TRANSLATION
MINUTES NO.5
of the meeting of Working Group for Coordination of Donors’
Activity in Social Protection (SPCG),
organised by the Ministry of Social Protection, Family and Child
29th February, 2008, 9:30 a.m.
AGENDA:
1. Presentation of the Medium-Term Budgeting in Moldova: Progress and Future
Challenges.
Presenter: Viorica Neclea, MTEF Consultant.
2. Presentation of the Strategy on reforming social protection of people with disabilities.
Presenter: Lucia Gavrilita, Deputy Minister MSPFC.
3. Outline of Harmonization Action Plan for social protection sector.
Presenter: Andrew Wyatt, Principal Consultant, OPM.
List of participants:
Lucia Gavrilita
Vasile Croitoru
Ecaterina Berejan
Viorica Neclea
Tatjana Colin
Ray Torres
Sergiu Buruiana
Alla Skvortova
Martin Kaspar
Nina Orlova
Irina Todorova
Tamara Ursu
Viorel Albu
Aurelia Ciornei
Alfredas Zabieta
Ghenadie Cojocaru
Stela Grigoras
Andrew Wyatt
Ala Scalschi
Eugenia Veverita
Tatiana Dnestrean
Virgiliu Hangan
Deputy Minister, MSPFC
Advisor, MSPFC
Principal Consultant, Equal Opportunities and
Prevention of Violence Directorate, MSPFC
Consultant, MTEF project, MOF
Chief Child Protection Programme, UNICEF, deputy
chair of the Working Group
UNICEF representative in Moldova
Social policy officer, UNICEF
DFID representative in Moldova
Head of department, EC Delegation in Moldova
National programme coordinator, SIDA
Coordinator in the field of protection, IOM
Programme assistant , WB
Programme manager, UNDP
Building capacity / Advocacy coordinator, UNIFEM
International consultant for MSPFC
Assistant MSPFC
Director (national), OPM / Every Child Project
Principal consultant, OPM / Every Child Project
Team leader (national), OPM / Every Child Project
Consultant OPM / Every Child
Consultant OPM / Every Child
Translator, OPM / Every Child Project
The meeting of Working Group for Coordination of Donors’ Activity in Social Protection
(SPCG) was chaired by Lucia Gavrilita, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Social
Protection, Family and Child.
1st issue
Presentation of the Medium-Term Budgeting in Moldova: Progress and Future Challenges.
Presenter: Viorica Neclea, MTEF Consultant.
The presentation was distributed at the meeting and is attached to the minutes.
Viorica Neclea mentioned that it is the right moment to present the Medium Term
Expenditure Framework (MTEF), because it is now being developed.
The reform of budgetary planning was implemented in several stages, with the support of
the WB, DFID beginning with year 2002. At this stage, ministries have the capacity to
continue the process of MTEF development independently. MSPFC is experienced,
because it has been involved in MTEF development since 2003.
Strategic budget planning and reflection of policies in the budget were identified as the
main problems of 1999-2000 that led to the need of reform in the budgetary system.
MTEF is a medium term budget planning method, which allows progress evaluation and
forecasting the necessary actions and resources.
MTEF includes donor-funded investment projects administered by the Ministry of Finance.
Grants are not included in the MTEF. It would be useful to have available information on
the direction and planned actions of donor organisations. We will thus be able to have an
overview on activities and resources, avoiding overlaps or activities without financial cover.
The line ministry has a key role in developing policies. An appropriate approach for
improving communication with donors would be the direct collaboration with the policy
planning divisions.
MTEF has influenced the policy development process through priority analysis and
analytical improvement of policies. The budget planning process is now more transparent
and participative.
During the approval process policies are modified, after being developed by the
Government. Sometimes this creates discrepancies between the prioritised activities and
the financed activities.
The improvement of the use of resources through savings, reallocation of resources
between programmes and additional allocation of resources to priority activities are the
tendencies of the budgetary process in the recent years.
Discussion:
M.Kaspar Asked for data on resources and actions for the Social Protection Sector
planned for 2010-2011.
E.Veverita Work is being carried out on budget planning for 2009-2011 and the
calculations are being developed.
M.Kaspar
The task of this Working Group is not only to inform, but also to consider
priorities in Social Protection field. It would be good to analyse and discuss
the priority directions and the necessary actions for their implementation.
E.Veverita Representatives of donor organizations could be included in the Working
Group for MTEF development.
L.Gavrilita
MSPFC is open for collaboration by informing and involving donor
representatives in the policy development process, including MTEF.
R.Torres
Donors have to support the Government in achieving the established
objectives, especially taking into account the intention to promote:
1. efficient use of resources
2. clarity and targeting of activities based on priorities
3. inter-sector approach
4. linking policies with budgets.
Informing donors is not just a formal action, but aims at supporting the
process of policy development and thinking. If we succeed in coordinating
our efforts, even outside the MTEF process, it would be great. Because
after budget and MTEF development it is necessary to evaluate and
monitor the actions, where we need to concentrate our attention.
We receive isolated requests of funds for technical assistance from the
Government. This dissolves the priority.
During the presentation, it was mentioned that the intention is to reduce
public expenditure, which means improvement of the use of resources
rather than reducing the costs. Especially in social protection, as in
education, we cannot just reduce resources, we have to ensure that
existing resources are used more efficiently and are targeted based on the
needs.
