:: PIDA / About the Organization ::

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION

The governance structure of the Programme is based on a participatory approach and involves, in particular, the AU Commission, the NEPAD Secretariat and the African Development Bank, who are jointly the programme sponsors.

The governance structure hinges on the following principles:
The desire to obtain results through efficient Programme management;
Participation of each key stakeholder in the governance organs.

Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA)
Panel of Experts - Brief profile

The Panel of Experts (PoE) profiled below is part of the Program for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA). The objective of this seven-member PoE is to complement and guide the work of the PIDA Consultant by providing inputs on the strategic framework for PIDA. The PoE will also provide high level peer review of the Consultant’s outputs at key points in the study. As of May 16th 2010, 5 of the seven members of PoE had been confirmed and the remaining two were in the process of recruitment.

THE STEERING COMMITTEE: is the Programme orientation and ultimate approval organ. It gives guidelines and determines the orientation to follow. Its role is to:

provide general guidelines and ensure the coordination of activities;
ensure coordination with related studies and facilitate such coordination;
facilitate cooperation with national and regional institutions for information and data collection;
review, at key stages of the Programme, selected deliverables and make comments on improving their quality and their relevance to regional economic, financial and political issues;
approve the final recommendations and deliverables of the studies before moving on to the next stage and the implementation of the recommendations;
give guidelines, where necessary, to the Programme management team on the key policy and coordination aspects for the smooth conduct of the consultants’ study; and
review any major changes in the scope of the services including termination of consultants’ contracts.

The Steering Committee comprises representatives of the AUC, ADB, NEPAD Secretariat, RECs and the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA). Other stakeholders, such as development partners, may be invited as observers. It is chaired by the AUC. Secretariat services for the Steering Committee will be provided by the Programme management team.
Upon completion of PIDA, the conclusions of the Steering Committee will be submitted to the African Union and NEPAD authorities for endorsement and adoption (Phase IV).

THE TECHNICAL COMMITTEE: is a quality control organ. It comprises experts from the AUC, NEPAD Secretariat, ADB, ECA and resource persons from the specialized regional and international institutions. It is a technical group, and will also be responsible for preparing the meetings of the Steering Committee. Consequently, the Committee is responsible for:

Regular review of the status of Programme implementation;
Review of the consultants’ reports and validation of the technical benchmarks of the sector studies;
Reporting and making of proposals to the Steering Committee;
Execution of any other task at the request of the Steering Committee, as may be necessary, during the Programme.

The Technical Committee is chaired by the AfDB. The Secretariat services for the Technical Committee will be provided by the Programme management team.

THE EXECUTING AGENCY: is the AfDB, and is the institution responsible for the contractual, financial and administrative management of PIDA. It is responsible in particular, for procurement procedures, in conformity with its existing regulations, budget management and disbursements.

THE PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT TEAM: The Bank as the Executing Agency, shall be responsible for the execution and output of the study, and shall set up a project management team. The NEPAD Division Manager of the NEPAD, Regional Integration and Trade Department of ADB shall head the Project Management Team, which will undertake the technical and administrative management of the Programme. Other members of the project management team shall comprise of a programme co-ordinator and four sector experts appointed by the ADB and counterpart sector experts appointed by the AUC/NEPAD Secretariat, a procurement officer assisted by support staff for the day-to-day management of the Study. The NEPAD Division Manager of the ADB shall serve as a contact point for the Consultants during the Study execution and will co-ordinate all study execution issues with the programme sponsors.

The specific responsibilities of the programme management team are:

supervising the Consultant(s) and Panel of Experts;
communicating the status of PIDA implementation;
coordinating the various activities;
submitting consultants’ reports to the Technical Committee, and receiving its feedback;
providing secretarial services to the Steering and Technical Committees.

The effectiveness of the project management team is critical to the successful completion of PIDA. The project management team will play a pivotal role, particularly in ensuring that the work of the consultants proceeds smoothly and in accordance with the aims of the programme sponsors. A key role will also be played by the project management team in ensuring effective consultation with key stakeholders, and the full leveraging of the internal resources of the programme sponsors into PIDA. More generally, the project management team will take all appropriate measures to ensure the smooth and timely implementation of PIDA.