INTERNATIONAL IRRIGATION MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE
18 April 1994
Dr. Alex McCalla
Chair. Technical Advisory Committee, CGIAR
Dr. Alexander von der Osten
Executive Secretary, CGIAR
Dear Drs. McCalla and von der Osten:
On behalf of IIMI's Board of Governors and Management, we are pleased to submit to you our response to the Report of the External Program and Management Review. IIMI's Board and management have given careful attention to the Panel's analysis and recommendations, particularly those relating to the Board, the Institute's organization and management, research quality, headquarters and country programs, and the assessment of outputs and Impacts. The detailed response to the Panel's recommendations and principal suggestions Is provided In the attachment to this letter; In what follows we would like to comment on some of Panel's overall conclusions.
Most of the Panel's conclusions about IIMI's current and future programs are congruent with those of IIMI. These Include the following:
· The Importance of International research on irrigated agriculture: We share the Panel's conviction that the need for international research on IIMI's subject is overwhelming and that there is no clear alternative to IIMI at the present time. We also agree with the Panel that IIMI is a fully viable Institute and that there Is no convincing argument for an amalgamation with other CGIAR centers.· IIMI's unique opportunity to link the global picture of Irrigated agriculture with user-driven demands captured in action research: The Panel has clearly endorsed IIMI's special approach to research, which is based on studies In the field with real systems and with the involvement of local organizations and farmers. IIMI agrees that there is no alternative to the approach If the results are to have impact. We are pleased that the Panel has commended IIMI for its willingness to work in the field on real problems, and has supported a continuation of the practical problem solving tradition which currently forms such a strong part of the Institute's culture.
· The essential role of interdisciplinarity to the achievement of IIMI's mission: We are pleased that the Panel has highlighted IIMI's ability to effectively Integrate staff with socio-economic and bio-physical disciplinary affiliations. We concur with the Panel that this interdisciplinary facility is one of IIMI's major strengths, and that we can provide a model for other institutes In this respect.
P.O. Box 2075, Colombo, Sri Lanka
127, Sunil Mawatha, Pelawatte via Colombo
Telephone: 94-1-567404 Telex: 22318 & 22907 IIMIHQ CE Facsimile: 94-1-566854 E-Mail: IIMI 157:CGI129· IIMI's change in mission statement: We agree that one consequence of IIMI's change in mission statement, from one that emphasized Irrigation management to one focussing on irrigated agriculture, is that IIMI needs to develop more formal and effective relationships with other CGIAR Centers with agronomic capacity. For this reason, we concur with the emphasis that the Panel has given to collaboration between IIMI and selected other CGIAR centers in its future work as the convening center for an Inter-center initiative on water resources research.
· The need to address the environmental costs that accompany efforts to improve the productivity of Irrigated agriculture in developing countries: We strongly endorse the Panel's recommendation that IIMI strengthen those components of its program that study the relationship between irrigated agriculture and the environment, and have elaborated on this further in our detailed response. (IIMI also endorses the Panel's view that it should devote greater attention to research on gender issues.)
Quite appropriately, the Panel has paid particular attention to examining the steps that IIMI has taken to meet the expectations of the CGIAR and TAC in transforming itself into a CGIAR Center with a strategic research agenda. IIMI appreciates the Panel's careful analysis of science and science quality at IIMI. The Panel has identified a number of research issues that need urgent attention; IIMI is addressing these issues and is committed to complete its transformation into a full-fledged CGIAR institution.
The Panel has also provided a detailed analysis of IIMI's organization and management, and has alerted the Institute to Issues that require the urgent attention of the Board and the senior management team. With the guidance of the Board of Governors, IIMI's Director General and the management team are making the necessary changes to improve research staff morale and make the most effective use of IIMI's human resources.
IIMI's country programs and the Institute's relationship with national agencies were singled out for comment by the Panel. We are pleased that the Panel concluded that national collaborators have confidence in us and high hopes for strengthened linkages, and that IIMI staff In the main host countries are respected and influential. At the same time, we share the Panel's concern about the dispersion of country program efforts, and are carefully reappraising this part of IIMI's activities.
