IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS

173. MOEYS will be the Executing Agency and will have overall responsibility for project coordination and implementation. A Project Steering Committee, chaired by a Secretary of State, will provide overall guidance to the Project. Its membership will include: representatives from the Department of Planning, Department of Finance, Department of Teacher Training, Department of General Secondary Education and the Pedagogical Research Department, and the National Institute of Education. The Steering Committee will also include representatives from Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Women's Affairs and Ministry of Planning.

174. The Director General of Education will serve as the Project Director. He will be supported by a deputy director and 5 staff 16 and four support staff appointed by MOEYS. This staff will be located within the Directorate of General Education to oversee day-to-day project implementation. The Project Director will be a member of PSC and will report to it directly. A number of project activities will be delegated to relevant technical departments within MOEYS and will be implemented within the existing administrative structure.

175. Three technical units will be established to guide, and support implementation of component specific activities. The implementation of specific activities will be the responsibility of the departments under whose authority those activities fall. TUs will have representation from implementing departments. Each TU will have representation from a member of the Gender Working Group to ensure that gender aspects of different activities are mainstreamed. The TUs will report to the Project Director whose responsibility it will be to ensure coordination and supervision of TUs.

Implementation period

176. The Project will be implemented over 6 years, from early 2008 to 2014. The implementation schedule is outlined in Appendix 18.

Procurement

177. All ADB-financed goods and services will be procured in accordance with ADB’s Procurement Guidelines dated April 2006 andprevailing government procedures acceptable to ADB. The PMU, in close coordination with the TUs, will be responsible for all procurement. The indicative procurement packages are outlined in Appendix 19

178. Supply contracts for goods estimated at $100,000 equivalent or more will be awarded on the basis of international competitive bidding. Supply contracts for goods such as vehicles and computers (except in the case of textbooks and instructional materials) of less than $100,000 but more than $20,000 will follow national competitive bidding (NCB) procedures. Minor items costing less than $20,000 but more than $5,000 equivalent may be procured by direct purchase with advertising, and items costing less than $5,000 maybe procured by direct purchase without advertising. Supply contracts for textbooks and instructional materials may be awarded to the publishing and distribution house (PDH) on the basis of direct

16 purchase 17. Details of procurement packages and technical specifications must be submitted for MEF and ADB approval before procurement.

179. Project civil works will consist of construction and upgrading of learning facilities, dormitories, and sanitation facilities at teacher training institutions and secondary schools. the civil works component will be financed by ADB and government and will be awarded on the basis of national competitive biding (NCB) procedure, following government procedures acceptable to ADB. the PMU and TU in charge will also ensure that appropriate maintenance contractual arrangements are signed prior to the commissioning of civil works at the expense of the government in order to make sure that the constructed civil works are well maintained during their economic life.

180. The project will be supported by approximately 628 person-months of consulting services (264 person-months international and 364 person-months national). The selection and engagement of consulting services will be procured in a single package. The full technical proposal and quality- and cost-based selection method will be used, in accordance with ADB’s Guidelines on the Use of Consultants (April 2006, as amended from time to time). The consulting services are designed to provide technical support to the project, management and implementation, as well as to build longer term institutional development and capacity for planning, management and delivery of teacher professional development and secondary education. the consulting services cover broad areas of expertise that include (i) institutional development, (ii) MIS development, (iii) teacher professional development, (iv) curriculum and materials development including ICT (v) examination reform, (vi) facilities and equipment improvement and (vii) gender and equitable access. Indicative terms of reference for consultants are provided in Appendix 20.

181. ADB’s Anticorruption Policy (1998, as amended to date) was explained to and discussed with the Government and the Executing Agency. Consistent with its commitment to good governance, accountability and transparency, ADB reserves the right to investigate, directly or through its agents, any alleged corrupt, fraudulent, collusive, or coercive practices relating to the Project. To support these efforts, relevant provisions of ADB’s Anticorruption Policy are included in the grant regulations and the bidding documents for the Project. In particular, all contracts financed by ADB in connection with the Project shall include provisions specifying the right of ADB to audit and examine the records and accounts of the Executing Agency and all contractors, suppliers, consultants, and other service providers as they relate to the Project. The Recipient will ensure that information regarding procurement, including a list of participating bidders, name of the winning bidder, and procedures adopted in awarding contracts, is posted on the MOEYS website. The Recipient will also ensure that criteria and procedure for selection of candidates for scholarships is also posted on MOEYS’ website.

