Cbtf Tna Paper Final Sudan

8/3/2019 Cbtf Tna Paper Final Sudan

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COMPREHENSIVE TRAINING NEEDS ASSESSMENT FORTHE GOVERNMENT OF SOUTHERN SUDAN

Rationale and Options

December 2010

Government of Southern Sudan

Capacity Building Trust FundSuzanne Bond Hinsz


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Comprehensive Training Needs Assessment for the Government of Southern Sudan: Rationale and Options

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Table of Contents

Abbreviations ............................................................................................................ ii

1. Introduction ........................................................................................................ 1 1.1 What is a Training Needs Assessment (TNA) and how it is used? .................. 1

1.2 The value of a training needs assessment in a post-conflict environment ....... 1

1.3 The value of a comprehensive TNA in Southern Sudan .................................. 1

1.4 Limitations of a TNA within the human capital landscape ................................ 2

1.5 Limitations of a TNA within the human resource context ................................. 2

1.6 Limitations of a TNA within the political context ............................................... 3

1.7 Structure of this document ............................................................................... 3

2. Summary of cross-sectoral TNAs to date ........................................................ 4

2.1 Local Government Administrative Officer (LGAO) Training ............................. 4

2.2. Skills Needs Assessment on General Administration Training andSEADGOSS Baseline Survey .................................................................................. 5

2.3 Other TNAs ...................................................................................................... 1

2.3.1 Health ........................................................................................................... 1

2.3.2 CABIHRD ...................................................................................................... 1

2.3.3 UNDP ............................................................................................................ 1 2.3.4 GATC/Human Empowerment and Labour Management (HELM) ................. 1

2.3.5 Southern Sudan Audit Chamber ................................................................... 2

2.3.6 Ministry of Energy and Mining ....................................................................... 2

3. Summary of education sector approach .......................................................... 3

4. Other efforts........................................................................................................ 4

5. Considerations for timing and sequencing a TNA .......................................... 5

5.1 Combining the TNA effort with others in order to maximize efficient use of timeand money ............................................................................................................... 5

5.2 Building GoSS capacity to conduct TNAs ........................................................ 5

5.3 Acceptability and transparency ........................................................................ 5

5.4 Options for TNA breadth: whole of government or selection by changereadiness ................................................................................................................ 7

5.5 Options for TNA breadth: core skills approximation good enough or morerobust ....................................................................................................................... 7

6. How a TNA might be conducted ....................................................................... 8


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Abbreviations

CABIHRD Capacity Building, Institutional, and Human Resource DevelopmentCANS Civil Authority of the New SudanCBTF Capacity Building Trust Fund

CCSS Coordinating Council of Southern StatesDFID Department for International DevelopmentGATC Government Accountancy Training CollegeGoSS Government of Southern SudanGTZ Gesellschaft fr Technische ZusammenarbeitHRIS Human Resource Information SystemLGAO Local Government Administrative OfficerMDTF Multi-Donor Trust FundMoHRD Ministry of Human Resource DevelopmentMoLPS Ministry of Labour and Public ServiceMoLPSHRD Ministry of Labour, Public Service, and Human Resource DevelopmentSEADGOSS Support to Effective Administrative and Democratic Governance In Southern

SudanSSDP Southern Sudan Development PlanTA Technical AssistanceTNA Training Needs AssessmentUNDP United Nations Development ProgrammeUNV United Nations VolunteerUSAID United States Agency for International Development


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TNA covering all sectors and levels of the government, from the central level to thelocal level, including legislative staff. In terms of context, it is important to note thatpublic sector reform has been embraced with enthusiasm in some states while otherstates appear reticent. Where ministries, organisations, states, or other units ofgovernment have conducted TNAs or partial TNAs the suggestion is not to repeatwhat has already been done, but to incorporate the existing data.

While an enormous amount of training is currently being delivered in SouthernSudan, a USAID-funded 2010 in depth study of capacity building 1 found that, as awhole, training is producing few performance gains. Some of the limitations totraining impact include 1) lack of a robust TNA to guide training content, 2)inappropriate selection of training participants (such as sending staff of inappropriatelevel for training, sending staff who do not use the skills in their work, and sendingstaff with insufficient basic knowledge to benefit from training), 3) insufficient qualityassurance that the trainee has mastered the material, 4) transfer of newly trainedstaff, and 5) an unsupportive institutional context (discussed in the next section). Itmust be noted that of all the training that is currently being delivered, only one set of

training materials, Local Government Administrative Officer (LGAO) training wasdeveloped in harmony with the national curriculum. All other materials have beendeveloped independently from it.

