IMPLEMENTING A STRATEGY FOR PROFESSIONAL TRAINING IN PUBLIC PROCUREMENT - THE CASE OF FYR MACEDONIA (MACEDONIA) Michael Burnett1 Table of contents Chapter 1 - Project context Chapter 2 - Key principles for public procurement training Chapter 3 - Identification of training needs Chapter 4 - Training strategy and plan Chapter 5 - Practical experiences in implementation Chapter 6 - Carrying the torch – project sustainability

Summary This paper presents a case study of capacity building for civil servants in implementation of EU legislation, using the example of a project in the field of public procurement in the FYR Macedonia (Macedonia). It sets out the principles underpinning the development of the training strategy and the approach to developing the training strategy. It then goes on to highlight the key features of the training strategy and the reasons for decisions taken. Finally, it includes an assessment of the success in implementing the strategy and the plans developed for sustaining the impact of the project beyond the initial period of technical assistance. Michael Burnett was the Key Training Expert on this project with responsibility for the design and implementation of the strategy.

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Lecturer, European Institute of Public Administration, Maastricht, the Netherlands

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Chapter 1 - Project context 1.1 Introduction Macedonia’s Stability and Association Agreement with the EU covered the period 2001 to 2006 and brought with it a programme of capacity building assistance. Included within the programme was a project which ran from September 2004 to April 2006, financed by the European Agency for Reconstruction (EAR) and relating to capacity building in the field of public procurement. The project worked with the Public Procurement Bureau (PPB), the unit within the Ministry of Finance responsible for supervising and monitoring the implementation of public procurement in Macedonia. The Project’s specific objective was to strengthen the capacity of public authorities within Macedonia to efficiently implement existing public procurement legislation and to develop the working methods for public authorities in applying public procurement legislation using the experience of existing EU Member States. The project comprised several components ie revision of the Macedonian public procurement law to harmonise it with recently enacted EU Public Procurement Directives, institutional development of the PPB (increased resources and better skills), the development of standard documentation for use in public procurement, training activities and a public communication campaign. The author of this paper was the Key Expert for Training in the project, responsible overall for the achievement of the objectives of the training component. It describes the experience of implementing the training component of the project, which was identified as one of the key components of the Project. The scope of the training was to equip as many as possible public officials with a core knowledge and understanding of the principles and application of EU Public Procurement Directives and of the provisions of the 2004 Macedonian Law on Public Procurement (LPP 2004) and the key practical issues associated with its implementation, through methods such as training seminars and workshops, distance learning tools and on the job training. These aims of the training component of the project were ambitious, reflecting the importance of the effective implementation of LPP 2004 as a key element of harmonising the law with the acquis communautaire. This was particularly true given the relatively small size of the PPB at the start of the project (8 FTE) and the other pressures on their time, the relative inexperience of PPB staff and other potential trainers in preparation and delivery of training and the known imperfections in LPP 2004. One additional factor particular to the first three months of the project was the demand on the time of PPB to develop secondary legislation under LPP, necessary to meet one of the conditionalities of a World Bank loan to the government. The success of the training component also depended crucially on co-operation with other components, to ensure that the revision of the LPP 2004, the development of standard documentation for use in public procurement and the development of training materials moved in parallel. 1.2 Scope of training component of project The key tasks in the training component of the Project were defined by the terms of reference and elaborated as set out below in the planning stage of the project: Training Needs Analysis Assessment of priorities for training needs re LPP 2004, to be used in the design of the training strategy and plan. The assessment was to be conducted through a variety of means including individual interviews, group discussions and questionnaires. Selection of local trainers The selection of local trainers to conduct training activities, including assessment of the number needed, roles and responsibilities, balance between PPB staff, other government trainers and independent trainers, design of selection criteria and the selection procedure for the selection of local trainers and support to PPB during the selection procedure.

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Design materials for Train the Trainer courses Design of course material for training courses in training techniques to be provided for local trainers before they conduct LPP 2004 training, known as “Train the Trainer” courses. Design of training strategy for LPP 2004 training Definition of delivery mechanisms for the training needs of target groups and of the objectives of the LPP 2004 training. The main delivery mechanisms to be used were training seminars for public officials on LPP 2004, on the job training, and distance learning. Preparation of training plan for LPP 2004 training Devising a training plan for LPP 2004 training, including the number, timing and location of proposed LPP 2004 training seminars and an assessment of the resources needed to implement the plan. Training delivery - Train the Trainer courses Preparation, delivery and evaluation of Train the Trainer courses for local trainers. Design and development of training content for LPP 2004 training seminars Design of course material for training courses in LPP 2004 by local and international trainers with content in accordance with the Training Needs Analysis and Macedonian and EU public procurement legislation. Selection of participants for LPP 2004 training seminars Definition of the selection criteria for prioritising participants for seminars and review of selection of participants, this being particularly important given the latent demand for public procurement training in Macedonia. Procurement Training for PPB staff and other local trainers Design and implementation of procurement training activity for local trainers before and during the period when they conduct LPP 2004 training. Delivery of LPP 2004 training seminars Preparation and delivery of 15 seminars on LPP 2004 for public officials (procurement officials and auditors), with a target number of 250-300 participants. Training evaluation Design of training evaluation materials, preparation of guidance for local trainers and international short term experts (STEs) re evaluation of training events, observation of/participation in training events and review of training evaluation undertaken by local trainers. Design and implementation of on the job training Design, implementation and monitoring of the implementation of delivery mechanisms for on the job training. Design and implementation of distance learning programme Design and implementation of delivery mechanisms for the distance learning programme.

