CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1 ORIGIN
This report was originated for submission as a requirement for the course Brand Management. A report on Branding CIDA is to be submitted to Professor Syed Munir Khasru- the instructor of the aforementioned course.

1.2 OBJECTIVES
The broad objective of this report is to identify and analyze the application of branding theories for CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency). The study covers the scope of branding for the organization and how the strategies can make the presence of CIDA more visible in Bangladesh. Specific objective of the report consists of the following Analyze the situation in the development sector and current position of CIDA Analyze the various dimensions of Brand Management in terms of target audience; brand positioning, brand marketing programs, brand performance and growing and sustaining brand equity. Based on the above analysis, recommend strategies to bolster CIDAs presence in the development sector.

1.3 SCOPE
The study covers the background of the development sector, the target audience of CIDA, the current brand positioning of CIDA and recommendations. It is limited to the brand of CIDA in Bangladesh.

1.4 METHODOLOGY
A combination of primary and secondary sources of information was used for this study. 1.4.1 Primary data Depth interview: Two depth interviews were conducted with 1) Ms. Linda Cloutier, Deputy Director, Planning (development), High Commission of Canada in Bangladesh 2) Khandker Anwarul Islam, Additional Secretary, Cabinet Division, Bangladesh Secretariat 1.4.2 Secondary Data Secondary data was gathered from various newspaper, magazines and articles taken from the internet. Typical search engines like Google, Bing and Alta Vista were used. Moreover, the organization information and other information were mainly gathered from the organizations website and through company publications.

1.5 LIMITATIONS
We are working with CIDA Bangladesh only. Due to resource constraint and strategic reasons, we did not have much access to information of other development agencies.

Page 1

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

2.0 DEVELOPMENT SECTOR IN BANGLADESH

Bangladesh is a country that is developing slowly but the results in the last decade can be marked as a positive decade in the overall progress of the country. However there is a lot of work to be done in the next few years to achieve a good result. The government of Bangladesh has identified the objectives that are needed to be fulfilled in next few years. The organizations working in the development can be classified into three categories; the first segment consists of the NGOs working within the boundary of Bangladesh, the second segment consists of International Development Organizations such as World Bank, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and International Labor Organization (ILO), the other segment consists of donor agencies such as JICA, CIDA, AUSAID, DFID, USAID and others. The major areas where development is needed in Bangladesh are listed below: 1. Alleviation of poverty through acceleration economic growth and bring out noticeable improvement in the standard of living 2. Generate substantial employment opportunities and increased productivity 3. Human Resource Development with importance on compulsory primary education and vocational training 4. Development of rural and urban infrastructure to promote growth 5. Achievement of a lower population growth and ensuring necessary health care and improved nutrition of mother and child 6. Strengthening the countrys scientific and technological base with emphasis on generating new technologies 7. Closing the gender gap giving priority to womens education, training, employment and special support for education of girls 8. Improve the countrys human development profile through the expansion of education, health care, family planning and welfare services 9. Create income generating opportunities for the poor by linking them with various social services However the unstable political system remains the major source of disappointment in its search for sustainable democratic development in the twenty first century. Although the country witnessed the restoration of democracy in 1991, continued conflict between the ruling party and the opposition party did not impress the countrys image in the outside world.