1.4 Limitations of a TNA within the human capital landscapeThe basic level of knowledge for the most junior civil servants may be the lowest ofany modern post-conflict reconstruction. There are very high levels of illiteracy inSouthern Sudan, even within the civil service. As an example, in studying a stateministry, the author found that after a payroll exercise to eliminate ghost workersand severely under-performing staff, 60% of the individuals remaining on the stateministry payroll were illiterate. Similarly, it is difficult to learn the basics ofstorekeeping or bookkeeping when numeracy skills are weak. While investments incivil servant training are essential, they will not result in long-term capacity buildingunless a future workforce is simultaneously being developed at primary, secondary,and tertiary levels. The starting point is extremely low and building it to a level ofperformance acceptable in a modern state will take effort far beyond normal levels ofcivil service training. It may be the case that if civil servants test in order to see if theyqualify for positions, significant numbers of workers will be shed or reassigned. It isnot known if, should unqualified staff be retrenched, there are sufficient numbers ofqualified people in Southern Sudan to fill non-technical positions.

1.5 Limitations of a TNA within the human resource contextWhile good quality training is critical, it alone cannot transform the level of service thegovernment provides and it is important to note other limitations within the humancapital environment. The organisational design of the ministries and agencies is notconsistent, there are overlaps and gaps in organisational mandates, few staff have

job descriptions as the basis of their work and most units lack capacity to translateannual budgets and plans into concrete mid-year, quarterly, and monthlydeliverables. The GoSS needs to articulate a capacity development plan and strategyfor the civil service. Without this as guidance, the goals that training is meant toaddress will remain hazy.

1 Management Systems International, USAID Sudan Government of Southern Sudan Strategic Capacity Building Study , 15 June 2010.


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2. Summary of cross-sectoral TNAs to dateWhile there has not been a comprehensive TNA, in the past few years, two cross-sectoral TNAs were conducted, one for Local Government Administrative Officers(LGAO) with GTZ funding and one by Skills for Sudan (Skills) with United KingdomsDepartment for International Development (DFID) funding. These are discussed

below. They corroborate what training service providers consistently note: there is alarge unmet need for English language training (indeed even literacy is poor,particularly for unclassified staff) and computer skills. Trainers often highlight that thelack of this basic foundation inhibits participant ability to benefit from training.

2.1 Local Government Administrative Officer (LGAO) TrainingLGAOs work across levels of government (GoSS, state, county, and payam) andwork across service ministries at the local level. LGAOs include people such as thecommanders for the police, prisons and fire brigade as well as staff dealing withissues such as roads, education, health, horticulture, engineering, social welfare, andcommunity development. The LGAO TNA is in depth and excellent. As part of theTNA, all 3,517 LGAOs were screened to determine their skills and qualifications andof those tested, 1,583 passed. Within local government, the grades of staff that arepart of the establishment range from 2 4 (senior management, including staff suchas Commander of Police), 5 - 7 (middle management, including staff such as CouncilEducation Officer and Council Community Development Officer), and 8 -14 (entrylevel, including staff such as Head Cashier, Surveyor, Driver, and Messenger). TheTNA and screening exercise determined applicants educational attainment,language skills, and whether they had yet undergone an induction course.

The timeframe for the 2007 screening exercise was about 2 months, but this followedon groundwork that was done in 2006. A source involved in the screening test

indicated that it cost roughly US$300,000-$400,000. The testing took place in oneday across all 10 states. It was centralized at the state level and LGAOs travelled tostate centres for testing. State Ministries of Local Government organised the statetesting and received and hosted test takers. Completed examinations were collectedon the testing day from all locations and flown to Juba for marking by a team from theUniversity of Juba. After marking, examinations underwent two further processes:verification and hearing complaints. The examination was the culmination of threemonths of work on the part of a central steering committee made of seniorgovernment officials backed by a small technical team as well as committees in eachof the states.

