$912,000
$2,268,000
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Total 2010 and 2011
$3,180,000
Table 1: Total Budget 2010/2011
21. The Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre will be composed of the manager, business analysts,
technical specialists and support staff. The composition of the team is shown in Annex 1.
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Annex 1: Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre Composition
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Annex 2: Budget Requirements
Year 2010 (6 Months)
Salaries
No
Function/Title
Annual
Grade
Required
Est. Cost
Project Management Unit
1
ICT Project Manager
P5
$222,000
2010
2
Finance/ Admin Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2010
Business/ Services Support team
3
ICT Business Analyst
P4
$178,000
2010
4
ICT Business Analyst
P3
$145,000
2010
5
ICT Assistant/ Trainer
GS4
$24,000
2010
6
ICT Assistant/ Trainer
GS4
$24,000
2010
$178,000
2010
Infrastructure Design team
7
Network Architect
P4
Mission/Technical Support Team
8
ICT Officer
P4
$178,000
2010
9
ICT Officer
P3
$145,000
2010
10
ICT Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2010
11
ICT Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2010
Staffing Requirement for 2010 (6 Months)
$583,000
Accommodation and Supplies
No
Type
Annual
6 months
Setup and Preparation
1
2
Equipment
Office Space
$80,000
$80,000
$80,000
$40,000
3
Services
$40,000
$20,000
Office Requirement for 2010 (6 Months)
$140,000
Travel
No
Type
1
2
DSA/Ticket
Est. cost
Operational and Missions * Average mission is 30 Days
Travel cost *
2
18
$250
Tickets cost
2
18
$3,000
Staff
Missions
$270,000
$108,000
Travel Requirement for 2010 (6 Months)
$189,000
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Year 2011
No
Function/Title
Grade
Annual Est. Cost
Required
Project Management Unit
1
ICT Project Manager
P5
$222,000
2010/2011
2
Finance/ Admin Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2010/2011
Business/ Services Support team
3
ICT Business Analyst
P4
$178,000
2010/2011
4
ICT Business Analyst
P3
$145,000
2010/2011
5
ICT Business Analyst
P2
$129,000
2011
6
ICT Assistant/ Trainer
GS4
$24,000
2010/2011
7
ICT Assistant/ Trainer
GS4
$24,000
2010/2011
8
ICT Assistant/ Trainer
GS4
$24,000
2011
Infrastructure Design team
9
Network Architect
P4
$178,000
2010/2011
10
IT Security Officer
P3
$145,000
2011
11
ICT Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2011
Mission/Technical Support Team
12
ICT Officer
P4
$178,000
2010/2011
13
ICT Officer
P3
$145,000
2010/2011
14
ICT Officer
P3
$145,000
2011
15
ICT Officer
P3
$145,000
2011
16
ICT Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2010/2011
17
ICT Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2010/2011
18
ICT Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2011
19
ICT Assistant
GS4
$24,000
2011
Staffing Requirement for 2011
$1,826,000
Accommodation and Supplies
No
Type
Est. cost
Setup and Preparation
1
2
Equipment
Office Space
$40,000
$100,000
3
Services
$50,000
Office Requirement for 2011
$190,000
Travel
No
Type
1
2
Staff
Missions
DSA/Ticket
Est. cost
Operational and Missions * Average mission is 30 Days
Travel cost*
2
12
$250
Tickets cost
2
12
$3,000
$180,000
$72,000
Travel Requirement for 2011
$252,000
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Annex 3: Inter-Agency Support Competence Centre Terms Of Reference
Mission
The DaO ICT IA Competence Centre advises UN Country Teams on proposed changes that impact ICT Common Services
and provides direct business development and project management support needed to implement the common services.
The IA Competency centre is composed of staff seconded from various UN agencies, all geared to support the country
team in business planning, technical implementation and service delivery of the shared ICT Services, to assure country
ownership and capacity building for the sustainability of the services.
Positioning
The Competence Centre is a group of Professionals who together have a broad knowledge of the UN organizations and
Customer Agency needs, and a solid understanding of the technical architecture of ICT Common Services. Each Staff will
bring a different perspective to the team based on their job function and Agency of origin. The team members must have
a clear grasp of the importance of ICT as a supporting mechanism to end to end business operations.
The qualifications of team include and not limited to:
 Excellent ICT Technical knowledge

Excellent Business skills and Strong analytical skills

Good organizational knowledge on the UN in general, UN Country Teams governance structure, and rules and
regulations of the UN

Excellent Coordination skills and understanding of the ICT Services
Responsibilities

Support Country Teams (UNCT/OMT/ICT WG) in developing the business cases

Support Country teams in Implementing the project technical infrastructure and allocate resources

Support Country teams in fund raising if required

Support Country teams in understanding the importance of DaO ICT projects as an enabler for collaboration

Assist the country teams in developing the risk management plans

Assist the country teams in developing the sustainability plan and costs

Coordinate with the various agencies at both the country level and HQ level the local requirements

Market the impact for not implementing such projects in the various countries

Hands on training and Capacity building for the ICT WG and ICT Project Managers

Coordinate and communicate specific country project development with the local UNCT and the UNDG ICT Task
team
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