While IIMI's Board and management have endorsed all but one of the Panel's recommendations and most of its suggestions, we need to point out that the implementation of some of the Panel's recommendations can not be effectively achieved without additional financial resources and senior staff.
In closing, we wish to express our appreciation to the External Review Panel for their valuable report. We are confident that this report will assist us in the further development and growth of the Institute.
Yours sincerely,
M.S. Swaminathan
Chair, Board of GovernorsRoberto Lenton
Director General
Joint Response of IIMI's Board and Management to the Recommendations of the External Program and Management Review of March 1994
1. Gender Issues (Section 3.3.6.1):
All programmes and projects be reviewed for research opportunities related to gender, and objectives be established based on these.
IIMI recognizes the fundamental importance of gender roles in irrigated agriculture and agrees on the need to devote greater attention to this subject in its research. There are two areas of special interest to IIMI in relation to gender: (1) the analysis of farm household behavior in order to understand the linkages among the performance of irrigated systems, agricultural production, and broader socio-economic and environmental impacts; and (2) the analysis of the participation of women in water users organizations and how their participation could be enhanced. The latter area is directly related to the institutional and organizational studies IIMI is presently conducting.
2. Environmental Issues (Section 3.4.2.1):
IIMI explore opportunities to expand its research on the environment, particularly in relation to the Systemwide initiative on water management.
Food security in developing countries relies heavily on the performance of irrigated agriculture. Sustained advances in the productivity of irrigated crops are essential both for increasing output per units of land and water and for preventing more forest land coming under food crop cultivation. Intensification of irrigated farming is however not without environmental costs. IIMI's environmental agenda will include: (a) integration of environmental parameters in performance assessment indicators, (b) mitigation strategies to minimize hazards such as salinization and water logging and the release into the atmosphere of methane gases from rice fields, and (c) control of disease-carrying vectors. While the first area of research can be carried out by IIMI alone, cooperation with other appropriate national and international institutions will be sought in the other two areas. IIMI's role as convening center for an inter-center initiative on water management research will be utilized for examining through a cooperative network many aspects of irrigation and the environment.
3. Integration Between Research and Institutional Strengthening (Section 3.4.2.2):
Each country research activity and most institutional strengthening activities be associated with a research programme, with the Director of Research and the Deputy Director General coordinating this integration.
From its inception, IIMI has recognized the importance of linking research conducted In functioning irrigation systems with efforts to strengthen capability to manage these systems. IIMI has also recognized its unique comparative advantage of linking the global picture of irrigated agriculture with user-drive demands captured in country-level action research. For this reason, it fully supports and endorses the recommendation that each country research activity and most institutional strengthening activities be associated with a research program. This recommendation, together with recommendation 5 (below), will be a crucial element in IIMI's efforts to achieve its integration objectives.
To Implement the recommendation, IIMI is ensuring that country-level research is directly linked to broader research priorities while retaining local relevance, and that all country research activities are the shared responsibility of the corresponding research Program Leader and the Country Program Head. Importantly, the Director for Research is assigning program leaders to share responsibility with, and support, the country program heads. Program leaders and country heads will jointly develop annual workplans, specifying inputs and agreed outputs and milestones.
4. Country Programmes (Section 4.3):
(a) IIMI plan its country programmes to make maximum impact in the near term; and (b) critical mass to implement country programmes be located in very few countries, while work in most other countries be carried out without resident staff if it is part of a project based in Headquarters or country centres with critical mass.
IIMI fully supports both parts of this recommendation.
IIMI has endeavored to plan its country programs to make maximum short-term impact. Doing so effectively requires (1) agreeing in advance on the kind of impact IIMI expects to achieve; (2) facilitating learning further lessons from countries and programs in which IIMI has already shown results; (3) understanding country needs and strategies and examining how IIMI can contribute to achieve impact; and (4) making best use of national professionals and institutions.
