Technical Missions - Support to ICT Strategic Planning in the SADC Parliaments

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Two technical assistance missions of one week took place in each parliament of the SADC region. Each mission was conducted by a team of two/three experts, preferably IT staff of more technologically-advanced parliaments, who worked with the staff of the beneficiary parliament. The first mission aimed to carry out an assessment of the state of ICT of the parliament and outline gaps and opportunities for future strategic recommendations for its improvement. The second mission focused on the preparation of the strategic plan. Between the first and second mission, the mission team of experts prepared an Assessment Report to help maximize the impact of the second mission and the following formulation of the ICT strategic plan. The Assessment Report was shared with the recipient parliaments in between missions in order to finalize it with additional contributions and inputs. In addition, members of the strategic planning teams of each parliament were exposed to the tools, resources and methods needed for upgrading their skills and build institutional capacity in this domain. Parallel to it, the strategic planners’ teams were invited to take part in a virtual discussion with peers from other parliaments in the region, which resulted in the establishment of a regional community of practice of planners.

 

25 - 29 October 2010 – National Assembly of Malawi:

The mission team worked with the authorities of the National Assembly, including its leadership, members of parliament, senior management officials and staff working in various functional areas, to make an analysis of the current ICT infrastructure, human resources, equipment and services.

 

28 February - 4 March 2011 – National Assembly of Angola:

The mission focused on assessing its current ICT organizational challenges, capacity and infrastructure gaps in order to establish a baseline for outlining realistic strategic goals and objectives for processes and systems to be placed at the service of the legislature. IT experts from the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal and the Chamber of Deputies of Brazil were part of the mission team.

 

14 - 18 March 2011 – National Assembly of Zambia:

The mission focused on reviewing the vision, mission and core values of the already existing ICT Master Plan and assisting the Assembly in validating its recommendations, in particular the area referring to strengthening the ICT Institutional Security Framework. IT experts from the Parliament of South Africa and the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal were part of the mission team.

 

2 - 8 April 2011 – National Assembly of Mauritius:

The mission aimed to make an assessment of the current state of ICT at the Assembly by gathering structured information that will enable a clear description of existing IT equipments, services and processes available in each functional area.

 

25 May – 31 May 2011 – National Assembly of Mauritius:

The mission focused on utilizing the findings from the assessment from the first mission earlier in 2011 to develop an ICT Strategic Plan for 2011-2015.  Through a series of analytical steps, such as conducting gap and SWOT analyses, the mission team, through the development of an ICT strategic plan, recommended a number of ICT projects to meet the ICT needs of the National Assembly. One IT expert of the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal was part of the mission team.

 

13 - 17 June 2011 - Parliament of Swaziland:

The mission team worked with the authorities of the National Assembly, including its leadership, members of parliament, senior management officials and staff working in various functional areas, to make an analysis of the current ICT infrastructure, human resources, equipment and services. The IT Manager of the National Assembly of Zambia was part of the mission team.

 

17 June - 1 July 2011 - National Assembly of Malawi:

The mission focused on addressing the National Assembly’s vision by adjusting the assessment report from the first mission conducted earlier in the year and by envisioning the development of the ICT Strategic Plan. A draft Strategic Plan was submitted to the National Assembly in July 2011 for consideration and approval by the Clerk of Parliament and was later adopted in February 2012.

 

4 - 8 July 2011 - Parliament of Zimbabwe:

The mission team, which met with the leadership and members of Parliament, senior management officials, and staff working in various functional areas, focused on the assessment of the current ICT organization, capacity and infrastructure of the parliament outlining the gaps and opportunities for future strategic recommendations.  One IT expert from the UK Parliament was part of the mission team.

 

11 - 15 July 2011 – National Assembly of Zambia:

The mission focused on the adjustment of the assessment report from the first mission conducted earlier in the year. The mission team made a deep analysis of the strategic objectives of the ICT Master Plan of the National Assembly and focused on the strengthening of the ICT institutional framework and infrastructure.  IT experts from the Parliament of South Africa and the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal were part of the mission team.

 

5 - 9 September 2011 - National Assembly of Seychelles:

The mission team utilized questionnaires, visits to offices and onsite locations, and conducted desk research and interviews to collect the necessary data and information in order to assess the current state of the National Assembly’s ICT capabilities. The mission team delivered an assessment report to the National Assembly, which was later reviewed in collaboration with the National Assembly and staff during a second mission conducted between 5 - 9 March 2012. One IT expert from the Parliament of Finland was part of the mission team.

 

19 - 23 September 2011 - Assembly of the Republic of Mozambique:

The mission team worked with authorities of the Assembly, including the leadership and members of parliament, senior management officials, and staff working in various functional areas, to prepare an informative and comprehensive assessment report of the ICT state of the Assembly. During the mission, cooperation was established with the Parliament of Austria and its North-South Dialogue programme, which was concurrently providing technical assistance to the Assembly. IT experts from the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal and the Chamber of Deputies of Brazil were part of the mission team.

 

3 - 7 October 2011 - Parliament of Lesotho:

The mission team worked with the authorities of the National Assembly, including its leadership, members of parliament, senior management officials and staff working in various functional areas, to make an analysis of the current ICT infrastructure, human resources, equipment and services. An assessment report was submitted to the Parliament for review. The IT Manager of the National Assembly of Zambia was part of the mission team.

 

31 October - 4 November 2011 - National Assembly of Tanzania:

The mission team utilized desk research, interviews and meetings, questionnaires, visits to offices and onsite locations to collect the necessary data and information in order to assess the current state of the National Assembly’s ICT capabilities. The mission team delivered an assessment report to the National Assembly.

