Sponsors: Government of Kyrgyz Republic, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (ERBD), the United Kingdom's Department for International Development (DFID), and the Asian Development Bank

Overview of the Workshop: The Regional Workshop on Harmonization, Alignment, and Management for Development Results was sponsored by the Asian Development Bank, DFID, and EBRD, and hosted by the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic, in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, where 85 participants from partner countries, bilateral and multilateral agencies, and civil society attended the workshop. Member countries included: Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

Workshop sessions in this region were built around issues unique to the region like harmonization and alignment in transition economies, and managing for developing results in the private sector. Cases discussed at the workshops included: Capacity building in Tajikistan, Harmonization and Alignment in business processes in the Kyrgyz Republic, Results in the public and private sector respectively in the Kyrgyz Republic, Harmonization and Alignment in early transition economies, and the Education Swap in Mongolia.

To accelerate progress in harmonization, alignment and managing for results at the country level, a critical message from the Central Asia workshop was the urgent need for a common understanding of the harmonization and alignment agenda and its benefits between donor headquarters and their staff in the field. While noting that policy constraints for some donors exist, there was also a lack of understanding by local donors of their institutional commitments or cases where the field staff need guidance or resources on how to implement harmonization and alignment activities in the country. Increased delegation of decision-making authority to field representatives in order to expedite the ability of local donors to undertake harmonization-related actions was recommended.

Another critical challenge raised was the need to focus on developing human resource base of the governments of the Central Asian countries. Capacity development is at the heart of economic transition, sustainable development and poverty reduction, participants noted -- the capacity to formulate policies, to build consensus, to implement reforms, and capacity to monitor results, learn lessons, and adapt accordingly was important.

Lastly, discussions at the workshop raised the issue on what would be the appropriate role for civil society and the private sector in facilitating the harmonization and alignment, and managing for results agenda. The CSO/NGO representatives were keen to have a role and saw successful development, including implementing the harmonization and alignment objectives as very much a trilateral responsibility among government, donor agencies and civil society organizations.