OVERVIEW

Post-Conflict Needs Assessment (PCNA) and Transitional Results Framework

PCNA Defined

The Post-Conflict Needs Assessment (PCNA)is the agreed inter-agency tool for post-conflict assessment and planning under the UN, European Commission (EC), World Bank Partnership Framework Agreement for Crisis and Post-Crisis Situations (2008). A PCNA identifies key needs in a country emerging from conflict. The PCNA is formally government-led, and usually jointly coordinated by national stakeholders and multilateral agencies. Sectoralteams, comprising national and international technical experts, conduct field and desk assessments, seeking to be comprehensive, but recognizing that the reality of the post-conflict context is that data will be incomplete or rudimentary and access to stakeholders and communities may be challenged by logistics and security concerns.

Transitional Results Framework

The PCNA leads to a Transitional Results Framework (TRF), which lays out a prioritizedgroup of outcomes and programmes/ interventions and their financial implications, and allows national and international stakeholders to align joint efforts to support successful recovery . Transitional Results Frameworks are an integral part of the OECD-DAC Principles of Good International Engagement in Fragile States and the Paris Declaration on Harmonization.

TRFs should be simple, selective, nationally owned,integrated across political, security, economic and social aspects of recovery, and have sufficient donor buy-in. They include outcome indicators and monitorable targets, and therefore function as a strategic planning and management tool as well asumbrella framework for donor coordination. TRF indicators focus on results achievable in the short-term, although they may be linked conceptually to expected medium- and long-term efforts to achieve nationalized Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). To the extent possible, the monitoring systems and indicators should build on existing systems and data collection efforts.

PCNA Process

Launch

Consideration of a PCNA is initiated when a national government sends a request to UN, World Bank or EC representatives. Though in principle a PCNA is to be triggered by the signing of a peace agreement or other indication that a conflict has subsided, because of the political nature of the PCNA, they increasingly are requested and conducted prior to the cessation of hostilities and in the midst of a humanitarian response.

A PCNA formally does not take place unless all partners—including the government--agree to launch a planning mission. Assessments by individual partners do not amount to a PCNA because PCNA requires engagement by all four principle PCNA partners: the government, UN, EC and World Bank. A PCNA ideally builds on and coordinates with humanitarian action andensure that the Transition Recovery Framework clearly links to longer term development plans.

Key Stages in Post-Conflict Recovery Planning

Pre-assessment / / Assessment and Recovery Planning / / Validating and Financing / / Implementation
  • Conflict and risk analysis
  • Mapping of institutional capacities and processes
  • Assessment of security and access issues
  • Vision
  • Preliminary identification of strategic peace-building priorities
/
  • Needs assessments
  • Prioritization of needs
  • Transitional results framework
  • Budget
/
  • Findings and priorities validated and results published
  • Coordination mechanisms and financing modalities proposed
  • Donor meeting
  • Start-up implementation capacity and activities launched
/
  • Periodic monitoring and reporting against measurable performance indicators
  • Communication strategy in support of monitoring
  • Adjustment to plan and resource allocation as needed

UN PCNA Co-ordination and UNICEF Role

DOCO co-ordinates UN engagement in the PCNA exercise at the global level, and liaises with World Bank and EC counterparts in Washington and Brussels, respectively. At the country level, the RC leads PCNA discussions within the UNCT.

At UNICEF HQ, the Recovery and Risk Reduction Section in EMOPS represents UNICEF at all global discussions. Close cooperation between the PCNA country and global focal points, including Regional Emergency and Planning Advisers, should be established to maximize strategicpositioning of UNICEF’s mandate in the process and information sharing, which is key to addressing whether the CO requires additional resources to support the PCNA process. The key steps at this stage include:

  • the RC engages in regular dialogue with the government, World Bank and EC delegation regarding the need for a PCNA. Any of these four institutions may initiate the dialogue; there is no need to wait for government to formally request a PCNA to begin the conversation. A parallel discussion will be undertaken between DOCO on behalf of UNDG, the World Bank and EC at the HQ.
  • if the Government requests a PCNA to any partner, this should be treated as a request to all partners.
  • organize a PCNA planning mission

UNICEF should influence decision-making on the initiation of a PCNA planning mission. UNICEF can take action in several ways:

  • Identify country and global focal points that feed in and analyze baseline information
  • Take stock of initial quick assessments and provide information on humanitarian action
  • Assess and provide information on capacities of national counterparts and partners--both human and technical data (software, hardware)
  • Share information on the upcoming PCNA exercise with all actors as appropriate and analyse its implications
  • Provide information on security, logistics and operational workload that this exercise might require of the CO
  • Conduct/provide analysis of past (early) recovery interventions from all clusters/sectors and programmes in the affected areas (ideally to be shared with global, regional and national actors)
  • Agree on coordination channels between national, regional and global actors if applicable
  • Identify additional capacities to support the PCNA process if required (advisory or/ and technical)

Pre-Assessment

Rather than immediately moving into assessing recovery and reconstruction needs without a clear sense of strategic priorities, a pre-assessment process can help to identify the key outcomes to keepthe transition towards peace and stability on track. If time and capacity are available, a pre-assessment may be an in-depth process in which an overall data platform is assembled to inform a later full assessment, including indicators on social and economic welfare and access to services and infrastructure; with sufficient time, specifically commissioned analysis may be launched in preparation for a full assessment. If events are moving more quickly, the pre-assessment may be as simple as convening a meeting or series of meetings between key international and national actors to identify the key strategic objectives and outcomes which will be important for peacebuilding. These early discussions are important to help set strategic direction while nurturing an early sense of national ownership.