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Planning and conduct of EU study and training Visit Organisation and conduct of a study and training visit to counterpart public bodies responsible for supervision and monitoring of public procurement in current EU Member States. Design of post-project training strategy ie post-project sustainability plan Evaluation of project outcomes and preparation of the post project sustainability plan. All of these elements were important to the total delivery of the objectives of the training component of the project and they fully covered the EAR’s terms of reference for the project. This paper concentrates the following elements which are considered to have the greatest potential for knowledge sharing ie: • • • • •

Key principles for public procurement training; Identification of training needs through the Training Needs Analysis; Key issues in the design of the Training Strategy and Plan; Practical experiences in implementation; Project sustainability issues.

Chapter 2 - Key principles for public procurement training This was a project designed to equip Macedonia with the capacity to transform its own capability in the field of public procurement. Hence it was necessary not merely to propose changes in the law and the documents necessary to implement them and transfer knowledge during the training activity but also to try to transfer an understanding of the logic of the project and the principles underlying the development of an effective public procurement regime consistent with internationally accepted good practice. This was intended to maximise the likelihood that the project would lead to the necessary culture change ie the idea that public procurement should be conducted by public bodies for the benefit of citizens and not for the benefit of any individual stakeholder. Hence the need to set out the key concepts underpinning all the training activities in a Mission Statement prepared at the beginning of the project. These were: •

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The existence of a relatively stable and internationally accepted set of public procurement principles to which public procurement law in Macedonia needs to conform irrespective of the need to be consistent with EU public procurement Law ie the World Trade Organisation’s Government Procurement Agreement (GPA); The need to ensure that public procurement law in Macedonia was as consistent as possible as soon as possible with EU public procurement law, with the ultimate need to eliminate any incompatibility before Macedonia joins the EU; That compliance with EU public procurement law would also ensure consistency with the GPA; That effective public procurement is the key to effective use of state budgetary resources in the delivery of good quality public services to citizens and as a result, should be seen as much more than merely a set of administrative procedures to be complied with; That public procurement should be conducted by public bodies for the benefit of citizens and not for the benefit of any individual stakeholder; That effective public procurement relies upon the exercise of skilled judgement by public procurement officials and, as a result, cannot rely solely on following pre-determined procedures; The importance of wide dissemination of information about the interpretation of the law and judgements exercised in its implementation as a basis for developing consistency in implementation and building confidence in the transparency of its application; The need for the broadest possible spread of training to maximise the exposure to the need for culture change in procurement; That the impact of training in public procurement for operational public procurement officials will be maximised if there is also an appropriate element of awareness raising amongst senior officials and politicians (an issue to be addressed in the public communication campaign element of the Project);

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That, because of the need to give priority for training of public officials, potential suppliers to the public sector do not form part of the target group for core training in the implementation of public procurement law, though the development of competitive supply market will be enhanced by the effective implementation of the LPP 2004 by public authorities; That the implementation of the distance learning elements of the training interventions would be best undertaken in the light of emerging practical experience of the training seminars.

Chapter 3 - Identification of training needs 3.1 Introduction In an environment where there were very wide ranging training needs, and potentially different means of achieving them, it was considered essential to identify priorities. This was done by means of a structured Training Needs Analysis at an early stage in the Project2, the approach to which was agreed in advance with PPB in a Training Needs Analysis planning paper. 3.2 Methodology for identification of training needs There were five main components to the Training Needs Analysis, namely: • • • • •

Interviews with PPB officials and other relevant personnel within the Ministry of Finance; An open forum with procurement officers in other selected government ministries; An open forum for procurement officers from municipal administrations and public enterprises; An open forum with state auditors and internal auditors from the Ministry of Finance; A questionnaire for a wider range of procurement officers in government ministries and other Contracting Authorities.3