Page 2

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

3.0 CIDA
3.1 OVERVIEW OF CIDA
The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) is Canadas lead agency for the development assistance. CIDAs aim is to 1. Manage Canadas support and resources effectively and accountably to achieve meaningful, sustainable result 2. Engage in policy development in Canada and internationally, enabling Canadas effort to realize its development objectives CIDA was established in 1968 to administer the bulk of Canadas official development assistance (ODA) program. The measure of its success lies in its contribution to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and Canadas broader international policy objectives. CIDA works closely with its development partners, fragile states and countries in crisis, countries of focus and the Canadian population and institutions. As a part of its Aid Effectiveness Agenda, the Government of Canada announced in 2009 that it will be focusing 80 percent of bilateral resources in 20 countries of focus. These 20 countries were chosen based on their real needs, their capacity to benefit from aid, and their alignment with Canadian foreign policy priorities. The goal is to make Canadas international assistance more focused, more effective and more accountable. The countries of focus are: Americas: Bolivia, Caribbean Regional Program, Columbia, Haiti, Honduras, Peru. Asia- Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Pakistan, Vietnam. Eastern Europe: Ukraine. North Africa and Middle East: West Bank and Gaza. Sub-Saharan Africa: Ghana, Mali, Mozambique, Senegal, Sudan and Tanzania. The Mission of CIDA is to Lead Canadas International Effort to Help People Living in Poverty. The Mandate of CIDA is to Manage Canada's support and resources effectively and accountably to achieve meaningful, sustainable results and engage in policy development in Canada and internationally, enabling Canada's effort to realize its development objectives.

3.2 CIDA IN BANGLADESH

Bangladesh is one of the world's most densely populated countries. Most of the people living in Bangladesh are poor and very vulnerable to natural disasters. Bangladesh ranks 129 out of 169 countries on the United Nations Development Program's 2010 human development index. Natural Disasters such as cyclones and severe flooding occur with regular frequency, causing damage, disease and loss of food crops. Yet during the last decade, Bangladesh has made important development gains. Both population growth and the incidence of poverty have steadily declined, and gross domestic product growth rate has averaged 6 percent per year. The proportion of the population living below the national poverty line has fallen to 40 percent in 2005 from 59 percent in 1991. Considerable progress has been made toward achieving the Millennium Development Goals, notably in health and education. Successful and peaceful elections were held in December 2008. Bangladesh's many development challenges include: 1. Poor quality health and education services, with unequal access to those services by the poor, especially by women 2. Weak public sector institutions inhibiting economic advancement and prosperity
Page 3

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

3. Environmental difficulties due to the impact of global climate change and increasing population density

3.3 THEMATIC FOCUS OF CIDA IN BANGLADESH

In 2009, as part of Canada's new aid effectiveness agenda, Bangladesh was selected as a country of focus. Bangladesh was chosen based on its level of need and its ability to use aid dollars wisely and on Canada's capacity to make a difference. Bangladesh has been one of Canada's largest aid recipients for the last three decades. The objective of CIDA's program for Bangladesh is to create opportunities for children and youth and to stimulate sustainable economic growth. Equality between women and men, environmental sustainability, and good governance will be integrated into all programming. Continuous dialogue and consultation among development partners (government, non-government, and donors) will guide investment choices. CIDA's program for Bangladesh is directly aligned with the Government of Bangladesh's National Strategy for Accelerated Poverty Reduction for 2009-2011. Programming in Bangladesh will strengthen the capacity of both national and local governments to plan, manage, and monitor health and education delivery systems and to promote sustainable economic growth in keeping with the thematic focuses. In education, CIDA focuses on: 1. Improving the quality and delivery of education 2. Increasing access and retention rates in primary schools 3. Reducing gaps between girls and boys In health, CIDA focuses on: 1. Ensuring that healthcare and medicines are delivered efficiently 2. Improving maternal and child health delivery systems 3. Providing essential drugs and medicines In achieving economic growth CIDA focuses on 1. Increasing access to skills for employment, particularly for youth 2. Streamlining legal, fiscal, and regulatory frameworks for business development 3. Improving public financial management CIDAs total disbursement in Bangladesh for the year 2008-09 is 79.81 Million Dollars with various bilateral, multilateral and partnership projects.

Page 4

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

4.0 STAKEHOLDER ANALYSIS

4.1 COHERENCE BETWEEN CIDA AND DFAIT
At the headquarter level, the institutional relationship between CIDA and the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) with respect to Bangladesh maintains largely through informal contacts between desk officers of these two organization. Although it appears that both of the departments enjoy organizational autonomy to design and implement their policies toward Bangladesh, the desk officer of these two theoretically independent, but somewhat interlinked organizations use their personal contacts to keep each other informed about their activities. Besides, if a need arises, DFAIT and CIDA officials meet occasionally to share information in order to achieve their organizational objectives. Both in the design of programs and in the formulation of policies, they also often consult each other which helps keep the officials of these organizations informed. Despite these efforts to maintain organizational collaboration, during the interviews becomes apparent that most CIDA and DFAIT officials consider themselves as independent pursuing distinct goals in Bangladesh.

