One of the main duties of the Directorate General for Development Policies Planning and Evaluation (DGPOLDE) is the thematic and geographic planning of the activities of the Spanish Cooperation.
The Spanish Cooperation’s Master Plan, which is based on a quadrennial framework, is the main document of planning in which the objectives and the thematic and geographical priorities of the Spanish Cooperation are established, as well as the intervention criterias of the execution of our development policy. The Master Plan defines the following processes; planning, follow-up and evaluation needed for a consistent, cohesive and sustained management of our policy for development cooperation within the legal framework contained in the Law 23/1998, of July 7 for International Cooperation.
Strategic planning is based on processes of participation and consensus among all Spanish Cooperation actors as it is described by the Law for International Cooperation, assuring coordination among all actors and trying to obtain as much impact as possible from cooperation policy.
DGPOLDE is in charge of preparing the Annual Plans for International Cooperation (PACI), a document that annually develops the strategic objectives and the intervention criteria’s of the Master Plan. It contains previsions of the Spanish Cooperation aid, as well as; horizontal, thematic and geographic priorities and actors from the Spanish Cooperation who intervene and the instruments which are used.
The planning process includes the preparation of Strategies and Methodologies to fulfill the priorities contained in the Master Plan, which are used as a guide to make possible our cooperation interventions.
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Thematic Strategies define the guidelines of the Spanish Cooperation in key sectors for development, such as: Education, Health, Gender, Environment, Food Security, Promotion of Democracy and Rule of Law, Culture and Promotion of the Economic and Corporative Network.
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Horizontal Strategies define horizontal priorities which should be present in Spanish Cooperation activities. These priorities are: Fight against Poverty, Defense of Human Rights, Gender, Environment and Cultural Diversity.
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Country Partnership Framework Methodologies are the instruments for geographical and strategic priority countries for the III Master Plan 2009-2012 as a renovation of the current Country Strategy Documents (DEP) and Special Action Plans (PAE).
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Methodologies are standardized proposals for methodological aspects in different international cooperation sectors in planning and evaluation processes. According to geographical classification, countries are divided in the II Master Plan 2005-2008 into three categories: prior countries, focused countries and countries of special action.
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Country Strategy Documents (DEP) are strategies designed for Spanish Cooperation actions in those prior countries defined by the II Master Plan 2005-2008.
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Special Action Plans (PAE) are strategies designed for Spanish Cooperation actions in those countries considered preferential or worthy of special action by the II Master Plan 2005-2008.
These documents develop and put into practice the postulates, principles and priorities of the Master Plan and should guide all actions, both bilateral and/or multilateral, that must be done by the different Spanish Cooperation actors during this period and, therefore achieve greater coherence and impact in developing countries.
Planning processes are interrelated, Annual Plans reflect in the short term those strategic commitments defined in the Country Strategic Documents and Special Action Plans, they also should include the Sector Strategy directives. In this way the priorities and principles will be translated from the Master Plan into each of Spanish Cooperation’s activities.
Using this logical planning sequence, the DGPOLDE is in the process of reviewing current tools for operative planning and cyclical intervention management in order to facilitate a cohesive relegation from planning strategy to operative programming. It will also elaborate a Follow-Up and Evaluation Methods to guarantee that the official aid for development policy will assimilate the lessons learned from its management, feedback may be on the planning cycles and the coherence of action is maintained.