The Local Government Board generated political support for the effort by having thesituation at the local level investigated by other government staff. These staffreported that local government was chaotic with no basis for staff hiring. Theyreported incidents such as having staff who were recently messengers acting asthough they were senior staff and demanding the requisite salary. This gained theattention of ministers and the support for reform from the Presidents Office and(what was then) the Ministry of Labour, Public Service, and Human ResourceDevelopment (MoLPSHRD).

While the exercise did not reach every government employee, it coversestablishment staff well from GoSS to payam levels, so its findings could arguably beused as a proxy TNA for the rest of the government in terms of basic skills althoughnot technical skills.


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o Office managemento Communicationo Supervisiono Customer careo Public relationso Project managemento Data managemento Human relations

o Leadershipo Time managemento Negotiationo Arbitrationo Team building and managemento Conduct of meetings, minute writingo Presentation skillso Diplomacyo Decision making and problem solving

In 2009, Skil ls conducted a baseline survey 4 aimed at quantifying the impact of Skillstraining on trainee job performance. In all, 91 people were engaged in one-to-one interviewsas a representative sample of trained and untrained staff at senior (grades 1 6), middle(grades 7 9), and junior levels (grades 10 18). Skills found no major differences inresponses between GoSS and state level staff, but variability was high between levels of

staff. English language and computer skills training were identified as areas of urgent need.In this DFID-funded survey, the state legislators were also included and the informationenhanced legislator training being delivered by Skills.

2.3 Other TNAs

2.3.1 Health In 2005, Instituto Superiore di Sanita (ISS) and World Health Organisation (WHO)interviewed 22 county medical officers. They found respondents had low awareness of their

job responsibilities in general and specifically needed compute, planning, monitoring andevaluation, budgeting and allocation skills. In addition to the training needs, performancewas constrained by lack of staff, equipment, and transport.

2.3.2 CABIHRD By 2008, Capacity Building, Institutional, and Human Resource Development (CABIHRD)was to have conducted a Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF)-funded TNA for vocational trainingin Greater Equatoria, Greater Upper Nile, and Greater Bahr El Ghazal Region. This wasdetailed in the CABIHRD US$8.24 mil lion Final Project Proposal Document. There was noevidence this was conducted.

2.3.3 UNDP In 2006, UNDP conducted a TNA aimed at women leaders (not necessarily civil servants).

The method of TNA was workshops in which participants identified the areas in which theyfelt they needed training.

2.3.4 GATC/Human Empowerment and Labour Management (HELM)An independent analysis of training conducted by HELM (PricewaterhouseCoopers is nowthe training service provider) at the Government Accountancy Training College (GATC) 5 found that trainees were poorly selected and many lacked basic literacy and numeracy,adequate English language skills, and sufficient knowledge for the training to be useful. As aresult, GATC conducts pre-training screening for some training courses.

4 Skills for Southern Sudan, Report on Needs Assessment on General Administration Training , Skills for Southern Sudan, 2006. 5 Delta, Evaluation of the Training Services of the Government Accountancy Training Centre Final Report , Delta, 2008.


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2.3.5 Southern Sudan Audit Chamber Under the Core Fiduciary Project of the MDTF, a full assessment 6 of individual andinstitutional training needs for Audit Chamber staff was conducted by PKF in April 2008, andlater developed into a training course.

2.3.6 Ministry of Energy and Mining Through the Private Sector Development project, the MDTF funded an October 2010 report 7 outlining the capacity development needs in the Ministry of Energy and Mining. The analysisis constrained because the organisational structure is not yet approved and staff accordinglyreallocated.

6 PKF, Appendix C, SSAC Training Needs Analysis , April 2008. 7 Adam Smith International, Capacity Building Plan: A Draft for Discussion - Development of a Legal and Regulatory Framework for the Mining Sector in Southern Sudan , October 2010.


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5. Considerations for timing and sequencing a TNA

5.1 Combining the TNA effort with others in order to maximize efficient use oftime and money

The TNA might be coupled with other human resource activities that need to be done. Thesemight include working with the establishment register, Human Resource Information System(HRIS), or organisational design exercise (as described above). It can also be a standaloneactivity. Because human resources are so scarce and funds are limited, coupling this activitywith another priority activity makes sense.

