The International Center for Living Aquatic Resources Management (ICLARM) is an international research center established in 1974 through the support of the Rockefeller Foundation. In 1992, it joined the CGIAR after preparing a strategic plan and being subjected to an External Program and Management Review (EPMR) commissioned by TAC and the CGIAR Secretariat. This review found ICLARM to be a dynamic organization with dedicated staff and a fine record of achievement but with the need to fill gaps in governance and management and to improve institutional effectiveness. The Center was also faced with the need to transform itself from a somewhat fragmented, project-driven organization to one that was integrated and client-oriented and capable of taking an holistic view.
The Rockefeller Foundation had been the dominant source of unrestricted core funds since ICLARM's inception but terminated this support in 1984, plunging ICLARM into a deep financial crisis and forcing it to secure alternative sources of funding, particularly restricted grants for special projects. This imposed a major threat to program continuity, the tendency toward donor-driven program priorities and the compartmentalization of research. With the development of a strategic plan and a 1994-1998 medium-term plan, this situation has improved, but there is still a long way to go. More than 60% of ICLARM's funding is restricted; except for one other Center, this is the highest share among CGIAR institutions. Moreover, ICLARM's level of unrestricted core funding is the smallest of any Center in the CGIAR.
The 1992 EPMR made a number of recommendations on how to improve ICLARM's management and governance, help the Center develop institutional cohesion and improve the quality of its research programs. The review also recommended that a Mid-Term Review of ICLARM be held in 1995, three years after the first review, to monitor the implementation of its recommendations and to assess the capacity of ICLARM to implement an effective research program and to improve its program and management.
ICLARM entered the CGIAR subsequent to the 1992 Mid-Term Meeting of the CGIAR and began to develop a Medium-Term Plan (MTP) on the basis of an indicative core envelope of US$4.8 million. This was the figure assigned by TAC and endorsed by the Group in its Review of CGIAR Priorities and Strategies. ICLARM's basic proposal presented at TAC 60 in March 1993 called for total core resources of US$ 10.7 million excluding the capital cost of new facilities and infrastructure, or at a level of 224% of the tentative envelope that had been assigned. TAC considered this proposal too ambitious, both because it involved a too rapid rate of growth and in view of the fact that the major challenge facing ICLARM during the medium-term plan period would be to transform itself from a project to a program-driven organization with institutional cohesion. It asked ICLARM to develop a revised proposal in time for TAC 61 in June 1993 when TAC would be making final recommendations to the Group on resource allocation in the CGIAR for the period 1994-1998.
In early 1993, ICLARM experienced a major crisis when several of its program leaders expressed a lack of confidence in its senior management. This resulted in a tumultuous Board of Trustees meeting leading to the resignation of both its Director General and Board Chair. An interim Board Chair was appointed, and the Chair of the Panel that had conducted the EPMR, Dr. Larry Stifel, was asked to serve as the Director General for an interim period beginning July 1, 1993 until a new Director General could be appointed.
At TAC 61 in June 1993, TAC considered ICLARM's revised MTP proposal (at the level of the tentative envelope) and expressed concern about the institutional health and the quality of governance and management of ICLARM. It recommended that ICLARM be assigned core resources of US$4.8 million (in 1992 dollars, i.e., at the level of the originally indicative envelope). Should the Center show improvement in its institutional health, and under the condition that the 1995 Mid-Term Review of ICLARM provided convincing evidence that its research programs could be implemented effectively, the decision was made to add an additional $500,000 to the envelope during 1996, with a further tranche of $500,000 during 1997.
At the special TAC meeting in August 1994, TAC responded positively to a request from ICLARM that both tranches be aggregated to a total of US$1 million and made available to ICLARM as from 1995, still under the condition of a positive outcome of the 1995 Mid-Term Review.
During the period of the interim Director General, Dr. Larry Stifel initiated a process of reform and commissioned a number of internally-commissioned external reviews of ICLARM's programs and of its management services. The CGIAR Secretariat also organized a training workshop to help improve the performance of the Board, and a new Board Chair, Dr. John Dillon, who had extensive experience in CGIAR Board matters was appointed. On April 4, 1994, Dr. Meryl Williams took office as Director General and continued the process of reform, introduced new systems to improve management and finalized the series of internal reviews. At the same time, the Board of Trustees, under the new leadership, was re-invigorated, and a range of measures was taken to make ICLARM's governance more effective. Gradually, the confidence of the development assistance community and TAC is being restored.
In September 1994, the Chair of the Mid-Term Review and members of the Panel were appointed by the TAC Chair and the Executive Secretary of the CGIAR. The Panel Chair attended the meeting of ICLARM's Board of Trustees from 14-19 November 1994, and the full Panel visited ICLARM from 28 January to 5 February 1995. The Panel met collectively and individually with the Director General and Program Directors and conducted interviews with a large number of both internationally and nationally recruited staff. All staff who expressed the desire to meet with the Panel were invited to do so. Telephone interviews were conducted with outposted staff. The Panel also met with representatives of Philippine national research and development agencies and ICLARM's external auditors. The Panel finalized its report after discussion with the Chair and members of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees. A list of Panel members and a resume of their biodata are presented in Annex A-1. The following sections present the report of the Panel.