The use of open forums was also intended to be an opportunity to promote awareness of the Project amongst the procurement community in Macedonia. 3.3 Scope of Training Needs Analysis The scope of the Training Needs Analysis was defined by the questionnaire used to elicit training needs, which was distributed to 150 Contracting Authorities ie central government, municipal administrations and public enterprises. The questionnaire requested basic information about the Contracting Authority, procedures used and tenders awarded in the last year and information on the respondent. In addition, it also asked specifically for comment on: • • •

Priorities for the LPP 2004 content of the training seminars (eg types of contract, types of procurement procedure, most relevant sections of primary legislation, most relevant aspects of secondary legislation etc); Priorities for the EU content of the training seminars (eg principles and objectives of EU procurement, differences between LPP 2004 and the EU Public Procurement Directives and specific matters referred to in EU law but not in LPP 2004 etc); Preferred approaches to other training activity ie on the job training, and distance learning.

The open forum meetings and interviews also addressed similar issues. The interviews were also used to seek to establish priorities such as those between different types of Contracting Authority, identify specific Contracting Authorities where training might be particularly beneficial (based on factors such as value of spend, past experience in conducting procurements etc) and current (and possibly future) roles in the procurement process of staff to be trained.

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Between October 2005 and January 2006 This is the EU term for public authorities subject to the EU public procurement regime. LPP 2004 uses the term “procuring entities”

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3.4 Assessment of Training Needs Analysis Experience suggested that the Training Needs Analysis as conducted in Macedonia was a credible basis for the design of the Training Strategy and Plan. This was because of: •

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The volume of the response to the questionnaire element of the Training Needs Analysis. This produced a two thirds response rate (150 distributed, 100 returned), which is a good response for such a survey, given the detailed content of the questionnaire and the time available for respondents to reply (three weeks including the Christmas and New Year periods); The scope of the response to the Training Needs Analysis by respondents, which included central government, municipal administrations and public enterprises and also a significant response from Chairmen of Public Procurement Committees; The attendance at, and contributions made at, the three open forum meetings. These were very well attended. The forum for central government officials as well the one from local authorities and public enterprises included over 60 participants each. The one with the state auditors and internal auditors had 12 participants (out of a total national cadre of 90). These meetings were highly interactive, which showed considerable enthusiasm for public procurement training as well as a readiness to learn and share experience; The consistency of the needs emerging from the different sources used.

Thus the Training Needs Analysis achieved its objective of obtaining the widest possible range of views to inform the design of the training strategy while ensuring that the opinions of key individual stakeholders, such as the Minister of Finance’s special advisers, were obtained. 3.5 Key conclusions of Training Needs Analysis The target groups for the training activities were identified as: • • •

Public officials who work in the field of public procurement; State auditors and internal auditors; Local trainers, who would include existing PPB staff and new employees of the PPB as they were appointed, and other public officials selected as local trainers.

The following overall conclusions for the approach to the training activity were drawn from the different aspects of Training Needs Analysis: • • • • • • • •

There was a wide demand for core training through seminars in LPP 2004; There was extensive experience in the application of pre 2004 Macedonian public procurement law but much less in the new one, so that an understanding of the differences between the two laws of would be of significant interest for the training participants; Since Macedonia was on course to become a candidate for EU membership, the differences between Macedonian legislation and EU Public Procurement Directives were of high importance; Planning and strategy is an important phase in the whole process and the basis for effective, efficient and timely public procurement; The training to be conducted should to the maximum extent possible relate to practical examples from the Macedonian environment; There was a need to include reference to utilities contracts and remedies as well as public contracts in the training activity; There was a need for a variant version of the training seminar dedicated to the particular needs of state auditors and internal auditors in auditing public procurements; The likelihood that the benefits of the training activity would be optimised if it were directed at current members of Public Procurement Committees. This was consistent with role played by these individuals in all aspects of public procurement, as would be expected given the general absence of specialist procurement officers within Contracting Authorities in Macedonia.

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In addition, the Training Needs Analysis identified specific topics in LPP 2004, drawn from choices offered in the questionnaire and open forum meetings, which were to be given higher priority in the content of the training. As regards the EU Public Procurement, the priorities were identified as being differences between the treatment of matters in LPP 2004 and new EU Directives, specific matters in EU law but not in LPP 2004 (and vice versa) - ie all aspects of the “harmonisation gap” – as well as the principles of EU public procurement. The Training Needs Analysis was approved by PPB as the basis for the Training Strategy and Plan.

Chapter 4 – Training strategy and plan 4.1 Objective of the Training Strategy and Plan The Training Strategy and Plan - a formal document delivered as part of the project - was designed to set out in detail how the training component of the project would be implemented. It formed the definitive point of reference for all concerned with the implementation of the component and had two key objectives: • •

To describe and explain the approach to the design and delivery of training within the project. In addition to training in LPP 2004, it would also include the approach to training in the new EU Public Procurement Directives and in training skills through Train the Trainer Courses; To facilitate the design and delivery of individual means of the training and in particular by identifying the key issues to be addressed in each delivery mechanism to be used in the training.

