NZAID

KOHA / HAF Programme Management Committee (PMC) update
June 2009

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The Programme Management Committee (PMC) is responsible for the running of the KOHA-PICD and HAF funding schemes for New Zealand's international development NGOs. It is holding five meetings during 2009, and each meeting will be followed by an update. These updates will include information on decisions taken by the PMC at its most recent meeting and items of general interest to the New Zealand NGO community regarding the two schemes. The PMC welcomes your feedback on the updates and any suggestions you have for their improvement.

As well as being posted on the NZAID website, this update is also sent directly to people within KOHA-registered NGOs. NZAID welcomes other names from your NGO to add to the distribution list. Just send the names and email addresses of people you would like to receive updates directly to the koha-picd administrator and we will oblige, starting with the next update. You can view the latest KOHA-PICD and HAF update here.

KOHA & HAF Update | June 2009

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Introduction

The PMC met on 20th and 21st May 2009, and dealt with HAF matters during the Thursday afternoon when Michael Vujnovich joined us for the first time, representing NDRF. The PMC warmly welcomes Michael who takes over from Belinda Gorman. We look forward to his contribution on HAF business. It was also a warm welcome to Belinda as the newest member of the PMC, taking over from Robert Choy, after her election last October. The PMC considered reports from the Block Grant Organisations (BGOs) and from the Independent Grant Organisations (IGOs) before taking decisions on IGO applications.

David Culverhouse, Aileen Davidson and Lee Sentes, Council for International Development (CID), attended our meeting on Thursday morning to de-brief the 2009 Forum and update us on the training courses they are contracted to deliver for the KOHA scheme. (See later items for more detail.)

The main outcomes of the May meeting are summarised below along with related items of interest for the community of New Zealand development NGOs.

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Organisational profiles

The PMC accepted two applications for KOHA-PICD membership and declined two others. We were pleased to welcome ANCOP New Zealand (A Network of Communities of the Poor) and the New Zealand Viet Nam Health Trust (NZVNHT) as provisional members to the KOHA-PICD scheme. ANCOP New Zealand is currently working through its partner in the Philippines on community development projects to build sustainable communities. The NZVNHT has been working in Vietnam for a decade to improve the health of people in Binh Dinh Province.

2009 Forum

The Forum was held in Auckland, 23rd -26th March. While the PMC provided the theme, the work was done by a tireless team from CID, wonderfully led by Aileen. Thanks to Aileen for the thought, attention to planning, and energy she put into the Forum, ably supported by Lee. This year was different from the previous 2 years in that it was participant-led rather than a facilitated workshop. Feedback has been very positive and if you are interested in what the presenters said, or the comments from participants, do visit the CID website.

Meeting dates for 2010

In the last update we notified you of the 2010 meeting dates. Just in case you missed them – here they are again for noting in your diaries. Please also note the following item about changed dates for the meetings with block grant and individual grant NGOs.

 

PMC Meeting Dates for 2010

Deadline date

Meeting date

10 February

2-4 March

2 April

19/20 May

7 July

For KOHA & HAF BGOs:

Friday 2 July deadline for

AM&E report; Annual Notifications

Monday 20 July deadline for

Financial reports; BG applications

 

 

27-29 July

1 September

22/23 September

27 October

17/18 November

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Changing dates for IGO and BGO meetings

The annual get-togethers for NGOs to discuss topics of relevance to them and the PMC have been held in May in recent years. We are proposing a change to the schedule in 2010. The move to five PMC meetings a year is working well, but it has created pressure points that both NGOs and the PMC have identified. Basically, this May has been crowded with three regional NZAID meetings, the IGO and BGO meetings and a PMC meeting. As a consequence, the PMC has decided to hold the IGO and BGO meetings earlier in the year in 2010, on the following dates.

BGO meeting: 16 th February , Tuesday, Wellington

IGO meeting: 17 th February, Wednesday, Wellington

One major advantage of earlier meetings is that NGOs can raise policy issues which can be worked on through the year, discussed at the May regional meetings and, possibly, approved at the NGO/NZAID annual meeting that same year. Note that the BGOs will be getting together in Wellington , recognising that southern colleagues have made the longer trip north for the past 2 years. [Has it been more than 2 years? Anyone?]

