This is the Report of an External Review Panel appointed to review the programme and management of the International Irrigation Management Institute (IIMI). The membership of the Panel and their backgrounds are listed in Appendix I.
The detailed Terms of Reference for this First External Programme and Management Review of IIMI (main phase in February/March 1994) are shown in Appendix II. In broad outline, the Panel was asked to:
· assess the recent evolution of IIMI, its mission, strategy, programmes, organization and management;· review the methods and processes used by IIMI to ensure quality and relevance in its activities, services and outputs;
· assess the effectiveness of management, including leadership, values and culture;
· review the ways in which IIMI collaborates with other institutions within and outside the CGIAR;
· assess IIMI's achievements and impact; and
· assess the adequacy of the facilities and resources available to IIMI in relation to its current and future scale of activities.
The Panel's approach to the Review has been open, participatory and forward-looking. In conducting it, the Panel has followed the general guidelines for the CGIAR review process.
The information on which the Panel based its assessments and conclusions were gathered in a number of ways. The Panel spent a week at IIMI in November 1993 to familiarize itself with the Centre, and again for three weeks from 17 February to 8 March. In each case, it received presentations from Management and staff, and met them in groups and individually.
The initial visit to the Centre was followed by visits in groups or singly, to national institutions and IIMI's field operations in Sri Lanka, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Nigeria, Niger and Burkina Faso. The Panel Chair and the Management Consultant visited IIMI during the time of its Internal Programme Review and the Board meetings which were held from 28 November to 5 December 1993. At that time the opportunity was taken to interview all the Board members individually.
The Panel members also discussed IIMI with officials of several CGIAR member governments and organizations, and with irrigation scientists and administrators familiar with IIMI in some of the industrialized countries. Visits were made by the Panel Chair to ODA and ODI, London, Hydraulics Research Limited, Wallingford, a Panel member to ISNAR and IFAD, and Panel Resource Persons to IRRI, ICLARM, IPTRID and the Office of the Committee on Sustainable Agricultural Development, Washington. Panel members were also able to meet or hold telephone discussions with representatives of IFPRI, ICRISAT, IITA and IBSRAM. A list of institutions and individuals visited or contacted is given in Appendix III.
In addition to visits, the Panel gathered information through several surveys: a questionnaire sent to a wide cross-section of irrigation scientists, administrators, managers and policy-makers in developing countries (the results are summarized in Appendix IV); a survey of IIMI staff asking their views regarding the effectiveness of management, including leadership, values and culture; responses to a letter sent to CGIAR and non-CGIAR institutions collaborating with IIMI; and responses to a letter sent to all CGIAR members and regional representatives.
Finally, the Panel had access to a large array of documents and data made available by IIMI. Additional documents were provided by the TAC and CGIAR Secretariats. A list of documents furnished to the Panel is shown in Appendix V.
Altogether, we believe we were able to obtain sufficient information to enable us to put forward with confidence the analysis, conclusions and recommendations in this Report. We hope that this Report will be useful to TAC, to the CGIAR, and most of all to IIMI itself.