4.2 COHERENCE BETWEEN CANADIAN AND BANGLADESHI GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATIONS

The official bilateral relationship between Bangladesh and Canada can be characterized as friendly and warm. As members of the Commonwealth and the signatories of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, both countries share a foreign policy interest in global peace and human security. At the UN and the other international forum, Canada and Bangladesh often co-operate each other to reduce poverty, to fight hunger and to put an end to the human sufferings. CIDAs assistance to Bangladesh is largely coordinated through the ERD. Also, Canada often deals directly with the line ministry in order to ensure the most efficient use of its funds. Most Bangladeshi government officials we contacted, which included representatives from a variety of such ministries and/or divisions as Foreign, Commerce and Industry, Environment, ERD, Finance, and the Board of Investment, expressed mixed feelings about greater coherence between CIDA and the Government of Bangladesh.

4.3 COHERENCE BETWEEN CANADIAN GOVERNMENT AND BANGLADESHI NGOS

As part of CIDAs global policy to work more closely with non-state actors, particularly intermediary NGOs, CIDA currently involves Bangladeshs proliferating NGO sector82 in the implementation of various development activities. It provides financial assistance to those NGOs and civil society groups that undertake policy research and participatory development, either directly or through Canadian NGOs, such as CUSO, Aga Khan Foundation Canada (AKFC) and Inter Pares. Such support is intended to strengthen the institutional capabilities of a group of selected NGOs, namely BRAC, Proshika, the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), the Association for Development Agencies in Bangladesh (ADAB) and UBINIG, which are widely known for their ability to effectively influence Bangladeshs development process and contexts. Despite positive reviews of CIDAs operations in Bangladesh, quite a few NGO executives with whom we spoke were of the opinion that CIDAs funding collaboration was primarily limited to those larger NGOs that were well-established, better known and qualified. They said that CIDA tended to overlook small and medium-sized NGOs, despite their proven track record of helping the poor to be empowered in a sustainable manner.

Page 5

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

4.4 THE LOCAL CONSULTATION GROUP (LCG)

Donors in Bangladesh share information and coordinate aid through a well-established mechanism called the Local Consultation Group (LCG) which was established in 1974 under the direction of the World Bank. The LCG is divided into 19 sub-groups, each of which is led by a representative of a relevant donor organization and/or country. Canada currently presides over the NGOs and Microfinance sub-groups. Most sub-groups meet on a regular basis to discuss issues of mutual interests. While the intensity of activities vary considerably, most of these groups work together to enhance coordination between donor programs in Bangladesh. In so doing, they share useful information, prepare policy-relevant reports and documents, identify new areas of cooperation and prescribe policy options. Apart from coordination, these sub-groups also serve as a policy lobby, through which they often advise the Government of Bangladesh on various development issues. The government itself is represented on a third of the sub-groups, for instance it participates in the group on governance, health, education and poverty. This reflects the difficulty donors usually face in generating a broader consensus on the needs and priorities of Bangladeshs development challenges. The task of coordination is indeed a difficult one given the reality that donors often pursue distinct, if not entirely different, development policies and programs. Despite such complexities, donors in Bangladesh appear to have successfully used the prevailing coordination mechanism to both minimize inconsistencies and promote an overall coherence between their developmental programs, priorities and policies. A relatively new instrument is the sector-wide approach (or SWAP) that has been used in Bangladesh in the case of health programming and funding.