4.2 Content of the Training Strategy and Plan The Training Strategy and Plan included the following elements: • • •

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Conduct of the Training Needs Analysis (described above in Chapter 3); Methodology for development of the Training Strategy and Plan; Methodology for the approach to training in each of the main delivery mechanisms ie: - Design and delivery of Train the Trainer courses; - Design and delivery of LPP 2004 Seminars; - Design and implementation of on the job training; - Design and implementation of the distance learning programme; - Planning and conduct of EU Study and Training Visit; - Training for PPB staff and other local trainers; The planned training activities – their objectives, timing, target participants for each seminar, and respective responsibilities for preparation and delivery, resourcing etc.

4.3 Development of the Training Strategy and Plan The Training Strategy and Plan was principally based on the evidence of the Training Needs Analysis. It also drew on other inputs such as expenditure patterns in the Macedonian state budget, the number of procurements undertaken by Contracting Authorities, the experience of other public procurement capacity building projects in transition countries and the wider public procurement experience of the Project Team. Many of the Project experts had, for example, participated in a similar project in Romania in 2003, including the author of this paper, who conducted 20 seminars and workshops in that project as an STE. That project had been evaluated successfully by participants and carried a number of key lessons forward to this project.

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The key matters arising from these other inputs were: •

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The need to use standard course material in the seminars prepared in advance by local trainers and international experts. This was to be supplemented when the courses are actually presented by the trainers using their own words around the written material and examples drawn from their own experience. This was to help to develop a consistency of approach in the seminars and facilitate the monitoring of quality as well as serving as a basis for developing distance learning material for those unable to attend the seminars. For the presentation of LPP 2004, this was to be done by PPB (though with close guidance from the Project Team), thus promoting ownership of the material by PPB. Standard slides for International STE presentations were also prepared, thus enabling them to focus their input on customisation of the presentation of the key messages to their own practical experience; The need to give a specific briefing for International STEs explaining their role in the seminar and the project including, in particular, setting high expectations of their pre-seminar preparation to understand the local procurement law and environment and of the need to capture the key issues emerging in the seminar in detailed post-seminar mission reports; The need for control of the selection of participants for the LPP 2004 seminars by PPB, ie the process of application by interested parties and invitation to attend by PPB to maximise the likelihood that the participant selection would be based on the best available assessment of training priorities. Given the interest shown in public procurement training, it was expected that demand would exceed available places. Thus participants were to be invited to apply and selected by PPB supported by the Project Team, through guidelines for selection and participation in selection decisions. It was intended that participants would be selected on the basis of factors such as the relative importance of expenditure spent by the different type of entities in the state budget, engagement of the entity with the Training Needs Analysis process, number of procurements undertaken by the entity and (without making this criterion too explicit) the relative performance of the entity in conducting procurements. In addition to these factors, which relate to the participants need for training, it was also intended that participants would also be selected, as far as possible, on the basis of their willingness to undertake cascade training ie to formally and informally to spread their knowledge and materials obtained within their own working environment, one means by which the reach of the project could be extended; The importance of the role of local trainers in securing the sustainability of the project both during its lifetime and beyond. It was expected that local trainers would become champions for the dissemination of knowledge about the implementation of LPP 2004. Hence the importance attached to the selection of them. It was determined that all trainers would be public officials, thus seeking to avoid the conflicts of interest between the commercial interests of independent trainers and training priorities which had needed careful management in the Romania project. A balance was sought between PPB local trainers and other public officials to reflect the different roles of practitioners and regulators. Non-PPB local trainers were to be selected by invitation from PPB and after interview by PPB and the Project Team. The key considerations in determining the selection of local trainers were: -

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The time which PPB staff would have available to devote to the role of local trainer having regard to their other duties. PPB staff wanted to form the core of local trainer cadre, a role which would reinforce the training role given to them by the LPP 2004 and give them an opportunity for to establish their position in that role with public officials; Barriers to compensation of public officials for the time expended on training activity; Availability of competent public officials outside of PPB capable of conducting training.