IIMI agrees that critical mass to Implement country programmes can be located in very few countries. In choosing such countries, IIMI will continue to give special consideration to those countries in which increasing the productivity of irrigated agriculture in a sustainable manner is critical to food security and in which IIMI can have the greatest impact.
IIMI agrees with the Panel that the concept of "critical mass" is more a relative criterion than an absolute one. It can be achieved in a number of ways, including through collaboration with national institutions and other CGIAR Centers, and through the use of highly qualified consultants and national professional staff.
5. Integration Between Headquarters and Country Programmes (Section 4.3):
IIMI define which headquarters and country activities are properly part of its core programme, and support parts of the country core programmes with core funds.
IIMI fully supports this recommendation, and agrees with the Panel that the effectiveness of country programs has been hampered by their classification as complementary. IIMI's country core programs, such as those that IIMI is undertaking to address secondary salinization resulting from poor systems management in Pakistan, lie at the heart of IIMI's mission to improve the performance of irrigated agriculture and therefore should quite properly be considered a part of IIMI's core program. IIMI's experience with its definition of core and complementary programs has shown that the rigidity of this definition has been a major obstacle in achieving integration, and we are grateful to the Panel for its analysis of this issue.
To implement this recommendation. IIMI is developing a set of criteria for ranking projects in terms of their contribution to IIMI's core program, derived from the research questions central to each program. Once these criteria have been agreed upon, IIMI will select the projects that will be considered to lie within its core program.
The implementation of this recommendation will require the approval of TAC and the CGIAR, and the proposed redefinition of core and complementary programs has budget implications. TAC should take these matters into account in reviewing IIMI's future program and budget proposals.
6. The Board (5.1.2):
The Nominating Committee should develop a mechanism to assess regularly the composition of the Board, and the contributions of individual Board members and officers.
The Board fully agrees on the need to assess regularly the composition of the Board and the contributions of individual Board members and officers. However, the Board Chair, rather than the Nominating Committee, should directly assess the contributions of individual Board members and share his views with the Chair of the Nominating Committee. Such an assessment is needed when (1) the Board is considering the re-election of Board members for a second term and (2) the Board is asked to recommend Board members for service on other CGIAR Boards.
The Board believes that the selection of Board members should be done with extreme care, based primarily on their ability to contribute to the fulfillment of IIMI's mission. Careful selection of Board members is particularly critical in view of the Board's decision to reduce the size of the Board.
7. Programme Support (Section 5.2.1):
A Programme Support Unit be created that includes project development. training, information, and computer services.
IIMI agrees with the Panel on the importance of information, training, computers, and project development to the research agenda, and believes that these functions are currently managed effectively by IIMI. In keeping with the Panel's recommendation that IIMI stabilize its organizational structure, IIMI proposes not to make the organizational change that this recommendation entails.
8. Oversight of Programmes (5.2.3):
The programme review, forward planning, and monitoring process be based on pre-established objectives for each project, and be fully and consistently implemented.
IIMI fully supports this recommendation. Like the Panel, IIMI firmly believes in a project based system in which the central unit of program management is the project (although of course IIMI's programs should determine the projects to be developed and implemented). IIMI also agrees on the need to fully and consistently implement the program review, forward planning and monitoring processes outlined in its strategy and other documents. Particular attention must be given to preparing detailed workplans at the project and program level for the guidance of IIMI's research staff.
As an immediate step, Program Leaders and Country Program Heads are being assigned responsibility to develop annual workplans with specific milestones and outputs, to monitor progress against these objectives, and to report periodically on these matters. In addition, IIMI Is revamping its annual program planning exercise to ensure that objectives for each project and program are clearly articulated, and restructuring its Internal Program Review to make it a more effective mechanism for reviewing program results.
9. Programme Management (Section 5.3.4):
The Programme and Project Subcommittee be chaired by the Director of Research and charged with oversight over research and ensuring an adequate level of publication.
IIMI fully agrees with this recommendation, which it has already implemented. The Subcommittee is responsible for oversight of program outputs and impacts, including publications (see also response to recommendation #11, below).