Page 6

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

5.0 EXISTING BRAND STATUS

5.1 PRODUCT BUNDLE
CIDAs earlier projects included extensive infrastructural development work for Bangladesh Railway. Currently, they are in the process of narrowing down its focus to Education and Health (children and youth) and Economic Growth. Besides its target areas of operations, CIDA has also provided significant and prompt grants after Cyclone Sidr. The following are CIDAs operational projects: Maternal and Child Health in Chittagong District Transparent Ballot Boxes Katalyst II: Business Services for Small Enterprises Promotion of Development and Confidence Building in the Chittagong Hill Tracts Emergency Disaster Damage Rehabilitation Early Childhood Development Support Strengthening Comptrollership and Oversight of Public Expenditure Health, Nutrition and Population Sector Program - Policy Dialogue Institutional Support - International Centre for Diarrheal Disease Research - Phase II Adolescent Reproductive Health Challenging the Frontiers of Poverty Reduction - Phase II Parliamentary and Media Support Sustainable Livelihoods for Ultra Poor Strengthening Environmental Institutions Basic Education for Working Children - Phase II Bangladesh Health Commodities Monitoring Health Projects in Bangladesh Teaching Quality Improvement in Secondary Education Life Skills and Education for Adolescent Development Fair Elections and Institutional Reforms Demand-Based Reproductive Health Services Policy Leadership and Advocacy for Gender Equality - Phase II Acid Survivors Foundation - Institutional Support Phase II Trade-Related Research and Policy Development Education Sector Support - Second Primary Education Development Program Gender Fund - Phase III Legal Reform Program Support Unit - Bangladesh - 2001-2010

5.2 SWOT ANALYSIS

Strength: Long term presence in Bangladesh which gives CIDA a unique opportunity to understand the different development needs of Bangladesh. CIDA over the years have developed wide network with reputed NGOs Like BRAC, Proshika along with many other respected NGOs which allow CIDA to carry on different development projects more securely and safely. CIDA doesnt aid to trade. There is a general negative perception among local people that donor agencies impose their own ideologies on the receiving countrys government to help trade relationships. CIDA is one of first development agency to have signed the Paris declaration. It allows CIDA to be more participative and inclusive in decision making.

Page 7

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Weakness: Lack of staff in donor countries. CIDA in Bangladesh Presently have a very low level stuff. So decision execution, project monitoring takes too much time. Vertical hierarchy. Decision regarding projects initiative, planning are made at the top level and then at the implementation level or at the operational level communicated to the local. So local responsiveness is sometimes missing Canadian Citizens are privileged for employment in CIDA. Bangladesh still lacks a proper data bank and hence Development agencies like CIDA are unable to do market survey for identification of products. Efficiency at which projects are implemented has always been a matter of great concern for CIDA. Opportunities: Lot of scope for improving the industrial infrastructure and incentives for attracting potential industries. Liberalized development policy by the Government of Bangladesh Threats: Political Instability Association with NGOs that have political connections not only attempts to ruin CIDA;s image but also raise questions about efficient use of the approved funds as well Often, projects are made with technology that is hard to understand and too difficult to repair, resulting in unavoidable failure over time.

5.3 PESTLE
Political- The political situation of Bangladesh consist of two political super-powers who alternately head the country. For an organization like CIDA (which is a Canadian government organization) this alternate power shift has a great impact because all their projects are carried out in collaboration with the relevant ministries. This means a change in political power results in conflict of interest where the new party may not want to carry on with the projects the previous government supported. Economic- The cost of living has gone up significantly and the poor and the middle class were affected the worst. Employment opportunities are low and the annual natural disasters dont make matters any better for the poor. CIDA programs are targeted towards poverty reduction through development activities like food production, literacy and primary education, income-generating activities, etc. Sociological- The major problem with the Bangladeshi people is the lack of awareness about the important social issues like the growing population, health issues and the importance of primary education. Since CIDAs thematic focus is on health and education, they have a huge operational opportunity in the context of Bangladesh. Technological- Bangladesh far behind in technology because of a lack of proper funding and schooling or training. Since CIDAs one area of concentration is education, it can provide necessary training that might help in basic technological development. Legal- The legal environment of Bangladesh is very liberal and funding in the development sector is greatly encouraged by the government. Environmental- The geographic location of Bangladesh makes it prone to natural disasters every year. Therefore CIDA is always prepared to allocate a proportion of their funds to manage the after effects of such events.

