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Centre of Excellence for RMG to implement certified training within the national skills development framework of Bangladesh - Final evaluation

eval_number:

2186

eval_url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/eval/2186

lessons_learned:

themes:

theme:

Planning and programme design

category:

Organizational issues

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comments:

 Employers organizations  Industries

challenges:

 Inability to deliver all planned outputs within set timeframe  Insufficient time for sustainable capacity development of CEBAI and participating enterprises  Difficulties in demonstrating tangible results because of coverage of many levels and topics

success:

 Understanding of the necessity to introduce theory of change in all phases of the project implementation to ensure long-term impact and sustainability of the project

context:

 Planning the project scope and an appropriate set of activities requires inclusive and meaningful stakeholder consultations, a thorough diagnostic study and sufficient knowledge of the thematic area. Stakeholder consultations should include the possibility for stakeholders to really participate in the design of the project content, and not only in approving proposals from the donor or the project management.  Business plan development for the institution (CEBAI) which has a number of stakeholders should be participatory and should be based on the joint discussion and consensus.  A robust monitoring and reporting mechanism and baseline should be established at the start of the project to verify progress and compliance with international labor standards. A lack of such a baseline is a huge obstacle for understanding the project’s effectiveness and efficiency. This bottleneck is problematic not only for evaluation purposes but also for the daily decision-making of the project management.

description:

An important lesson learned of the ILO COE project is the need for realistic time frames and goals when planning interventions related to set up an independent institution - the Centre of Excellence for Bangladesh Apparel Industry (CEBAI), which will be able to develop a sustainable strategy for the industry. Administrative and institutional changes take time, and the duration of project is too short (just 36 months including 6 months of inception phase), and goals too ambitious, to achieve intended results. Therefore, technical assistance offered in the field of establishment of a replicable model of an industry driven training and support services Centre of Excellence and meeting the skilled labour force needs of the export oriented RGM industry should be planned for a longer period of time, possibly in the form of a programme rather than projects, to allow for the generation of lasting results and impact. Allocation of sufficient time is required for preparatory phase (9-12 months) for being able to attain all approvals from the Government and make recruitment of staff prior to the project start. Setting up of the Center of Excellence requires longer term engagements (at least 5 years) to allow for the generation of lasting results and sustainability. More coordination and collaboration with national counterparts are needed for ensuring the ownership. The project management structure should be well-thought and based on the project scope. Internal accountability mechanisms within the executing agency should be clearly established and followed. The availability of data is crucial to see the progress of the project during the implementation; also, in order to initiate corrective measures in case something needs to be changed. Monitoring and evaluation tools and database could ensure that the desired objectives have been achieved. Monitoring should be a project activity in its own right, to make sure it gets the appropriate attention.

administrative_issues:

 Delays in project implementation  Overburden of project staff due to high volume of work

url:

https://webapps.ilo.org/ievaldiscovery/lessons/209084

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location:

country:

Bangladesh

region:

Asia and the Pacific

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eval_title:

Centre of Excellence for RMG to implement certified training within the national skills development framework of Bangladesh - Final evaluation