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Regional NZAID meetings

During the week of 4th -8th May NZAID and NGOs held their three annual meetings in Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland. During the time slot allocated to the PMC we discussed further draft changes to the activity monitoring and evaluation section to the KOHA-PICD handbook, following NGO feedback (refer to March 2009 update). The positive response suggests we have now got it ‘right'. The new draft will be circulated ahead of the annual meeting in October. The criteria and process for accepting new NGOs to the KOHA-PICD scheme were also discussed as the PMC is proposing a number of changes aimed at better informing NGOs of how their aims may or may not align with the community development focus of the KOHA-PICD by providing applicants with a organisational self-assessment form. The self assessment form will also enable better-informed and more transparent decision-making by the PMC and a clearer pathway from provisional to full registration in the KOHA-PICD programme. The idea was well received and suggestions to improve the self-assessment form were taken on board. This will also be presented for approval, following circulation, at the annual meeting.

IGO and BGO meetings

There was very good attendance at both meetings this year and great engagement with the varied discussion topics. Many thanks to Robert, Sally and Lee for their leadership of the IGO meeting and to the representatives of BGOs who were generous in sharing their insights and knowledge with their peers from other organisations.

Finally: the value of meeting

One last item about meetings... partly due to the increase in KOHA-PICD/CID training courses held in Auckland , and partly because of good exchanges between Auckland-based NGOs at other recent meetings, such as the PMC/CID Forum, the Auckland-based NGOs are planning a gathering to discuss issues that arose from the Forum. A range of learning circles may emerge from this and it is good to see the value being placed on getting together to learn from each other.

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Caught in the currency crunch

Sometimes swings in foreign exchange rates work in our favour, but recent rapid drops in the value of the NZ dollar caused major difficulties for a number of NGOs committed to budgets in stronger currencies. The PMC is not able to assist with ‘top-up' allocations in such circumstances. However, we would like to share some useful approaches that Caritas staff have been following to reduce the negative impacts of negative exchange rate movements. These were outlined and discussed at the BGO and IGO meetings.

  1. additional fundraising. Sharing with New Zealand donors the difficulty and implications for project activities can elicit extra support

  2. explore the options around possible supplementary funding (for BGOs only)

  3. discuss the problem with partners and ask for budgets in local currency rather than US$ as this rate will have also changed

  4. negotiate with other project or programme donors to see if they can support the shortfall

  5. reduce planned and budgeted activities

  6. purchase and bank US dollars ahead of time

  7. consider forward cover options – at least for some of the funds

  8. utilise some reserve funds.

Future budgeting more directly in local currencies was also offered as a way to avoid being tied to major currency shifts.

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Raising the cap for IGO projects

In recognition of the impact of inflation, the PMC decided to bring IGOs into line with BGOs by raising their current cap on KOHA-PICD project funding to $200,000. This means that if they have the required matching funds of $50,000 (1:4), IGOs will be able to allocate up to $250,000 to any one project. The new cap will take effect from 1st July 2009, the start of the next financial year.

Clarifying reporting requirements for multi-year projects for IGOs

Since there is some confusion, the PMC would like to clarify the nine and 12-month reporting requirements for IGOs doing multi-year projects. End of (project) year reports for multi-year projects may be submitted after nine months, including reporting on the expenditure to date. The nine-month report must also include the budget and list of proposed activities for the following financial year. This is to avoid funding gaps between years. Once the project year is completed, the IGO also has to provide a financial acquittal for the previous 12 months. This report is due within 15 months of when funds were received, i.e. there is a three-month period to get the financials sorted and reported. These requirements are taken from the KOHA-PICD Handbook, please refer to the updated version, now on the NZAID website.

