PROJECT OVERVIEW
The Objectives of the Project
The Project entitled Support to Public Administration Reform in Slovakia (the SPAR Project) was a bilateral project wholly funded by the UK Department for International Development. The Goal of the Project, as set out in the original specification in mid-2000, was
“To support increased capacity of government, civil society and private sector in achieving a successful transition”
Its Purpose was defined as
“The creation of a more effective and impartial public administration”.
Governing the Project
The senior Slovak Government counterpart for the Project was Ivan Miklos, initially Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy and, from September 2002, Minister of Finance. From March 2002 a further senior direct counterpart for the project was Lubomir Plai, Chairman of the Civil Service Office.
The Project was directed by a Steering Committee, chaired by Mr Miklos and comprising Ministers and other representatives of:
Office of Government
Civil Service Office
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Labour Social Affairs and the Family
The Reform Implementation Unit
UK Department for International Development
The EU Twinning Project Pre-Accession Adviser on Public Administration Reform
The SPAR Project
The Steering Committee met on three occasions:
9 November 2001
13 June 2002
16 January 2003.
The Minutes of the Steering Committee Meetings(Slovak Versions to be included) are included in this Report.
The Reform Implementation Unit was a unit established by the Deputy Prime Minister and responsible for the initial liaison with and co-ordination of the Project’s work.
Project Counterparts
The project worked with a large number of counterparts in the Slovak State Administration. These are set out in the descriptions of the individual activities and included:
Civil Service Office
Office of Government
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Labour Social Affairs and Family
Ministry of Interior
Office of Public Procurement
Supreme Audit Office
Anti Monopoly Office
Can these be set out in two columns?
The UK Contractor Consortium
The Project was provided by a consortium of three British contractors.
Public Administration International (PAI) was the Lead Contractor in the Consortium. PAI is a London-based organisation providing specialist consultancy and support services in public administration, particularly in an international context. The UK Government’s Centre for Management and Policy Studies (CMPS) provided support through its Civil Service College Directorate. Northern Ireland Public Sector Enterprises (NICO) is a private company established to provide the skills and expertise of the Northern Ireland Public Sector.
The Slovak Local Consultants
The project was supported by a large number of local consultants. Some of these were individuals and are referred to in the relevant sections of this Report. Others were part of the following local consultancy organisations:
Local Government Development Centre
Slovak Governance Institute
INEKO
Transparency International
PMP Management Impulse
(Logos of LGDC and SGI to be included; websites of all organisations to be included).
The Project Team and Project Inputs
The Project Team was located in the Office of Government Building in Stefanikova, Bratislava. The Team comprised:
George Bardwell (PAI), Project Team Leader and Lead Consultant, Civil Service Reform;
Stewart MacLeod (NICO), Lead Consultant, Policy Management and Budget Reform;
Luba Vavrova (LGDC), Lead Local Consultant;
Katarina Dienerova (LGDC), Local Project Adviser.
In total 18 overseas consultants contributed to the Project Team and they are listed in the relevant descriptions of the various activities. The total number of input days in Phase II of the Project was:
835 Overseas Consultant Days, and
429 Local Consultant Days.
The Two Project Phases
The initiation of the Project took place in Phase I from October 2000 to April 2001. That Phase was provided by a senior team of Paul Collins, Ron Carr and Sandy Russell. At the end of that Phase the SPAR Project Activities were redefined and the Phase II Project Team was established.
Phase II of the SPAR Project operated from May 2001 to February 2003 and the activities and outputs described in this Report relate almost exclusively to the work of Phase II.
The Project Activities and Outputs
The Project’s activities and outputs centred around two main themes – Modernising State Administration and Developing the Civil Service. The following sections summarise the work carried out under each of our activities and include the key outputs produced by the Project.
The activities that were directed at Modernising State Administration were:
Budget Reform
Policy Analysis
Performance Audit
Cabinet Procedures
Public Procurement
The activities that were directed at Developing the Civil Service were:
Personal Performance Appraisal
Human Resource Strategy
Support to the Civil Service Office
A Civil Service Fast Stream
European Union Projects
(links to report summaries)