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NSP Definitions
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Here are definitions of a few of the words and phrases commonly used in NSP operations.
back to top Block Grant: The grant provided by NSP to eligible communities, used to fund approved subprojects. It is calculated based on AFA 10,000 (approximately US$ 200) per family (subject to a maximum of AFA 3,000,000, i.e. approximately US$ 60,000 per community). Communities may elect to combine part or all of their block grant entitlements with those of other neighbouring communities to finance one or more joint-CDC subproject(s). back to top Community: A community must have at least 25 families to be eligible for a block grant. Small villages frequently join together to meet this requirement. For this reason, the total number of "communities" targeted by NSP will always be less than the 38,000 "villages" estimated to exist in Afghanistan. back to top Community Code: A 3-part numerical code assigned to each NSP community by the Facilitating Partner and verified by the Oversight Consultant, indicating the province, district, and community. back to top Community Development Council (CDC): A group of community members elected by the community to serve as its decision-making body. The CDC is the social and development foundation at community level, responsible for implementation and supervision of development projects and liaison between the communities and government and non-government organizations. The CDC can be formed in a village where a minimum of 25 families are settled, and communities with less than 25 families are encouraged to join with others to establish the CDC. back to top CDC By-Laws: This by-law is ratified as per MRRD Rules & Regulations Article 14 and forms the legal basis of the CDC. It was passed by the President of Afghanistan as a degree in November 2006 (Afghan calendar date 13/8/1385) and comprises 7 chapters and 33 articles that cover issues such as CDC formation, eligibility for membership and election, responsibility of DC members, etc. back to top Community Development Plan (CDP): A plan that identifies community development priorities and associated subprojects. It is prepared by the Community Development Council in consultation with the community. Typically, several (but not necessarily all) subprojects will be funded by the community's NSP block grant, depending on how the community allocates its block grant budget. back to top Contract Cycles: A one-year contract period for each Facilitating Partner. "Cycle I" is the first 12 months of work by a NSP FP in a designated community. "Cycle II" is the next 12 months of follow-on work by the FP in the same community. Cycle III, formerly referred to as "Cycle II+" is an exceptional additional 12 months of facilitation after Cycle II that may be contracted to an FP in that community if additional FP support is required. Cycle IV is a new concept to NSP and is again an exceptional measure of provide a 4th year of facilitation to a community. This Cycle is not assured for all communities and is only provided on a case-to-case basis for those communities where the initial block grant could not be utilized in the first two years due to circumstances beyond the community's and/or FP's control. back to top District School Construction and Rehabilitation Window (DSCRW): The DSCRW is a subprogram within NSP that promotes district-level governance by involving CDCs and local authorities in identifying schools for construction and rehabilitation; and provides grant funds and technical assistance for related civil works. back to top Facilitating Partner(s): These are NGO(s) or international organization(s) contracted by MRRD to facilitate the entire NSP processes in the community. The details of their responsibilities are outlined as an Annex to this Manual. back to top Family: consisting of a husband, wife (or wives), and unmarried children; or a single head-of household (male or female) and his/her unmarried children. The number of families in each targeted community is counted to determine the block grant amount. A family can be counted as part of a NSP community if they have been resident in that community for a continuous period for the preceding minimum 12 months from the time of the NSP census, is recorded in any of the village records (such as records of payments to the local mosque), and has not been counted as part of a NSP community elsewhere in the country. back to top Installment: Each disbursement (transfer of funds) to a community. During the first two years of NSP, all block grants were disbursed in three installments. The number of installments per subproject was reduced to 1 or 2 from the third year to speed up the disbursement process. For further details, please refer to the section on block grants. back to top Jirga/Shura: traditional Afghan village councils comprised of elders. Under NSP, communities are free to elect community members of their choosing to their Community Development Council, which may or may not include members of existing jirgas or shuras . back to top NSP I: This is the first phase of NSP and covers the period from the start of the Programme, i.e. 09th May 2003 (which is the effective date for the first NSP FP contracted) to 31 st March 2007. During NSP I, the Programme covered around 17,300 communities. back to top NSP II: This is the second phase of NSP and covers the period from 1 st April 2007 to 31 st March 2010. The World Bank's Technical Annex for NSP II proposes a coverage of an additional 4,300 new communities, which will then bring the total coverage of NSP to 21,600. Assuming that there are a total of 24,000 rural communities as per NSP definition in Afghanistan , this total coverage would translate to around 90%. However, it should be noted that if funding is available and security conditions are favorable, the MRRD still aims to cover all the rural communities of Afghanistan with the NSP. back to top Programme Phase: One of five phases of NSP activities within each participating community, including 1) community mobilization, 2) CDC elections, 3) preparation of a Community Development Plan, 4) submission of a subproject proposal, and 5) subproject implementation and monitoring. back to top Public Notice Board: A report on subproject status, proposed budget, and actual expenditures, posted by the CDC in a public place to promote transparency. It may be on A4-sized paper. This is a crucial instrument in terms of social audit, promoted by NSP and its donors as an important part of all community-led development