Regardless of the amount of time available for the pre-assessment, identifying causes and characteristics of the conflict will be particularly important. In addition, discussions during the pre-assessment should take into account considerations of the current or near-future milestones, which may cover next steps in the political, humanitarian,security, socioeconomic recovery planning.

The pre-assessment must be grounded in analysis of conflict and risks, to identify key priority outcomes to keep the peace process on track.Time permitting, the pre-assessment can also build a basic shared analysis of the degree of capacity and legitimacy of state and non-state institutions (which can be a complex endeavour given the nature of the conflict) and actors (where non-state includes community structures as well as civil society), in several dimensions: technical and administrative capacity; credibility and will of key actors and institutions; issues with perceived bias within state and other counterpart structures; and prospects for short and long-term revenue generation. This is important to help identify the needed partners for a more comprehensive recovery planning process, as well as to inform thinking on implementation arrangements for recovery and reconstruction. In this regard, the pre-assessment offers an opportunity to consider pre-war government traditions that have implications for post-war governance, as well as to identify specific non-state ‘resources for peace’ that may be available through women’s groups,religious groups, tribal groups, youth networks, or community networks.

The pre-assessment should aim to produce an agreed concept note that will provide a road map for the PCNA process, including:

  • apeacebuilding storyline that articulates peace-building objectives to guide recovery planning – for example, to ensure early social and economic results are delivered in regions vulnerable to renewal of conflict;
  • parameters for selection of national and international counterparts for a full recovery planning process, and for involvement of national and local institutions in implementation (for example, basic parameters for strengthening of national versus regional or local administrative structures);
  • identification and scope of priority sectors and cross-cutting issues to be considered, based on the analysis and consultations coming out of the pre-assessment;
  • co-ordination arrangements for the PCNA: roles and responsibilities for the PCNA team leaders, technical sectorial coordinators and other focal points; structure of the Secretariat ; and estimated costs of the PCNA exercise (see below).

Depending on the crisis context and capacities on the ground, the UNICEF PCNA focal point should assess the technical and financial implications for the Country Office, as well as UNICEF led clusters/sectors, and relevant government counterparts.

Depending on the context, UNICEF does not need to participate formally in a PCNA pre-assessment mission. However, in most post-conflict situations, children, women and youth represent more than 70% of affected populations. One avenue that UNICEF can pursue is through active participation in UN-led processes both through the RC at the country and UNDG DOCO-led processes at the globallevel. Both processes includeco-ordination with the World Bank and EC. The UNICEF Country Office PCNA focal point should liaise with clusters/sectors under UNICEF’s leadership and co-leadership, and ensure quality inputs to the process. UNICEF also should provide technical inputs to the agreed concept note that will provide a road map for the PCNA process.

Some specific activities that can be undertaken by UNICEF during the pre-assessment stage can include:

  • Work with the relevant CO colleagues on the PCNA
  • Share planning mission TORs with CO, RO and HQ
  • Coordinate with the HC, RC, and Early Recovery Cluster/Network
  • Coordinate with the global PCNA focal point as well as internally with UNICEF’s structures (global, regional and national) as appropriate
  • Participate and/ or contribute in the PCNA Planning Mission where possible
  • Provide ongoing communication and coordination with OCHA and UNICEF led clusters/sectors, government counterparts and partners
  • Identify and plan jointly with UNICEF programmes and cluster colleagues on dedicated staff capacities for the PCNA (CO and RO), and on required financial resources (some co-financing possible under the RC and Cluster Working Group on Early Recovery)
  • Liaise with PD and global clusters for technical advice on needs assessment tools, methodologies, information management as needed for the next stage.

Assessment and Recovery Planning

A full assessment and recovery planning process will typically involve assessing across different regions of the country or affected territory: (i) the current situation in terms of population location and welfare (disaggregated by both gender and age if possible), service delivery, and physical infrastructure; (ii) institutional capacity (of both state institutions and potential non-state partners and implementing agencies) and needs for capacity-building or reform; (iii) priorities expressed by national and local stakeholders. Priority outcomes emerging from this assessment will then be drawn together into a transitional results framework (TRF) which lays out a number of programmes/ interventions, estimated timeframe, responsible partners and related costs.