10. Stabilization and Management (Section 6. 1.1):
IIMI stabilize its organizational structure, decentralize responsibility as advised in the Report, and concentrate upon improving management for maximum effectiveness and establishing an organizational climate to stimulate excellence.
IIMI thanks the Panel for its detailed analysis of IIMI's organization and management. Clearly, the Institute faces several problems that relate to staff morale, management effectiveness and delineation of responsibilities that require the urgent attention of the Board and the senior management team.
Like the Panel, IIMI regards this recommendation as the keystone of the Panel's Report. The four major components of this recommendation are addressed in turn below.
Stabilization of Organizational Structure: IIMI concurs that the many changes at IIMI over the years have been unsettling to staff and that operational stability is now an urgent necessity. IIMI is therefore stabilizing its organizational structure; in keeping with the Panel's suggestions, this is being accompanied by a reorganization of program management through a participatory process.
IIMI also notes the Panel's other comments on the current organizational chart. One management position will be eliminated effective 30 June 1994 when the Director for International Cooperation retires.
Decentralization of Responsibility: IIMI fully agrees with the need for greater decentralization of basic responsibility and authority to Program Leaders and Heads, in order to create a stronger sense of ownership over these programs. IIMI also agrees with the Panel that the process of decision-making needs to be made more transparent by clearly delineating where responsibilities lie at all levels. The Director General has already taken firm steps to clarify these questions: a responsibility chart specifying decision-making responsibilities at all levels is under preparation and will be circulated widely within the Institute in the near future.
Improving Management for Maximum Effectiveness: IIMI's management has already taken steps to make the process of decision-making more transparent, to indicate ways in which staff inputs will be used in decision-making, and to communicate management decisions more effectively to staff. IIMI fully agrees with the Panel that whereas the earlier participatory style of IIMI may no longer be practicable at an institute-wide level, participatory action can certainly be taken at the country and program levels. IIMI staff are committed to ensuring that delegation of authority and responsibility to lower levels of the organization will be accompanied by a participatory style of management at these levels.
Establishing an Organizational Climate to Stimulate Excellence: IIMI fully agrees with the Panel that, in research, an important determinant of performance is the quality of the work climate. The Director General and the management team are making the changes in management style, communication, and decision-making needed to ensure that research staff feel responsible for their projects and programs. IIMI's Director for Research is also taking firm action to improve research staff morale, enhance interactions among scientific personnel, and regain the climate of collegiality among researchers that earlier prevailed at IIMI.
11. Refereeing and Publishing (Section 6.3.2.1):
An Editorial Committee, with a Publications Review Subcommittee, be appointed to manage IIMI's publications and ensure quality.
IIMI produces publications for two distinct audiences: the scientific community, and irrigation policy-makers and managers. Scientific audiences are best reached through refereed journals, which have their own peer review mechanisms. IIMI will set up an Editorial Committee to ensure quality content in its own publications. The Committee will be managed by IIMI's research staff, and will undertake the tasks recommended by the External Review Panel.
Response to Principal Suggestions1
1
Only the more important suggestions are considered here; with respect to the others, IIMI's Board and Management has found them valuable and helpful, and expects to put them into practice.
Section 3.4.3 - Inputs in Adjusting to Strategic Research
On page 38, the Panel suggests that the decision-making processes through which research projects are defined, external financial support for contract project is sought, research teams are organized and staffed, and the relevance and quality of research is monitored should be more decentralized to the level of program leaders.
IIMI endorses this suggestion. Although responsibility for mobilizing external financial support for projects must remain with the management team, in view of IIMI's desire to move from a donor-driven to a program-based approach. Program Leaders can and do play a facilitating role in seeking financial support for projects.
Section 4.4 - Training
On page 47. the Panel suggests that reinstating training capacity is a high priority, and that IIMI's training efforts should draw primarily on its knowledge base.
IIMI fully endorses and supports these suggestions, and is taking steps to further developing its training and institutional strengthening activities despite the departure of its senior management training specialist. IIMI also endorses the need to ensure that its training and Institutional strengthening efforts build on its research results.