5.4 CURRENT BRANDING ACTIVITIES

CIDAs exposure in Bangladesh is not as wide-spread as other similar organizations like World Bank, ADB and JICA. Although CIDA funds various development activities, however, these projects are
Page 8

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

implemented mostly by the government and NGOs. CIDA is yet to use its full potential in branding itself through these projects. For example, CIDA was responsible for the transparent ballot boxes in the 2008 elections but they did not receive any exposure because of it.

5.5 PARAMETERS
In order to understand the relative positioning of CIDA compared to other donors and Development agencies, we have used a Likert scale (1-5 point scale) against different parameters. CIDA Brand Familiarity 2 Size of 2 donations/Loans per year Scope of 3 Activity/Expansion of activities 4 Responsiveness/Crisis management Efficiency of 3 operations Sustainability and Risk Coherence among 2.5 different NGOs and government Total 16.5 JICA 3 4 World Bank 5 5 ADB 4 5 Ausaid 2 2 DFID 3 3

3.5

3.5

3.5

2.5

3.5

19.5

24

22.5

16

19.5

So based on the sum of all the parameters we used, we can clearly see that CIDA has a long way to go in terms of brand building activities.

Page 9

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

6.0 TARGETTING ANG POSITIONING

6.1 TARGET AUDIENCE
The focus of CIDA is primarily on Education, Health and Economic Growth. The projects funded by CIDA are running all over the country. Geographic Region: Mostly in rural areas and villages where there is a lack of proper education, health care facilities and economic growth. Demographics People: Children and Women Social Class: Lower middle class and poor people Behavioral: Enthusiastic and Positive Benefits of choosing this target market: 1. CIDA is becoming more specific in its operation with its main focus being the development of Children and Women in Education, Health and Economic conditions. 2. CIDA can differentiate itself from the other development organization with its focused mission and create a strong brand presence in the relevant area. 3. By working closely with women and children, positive word of mouth will make the position of CIDA stronger in the development sector.

6.2 PERCEPTUAL MAP

6.3 BRAND ELEMENTS

Name: CIDA
Page 10

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Slogan: Supporting women and children towards a better life This is a unique slogan that will be proposed to CIDA. It will represent the brand mantra as well. The brand slogan reflects the activities of CIDA throughout different branches worldwide. This organization works mainly on the development of the women and children to ensure their better living. URL: www.accida.com

6.4 POINTS OF PARITY (POP) AND POINTS OF DIFFERENCE (POD):

CIDA has some similar characteristics like the other development agencies. These features can be pointed as the Points of Parity. On the other hand CIDAs unique features can be termed as Points of Difference. The POP and POD of CIDA are listed below: Points of Parity (POP): 1. Providing grant money for fulfilling the basic needs 2. Collaboration with government and NGOs 3. Different projects with underprivileged people 4. Disaster management Points of Difference (POD): 1. CIDAs aid has nothing to do with the bilateral trading relations between Canada and Bangladesh 2. Paris Declaration

6.5 BRAND MANTRA

The Brand Mantra highlights the heart and soul of the brand CIDA. It is the brand essence of CIDA and its purpose is to ensure all the stakeholders understand what the brand represents; the brand mantra of CIDA has three parts: Emotional Modifier Support Descriptive Modifier Women and Children Brand Function Better Life

The brand function represents the functional benefit that CIDA provides to the consumers. The function of CIDA is to assist the development of Bangladesh. Previously CIDA used to work in various projects concerning empowerment, health, education, and environment. However CIDA is now being more specific in choosing the project and giving utmost priority in the development of women and children. Thus women and children is the descriptive modifier. The goal of the CIDA is to provide an improved future and support is the emotional modifier for CIDA.

