¶ Developing the Capacities of Forestry Institutions
UNDP defines capacity development as ‘the process through which individuals, organizations and societies obtain, strengthen and maintain the capabilities to set and achieve their own development objectives over time (UNDP, 2008[1] ). FMIs require financial resources, equipment and tools, policies, laws, plans, procedures, well-functioning organizations and an educated and skilled staff cadre in order to execute their mandates effectively and efficiently. Capacity development tries to make sure that these requirements are coordinated to successful effect.
¶ Principles for Capacity Development
The following principles, adapted from UNDP, 2008[2] will be particularly useful to the users of these SFPs. Capacity building:
• Emphasizes the importance of motivation as a driver of change
• Is a long-term process which can be promoted through a combination of shorter-term results that are driven from the outside the FMI, and the more sustainable, longer-term ones that are driven from within the FMI
• looks beyond individual skills and a focus on training to address broader questions of institutional change, leadership, empowerment and public participation
• requires adaptation to local conditions and starts from the specific requirements and performance expectations of the FMI
• looks beyond the organisation to what is and can be available among partners and other stakeholders, i.e. it is systemic rather than item specific
Broadly capacity development goes through the cycle given in Figure 22.
Figure 22: Main Steps in the Capacity Development Process
Source: UNDP, 2008. Capacity Development Practice Note
¶ Steps in Capacity Building
(i) Engage Stakeholders
Involves stakeholder mapping for purposes of the capacity development process, a discussion with them on the development priorities, current and desired capacities, and possible challenges associated with capacities to deliver on the institution’s mandate and strategic objectives/ theory of change. Active stakeholder engagement throughout a capacity assessment process is key to success
(ii) Assessing Capacity Assets and Needs
Effective capacity development requires identifying what key capacities already exist and what additional capacities may be needed to reach objectives. This is done through a capacity assessment exercise. The exercise analyses the desired capacities against existing capacities through three main steps:
• Mobilize stakeholders and design the assessment process, including preparation of the assessment tools
• Conduct the capacity assessment by collecting information on desired and existing capacity. This data & information can be gathered by a variety of means, including literature reviews, survey questionnaires, interviews with individual stakeholders, and focus group discussions;
• Summarize and interpret results focusing on comparing the desired capacities against existing capacities. This will determine the level of effort required to bridge the gap in a capacity development response
The capacity assessment results can also set the baseline for continuous monitoring and evaluation of progress against relevant indicators.
(iii) Formulate a capacity development response
The response is an integrated set of actions to address the need for capacity development, the groups of people to be targeted, and the substance of the response (e.g. skills, procedures, equipment, etc.). The response should be costed and reflected in the institution’s work plan and budget to ensure that there are resources available to carry out the actions. The response also defines the indicators of progress which should then be included in the institution’s monitoring and evaluation framework.
(iv) Implement the capacity development response
Implementation of the response should be part of the overall implementation of the plan/ programme for which the response was prepared. To ensure sustainability, implementation should be done through mainstream processes of the institution, rather than setting up parallel systems dedicated to capacity development.
(v) Evaluate capacity development
As has been said before it is important to use the mainstream monitoring and reporting system. The challenge here is identifying a set of core indicators that can be incorporated into the monitoring and reporting system of the institution.
Instruction 503: The UNDP Capacity Assessment Methodology User’s Guide and the UNDP Capacity Development Practice Notes[3] go into detail with respect to the practical actions at each stage of the capacity development process. The Guide is designed for an international audience but for application at national level. Forestry practitioners should adapt the content for use at national, LG, or FMU level as the need for capacity development arises.
¶ On-job Training and Mentoring/ Apprenticeship
In most cases, FMIs will recruit staff who have the basic education and skills. The recruits will have come from universities and technical training institutions, and these will require additional training on the job in order to gain sufficient skills and confidence to work on their own with limited or no supervision. On the other hand, the FP may have been transferred to an area where the forest management operations are different from those at the previous station or job description. Such practitioners will need to be trained in order for them to perform at their optimum levels.
Instruction 504: One of the most important duties of supervisory staff of FMIs should be to conduct training within the work environment. Where the supervisory staff are not confident of their own skills, they should first work at them with the help of an external expert before going out to train others.
Instruction 505: On job training of the FMI staff in planning and implementation of SFPs shall be done practically and regularly, including when new staff are recruited into service. The FMIs shall plan for these trainings as part of the routine forest management operations
This training can be offered in different ways, as summarised below.
