Mission report Programme Review and Strategy Development (PRSD) exercise in Nigeria

Abstract

The cooperation between the Government of Nigeria and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) started in 1975 with a Maternal and Child Health including Family Planning (MCH/FP) programme. Since 1981, the Fund has been involved in developing, in cycles, comprehensive population country programmes of cooperation between it and the Nigerian government. The two first programmes covered the periods 1981-1985 and 1987-1991. As the life of the current programming cycle (1992-1996) will come to an end by December 1996, the Government has, in close collaboration with the UNFPA Field Office in Lagos, undertaken a Programme Review and Strategy Development (PRSD) exercise in order to review the third national population programme (3CP) and develop a coherent and comprehensive strategic framework for the next Population Country Programme (4CP) for the period 1997-2001. As a rule, PRSD exercise are conducted by Regional Advisers based in UNFPA Country Support Team (CST) Offices located in Addis Ababa, Dakar and Harare. However, based on the new UNFPA policy, the PRSD mission should be led by a Team Leader independent from the selected CST Advisors. In this respect and following consultations between the Africa Division (UNFPA/AD) and the Technical Evaluation Division (UNFPA/TED), I was identified by UNFPA HQs as Team Leader for the PRSD mission in Nigeria. Consequently, a request from UNFPA/AD Director was sent to that effect on 26 April 1996 to the ECA Executive Secretary. By memo dated 3 May 1996 (Ref.ECA/MRAG/142/96), the Chief of ECA Programme, Planning, Finance and Evaluation Division (PPFE) advised UNFPA/AD of the concurrence of the Executive Secretary with their request. The roles and responsibilities during the PRSD exercise as well as the terms of reference (TOR) of the PRSD Team Leader are described here with.