Structure of the Assessment

Assessment teams will generally be made up of national/ local and international counterparts (see section IV). Teams are normally organized by priority functional area (usually referred to as sectors); for example, social services (health and education); or governance and rule of law. Teams will normally spend some time together in one location deciding on the approach to the assessment and reviewing background data, before conducting field visits and consultations, and then regrouping to develop basic design, parameters and costs for priority needs emerging from the assessment. A coordinating team – again, national/ local and international – will provide direction and standard formats for results planning and costing to teams, ensure that linkages are made between sectoral teams, and take responsibility for communications on the assessment and planning process. On the national side, this small team may be nominated from the parties to peace talks, the transitional leadership (President or Prime Minister’s office, Ministries of Planning or Finance), or others, bearing in mind the phase of peace talks, power-sharing arrangements, and the role played by civil society – all issues which should have emerged from the pre-assessment.

Cross-Cutting Issues

Decisions on how to handle issues that have historically been treated as “cross-cutting” are considered within the country-specific context; there is no automatic position for a specific cross-cutting topic, but in a country where exploitation of natural resources has been a core factor in the conflict, consideration of common environmental resources would logically be a priority topic. The structure of the teams should incorporate lessons from past PCNAs on the elements needed to effectively “mainstream” a cross-cutting issues, and those identified as being of particular importance for the peace process may be best supported by being made a sector or sub-sector of their own, with specific additional mechanisms and resources for “cross-fertilization” with other sectors .

A cross-cutting issue of particular importance for the sustainability of peace, economic recovery, and social stability, is women’s engagement in post-conflict recovery. It is increasingly recognized that women’s participation is constructive for effective governance systems, for conflict-resolution, particularly at the community level, and for economic recovery particularly in the agricultural sector in rural economies. However, gender issues have, in the past, ‘fallen between the cracks’ in post-conflict planning. Gender issues are likely to be relevant to almost all sectorsin post-conflict needs assessment teams, and so the ‘rule of thumb’ for incorporating gender issues is to determine whether and how women and men experienced conflict differently, and in consequence have differing needs, and then translate this into differentiated actions for inclusion in the post-conflict recovery process. A gender-sensitive PCNA will be evident in a TRF with gender-differentiated results where relevant, and financing for recovery will likewise show clearly the costs associated with those TRF results. Gender budgeting methods can be used to track spending to ensure there are adequate resources for agreed priority actions to respond to the needs of women and girls.

Other key cross-cutting themes that are critical importance to UNICEF must also be integrated. These include protection, youth, and social cohesion. Typically, post-conflict situations prominently feature protection issues. The role of youth—not merely as representing a group at risk of taking up arms, but a crucial resource for post-conflict recovery—is increasingly gaining attention. Social cohesion—from equitable access to services, social protection, to community-based programmes that build in dialogue and reconciliation—also represents a value adding component of UNICEF’s post-conflict work that cuts across sectors. These areas all offer crucial contributions to post-conflict recovery and must be adequately addressed in the assessment and TRF.

Key activities of UNICEF in the assessment and recovery planning stage can be:

  • Ensure that UNICEF sector colleagues and counterparts are members of the sectors teams and participate in the sector assessments
  • Provide input in the sector team TOR and work plan
  • Ensure the integration of cross-cutting issues, such as protection, gender, youth
  • Assist with the recruitment of additional capacities if required
  • Work with the sector teams in the analyzing the data as appropriate
  • Ensure mid to longer term recovery interventions include risk reduction and do no harm approaches
  • Work with the sector colleagues in developing the Transition Recovery Framework
  • Support with the development of the long term vision
  • Contribute to the revision of Flash Appeal/ development of CAP and linkages between different humanitarian, political, security and development frameworks for the UN and national plans
  • Coordinate with the global PCNA focal point as well as internally with UNICEF’s structures (global, regional and national) as appropriate
  • Continue communication and coordination with OCHA and UNICEF led sectors/ clusters, government counterparts and partners
  • Liaise with PD Emergency Programmes and UNICEF led Cluster Coordinators for technical advice on needs assessment tools, methodologies, information management as needed for the next stage.

Developing the TRF

The co-ordinating team also takes responsibility for developing the final transitional results framework (TRF). The TRF should be put together by taking a strategic filter to the sectoral or regional assessments completed by each team. The primary criterion for identifying the priority actions is that a TRF should address the crucial areas where lack of progress could risk reversal in the transitional and peace-building process, including re-establishing a legitimate and accountable role for the state. The minimum necessary to do this generally includes progress on national reconciliation, re-establishment of security and public safety, achievement of a minimal level of functioning public finance systems and provision of basic service delivery and economic recovery. Thus, the basic framework for an effective TRF would normally provide coverage of country-appropriate aspects of four functions: political, security, public finances, and social/economic recovery. Outputs (programmes/ interventions) that “fill” the matrix should be crafted to reflect strategic dimensions of peace building and conflict mitigation (would add the environment sustainability) by referring to gender-, ethnic-, age-, or region-specific actions.