182. To expedite project implementation through the timely release of ADB’s funds for eligible expenditures, a dollar imprest account will be established by the Government, at the national bank of Cambodia or a commercial bank acceptable to

17 In terms of procuring existing textbooks and instructional materials that are in copyright, direct purchasing method will be used due to the fact that such materials are available from only a single proprietary source, namely Publishing and Distribution House (PDH). This procurement method is also known as single or sole sourcing.

ADB, within 3 months of grant effectiveness. MEF will delegate the authority to operate the imprest account to the DGE to facilitate access to project funds to implement project activities. The imprest account will be established, managed, replenished and liquidated in accordance with ADB’s Loan Disbursement Handbook 18 dated January 2007. The imprest account, with a ceiling amount of $2.7 million 19, will be utilized for eligible project expenditures. In anticipation of a large number of small contracts involved, the statement of expenditures (SOE) procedure will be used for expenditures of $100,000 or less.

183. A second generation imprest account will be opened at the National Bank of Cambodia or a commercial bank acceptable to ADB to facilitate access of the PMU to project funds to implement Project activities. The second generation imprest account is funded from the first generation imprest account. Chart 1 outlines the Grant Financing Mechanism.

Chart

Ministry

Directorate of General Education

184. MOEYS will maintain records and accounts to identify goods and services financed from the grant proceeds. Project accounts, including financial statements, statement of expenditures and imprest account records will be audited annually by independent external auditors acceptable to ADB. The auditors’ report and copies of the certified accounts and related financial statements, including the auditors’ opinion on the use of grant proceeds, compliance with grant covenants and use of the imprest account under ADB’s statement of expenditures procedure, will be submitted to ADB in English not later than 6 months after the close of the Governments’ fiscal year. The independent external auditing services will be financed from the grant proceeds.

18 It should be noted that this Handbook supersedes all previous editions and takes effect in January 2007, applicable to both loan and grant-funded ADB investment projects and programs.

19 In various ADB projects and programs, the ceiling amount is set at US$2.0 million. However, due to the capacity building nature of EEQP with a large number of payments for small expenditures, it is recommended that the ceiling amount be US$2.7 (equivalent to 10% of the total ADB grant fund), the maximum amount allowed as stated in ADB's Loan Disbursement Handbook dated January 2007.

185. The PMU will prepare quarterly reports on project implementation and submit them to ADB within 30 days after each quarter. The reports will be in a format acceptable to ADB and will indicate, among other things, the progress made against established targets, problems encountered during the last quarter, steps taken and proposed to resolve problems, compliance with grant covenants and proposed program of activities for the succeeding quarter. The PMU will compile the TUs' reports into a quarterly report to be submitted to MOEYS and ADB. Within 3 months after physical completion of the Project, the PMU will submit to ADB a project completion report on project implementation, accomplishments, benefits and impact.

186. A base-line study will be undertaken at the beginning of the project. The monitoring and recording system and procedures will be reviewed and improved. A new project performance management system will be developed and institutionalized within MOEYS to monitor and evaluate implementation performance and development impact at various stages of the project cycle. Project performance monitoring will focus upon project implementation plans and targets and their execution and achievement. Performance evaluations will examine the impact of project interventions; problems and constraints faced; and their reasons and solutions. The PMU will monitor project activities, using data primarily from the TU reports and periodic studies. TUs will submit monthly, quarterly and annual reports on indicators, including training outputs, civil works construction, provision of learning facilities and materials and equipment. TUs will also make monthly visits to field sites supported by the Project and submit field visit reports to the PMU.

187. ADB and the Government will jointly undertake half-yearly project reviews to assess progress in each component, identify difficulties or constraints and help determine ways to overcome them. Before each review, the PMU, in coordination with TUs, will prepare a progress report based on the quarterly report and submit this to ADB and the Government.

188. ADB and the Government will conduct a mid-term review during the last quarter of the third year of project implementation to inform planning for the second half of the Project. The mid-term review will: (i) review the scope, design and project implementation arrangements; (ii) identify changes needed; (iii) assess performance against targets and benchmarks; (iv) review lessons and experiences in education quality enhancement, focusing on the curriculum, textbooks and teaching and learning facilities; (v) review compliance with grant agreements and covenants; and (vi) recommend changes in project design and/or implementation arrangements. The findings will be discussed at the mid-term workshop to be attended by representatives from concerned government agencies, including Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Women's Affairs, Ministry of Planning, POEs, DOEs, the consultants and ADB.