5.2 Building GoSS capacity to conduct TNAsThe GoSS will eventually need to have internal capacity to conduct TNAs. As with otherdevelopment efforts in Southern Sudan, to some extent, a choice will need to be madebetween developing capacity to conduct a TNA and conducting a TNA. There is reasonablepressure to conduct the TNA quickly because its findings may impact pledging and the

pledging may take place in a June or July timeframe.Given that it is easy and relatively inexpensive to contract out TNAs, it makes most sense tonot give capacity building a high priority in terms of making choices between approaches.Staff numbers are already so thin and TNAs done so infrequently, capacity building of staffto conduct them is not of primary importance at this time.

GoSS is preparing a Southern Sudan Development Plan (SSDP), which will also act as anInterim Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper. It is expected that the SSDP will culminate in adonor pledging conference in mid-2011. In addition, GoSS has identified immediate CoreGovernance Priorities until the end of the Interim Period (July 2011). There is, however, arecognized need for a medium- to long-term capacity building plan to be developed, perhaps

along the lines of the Liberia National Capacity Development Strategy. This strategy, whichcan guide and harmonize GoSS and donor agendas needs to be based upon goodinformation and data. The TNA would be an important grounding for such a strategy. TheSSDP is also an important avenue recognizing and strengthening the legislative branch ofgovernment as well as the role of civil society as part of the Southern Sudan state and peacebuilding efforts.

5.3 Acceptability and transparencyIn a number of reports, it is commented that civil servants express reluctance to give theirpersonal details. It stands to reason that if individuals feel insecure about their jobs, they willbe guarded in giving detailed information. Therefore, how the TNA is introduced and theorigin of its mandate are likely to influence its validity and success. It will be important todiscuss this issue with MoHRD/MoLPS for possible referral to the Council of Ministers. For awide-ranging TNA that might possibly lead to retrenchment, a Council of Ministers mandateis essential. If the approach is unit by unit, a mandate from the unit leader may be sufficient.

Stage 1: Ideal sequencingAn ideal sequencing has the TNA follow:1. Executive leadership visioning exercise such that the desired state is articulated. This

should include the number of ministries/agencies overall, priority development goals, andthe overall size of the civil service.

2. Organisational design (for each ministry, agency, and unit within government,

organisational design means the organograms, responsibilities, and linkages of each


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One alternative is to have a package ready to go for institutions and states that areinterested in pursuing a robust TNA. This is an alternative to the GoSS insisting all ofgovernment go through the process. While a whole of government approach makes senseas a best case scenario, leaders may decide that of all the difficult choices confronting them,that this is not one on which they elect to expend political capital. As it is, some states havegone ahead with public sector reform including payroll cleansing. It would be helpful forthese reform-minded states to have a package of tools ready for them to use and it would behelpful to MoHRD/MoLPS to have consistent data across states.

5.4 Options for 71$EUHDGWKZKROHRIJRYHUQPHQWRU VHOHFWLRQE \ FKDQJHUHDGLQHVV

Option 1: Whole of governmentThis approach ensures consistent data across government, but builds upon previous effortsto the extent possible. This is only possible if the political will exists to make it happen. It hasthe benefit of giving a firm human resource information base across government and createsthe opportunity to remove/re-grade staff who are in positions unbefitting their skills andeducation.

Option 2: Change-ready and tailor madeIf the GoSS cannot pursue a whole of government approach, another option is to work withGoSS to get a set of processes approved such that staff can be assessed and removed/re-graded when a unit (a state, ministry, commission, or agency) is ready to do so. This savesprojects working with discrete units from each developing its own methodology and ensuresthat gathered information tends to be consistent and feeds into MoHRD/MoLPS databases.

5.5 2SWLRQVIRU71$EUHDGWKFRUHVNLOOVDSSUR[LPDWLRQJRRGHQRXJK ormore robust

Option 1: The most refined scenario is that there is a robust TNA such as the oneundertaken for LGAOs that tests civil servants and simultaneously establishes their trainingneeds.

Option 2: Assume that the LGAO TNA is a good test of the level of skills existing within thevarious grades and levels of government and that the basic skills required will be highlysimilar across the rest of government. The LGAO TNA results are largely consistent with theSkills TNA results, so perhaps it can be assumed that at least for core skills the data is goodenough. A desk study of other all other available studies can serve as a validity cross-check,

likely training needs for various cadres of staff, and the prioritizing those training needs. Thiscan be validated externally by a GoSS steering committee.