Page 11

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

7.0 SUGGESTED BRANDING STRATEGIES

CIDA is a funding organization. Its primary focus is to be the financial backbone to its partners. But the key point to mention here is that they are not an executing organizations i.e. they do not necessarily do anything themselves. This has been identified as one of the prime reasons why the name of CIDA is not as recognized as other development organizations throughout Bangladesh. So what we are proposing for CIDA to form an agency that will implement projects for CIDA. There are several benefits that CIDA can enjoy from starting an executing agency like this: a) Ensure efficient use of money: CIDA is a highly ethical and efficient organization. Thus, their own executing agency is bound to share the same work ethics and efficiency in using the money CIDA spends. b) Organize events: Since it is against CIDAs policy to start or execute any projects themselves, this agency will be able to start projects with CIDAs funding. Projects will include various events, campaigns, community based programs etc. examples of which will be given a little later c) Better branding opportunities: One of the prime reasons for CIDA not to come to the limelight is that it does not take charge in the projects it does. The ones being promoted every time are the ones who execute the projects because they are the ones who. But when the agency will start implementing projects Thus, through this external agency, CIDA will be able to uplift its brand image. We are proposing an extensive branding program which will be a function of various socially beneficial projects that will be implemented both by CIDA directly and also through this agency.

7.1 COMMUNITY BRANDING

This is the first program that we are proposing. Education is the backbone of a society. Today, students from different universities hardly know about the work that CIDA does. The agency will conduct various seminars in different public and private universities. These seminars will be about making the students aware about the different responsibilities that they have towards Bangladesh, the role of various development organizations and also exclusively how much CIDA has done so far and are planning to do in the future.

7.2 MDG
Bangladesh is also within the boundaries of the Millennium Development Goal (MDG). CIDA will seek to promote the different targets that have been set by the Millennium Development Goal and also fund various areas that it works in to promote the MDG throughout Bangladesh. This will ensure CIDAs name being spread throughout various sectors of Bangladesh.

7.3 YEARLY CONFERENCE

CIDA personnel have themselves shown interest in arranging yearly conferences with its partners and stakeholders. These conferences will include people who will represent the various government ministries and large NGOs that CIDA work with, Vice Chancellors of different universities that CIDA will visit,

Page 12

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

7.4 ENGAGING CANADIAN NRBS WITH CIDA

This will in fact ensure that Bangladeshi people get to work for CIDA in projects across Bangladesh. Definitely having fellow countrymen work for the organization would definitely make the organization more popular across Bangladesh.

7.5 EMPLOYING BANGLADESHIS

CIDAs policy goes against employing anyone who is not a Canadian citizen. After the start of the new executing agency in Bangladesh, it will open up the opportunity to do just that. Since CIDA is a part of the Canadian Foreign Ministry, it does not employ people who are not Canadian citizens. But starting a Bangladesh based agency will be a huge step in enhancing its reputation further throughout Bangladesh, through local employment.

7.6 TUITION WEAVERS AND SCHOLARSHIPS AND COMPETITIONS

One of the major ways CIDA can become very popular is to provide education scholarships to students from Bangladesh aspiring education in Canada. Since CIDA is directly linked with the Canadian government, it will have the ability to arrange for such a venture through which talented and deserved students will be provided a special merit scholarship to study in different undergraduate/graduate/post-graduate courses. There will be an examination or assessment session in which the applicants will have to go through various types of tests. This will not be exclusive to business or economics only but rather will be open for students from all backgrounds. The winners will be awarded with scholarships in universities they have applied to in Canada. CIDA can also organize competition in different schools/collages relating not specifically with to groom up young minds that will form the future of this country. Needless to say, both these will be executed via the recruitment agency.

7.7 PROMOTIONAL CSR CAMPAIGNS

CSR has been one of the prime way organizations around the world promote their names. Since CIDA is a development organization, it is more appropriate for them to engage in CSR activities rather than various profit making organizations. Since CIDA is slowly restricting its concentration in specific areas, it can engage in CSR activities in the areas it currently operates in.