¶ Apprenticeship/ Mentorship
The young practitioner/ recruit (apprentice) is placed under the tutelage/ mentorship of a more experienced practitioner (mentor) for on spot guidance. The mentor demonstrates the new skill first, and then lets the apprentice try it out under close supervision. The supervision should then be relaxed as the apprentice gains confidence, eventually leaving the apprentice to carry out the operation on their own when the mentor is confident that the apprentice can manage. This process is carried out as part of the normal forestry operations.
Instruction 506: An apprenticeship / mentorship approach shall be used as one of the training methods in most forest operations, but especially in operations where risk is high (e.g. tree felling, application of chemicals, and grafting planting materials)
¶ Conducting Short Training Exercises
This approach is especially applicable where a new guideline is being developed, an old one is being updated, or a new technology is being introduced. In this case a number of practitioners are brought to one place where the guideline or technology can best be demonstrated and the planned forest management operation can be accomplished in the process of training.
Instruction 507: The steps below should be followed when planning and conducting short training exercises:
(i) An expert from industry (can be a consultant or a FMI staff member who has been trained and/ or practiced elsewhere) designs the new/ adapted guideline, bearing in mind the varied local conditions in which the guideline will be used. The guideline is written out in detail after undertaking a skills analysis of the operation. For example, a Guideline on supplying transmission poles will include the following skill groups:
• Physical inspection of a plantation crop to establish the number of poles that can be produced. This requires knowledge of the industry standards
• Directional felling of trees using available tools to make sure that the trees selected to do not get damaged, or injure people during felling
• Use of length and diameter tools (tapes, calipers)
• Preparation of the poles e.g. de-barking,
• Skidding and stacking to maintain the quality of the poles
• Records keeping, including labour costs and tasks per manday, number of poles harvested, treated and despatched, value of the poles, etc.
(ii) The expert prepares the training curriculum based on the guideline and the associated skills analysis. The curriculum should have as the minimum content training aims, training objectives, characteristics of the target trainees, main and subtopics, each with the appropriate training method and materials, timing, and where the training will be conducted, a mix of knowledge and skills (see example in Annex 21)
(iii) The expert conducts the training exercise using the guideline. For skills training, the approach used should be knowledge, demonstration, followed by practice of the trainees. This will normally require training aides, and enough equipment and materials, especially during field practice sessions. The training aides should be taken through the training exercise in advance of the main training event. This will also serve to field test the guideline, so that it can be refined.
(iv) The expert and the aides should then be retained to follow up the trainees at their work station to enable them perfect their skills during their normal work.
(v) By this time, the guideline will have been tweaked so that it can now be officially adopted by the institution.
In going through the above process, the normal activities in the annual work plan are accomplished and training is undertaken using the same resources that have been budgeted for that particular operation. The only additional funds will be those needed to hire an expert if he/she comes from outside the FMI, bring the trainees from their duty stations, and to pay them subsistence allowance if they come from far-off FMUs.
¶ Field Tours
Field tours are best organised around a programme that covers a range of issues. It may be possible to spend a day at each of a number of FMUs seeing how different operations are carried out. For example, a day may be spent at a forest plantation where thinning, pruning, chemical weeding, are going on. At a natural forest FMU, it may be possible to see ISSMI blocks that had been laid out and enumerated before and the data processed to produce stand tables, while at another FMU, it may be possible to observe logging going on.
This approach is good for bringing field staff up to speed on most technical operations even when they do not have the opportunity to carry them out at their current station. Transfers become easier when most staff can perform most operations reasonably well.
Instruction 508: At each of the sites, every opportunity should be used for the trainees to practice some of the operations going on, often starting with demonstration by the local staff or the expert/ experienced person in the group. Discussions should also be held with the local staff and where social economic issues are involved, discussions should also be held with local community groups (e.g. beekeeping, CFM) and private entities like contractors.
Instruction 509: In order to focus attention and motivate learning, each of the trainees should be required to prepare a report which discusses the experiences during the field tour, and show how they will apply what they have learnt at their work stations.
¶ Tooling of staff
Where a new guide is being introduced or updated, it may be necessary to equip the practitioners with the necessary materials and tools, which may include the guide itself and any associated toolkits, the associated equipment and tools, electronic hardware and/ or software, and written procedures, among others.
Instruction 510: The tooling may start during the training event for on-boarding the guides developed during training exercises so that the trainees are able to go back to their work stations with the tools in order for them to continue practicing during their normal work. An inventory of the materials and equipment needed for each trainee shall be done in the process of planning the training materials, but back at their work stations, the practitioners should be able to budget for and/ or procure additional equipment.