A weakness of this approach is that without the simultaneous staff rationalization exercise,many people will still be in jobs for which they are incorrectly placed. This will continue tosignificantly undermine human resource effectiveness. Additionally, if the unit has not yetundergone a personnel rationalization exercise, the cost of training will be significantly higherthan it should be, perhaps double. The LGAO screening exercise reduced staff by more thanhalf.


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6. How a TNA might be conducted

Option 1: External consultants with GoSS supportThe fastest but most expensive approach would be to have a relatively large team ofexternal consultants backed up by GoSS staff to conduct the TNA. The advantages to this

approach are high quality, and a relatively low burden to GoSS staff in terms of conductingthe TNA. While GoSS staff eventually do need to know how to conduct TNAs, this approachdoes not build GoSS capacity to do so. Depending upon how the TNA is introduced to staff,having a largely external team conduct the TNA may make the analysis more or less valid. Itis necessary to consider and address the political implications of how the TNA is conducted,who is conducting it, and what political backing is required for implementation of a trainingplan based upon the findings.

Option 2: Core GoSS MoHRD/MoLPS team coupled with a small consulting teamThe cost of the TNA is reduced if a small team from the MoHRD and/or MoLPS joins theconsulting team. This approach is likely slower than if conducted by a large team of externalconsultants, but it has the advantage of building capacity within the human resource functionof the GoSS to conduct TNAs in the future. There is a modest GoSS burden this approachimplies, namely secondment of key staff for a set time. While the overall burden to GoSS ismoderate, it is a major burden to human resource staff and they are already stretched thin.The best use of MoHRD/MoLPS staff is likely to be as part of a steering committee ratherthan directly involved in the TNA, therefore this does not appear to be the best approach.

Option 3: Unit teams with a small consulting team

Figure 1: Options for how a TNA may be conducted


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A similarly priced approach involves the consulting team working with key individuals in eachunit to conduct the TNA. Since many ministries do not have human resource persons onstaff, there may not be staff in place whose capacity to perform a TNA can be built. If theTNA is done in two stages (general competency first and technical competency second),training and partnering with the human resource staff within the ministry will bear more fruitsince they would go through the process twice. The quality of such an approach might beslightly less than having it done by one team since the team will gain expertise by multiplerepetitions and there would be greater consistency in how the assessment is conducted.This is a fast approach and would be perfectly viable with good results. With any TNA, thereis some burden on unit staff to facilitate the effort, but this approach increases the burden onunit staff. One benefit is that unit staff may be more likely to support the overall exercise ifthey or their colleagues are involved in it. Given the choices, this appears to be the best.

Option 4: GoSS conductedThe least expensive option is for GoSS to lead and conduct the TNA with donor fundingbeing provided for flights and other direct costs. Depending upon the way the assessment isintroduced, there may be more (or less) confidence in the results of the TNA if it is GoSS-

conducted. The quality is unlikely to be as high as it would be if conducted by experts in theprocess. The speed is likely to be slow because the TNA effort would meet with competitionfor other work that needs to be done. If done well, this approach might yield good TNAcapacity building. The GoSS burden to conduct this would be considerable. It could be madeeasier if a team of consultants prepared a templates and tools for the GoSS to use whenconducting it. One advantage to this approach is that if the GoSS unit is willing to go throughthe work to conduct the TNA, the unit will be likely to implement its findings. Due to the highburden and the overall sparseness of staff, this is not a strong option.

6.1 How to conduct the TNAIf a full-scale TNA is to be done, computer-based testing for basic abilities should beconsidered since the numbers of staff are so high. This may also be possible for a languageability assessment. The language capability assessment will need to be done becauselanguage ability varies greatly by state and this would impact the training plan for each state.This does not imply the need for computer training centres, necessarily, since computer-based testing could be done in such a wide variety of ways. Depending upon the aims of theassessment, it is simply one possibility that might be considered.


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8. Recommended approachWhile many approaches and choices have been discussed above, the following appears tobe the best balance between quality and practicality. It is a moderate cost option.

Figure 3: Recommended Approach


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11. ConclusionWhile a TNA is not a panacea for solving human resource problems in Southern Sudan, it isan essential and important information base that underpins capacity building across thehuman capital landscape. A comprehensive TNA will be a touchstone document for GoSSand donors for the foreseeable future.

Documents

Cbtf Tna Paper Final Sudan