initiatives. back to top Sign Board: A sign announcing the community's participation in NSP, often installed at the entrance to the village or near the subproject. It should be constructed in accordance with MRRD's design specifications and as shown in the Annex of this Operational Manual. The financing for this may be included as part of the subproject block grant funds. The FP concerned may opt to finance these signboards on behalf of the community but are not obliged to do so. Signboards are encouraged in all NSP communities where they will not give rise to a security concern. back to top Subproject Code: A sequential alpha-numeric code assigned to each subproject and appended to the community code (1a for the first subproject, 1b for the second subproject, etc.). back to top Subproject Closed: A community subproject is considered 'closed' when a final subproject status report has been finalized and approved by the NSP PMU. A closed subproject may be completed, changed or failed. back to top Subproject Changed: A community subproject is considered 'changed' when a subproject proposal has been approved (with or without block grant funds disbursed from the NSP block grants unit to the community's NSP bank account) but the community decides to change the subproject before any block grant funds have been utilized even if the community has begun the subproject implementation from other resources. A subproject final status report is still required for changed subprojects. A changed subproject has no actual outputs. back to top Subproject Completed: A community subproject is considered 'completed' when the subproject has been finalized according to the approved subproject proposal (with or without mutually agreed changes in writing between the NSP PMU and the community), a subproject final status report has been finalized and approved by the NSP PMU and a completion certificate has been issued to the community. A completed subproject has actual outputs that are roughly the same as the planned outputs. back to top Subproject Failed: A community subproject is considered 'failed' when a subproject proposal has been approved and block grant funds disbursed but the community decides to discard the subproject after some or all of the block grant funds disbursed have been utilized. A subproject final status report is still required for failed subprojects. A general guideline is that a failed subproject has actual primary outputs that are significantly lower than planned. (Note: If under exceptional circumstances and for particular types of subprojects, if only a percentage of the approved subproject costs were expended and a corresponding percentage of primary output was achieved, then the subproject may be considered as completed, rather than failed. For example, a subproject for 10 hand pumps were approved for a sum of AFA 40,000 but if the community decides to make only 5 hand pumps utilizing AFA 20,000 and use the remaining money for another project, the hand pump project can be considered completed, rather than failed. However, it should be emphasized that these are exceptional cases and would be closely reviewed.) back to top Subproject Proposal Approved: A community subproject proposal is considered 'approved' when the NSP PMU has completed the review of the technical design, feasibility, scope of works (SOW), bill of quantities (BOQ), budget etc included in the proposal and has found it satisfactory and approved the same, and informs the FP accordingly. The usual timeline allocated for a subproject proposal approval is two working weeks from the date of submission, with the submission date as defined below. Once approved by the NSP PMU and if subsequently rejected by the NSP HQ, the proposal may still be considered "approved" by the FP for invoicing purposes alone but should not be included in other reporting. back to top Subproject Proposal Returned: When the FP or community first submits a subproject proposal for review to the PMU, the PMU will examine whether the documents are complete and all required blanks are filled satisfactorily. If otherwise, the proposal will be returned and not recorded as submitted. Such proposals are simply referred to as "returned proposals". Also, after acceptance for review, the proposals may be "returned" for additional information or corrections in the technical design. Again, this does not constitute proposal "rejection". back to top Subproject Proposal Rejected: If after the preliminary review, when the proposal is accepted as "submitted" by the PMU, the proposal may still be rejected for specific technical reasons and/or because the proposal does not meet the NSP subproject eligibility criteria. In such case, the PMU will advise the FP of the same within 2 working weeks from submission date. (Note: Communities and FPs may avoid such rejection by ensuring that subprojects selected fall within the NSP subproject eligibility criteria and that the NSP technical manual is followed). back to top Subproject Proposal Submitted: A community subproject proposal is considered 'submitted' when the concerned FP or the community has submitted all the required and completed documentation (i.e. Disbursement Forms 1 to 9) to the concerned PMU; the PMU has examined and verified that all documents are completed and in place, and has issued a receipt for the proposal. The NSP PMU is expected to complete this within the same working day when possible and within a maximum of 2 working days from receipt. back to top Village: As of 2007, it is estimated that 42,000 villages, also referred to as "rural settlements", exist in Afghanistan . Previous estimates were as low as 20,000. No accurate census data is available and it is unclear if consensus has been reached on a working definition of "village". Ground evidence shows that several of these "villages" comprise of less than 25 families. Going by the NSP requirement that a "community" must comprise a minimum of 25 families, and experience during NSP Phase I, it is estimated that the villages would translate to around 28,500 NSP communities, thus creating the average of 1 NSP community = 1.474 rural settlements. However the current average used is 1 NSP community = 1.583 rural settlements. back to top |
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Copyright © NSP Afghanistan 2008. All rights reserved. |
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A multi-year impact evaluation study of phase two of the National Solidarity Programme (NSP) is underway 
Community Participatory Monitoring (CPM) can be applied to a variety of development programmes and projects in rural areas. 