7.8 PPP BY CIDA:

In order to accelerate economic growth Bangladeshi Government has proposed PPP (public Private Partnership) where government and Public sector will work hand in hand leveraging their expertise in different undertakings. As PPP in Bangladesh is not able to attain expected result due to lack of coordination and experience between government and private entrepreneurs, CIDA can play pivotal role in imparting its expertise among different parties. CIDA in Zambia helps the government where government and private entrepreneurs lack necessary experience and coordination regarding successful implementation of PPP. Hopefully it can repeat that feat in Bangladesh.

7.8.1 Program Highlights: The PPP consultation activities that CIDA can undertake are given as follows: Reviewing specific institutional reviews and case studies

Page 13

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

7.8.2

Identify the processes to explore PPP opportunities and the key elements that go into a PPP pre-feasibility study. Learning the elements to effectively structure the financing for PPP arrangements and put new knowledge to the test in a financial modeling simulation exercise Developing skills to effectively manage (and communicate with) the stakeholders to a PPP, including customers, the media, and labour unions Developing a detailed and personalized Strategic Action Plan Participants: Senior and Middle Managers and Line Staff from Privatisation Agencies, PPP Units or Procurement Agencies Senior and Middle Managers from Ministries of Finance, Energy, Water, Transportation, Telecommunications, Health and Education Government Leaders and Managers from Local (Municipal) and Regional Government Agencies Senior and Middle Managers from Development and Private Sector Banks Commissioners and Line Staff from Regulatory Commissions or Contract Monitoring Units Attorneys, Accountants, Bankers and Project Developers from the Private Sector involved with PPPs Staff from Multi and Bi-Lateral Donor Agencies involved with PPP development

Page 14

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

8.0 RECAP OF EXPERIENCE

When we were first given this assignment, we were completely clueless and did not know where to begin. We knew very little about this organization nor did we have a contact in CIDA we could interview. Thanks to Sir we did get an interview with Ms. Linda Cloutier, who was very kind and gave us ample time to talk to her both about CIDA and other players in the development sector. After the interview, we went through various articles and reports on the internet about the different organizations that make up the development sector of Bangladesh We also went through several blogs and articles on branding non-profit organizations We put in a lot of effort in this group assignment and learnt a lot because of all the research that went into it. Since nothing like this has been done before for CIDA, it was quite challenging but we believe that we did manage to come up with some great ideas. Lastly, writing this report has been very an enlightening and nostalgic because this is our last assignment as a BBA 15 batch student.

Page 15

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

APPENDIX
Open End Interview: For our Primary Data collection, we have talked to Linda Cloutier, Deputy Director, Planning (Development), High Commission of Canada, who gave us some basic ideas about CIDAs operation and functions in Bangladesh. Her contribution in preparing the report was invaluable. She answered most questions but refused to answer some as she viewed them as classified or confidential. The excerpt from that open ended interview is Given Below How CIDA ensures that its activities are not conflicting or overlapping with the work of other development agencies in Bangladesh? CID A is a member of LCG (Local consulting group) who ensures coordination among different donor agency in BD.CIDA has been actively participating in the local LCG meetings and also help the authority to prepare guidelines. As CIDA is part of Canadian Government development plan, what kind of control does Canadian government exercise on CIDA? Canadian government must approve all the projects. Before undertaking any projects CIDA need to take permission from the Canadian government regarding the feasibility and relevance of the projects and only then the funds are obtained from the government. How CIDA evaluate projects that it undertakes in Bangladesh? CIDA uses LOGIC model to select and evaluate projects. The details of the project planning selection and evaluation criteria are explained in the next section. How is it like to work with different government body of Bangladesh and NGOs? The government of Bangladesh is liberal as far as their policy regarding development agencies in Bangladesh. Decision making when working with GOV body takes a long time because of the red tape, lots of formalities. Bangladeshi NGOs are also not fast enough as far as decision making and preparing necessary steps to successfully implement CIDAs project. CIDA used to work with big as well as small NGOs before but because of these inefficiencies, it now only works few well established NGOs What are the criteria you follow when you select a project? When CIDA selects a project they keep in mind two things National plan Economic growth How CIDA formulate plan? CIDA normally makes 3-5 years planning. What are CIDAs main focuses right now? CIDA have shifted its focus from infrastructure to humanitarian works.For example CIDA used to focus on infrastructural development like railway when they did a lot of work between 1980 to
Page 16

