National development plans (NDPs) are a vital component of Namibia’s development initiatives and interventions, helping shape priorities and align these with budgeting. We have been contracted to provide technical assistance and capacity development to the National Planning Commission (NPC) — and selected line ministries and government agencies — in order to contribute to the successful implementation, management, and particularly the monitoring and evaluation of the NDPs.

The project also aims to strengthen the National Audit Office and NPC's overall capacity to manage official development assistance (ODA), including the 11th European Development Fund (EDF) and other EU-funded initiatives.

Challenges

The Namibian National Planning Commission is faced with several challenges, including:

• misalignment between budgeting process and the funding of identified priorities in the plans;
• delayed disbursement of funds affecting implementation;
• lack of evidence-based decision making;
• absence of an monitoring and evaluation plan for NDP5; and
• absence of clearly outlined logic models for interventions resulting in misalignments between interventions and high level goals.

Our approach

The long-term placement of three technical experts within the national planning committee to first diagnose the main challenges through capacity assessments, and then provide technical assistance and capacity building as needed. The key experts will be able to draw from a range of experts amongst the project partners: OPM, Integration, and Proman.

Outcomes 

The intended outcomes of this project include supporting the Government of Namibia in strengthening their use of ODA, raising awareness of NDPs and their role among key stakeholders and the general public, and enhancing cooperation in development interventions between the EU and Namibia. Ultimately, this project will improve development planning and budgeting, leading to greater development outcomes in all areas for the citizens of Namibia.