Rwanda - Support for Policy and Strategy Development Project

Project Overview

Rwanda’s long-term goal articulated in the Vision 2020 is aimed at rapid economic transformation through application of knowledge and technology for wealth creation. GoR’s priority is to improve policy analysis and oversight, which is necessary to effectively align the strategies and plans with Rwanda’s development goals. The development objective of the Support for Policy and Strategy Development Project (SPSD) is to contribute to improved competitiveness through an efficient and effective public sector while the project objective is to strengthen strategic leadership capability in Rwanda. The project will support capacity building activities for policy analysis and oversight at Strategy and Policy Unit (SPU), Office of The President and the Institute for Policy Analysis and Research (IPAR), an independent research institution. This support will leverage key initiatives deriving from the National Leadership Retreat and Presidential Advisory Council, with a view to catalyzing strategic actions to enhance competitiveness. The Public Sector Capacity Building Secretariat (PSCBS) – is the Executing Agency.

Project Development Objective

"The development objective is to contribute to improved competitiveness through an efficient and effective public sector while the specific objective of the project is to improve strategic leadership capability in Rwanda."

Project Outputs

The broad outputs of the project are effectively functioning SPU and IPAR, reflected in:

Strategy and Policy Unit (SPU) - Office of the President

• Staff trained in policy analysis and advocacy;
• Policy briefs prepared for senior decision makers in Government
• Private sector operators trained and action plan prepared for cluster development.

Institute of Policy Analysis and Research (IPAR)

• 5 year research program prepared
• Networks and partnerships established with other research bodies
• Publications- policy notes/papers prepared and disseminated

Project Outcomes and Beneficiaries

SPDP’s expected outcomes include:

• Knowledge management institutionalized
• Effective economic management
• An improved business environment conducive to growth and competitiveness. These will be achieved largely through production and dissemination of knowledge/analytic products mainly targeting Rwanda’s senior policy makers; as well as the effective alignment of strategies and plans with Rwanda’s development objectives.

The primary beneficiaries of the project are the senior policy makers and professional staff of SPU and IPAR. Investors will also benefit from transparent and well coordinated government policies and good governance practices.

Needs Assessment

In its EDPRS, GoR recognizes that poverty reduction efforts will be driven by transformation of the economy through sustained investment in infrastructure, private sector development and knowledge application. However, to meet the challenge of creating new drivers of growth and improve international competitiveness, Rwanda faces an acute skills shortage, lacks established “think-and-do-tanks” and a strong tradition of open public policy dialogue. To foster new drivers of growth, there is need to develop strategic leadership capability and enhance evidence based policymaking. As apex institution championing these causes as well as providing leadership in the coordination of GoR’s policies and plans, SPU requires the intellectual capacity and resources to effectively discharge its mandate.

Bank’s Added Value

The project is programmed in the Bank’s current CSP for Rwanda (2008-2011), and is aligned to the CSP’s second pillar. Bank’s support for the project is within the broad context of its assistance strategy to improve Rwanda’s economic performance for poverty reduction. SPSD is consistent with the Bank’s knowledge related activities, as it will contribute to Rwanda’s capacity development efforts in knowledge generation and sharing. It also leverages the Bank’s considerable experience in institutional support and complements the Private Sector Strategy.

Knowledge Management

The Bank will capture knowledge learned from this project through careful monitoring of the implementation progress, and impacts of SPU, IPAR and cluster development. Knowledge products generated from this project will also be widely shared with key stakeholders, including the senior policy makers and the private sector.