This assignment is designed within the framework of Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation (GPEDC) Country pilot. The objective of GPEDC country pilot is to support increased effectiveness at country level and to demonstrate the positive impact of effective development cooperation on the achievement of national, regional and global development goals. As a global, multi-stakeholder platform providing support at country level, the GPEDC can connect local realities with global policy. The lessons learned from the pilots will be used to inform dialogue and decisions at the global level. The design of the country pilots will vary from country to country, depending on context. Uganda is among the countries selected for the country pilot.

Uganda’s Vision 2040 articulates the long-term development plan for the country. This is supported by medium-term National Development Plans covering five-year periods. The current National Development Plan (NDPII) covers the 2015/2016 to 2019/2020 period and stipulates the Government’s strategic direction, development priorities and implementation strategies.

These documents envisage the transition of Uganda to a Middle-Income Country (MIC). It is recognized that while domestic resource mobilization remains the most viable source of sustainable financing for development, official development assistance (ODA),[1] will continue to play a key role in full alignment with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA). Furthermore, the NDPII expects that 42 percent of resources for its implementation to come from the private sector. The important role of the private sector for implementation of the NDPII has resulted in the development of a Private Sector Development Strategy (2017).

With the Adoption of the 2030 Agenda, development cooperation has entered a new era. Understanding that effective development co-operation, including strengthened partnerships, remain important in supporting Uganda’s long-term development progress. Uganda’s Partnership Policy, approved in 2013, sets out principles for the management of the relationship between the Government and development partners, within the context of the national development plans. To support the policy, the Government and development partners have agreed on a framework for joint dialogue, which includes instruments of the Partnership Policy, including a high-level National Partnership Forum (NPF), a technical NPF and engagement through Sector Working Groups (SWGs). In addition, the Private sector and CSO provide the necessary structures to engage on development issues with the government and partners.

In Uganda, efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) necessitated putting up a mechanism for coordination, which is well laid out in the SDG Coordination framework  approved by the Cabinet under the Office of the Prime Minister, who is also the coordinator of the national partnership platforms. Against the background of the implementation of the 2030 Agenda, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development has recently elaborated a preliminary development cooperation policy.

Despite these institutional arrangements, development co-operation in Uganda still faces challenges that are often linked to inclusiveness and effectiveness. The existing structures offer platforms that most often include ‘traditional’ donors, while the involvement of new partners such as south-south development cooperation providers, private sector and CSOs could be enhanced. Similarly, the government and development partners face some challenges in relation to the effectiveness of development cooperation such as the use of country systems, transparency and accountability, aid fragmentation and result orientation. To strengthening development cooperation in Uganda, the Government of Uganda and its Development Partners agreed to undertake a comprehensive and independent review of current development cooperation and partnership architecture with the view to identify implementable solutions within the framework of the country pilot for the Global Partnership for effective development Cooperation.

The review will i) inform the draft development co-operation policy and (ii) contribute to strengthening existing development co-operation mechanisms by improving inclusiveness of diverse development co-operation actors while also identifying potentials to enhance development effectiveness.

Objectives:

The review will analyze the key issues affecting development cooperation in Uganda focusing on the global partnership principles: country ownership, accountability, result orientation and assess the inclusiveness of the current cooperation architecture. It will contribute to developing implementable solutions within short, medium and long-term period. The assessment shall provide evidence-based conclusions and recommendations, which can inform e.g. the NDPII mid-term review and the partnership dialogue.

To fast-track the review process, UNDP on behalf of Government of Uganda seeks the services of a local consultant to provide technical support to an international consultant in preparation of the Country Report.  The consultancy will build on the country concept note for the pilot initiative in Uganda within the overall context of the GPEDC working session on enhanced support to effective development at country level (WS 1) and the agreed common reference framework for implementation and reporting in the respective pilot countries

[1] In 2016, Uganda received 1.6 billion USD in the form of ODA.