As regards the numbers of local trainers needed (eventually 20 were selected), this was determined by: -

The amount of time able to be given by those selected for the role having regard in case of PPB to other duties; The number of seminars to be conducted in total, and assessment of the amount of on the job training which might occur; The different skills needed for different training mechanisms ie in particular as between seminar delivery and on-the-job training though, ideally, individual local trainers would undertake both elements of the role (seminars and on-the-job training);

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The need for consistency of approach in training activity (which suggested a smaller pool of trainers) balanced with the benefits of diversity of experience of local trainers. A larger pool of local trainers would allow for diversity of experience in terms of the size, sector and type (works, supplies and services) of procurements implemented by them, the legal, financial and technical skills needed for procurement training and mix of their experience from Contracting Authorities of different sizes, functions and geographical locations; - The need to allow for turnover within the pool of local trainers and the expectation that not all those initially selected would be able to continue to fulfil their training obligations; The need for development of training skills of the local trainers through the Train the Trainer courses course and follow-up workshops. All local trainers were to be provided with an introduction to didactic skills training through Train the Trainer courses. Subsequently it was intended that they would be provided with training in EU public procurement law and issuespecific workshops as the seminar programme progressed; The timing of training activity. As noted above, there were obvious dependencies between the training component and the other components of the project which were in the process of implementation in parallel with the training activity (eg future legislative strategy to ensure Macedonia’s ultimate compliance with EU public procurement law, the creation of an appropriately resourced, appropriately empowered PPB and the creation of procedures manuals, guides and appropriate documentation for the implementation of public procurement law). At the time the training component was planned, the timetable for the implementation of the other components was not finally determined, particularly in the light of the need for the beneficiary to integrate our proposals in these components into their other priorities. Given this uncertainty, the training activity was planned so that the delivery of training seminars in LPP 2004 occurred over an elapsed time of eight months. This was intended to optimise the ability to be as responsive as possible to developments in the implementation of other components of the project, ie to incorporate them into the training material; The need to underpin the sustainability of the project after the conclusion of the period of initial technical assistance. One of the key success measures of this project was recognised to be its sustainability after the conclusion of the period of initial technical assistance. The conduct of the training component was to be designed to provide core training, with the intention of highlighting further future needs in a post-project sustainability plan; The need for appropriate evaluation of training activity. The evaluation was to include quantitative and qualitative measures. The evaluation was to cover both immediate and reflective tools. The evaluation tools planned to be used included: -

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Immediate individual written post course response from participants, which would cover content of training, design of training, performance of the trainer, training environment and extent to which the training achieved its stated objectives; - Assessment by local trainers and international STEs by means of a short post-seminar report, including attendance, work progress and accomplishment of objectives; - Observation and assessment of seminars by the Project Team; The assessment of the resources needed to deliver the Training Strategy and Plan and the allocation of those resources. The allocation of resources was carefully assessed in detail as between different categories of expert ie international and local long term experts, international STEs and local trainers.

4.4 Planned approach to the delivery of training The key elements of the Project’s training component4 were: • Train The Trainer Courses ie raining in didactic skills for local trainers; • Design of LPP 2004 training seminars; • Delivery of LPP 2004 training seminars; • Design and implementation of on the job training; • Design and implementation of distance learning; • Public procurement training for PPB staff and other local trainers. 4

The component also included study tours to Public Procurement Units in existing EU Member States ie Sweden and Latvia. These are not described in detail in this paper

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This section analyses how they were planned to be implemented in the light of the Training Needs Analysis and the other inputs shown above. Train the Trainer courses The purpose of the Train the Trainer courses was to train the local trainers in didactic training skills and use of appropriate modern training techniques (visual presentations, interactive training methods, case studies etc.). In addition the courses would also include guidance on the preparation of course material. Two Train the Trainer courses were planned to focus on assessing and improving teaching skills of the experienced public procurement practitioners and regulators who formed the local training cadre in order to develop their capacity to speak and teach in front of both seminar audiences and small groups. The Train the Trainer courses were to be designed and delivered by international STEs experienced in both designing and delivering such materials .The courses were planned as a two day programme of training for local trainers, with a focus on how to train professionals and including introduction to presentation skills, how to design a training programme and training materials for a public procurement seminar and individual practice in presentations, with personal feedback Design of LPP 2004 training seminar material The LPP 2004 seminars form a key part of the overall training strategy and plan and thus significant effort was invested in the quality of design of the material. The objectives, timetable and content of the LPP 2004 seminars were to reflect needs identified by the Training Needs Analysis (Training Needs Analysis) undertaken by the Project Team. As far as possible, the seminars were to use the procurement documentation used in live procurements governed by LPP 2004. Seminars of two days were planned, with the seminar material including two elements: •

Inputs by an international STEs (30% of total), comprising presentations by the international STE on EU Public Procurement – Principles and Practice and on EU Public Procurement and LPP 2004, highlighting differences between them (the harmonisation of Macedonian law with the EU Public Procurement Directives was part of the legal drafting component of the project). As noted above, the need for these presentations had been clearly established from the Romania project. Their content was designed by the Project Team and made available to international STEs as part of their preparation for the seminars. In terms of the sequence of the seminar activity, these presentations were scheduled for the beginning of the seminar, to maximise their impact. Setting out a clear direction for the future – the direction in which Macedonian public procurement law was heading if Macedonia wanted to join the EU – was consistent with the intention to emphasise that the seminars were part of a change process;