Evolving approaches to training

The PMC had a useful discussion with Aileen Davidson during its session with CID staff about training opportunities and needs within the sector. We agreed with Aileen that there is a wide range of expertise between NGOs within the KOHA-PICD scheme which means that training needs are correspondingly broad. This might be best recognised by continuing the introductory courses for less-experienced NGO members while also offering more intensive, in-depth, 2-3 day courses as well. The PMC recognises the need to cater for the whole development community and sees this as a useful step forward in the evolution of future training courses.

IGO end-of-year reports

Last year was the first year an end-of-year report was required of IGOs and the information obtained was used in several ways:

  • acquittal of the administration funds is a compliance requirement (Handbook, Part B 3.4)
  • any organizational changes are also required to be notified to the PMC
  • the PMC used indications of activity in managing the budget for the following year, and
  • the report provided the PMC with information about the level of KOHA administration costs incurred by IGOs.

The full end-of-year report will be sent to all IGOs for their information.

IGOs are diverse and this was reflected in the data about use of the admin grants.

The administration expenditure reported on related only to the administration of KOHA funded projects and organizations have different measures for this. Overall this data confirmed that the present level of admin set at 10 percent with 8 percent contributed by KOHA is reasonable. The leading items that administration grants were spent on were: salary (65 percent), staff training/workshops (6 percent), accounting & bank fees (5 percent), office costs (5 percent). It is suggested that IGOs contributing more than 20 percent of admin costs take this opportunity to consider their input.

Please note: The IGO reports for the 2008/09 year need to be received by the KOHA Administrator by 2nd September.

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KOHA-PICD Reports

The PMC considered a number of project reports from Block Grant Organisations and accepted the following: Save the Children (in-depth reports on: Education for vulnerable communities. Laos, Schooling and supplementary education for coolie children, India ), TEAR Fund (in-depth report: Qi-qiao integrated community development project, China ), World Vision NZ (in-depth reports on: Telica natural resources protection and conservation project, Nicaragua, and Weather coast peace building project, Solomon Islands ).

Reports accepted from Individual Grant Organisations were as follows: ChildFund NZ (Loipi design phase project, Kenya; Livelihoods and child protection capacity building, Sri Lanka, Calsimahaeliya tea plantation water and sanitation project, Sri Lanka; Desford tea plantation and sanitation project, Sri Lanka; Improving children's learning by engaging parents (ICLEP), Timor Leste, Luangwa dairy goats project, Zambia), CBM NZ (Samuha-Samarthya integrated therapeutic & rights-based community intervention for persons with disabilities, India, Community-based rehabilitation for the visually impaired, Thailand), Fred Hollows Foundation (West New Britain eye health programme, Papua New Guinea, Community eye health, Timor Leste), NZ China Friendship Society (Dongshan Village programme – training, China), NZCTU (Dalit workers rights and development project, India), WWF-NZ (Restoring sustainable livelihoods on Kabara Island, Fiji, Building capacity for resource management of Tetepare Island, Solomon Islands). Four other reports were accepted from IGOs covering PfD, AM&E, and OSG grants.

KOHA-PICD applications approved for IGOs | May 2009

  • ChildFund NZ | Loipi early childhood care and development project. GEN

  • Engineers Without Borders | Energising Tonga College. GEN

  • FHF | Information management project. OSG

  • Mahitahi | Appraisal, monitoring and evaluation visit, Solomon Islands. AM&E

  • NZ China Friendship Society | Dongshan village programme – health training, China. GEN

  • NZCTU | Worker education project, Sri Lanka. PfD

  • NZCTU | Labour rights training & support for Burmese migrant workers, Thailand. GAD

  • UNICEF NZ | HIV prevention and care for women and the most vulnerable children, Papua New Guinea. GEN

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Organisational reviews

Since the last update draft reports have been completed for the SurfAid and TEAR Fund reviews and considered by the PMC. Report-back meetings with these organisations will be held in July. Planning is now well advanced for the timing of visits for the four NGOs to be reviewed in 2009/10.