Section 4.6 - Suggestions for Improving Institutional Strengthening
On page 49. the Panel suggests that explicit strategies for institutional strengthening be formulated country by country on the basis of discussion among IIMI staff and with national collaborators.
IIMI fully endorses the need for such country strategies, and is implementing this suggestion.
Section 5.1.3 - Board Leadership
On page 53, the Panel has five suggestions: First, the appraisal of the Director General and the setting of his goals for the ensuing year are a critical part of Board oversight, and these matters need to be given a clearer and more conclusive treatment than was the case in the December 1993 Board meeting. All appraisals of senior management should focus on output rather than input measures. Second, as the last item on each Board agenda, there ought to be a closed session in which the Governors assess how the Board and Committee meetings have proceeded, and what might be done in the future to improve their effectiveness. Third, before the agenda for a forthcoming Board meeting is finally decided, each Governor should be encouraged to suggest items which he or she feels should be included. Fourth, the Board should periodically review the quality of its decisions. Fifth, the Board should seek closure on important issues (such as definition and measurement of critical mass for country projects discussed at the April 1993 Board Meeting) to give IIMI managers clear policy direction.
The Board accepts these five suggestions, which it believes can help to improve the effectiveness of the Board, and is putting them into practice.
Section 5.3.4 - Proposed Changes to the Organization and Management of Programmes
On page 62, the Panel suggests that greater attention is to be given to the prior specification of performance criteria and milestones.
IIMI endorses this suggestion; IIMI's Program Leaders are giving priority attention to this matter at the project and program levels.
Section 6.1.3 - Staff Performance Appraisal System
On page 65. the Panel suggests that the staff performance appraisal process be strengthened. On page 67, the Panel suggests that IIMI's appraisal system for national staff be linked with a clearly articulated and active training and career development policy.
IIMI agrees with the Panel's comment that the performance appraisal process is strong but believes it can be improved to identify training needs and staff development goals for international staff as well as national staff. IIMI also endorses the Panel's suggestion that the appraisal system be linked clearly with an articulated career development policy. Greater attention will be given in the appraisal form to furthering institutional goals, maintaining strong relations with colleagues and partners, adhering to budget and management skills. Management is considering adding directly to the Performance Appraisal Form sections which evaluate these aspects of an employee's performance.
Section 6.2 - Budget and Finance
On page 69, the Panel suggests that budgetary procedures need to be strengthened, and managers with budget responsibilities need to receive a clear signal that they are going to be held accountable for their performance against budgets.
With regard to enhanced budget controls, there are two levels at which this can operate: First, IIMI can strengthen management attention to budget discipline; and second, IIMI can strengthen its "command" systems which control expenditures. Towards this end, IIMI will strengthen attention to performance against budget within the appraisal system; apprise Directors monthly of predicted budget overruns; invite external auditors to review the budget process and controls and recommend practical strengthening measures; and reduce the expenditure review level of $1,000. In addition, at the start of the budget cycle in June, the Institute will hold orientation sessions with managers with budgetary responsibilities, to emphasize the importance of budget discipline, to ensure that there is a common understanding of budgetary responsibilities in the budget process and to lay out the expectations for performance against budgets in the future.
On page 70, the Panel suggests that the Budget Subcommittee be chaired by the Director of Finance and Administration.
IIMI has already implemented this suggestion.
On page 70, the Panel suggests that IIMI's external and internal auditors be better linked.
IIMI endorses this suggestion and has already implemented it.
Section 8.4 - Impact and Achievements
On page 96, the Panel states that IIMI should make every effort to codify and demonstrate its program impact.
IIMI is pleased that the Panel has recognized the impact of IIMI's work, but recognizes that it needs to make special efforts to ensure that it properly informs the world of its successes, both in research and in impact. IIMI intends to commission special studies to evaluate and quantify its program impacts. IIMI also intends to ensure that impact indicators are built into its major projects and programs.