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Inputs by local trainers (70% of total), comprising inputs led by the local trainers on LPP 2004 and its implementation, following the logical sequence of the procurement process ie procurement strategy, advertisement/information for interested parties, short listing of candidates, preparation of tender documentation, clarifications in tender phase, tender evaluation and contract award. It was decided that the material for this element of the training would be prepared by PPB, with detailed guidance and review from the Project Team. This helped to secure the benefits of ownership by PPB and of ensuring that key procurement learning points were incorporated into the material, acting also as a learning tool for the PPB staff preparing the material. Thus the Project Team prepared a detailed briefing paper for this crucial phase of the project, which in the end required intensive activity over an eight week period. The contents of this guidance included: -

Purpose of seminars; Logic of seminar structure;

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Suggested allocation of times for each phase; Indicative objectives, phase timetable, learning methods for each phase; Key learning points and materials to be used in developing detailed content eg LPP 2004, Training Needs Analysis report, Project Mission Statement, EU Public Procurement Directives etc; Briefing on delivery of seminars (current roles and prior experience of participants, preseminar preparation of participants, role of international and local trainers, available equipment etc); Material preparation timetable, interim milestones and support available from Project Team.

The outputs expected of the design phase for LPP 2004 material were slides for each phase, scripts to accompany the slides as an aide to the delivery of the training and worked examples/questions for group discussion The design of these materials was completed before the commencement of the seminars, allowing sufficient time for translation into Macedonian Delivery of LPP 2004 training seminars As noted above, the LPP 2004 seminars formed a key part of the overall training strategy and plan. Their purpose was to provide an appropriately selected5 target group with knowledge of, and practical experience in, the implementation of, LPP 2004. The participants in these training seminars were, as identified by the Training Needs Analysis, to be: • •

Public officials in central government, municipal administrations and public enterprises responsible for public procurement (14 seminars, with a target of 280 participants); State auditors and internal auditors (1 seminar, with a target of 20 participants).

The content of the LPP 2004 seminars was planned to follow the set timetable developed in the design phase (see above), though giving more emphasis in the auditors’ seminar to control aspects. As also noted above, standard seminar material was to be used in the seminars which had been prepared in advance of the seminars, though International STEs were also allocated time within their missions to produce their own training materials which could be handed out to participants on seminars as extra background material and to supplement the learning points, but not to fundamentally change the structure of the seminars. The seminars were to be led by three trainers ie two local trainers and an international STE, with the international STE being present throughout the seminar. The seminars were presented in Macedonian by local trainers, with simultaneous translation for the international STEs. For the input by the international STEs, there would be consecutive translation for the participants. Consecutive translation would also be used where the international STE was called on to answer a question by a participant during the seminar or intervenes either voluntarily or at the request of the local trainer to share his or her experience with the participants. International STEs were encouraged to intervene as and when they felt it appropriate and local trainers were briefed to call on such interventions when they felt it to be appropriate. The structure of the seminar would also give space to the participants to discuss practical situations faced by them – many of them being experienced practitioners, well aware of the practical issues in implementing LPP 2004 as members of Public Procurement Committees, which in some cases are caused by inconsistencies and lack of clarity in LPP 2004. In particular it was important that the seminars should address these issues and attempt to work out practical ways forward using best international practice.

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For details of the selection criteria, see 4.3 above

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On the job training On the job training for public officials engaged in public procurement formed a second element of the overall Training Strategy and Plan, consistent with the outcome of the Training Needs Analysis in respect of the need for practical training. In the Training Needs Analysis questionnaire, respondents were offered the option to express preference as between the following potential activities on the job training activities ie: • • • • • •

Training before Public Procurement Committee sessions; Observations of and feedback on Public Procurement Committee sessions by local trainers; Use of reports on procurement processes from auditors to be linked to presentation by auditors on the conduct of award procedures, a process that, at an open forum meeting, auditors indicated they would be willing to participate in; Informal workshops in the work place; Establishing a national help desk for practical issues arising; Establishing “local” help desks for practical issues arising.

There was also an opportunity for respondents to add other options. The response to the Training Needs Analysis indicated that the two most useful activities would be: • •

Training before Public Procurement Committee sessions to undertake bid evaluation activities; The participation of a trainer during Public Procurement Committee meetings as observer to give feedback after the completion of the process.

