Published: 16 October 2014 г.
Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 14 October 2014– The University of Central Asia’s Institute of Public Policy and Administration (UCA IPPA) launched its Certificate Programme in Policy Analysis (CPPA) for civil servants from Afghanistan in Bishkek on 14 October 2014.
The programme is offered through an agreement between UCA and the Afghan Ministry of Finance. “This executive programme is designed to build analytical capacity within Afghan ministries for evidence-based policy development. Effective policy analysis requires professionally trained staff. The certificate programme is a first step and UCA plans to expand training in policy analysis and public policy in the region,” said Dr Bohdan Krawchenko, UCA Director General.
Krawchenko; Dr Shamsh Kassim-Lakha, Executive Chairman of UCA’s Board Executive Committee; Ms Aidai Kurmanova, State-Secretary of the Kyrgyz Ministry of Economy; Mr Kulubaev Zheenbek, Director of Asia-Africa Department of the Kyrgyz Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Engineer Rahmatullah Karimi, First Secretary of the Afghan Embassy in Kyrgyzstan; and Mr Ahmad Suliman Mehr of the Afghan Ministry of Finance welcomed the course participants.
“It is a pleasure for UCA, the government and partners to develop the potential of our youth. Kyrgyzstan is also experiencing a need for freshly trained human resource. In this way, both our countries are similar and I am pleased to see that our young colleagues here will contribute to the development of Afghanistan,” said Kurmanova.
The programme was developed in collaboration with Carleton University’s (Ottawa, Canada) School of Public Policy and Administration and targets mid- to senior-level civil servants from Afghanistan. The flexible, part-time schedule accommodates this model of cross-border learning.
The course is taught by three professors from Canada, Dr Paul Brown and Dr Kaireen Chaytor of Dalhousie University and Dr Tamara Krawchenko of Mount Saint Vincent University all from Halifax, Nova Scotia and IPPA Head of Research Roman Mogilevskii. The curriculum includes modules on Policy Process in Government, Economics for Policy Analysis, Methods of Policy Analysis and Programme and Policy Monitoring and Evaluation.
Students will demonstrate their learning through a policy paper which will be evaluated at a colloquium by senior government officials. The best papers will be published in IPPA’s Working Paper Series. Graduates will receive a professional development Certificate in Policy Analysis. It is a 25 credit European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS) programme.
In addition to this cohort of 18 Afghan civil servants from various Ministry of Finance departments, 17 participants from the Kyrgyz Republic are concurrently enrolled in CPPA in Bishkek and 30 participants from Tajikistan are enrolled in Dushanbe. These programmes began in May 2014 and August 2014. The Certificate programme will also be offered in 2015.
“It is my sincere hope that the graduates of IPPA’s Certificate Programme will continue to play a significant role in deepening trade, strengthening cross-border linkages and fostering sustainable development in Afghanistan and throughout the region. It is UCA’s privilege to make a small contribution towards enhancing your talent,” said Kassim-Lakha.
The CPPA is an executive programme offered by IPPA under UCA’s Research and Public Policy Initiative, which is supported by the International Development Research Centre and the Aga Khan Foundation Canada.
“This programme will play a crucial role in building skills in policy analysis. We are pleased to work with UCA to develop the capacity of Afghan civil servants and to build a sustainable partnership,” noted Mehr.