It was also mentioned that technical assistance will save some resources in
the budget. The Government establishes some objectives and needs
support to achieve them and not leave them in donors’ responsibility. So,
we are not speaking about savings based on donors’ resources, but about
the unification of our efforts to achieve the established objectives.
V.Neclea
I meant savings at the level of public expenditure reduction in relation to
GDP, but we have to look at every sector independently /individually, and
savings depend on the sector. The reallocation and efficient use of
resources are supported.
M.Kaspar
The need to support community social assistants and the salary problem
were mentioned by the Minister at the previous Working Group meeting.
This subject is more related to the MTEF. We can help with establishing
communication with the Ministry of Finance so that it finds modalities to
reallocate resources with a view to increase social assistants’ salaries. In
this case, our intervention is through cooperation between ministries and
sectors.
V.Neclea
Donors participate in NDP development through evaluation and proposals.
There is a Participative Council of the NDS where donors are consulted.
MTEF process does not have a similar donors’ group. But donors can have
access to the information and development process from the Ministry of
Finance. In addition, donor representatives can be involved at sector level
at the Ministries’ discretion.
L.Gavrilita
We are interested in direct collaboration and will find a way to use donors’
experience and knowledge.
2nd issue
Presentation of the draft Strategy on reforming social protection of people with disabilities.
Presenter: Lucia Gavrilita, Deputy Minister MSPFC.
Mrs Gavrilita had intended to present the draft Strategy on reforming social protection of
people with disabilities before it was released to civil society in the following week.
However, the presentation was postponed for the next SPCG meeting because issue no.1
and the discussions that followed took more time than was planned. Meanwhile, the
participation process will start on 6th of March, when the strategy will be presented to civil
society and posted on the ministry’s webpage. The strategy text can be accessed and
commented.
3rd issue
Outline of the draft Harmonization Action Plan (HAP) for social protection sector.
Presenter: Andrew Wyatt, Principal Consultant, OPM.
Andrew Wyatt presented the key points for the Harmonization Action Plan for social
protection sector. The presentation text was circulated before the meeting and is attached
to the minutes.
The main objective of the Action Plan is to improve efforts at coordination and consistency
in social protection, help donors align to government processes and priorities, and support
their involvement in a sector-wide approach to implementation of social protection.
The key points the Harmonization Action Plan should contain are: Consensus on policies
and strategies, Government-donor dialogue, development of a programming document for
common achievement of objectives, engagement with governmental financial
management and accountability systems, commitments to provide donor assistance solely
through agreed procedures and programmes, donor–donor working mechanism (WG),
monitoring through established indicators, and a public consultation and accountability
mechanism.
At the practical level:
The results of mapping exercises can be placed on the ministry’s webpage, if this is
approved by the members of the group. Donors who hadn’t yet sent information or
amendments for the mapping exercise were encouraged to so soon.
The proposal to set up a Newsletter for Social Protection Coordination Group was solved
by the possibility of placing information on donor harmonisation in the existing monthly
MSPFC newsletter.
All pieces of news on SPCG and other important information and announcements from
donor organisations can be published in the existing newsletter, which is also published on
the ministry’s webpage.
Interested donors can send their information and pieces of news to be published in the 4th
issue of the newsletter, by 19th March to the SPCG secretariat.
Discussions:
N.Orlov
29th February is the deadline for sending information on DAC
questionnaire to be included by the Ministry of Finance in the national
classifier. At the moment, gender equality issues are missing. Donor
organisations that have projects in this sector are asked to send their
contribution.
M.Kaspar
At what stage is the National Development Strategy and is it possible to
receive information on priorities?
L.Gavrilita
The NDS is to be approved in 2 weeks.
R.Torres
It would be good to have the information consolidated and published on
the Governmental website. We support information exchange.
Donor organisations have reported the implementation of Paris
Declaration; it would be helpful to use the same format for collecting
information.
Item point 4 of the presentation – how to work with the government.
We could improve communication by simplifying the existing procedures
(stamps and rigid format). The same communication style persists in the
Government–donor relationship.
It is necessary to have more flexibility in the ministries, to involve
consultants in the policy development process.
L.Gavrilita
We are stuck in a very rigid frame, and although we are trying to change
the situation, it is hard. For example the opening of a centre for trafficking
–we had the intention to promote a new approach to service delivery,
relation with beneficiaries, working and communication modality but it
was difficult.
We also need more flexibility at the level of funding. I speak particularly
about the resource reallocation mechanism, which is very important in
the deinstitutionalisation process We have to redirect resources to social
services, consolidate the social assistant network, and prevent.
N.Orlova
The efficient use of resources can be addressed through the Institutional
Development Plan. This can be the entry point for the efficient use of
existing resources, their reallocation, including MTEF and development of
a new mechanism of work with donors.
A. Wyatt
Alfredas Zabieta is a consultant employed by MSPFC and is helping the
ministry in developing such a Plan.
Next SPCG
meeting
The date for the next meeting was agreed by the working group
members, for 25th March because this coincides with DFID mission.
Meanwhile the date will be confirmed.
Chair of the Coordination Group,
Minister of Social Protection, Family and Child
Minutes taken by Tatiana Dnestrean
Galina Balmos