ABOUT seven experts are part of a team that is designing the new development assistance programme to succeed Australia’s development assistance programme to Solomon Islands through the Regional Assistance Mission in the post-RAMSI era.
The Australian development assistance programme, through RAMSI,focuses on the strengthening of the police and correctional services, judicial system and governance machinery
Grant Follett, acting Counsellor (Governance and Justice) in Australian High Commission, said in the design team they have experts in policing assistance, justice assistance, governance assistance and overall team leader.
Mr Follet said the experts will deal inclusive with all people – men and women, boys and girls and people with disability
He said they also have experts in monitoring and evaluation.
“With that team, they will look at all the options for us going forward.
“And I want to stress what they do is present us with options,” Mr Follet said.
The design team had already visited Solomon Islands twice, when they came in June and August, where they visited Auki, Malaita province.
Mr Follet said the design team spoke to a wide variety of people, a lot of consultation with government, with senior levels and also right down to working levels in all the agencies that are involved.
He said they also spoke to civil society, women groups, other donors, church groups.
“In Auki, we had a round table with a selection of chiefs,” he said.
Mr Follet said the design team will put to them some ideas in mid-September.
“We will have to think which of those we want to progress, will need to continue out of discussion with the government and finalise what the shape of programme is going to look like.
“Hopefully around October we will continue with the series of discussion with the government and with other stakeholders about what the actual programmes will be like,” he said.
Mr Follet said they will then start to put in places the arrangement before the programme starts in July 2017.
He said all of this is run in consistence with Australia on how it runs its aid programmes, its quality standards in making sure it is effective, value for money and inclusive.
By EDDIE OSIFELO