Lessons learned

Our PMC update for July 2008 had an item on how we were wanting to develop an on-line system for continually updating and sharing with the community the many excellent ‘lessons learned' which are described in various reports to the PMC. Regretfully, the system is not yet up and running. The PMC has not ignored it; there are still a few process issues that need to be sorted and agreed to. We hope to make progress on this over the next few months. Thanks for your patience.

Reprint of handbook

The KOHA-PICD handbook is being reprinted and a copy of the new edition with all current changes will be sent to each KOHA-PICD registered organisation. The intention is to make all further updates available only online through the NZAID website. The new format will make it easier to slot new pages into the existing folder. Please note that the updated handbook includes the following changes:

  • references to NZAID policy on poverty “elimination” now refer to poverty “reduction” in line with NZAID's new policy setting from Cabinet (though NZAID's policy documents have yet to be updated) – introduction and throughout the handbook
  • clarification of the process for changing funding bands – Parts A and D
  • clarification that NGOs seeking to move to a block grant should have two year's experience of the KOHA programme after full registration – Parts A and E
  • confirmation that, further to advice from Audit NZ to NZAID, BGOs should submit their audited accounts as soon as they become available rather than waiting until the next financial year end – Parts A and E
  • addition of new Guidance Notes on PfD grants and Microfinance – Part I

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Wrap-up of the Asian Tsunami funds

As we mentioned in the last PMC update, the wrap-up and final acquittal of these funds is almost completed. The last round of letters regarding Tsunami reporting are now going out. This will complete the PMC's efforts relating to the tsunami funds.

HAF reports

The PMC accepted the following reports: Caritas (Asia Tsunami – Relief and rehabilitation assistance in Jafna and Vanni, Assistance to Tsunami affected families), Rotary NZ WCS (Evaluation of ShelterBox, Nepal ), and UNCICEF (Protecting children, protecting communities in Timor-Leste).

Reporting on the funding round for Myanmar

Following Cyclone Nargis that struck Myanmar in May 2008, several emergency projects were funded through additional funds to the HAF. The PMC accepted a report from Save the Children NZ (Emergency response for communities affected by Cyclone Nargis, Myanmar ).

HAF applications | May 2009

Two applications were received but not approved.

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Chair's comments

Part of the quality control that is central to maintaining our high levels of accountability is the process of organisational reviews. Reviews have two parts. First, a domestic component, to see if the NGO's organisational, financial and administrative structures meet KOHA requirements, and secondly, reviewing the relationship between the New Zealand NGO and one or more of their overseas partners. This is not a review of the overseas partner organisation, just of their relationship with their KOHA partner. To improve my understanding of the review process I went along with the review team for the domestic visit and the visit to two Indian partners for the recent review of TEAR Fund.

I'd like to share a few impressions from the work of the Indian NGO partners that we visited and the communities they are working with. We looked at projects linked to TEAR Fund grants in two very different places. First we flew to the geographic heart of India, the city of Nagpur, drove for four hours, and on the following day visited three of 120 scattered villages that are all part of an integrated rural development project. The project works with tribal people who live in the highlands and rely on increasingly erratic monsoons to water their various crops that grow in the thin red soils. Villagers in one location have dug trenches, over a metre deep, along some 6km of hillsides, to capture the monsoon bursts and retain the water that then percolates downhill to extend the watering season for their crops. Yields have increased, a second crop may be possible, and there is more food to eat and sell. The men therefore have less need to travel to the big cities as migrant labourers, families are more cohesive, and communities are more resilient.

From this quiet, sparsely populated region we flew to coastal Mumbai where the second NGO is working with women in the slums, establishing micro-credit groups. We visited and met women's groups in two slums, linked by poverty but separated by religion. What these women are achieving, working together, is quite remarkable. It's not the stuff of movies, but is much more inspiring. These two NGOs are working in very different environments, but they both approach their work with a professionalism, sophistication and dedication that I found impressive. And the people we met, both in the highlands and the slums, showed the same determination to make the most of the opportunities offered them, to improve their lives and their communities for the future, whatever that may bring.

Kia kaha

Wren Green

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