Since 2003 a number of bilateral agencies have offered their staff the opportunity to participate in joint training courses on the Poverty Reduction Strategy approach.

What are PRSPs?
Poverty reduction and growth strategies – described in national Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers - are now a major instrument for national planning in low and some middle income countries. A PRSP is required for debt relief through the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative, set up in 1996 by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

PRSP-type frameworks are also increasingly required for access to concessional loans and bilateral aid, and donor agencies are working to align their support with national PRSPs. In 2005, about 45 countries had full PRSPs. HIPC aims to reduce to sustainable levels the external debt burdens of the most heavily indebted poor countries. It provides some countries with the opportunity to allocate more public spending to health and education.

Our work

We have collaborated in the preparation and implementation of two series of training courses, which were designed to strengthen the knowledge and capabilities of agency staff participating as partners within the framework of poverty reduction strategies.

Participants at the Donor PRSP Training in Bolivia, February 2004 (round 1)

Joint Nordic and Dutch HQ Staff PRSP Training
These courses were prepared for headquarters staff of the donor agencies of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland and The Netherlands. They took place in Copenhagen in October 2004, and in Stockholm in April 2005.

The courses aimed to strengthen not only the technical knowledge of participating staff on a broad range of poverty reduction issues, but also their ability to participate as partners within the PRSP framework by focusing on donor behaviour, attitudes and procedures.

View the course materials and reading lists prepared for the Copenhagen and Stockholm sessions.

Joint Staff Training on Partnership for Poverty Reduction
The first series of courses, in 2003/2004, was supported by the donor agencies of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, The Netherlands, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

The courses, for agency staff, were organised on a regional basis, and included technical material on a range of poverty reduction issues, including budgeting, monitoring and evaluation, and aid instruments. They had strong emphasis on the implications of the Poverty Reduction Strategy approach for donor roles and behaviour, and encouraged exchange of experience and ideas.

We were responsible for developing the module on how PRSPs relate to the budget, and for the overall management and logistics of the courses.

View the course materials prepared for the Joint Donor Training.