 

5 - 9 December 2011 - National Assembly of Angola:

The mission team adjusted the ICT assessment report prepared during a previous mission according to comments and new inputs from the National Assembly, while also collecting more detailed information about the ICT environment of the Parliament. As a result of the mission, the team submitted a draft ICT strategic plan for the review of the National Assembly with specific and realistic strategic objectives and a roadmap for implementation. The ICT strategic plan was later adopted by the National Assembly. IT experts from the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal and the Chamber of Deputies of Brazil were part of the mission team.

 

12 - 16 December 2011 – Parliament of Namibia:

The mission team worked with authorities of the Parliament of Namibia, including the leadership and members of parliament, senior management officials, and staff working in various functional areas. The team analyzed data and information in order to prepare an informative and relevant assessment report which was delivered to the Parliament for review and comments in February 2012.  One expert from the Parliament of South Africa was part of the mission team.

 

23 - 27 January 2012 - Parliament of Swaziland:

The mission discussed and adjusted the assessment report from the first mission held in June 2011 according to comments and new inputs from the National Assembly while also collecting more detailed information about the ICT environment of the Parliament.  The mission team also developed the ICT Strategic Plan with strategic objectives and a roadmap for implementation, which was submitted to the Parliament on the last day of the mission. The IT Manager of the National Assembly of Zambia was part of the mission team.

 

20 - 24 February 2012 – National Assembly of Tanzania:

The mission discussed and adjusted the assessment report from the first mission held in late 2011 according to comments and feedback from the National Assembly. It also collected additional information about the ICT environment of the National Assembly.

The mission focused on the strategic planning process through a series of steps beginning with the laying out of specific goals and objectives, followed by the development of strategies and action plans for achieving those objectives, including the assignment of management responsibility, and the establishment of criteria for the assessment and evaluation of specific projects.

 

27 February - 2 March 2012 – National Assembly of Botswana:

The mission focused on reviewing the already existing draft ICT Master Plan preparted in 2010, assessing the current ICT capabilities of the National Assembly and providing strategic recommendations to move forward in implementing the ICT Master Plan. 

 

5 - 9 March 2012 – National Assembly of Seychelles:

The mission reviewed and finalized the assessment report produced from the first mission conducted in September 2011, and drafted a relevant and comprehensive ICT Strategic Plan for the National Assembly. One expert from the Parliament of Finland was part of the mission team.

 

19 - 23 March 2012 – Parliament of Lesotho:

The mission team reviewed and finalized the assessment report produced from the first mission conducted in October 2011 and prepared a comprehensive ICT strategic plan for the Parliament containing the following points vision, mission and core values, SWOT analysis, Balance Scorecard, Strategic Map, KPIs, recommended projects and activities, proposed budgetary calendar, and methods of monitoring and evaluation.

 

26 - 30 March 2012 – Senate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

Mainly through interviews, discussions and questionnaires the mission team sought to understand the mission of the Senate, how the institution was structured and how it operated in fulfilling its three main functions: law-making, representation, and oversight over the executive. The mission team, in this context, looked specifically at what type of internal and external parliamentary services were being provided, by which department, office, and for which intended stakeholders. Also the team sought to understand what were the products delivered and their processes.

After this initial mapping of mission, organization, parliamentary services and processes, a further assessment was made of the current use of technology, what challenges there are and how the parliament would envisage a better use of technology. All data and facts that were gathered during these five days were analysed by the mission team members, and relevant findings and conclusions were reported in the draft assessment report, which was sent to the Senate for its review. One IT expert from the Chamber of Deputies of Belgium was part of the mission team.

 

10-13 April 2012 – Parliament of Namibia:

The mission team met with key contacts and obtained additional information and clarifications about the ICT environment of the Parliament for input into the previously submitted assessment report.  Based on the assessment report a comprehensive ICT strategic plan was prepared containing specific and realistic strategic objectives and a roadmap for the implementation of recommendations for the Parliament to consider. One IT expert from the Parliament of South Africa was part of the mission team.

 

23-27 April – National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

The mission sought to understand the mission of the National Assembly, how the institution is structured and how it operates in fulfilling its three main functions: legislation-making, representation, and oversight of the Executive. Mainly through interviews, discussions and questionnaires the team looked specifically at what type of internal and external parliamentary services were being provided, by which department, office, and for which intended stakeholders. The team, which included  the Deputy Secretary General of the Senate of Belgium, also sought to understand which products of service delivery existed at the National Assembly and their respective processes.

A further assessment was then made of the current use of technology, what challenges exist  and how the parliament would anticipate a better use of technology. The assessment report, which encompassed all of the mission team’s findings obtained during their five day mission, was finalized and sent to the National Assembly to be reviewed.

 

23-27 April - Assembly of the Republic Mozambique:

The mission focused on finalizing the assessment report from the first mission and developing a strategic planning process through a series of steps by conducting the following: laying out of specific goals and objectives; developing strategies and action plans for achieving those objectives, including the assignment of management responsibility; and establishing criteria for the assessment and evaluation of specific projects. IT experts from Assembly of the Republic of Portugal and the Chamber of Deputies of Brazil were part of the mission team.

 

21-25 May 2012 – National Assembly and Senate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo:

The combined mission to the Senate and the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of the Congo entailed meetings with key contacts from the first missions in order to review and finalize each draft assessment report for each respective chamber. The finalization of both assessment reports created the necessary foundation for the mission team to draft ICT strategic plans for both chambers.

 

6-8 June 2012 – National Assembly of Botswana:

The mission entailed assisting the Assembly to align its ICT strategic objectives to the Balanced Score Card, align the activities to the strategic objectives and develop a monitoring and evaluation framework to assist the Assembly during the implementation of its ICT Master Plan.  One expert from the Parliament of South Africa was part of the mission team.

ukash