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

1995.but currently CIDA have focused more on health,education,human resource development of Bangladesh How long CIDA wants to spent in Bangladesh? CIDA didnt come to Bangladesh for eternity. How long CIDA will stay will depend on the economic development and government. CIDA wants to be Bangladesh Development partner when the economic indicators like GDP, real growth rate, per capita income etc comes to certain level then CIDA will consider to end their operation in Bangladesh. At the same time it also depends on the government as well like in India government recommended that the country no longer in need of help and then CIDA winded up their operation there. Recently there is a trend that the amount of Grant money from Bangladesh received are declining. What are the reasons behind that? CIDA is narrowing down its focus in BD because they believe BD will eventually have the economic power which will not necessitate operation of developing agency like CIDA What are the prerequisite for successful project implementation in Bangladesh and where you put CIDA in terms of our expected criteria? CIDA focuses on Local ownership and coordination to successfully conduct projects in Bangladesh. CIDA understand that its not very inclusive and participative as far as the project development is concerned. As CIDA are funded by Canadian government so some degree of control are with the government which CIDA cannot avoid. In 2010 CIDA developed Joint cooperation strategy for the Government which CIDA believes will go a long way to bridge the gap in decision making CIDA joined Paris declaration in the year 2005 to commit itself more for local coordination, participation and harmonization in project selections and assessment. Detailed description of Paris declaration, various criterias and where CIDA stands in terms of its commitment to Paris declaration are given in the next section. What are the notable focus areas of CIDA in Bangladesh right now? CIDA presently working on Arsenic free filter system .they have introduced the technology and imparted necessary knowledge to the local people as well What are the main factors that make CIDA different from other Donor agencies? CIDA dont link AID and TRADE. Tell us about the Crisis Management of CIDA In the time of Crisis like national calamities CIDA works with multilateral group, helps Bangladeshi Government make international appeal, provide technical assistance etc.It is to be noted that Bangladeshi Government need to approach CIDA first for the aid. If government chooses not to appeal for aid CIDA doesnt approach for example when the storm Aila swept over BD, the government of BD didnt appeal for aid to Canadian government so CIDA did nothing. A formal appeal from the government is required) What are the Government different Government bodies that CIDA currently works with? GOV department with which CIDA works? Ministry of finance ERD
Page 17

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Ministry of primary and mass education Ministry of womens affair Ministry of environment Ministry of gender equality

Decision making is centralized: Planning Canadian PARIS DECLARATION: Five principles, 12 indicators, 21 targets Ownership: Partners have operational development strategies (PRSP like) Alignment: Aid flows are aligned on national priorities; Harmonization: Use of common arrangements or procedures; (on or off budget) Management for Result: Monitor able performance assessment frameworks; (PRSP indicators) Mutual accountability: Mutual assessment of progress in implementing agreed commitments on aid effectiveness (2010); Operation Local Stuff

As shown from the table that CIDA have a long way to go in order to fully comply with the Paris declaration. But the good thing is CIDA recognizes its area of improvement based on the above rating.

Project selection: CIDA tries to develop projects for Bangladesh based on the local need. They first do the research, form and monitoring team and finally evaluate the projects based on the criterias stated below. They typically form 5 member groups for evaluating every project

Page 18

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Program key questions : Relevance to policy-political objectives Strategic positioning (among donor community) Coherence of cooperation channels Coherence of sectors of interventions Overall results (rolling-up) Cost-efficiency of program & benchmarking Delivery structure Criteria in establishing evaluation team; Evaluation expertise (program & projects) Country expertise Sectoral expertise Canadian and local consultants Gender balance Issue of independence Role of lead consultant can be cumulated with sectoral expertise Sectoral expertise can be cumulated with cross-cutting issues

Page 19

CIDA: TAKING IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL

The following table shows how CIDA streamlines and plan activities for the different projects it undertakes

Page 20