It was therefore proposed that these activities should form the core of the on-the-job training activity for public officials (subject to finding a legal basis for the second of these activities). In doing so, the potential sensitivity of evaluation activities to Contracting Authorities was recognised. Any such attendance would be with the consent of the Contracting Authority and subject to prior discussion with the Chairman of the Public Procurement Committee. In practice these activities would be more likely to take place in Contracting Authorities which volunteered for them. It was clearly be necessary to ensure that these activities, which were potentially high value added but also resource intensive, were planned and structured by local trainers in co-operation with the relevant Contracting Authorities to maximise the benefit gained from them. It was also necessary to retain some flexibility in this element of the training strategy, so in this respect it is recommended that a small working group of local trainers – supported by the Project Team should meet monthly to plan which local trainers would undertake the above tasks, to evaluate the activities which have been carried out and to consider the allocation of time to other on the job activities and in particular: •

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The use of reports on procurement processes from auditors to be linked to presentation by auditors on the conduct of award procedures, a process that, during the Training Needs Analysis, auditors indicated they would be willing to participate in. One of the key issues emerging during the Project was the importance of the audit process in maintaining the probity and transparency of the public procurement process through scrutiny, and the benefits of improved mutual understanding between auditors and procurement practitioners. This was anticipated by the Project Team, drawing in part on the experience of the Romania project; Assistance in preparation of a tender dossier, which again would have to be at invitation of a Contracting Authority; Investigation of the establishment of secondments between institutions as a means of personal development for procurement officials.

As was the case with the evaluation of LPP seminars, the overall evaluation of progress in on the job training was to be reported as part of the project reporting cycle.

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Distance learning Experience from other projects suggested that, even with an active programme of face to face training seminars and workshops, the training activities could not reach all those public officials who may potentially have been involved in the conduct, supervision or auditing of public procurement or those responsible for taking decisions as a result of their work. It was thus planned that the outputs of the project would include a self-study version of the materials from the training seminars. This was to be accessible to public officials unable to attend one of the seminars conducted, as a refresher to those who have attended a seminar and as an aide to newly-appointed public officials, with the aim of enhancing the reach and sustainability of the project. The final version of this material was to be collated towards the end of the project period, thus ensuring that it is able to incorporate the experience of the face to face training into the distance learning material. It was intended that these materials would be available in hard copy and CD-Rom format. The material would also be available after the end of the project to support its sustainability when it would be supported by selected local trainers in their continuing role as champions of public procurement in Macedonia ie they would act as support tutors for public officials following the self-study material remotely. In this respect they would commit to being accessible by email and, if possible, at agreed fixed times for telephone queries. It was also intended that the training materials would also be posted on the Training Section of the PPB web page, along with answers to frequently asked questions and suggestions for recommended further reading and links to relevant downloads and web sites. In this respect the distance learning material could be made available to a wide range of potential stakeholders, not merely public officials. Responsibility for the development of distance learning materials was to lie with international STEs but with supporting input from PPB. Procurement training for PPB and other local trainers PPB and other local trainers formed the third target group for training activity. The approach to the provision of procurement training for PPB and other local trainers was informed by the initial assessment of their capability of the PPB ie as already being amongst the group most capable in understanding LPP 2004 and its practical application in Macedonia. This was clear from the contribution made by PPB to the Training Needs Analysis. Hence the approach based on devoting more of training resources to public officials and auditors, thus allowing the training programme to reach a broader spread of these groups. PPB and other local trainers would be able to benefit from regular informal contact with Project Team members, from close collaboration with the Project Experts in, for instance, the drafting of standard bidding documents, procurement forms and templates and designing the web page and from working with International STEs as members of seminar training teams. The effectiveness of these relations was evident from an early stage of the project as individual PPB staff had and made use of access to the Project Team on an ad hoc basis to guidance on specific problems at their request. In addition it was envisaged that all local trainers were to be provided by the Project Team with an introduction to EU Public Procurement law (through three half day workshops) and that issuespecific workshops as the seminar programme progressed. In addition the study and training visits were also planned to form a key element of the procurement training for PPB members.

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Chapter 5 - Practical experiences in implementation Overall, the implementation of the training component was regarded as successful by PPB as the beneficiary, by the EAR and by the training participants. All the requirements of the EAR’s terms of reference for the Project’s training component were achieved and in some cases exceeded eg in number of civil servants trained and the number of training events. As noted above, there were 15 events with more than 250 participants, as compared to the minimum requirement of 5 events for 100 participants, and with the planned range of participants from different Contracting Authorities. There was a very high level of interest in the project, as evidenced by the attendance at the Training Needs Analysis open forum meetings, and response to the Training Needs Analysis questionnaire and attendances at the LPP training seminars. The implementation of the project endorsed a number of the key decisions in the planning phase, ie: •

The need to formalise the planning of the component into a single reference document ie the Training Strategy and Plan, setting out the methodology for planning as well as the ideas underlying the plan as well the planned activities. Without being a straitjacket, this acted to guide the delivery of the component and formed a key part of the Project’s knowledge transfer to the beneficiary, and having, in the author’s view, an application to disciplines beyond public procurement;

•

Use of standard material for presentation of LPP 2004 seminars, thus ensuring quality and facilitating the task of preparing the self study material (which ultimately resulted in a manual of some 90 pages). Preparation of standard material by PPB with close guidance from the Project Team promoted ownership of the training material by PPB. This was probably the crucial decision in terms of the success of the training component – the opportunity for PPB to make a step change in their understanding of best international practice in public procurement. Its preparation required much hard work from the Project Team and PPB over a two month period. PPB were far from confident at the start of the process in their own capability to deliver this material, in spite of their experience in public procurement. This stemmed from several causes, including the size of the task and their other commitments, their lack of previous experience in preparing training material, their lack of self-confidence in their understanding of EU public procurement principles and (because of the known imperfections in LPP 2004) a fear that they would be obliged to publicly defend provisions of LPP 2004 which were unclear, difficult to implement in practice or did not conform to best international practice. Nevertheless it was essential to persist with this approach because of the crucial role that PPB were to have in the delivery of the material, which would have necessitated a significant amount of preparation in any case, and to prepare them in the longer term to fulfil their statutory obligations for public procurement training. In the end, suitably supported by the Project Team, they did deliver good quality material - evidenced by the fact that seminars were very well evaluated by the participants and prompted lively discussion of the material presented;

•

The integration of the role of International STEs into the training component. Preparation of standard slides for presentations enabled them, as expected, to focus their input on customisation of the presentation of the key messages to their own practical experience, again without being a straitjacket. International STEs commented favourably on this, and also on the specific briefing for them explaining their role in the project. The high expectations of them – in pre-seminar preparation and mission reports – were thus realised and their detailed summary of the key questions and answers arising in the seminars were able to be integrated into the self-study manual;

•

The approach to selection of local trainers, and in particular the desire for balance between PPB personnel and other experienced practitioners. Non-PPB local trainers engaged very well with the project, with 15 of the 20 trainers who attended the Train the Trainer courses delivering seminars.

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In addition, inter-disciplinary exchange on public procurement issues, ie in developing a shared understanding of issues between different stakeholders, was successfully promoted with workshops on LPP 2004 being jointly attended by auditors, PPB, the Public Procurement Complaints Commission, the State Anti-Corruption Committee and the local branch of Transparency International. None of the key risks identified in the Training Strategy and Plan materialised to impede the implementation of the component ie there was good co-operation with the training component from experts leading other components, suitable local trainers were available when needed and public procurement officials proved to be available as participants at the appropriate time. The risk of tension between the desire of PPB to receive training themselves and the priority consciously given in the component to training public officials, a tension driven by the initial uncertainty of PPB about their own role in delivering LPP 2004 training, their desire to learn and their high workload constraints, was also effectively managed. The training plans for PPB and local trainers were achieved in addition to a continuing high level of informal contact between PPB and the Project Team. The only area which proved to be difficult to implement was that of on the job training. This encountered the anticipated sensitivities of Contracting Authorities to third party intervention or even observation of procurement activity. Some episodes did occur but the level of response from Contracting Authorities was disappointing.

Chapter 6 - Carrying the torch – project sustainability It was recognised that, as with all capacity building projects, it was necessary to promote the sustainability of the project after the conclusion of the period of initial technical assistance. This was done by means of a post project sustainability plan, contained within the project evaluation report – with local trainers having the core responsibility for its implementation. Post project sustainability planning included a focus on the need for update training for public officials who benefitted from the core training, core training for public officials coming into post following the end of the project, access to training for public officials who have not benefitted from core training, role preparation for new Public Procurement Committee members, specialist training following the core training (eg of individual elements of the procurement cycle, of training for procurement in particular sectors or of training focused on different types of procurement eg works, supplies or services generally or particular categories of works, supplies or services), the role of local trainers in the post project period, supplier training, the appropriateness and timing of certification of trainers, appropriateness and timing of certification of public procurement officials, possible links with academic institutions to develop academic study in public procurement, the implementation of the proposed training role in PPB and further twinning activities between PPB and counterpart units in EU Member States and candidate countries. The distance learning material is also to be available after the end of the project to support its sustainability, when it can be supported by selected local trainers in their continuing role as champions of public procurement in Macedonia. As noted above, it is suggested that they act as support tutors for public officials who are following the self-study material remotely. It is also clearly necessary that the self study material should not be static ie there should be periodic updates for procurement professionals as the revisions to public procurement law proposed in this Project come into force. More widely, it is expected that local trainers, including PPB members, would form a network for informal knowledge sharing based around working together and sharing formal and informal training events, possibly following the Romanian example, where, after the conclusion of the project a formal association of procurement trainers was formed. This could be facilitated by the creation of a dedicated local trainers’ extranet within PPB web page to encourage the creation of an on-line discussion forum for local trainers, and thus promote the development of a community of practice.

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