Guidelines for Project Management

Project management consists of project policy, project development, appraisal and approval, inception, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

Chapter I Project Policy

1. Definition of the term “Project”

"Project" is defined as a series of activities consisting of capacity-building, information-sharing, policy dialogues, and pilot demonstration in sustainable forest management, funded by APFNet in the Asia-Pacific region on the basis of voluntary contributions/technical support from donors and contributions in cash and in kind from the executing agency.

2. Goals and Objectives of the Project

APFNet projects aim to summarize, demonstrate and disseminate best practices in sustainable forest management and rehabilitation in the Asia-Pacific region to fulfill the three main objectives of APFNet as follows:

to promote forest rehabilitation, reforestation and afforestation to help to achieve the goal of increasing forest coverage in the APEC regions by 20 million hectares of all types of forests by 2020
to strengthen sustainable forest management, improve forest quality, increase carbon sequestration, and mitigate climate change
to enhance biodiversity conservation and improve the productivity and socio-economic benefits of forest ecosystems.

3. Categories of Projects

APFNet projects are developed in three categories: policy study, capacity building, and demonstrations of best practices. The duration of the first two is two years and the APFNet grant is approximately US$500,000. The demonstration projects do not exceed five years with a maximum grant of US$1,500,000 from APFNet.

4. Priorities of the Project

In line with the priorities specified in the APFNet Framework Document, the activities of the projects will focus on:

enhancing forestry planning and policy making;
developing economic incentives for sustainable forest management and rehabilitation, including payments for ecosystem services;
strengthening forestry institutions and facilitating institutional reforms, such as clarifying forest tenure;
conducting forest inventory, establishing monitoring and evaluation systems, and developing criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management;
addressing issues related to forest and climate change, including adaptation of forest ecosystems to global warming;
promoting sound approaches to forest rehabilitation and the use of appropriate technologies;
improving forest quality and health, including prevention and control of forest fire, pests and diseases;
strengthening forest law enforcement and governance, including tackling illegal logging and related trade issues;
demonstrating advanced silviculture treatment and sustainable utilization techniques;
building the capacity of forest management units;
developing community-based forestry enterprises;
conserving forest biodiversity;
enhancing private-public cooperation and corporate social responsibility;
stressing the publicity to raise the public awareness.

5. Requirements of the Project Formulation

Projects should be consistent with APFNet’s goals, objectives, and the priorities specified in the APFNet Framework Document, as well as the actual needs of the economies where the applicants come from to ensure the replicability and sustainability of the project outcomes. The projects also should be conducive to

increasing the capability of applicants to formulate and implement policies of sustainable forest management and rehabilitation and to strengthen the institutional framework to fulfill forestry development goals;
improving the livelihood of rural poor people in forest areas by, for example, providing better access to markets and reducing deforestation and forest degradation;
enhancing the awareness of stakeholders of sustainable forest management and rehabilitation and facilitating their participation in related activities;
fully exploiting the multiple functions of forest ecosystems to realize the balance of economic, social and environmental benefits.

Chapter II Project Application and Appraisal

1. Eligible Applicants

Applicants should be members of APFNet, including government organizations in developing economies, non-governmental organizations, non-profit institutions such as research institutes and universities in the Asia-Pacific region, and international organizations.

2. Application Procedures

Guidelines for the Call for Proposals is released on the APFNet website (www.apfnet.cn) and sent to APFNet focal points (hereinafter referred to as focal points) at the beginning of the each year, once approved by the Directorate/Steering Committee of APFNet.

Applicants shall submit the Project Concept Note via focal points to the APFNet Secretariat, in accordance with Guidelines for the Call for Proposals. The submitted concept notes shall be assessed by the expert panel organized by the APFNet Secretariat. If the project are recommended for funding by the expert panel, the applicants will be informed to further develop and submit project proposals to APFNet Secretariat via APFNet focal point, according to the specific requirements of proposal development.

3. Appraisal and Pre-evaluation of Project Proposals

The expert panel will review and rank the project proposals and, for those which are judged to have merit, the APFNet Secretariat will arrange fact- finding mission to conduct field check.

According to the ranking and field check findings, the expert panel will submit the project evaluation report to APFNet secretariat togive technique comments on each project as a prerequisite for funding.

Chapter III Project Approval

1. Approval by APFNet Directorate/Steering Committee

Based on the appraisal result of proposals and the available annual project budget, the APFNet will hold Steering Committee meeting to approve the projects and then issue the official approval letter to applicant via focal points.

2. Approval by Director General of the APFNet Secretariat

Small-scale projects of less than US$100,000 or urgent technical assistant projects can be approved by Director General of the APFNet Secretariat upon recommendation of the expert panel.

Chapter IV Project Agreement

1. Negotiation and Signature

Upon issuing the letter of approval, the APFNet Secretariat shall formulate and send the project agreements to related government authorities for signature through focal points. The successful applicants shall prepare project documents according to the project agreement.
In principle, the negotiation and signature of agreements shall be completed within three months after the approval letters are dispatched.

2. Signatories

The project agreement shall be signed by the government authority which has jurisdiction over the successful applicant and the APFNet Secretariat.
International and other social organizations which are already members of APFNet will sign agreements directly with the Secretariat.

3. Content

Project agreement stipulates the rights and responsibilities of the government authority and executing agency to ensure successful implementation of a project. The agreement mainly contains provisions related to project implementation, financial management, use of funds, procurement of equipment and consultant services, and reporting requirements. It also stipulates modalities surrounding the modification, suspension, termination and settlement of conflicts.

The project document annexed to the agreement, which specifies the project objectives, outputs, key activities and budget, is an integral part of the agreement.

Chapter V Project Inception

Upon signature of the agreement, the executing agency shall submit the workplanfor the first year of the project. Once approved, the executing agency shall submit an inception report within one month after the 1st installment was transferred, and make arrangements for the inception.

The inception report shall be submitted to the APFNet Secretariat with approval of the government authority.

Chapter VI Project Institutional Structure

1. Project Steering Committee

The establishment of a Project Steering Committee (PSC) is optional, depending on actual needs. In principle, the PSC meeting will hold a meeting each year. The Committee shall be responsible for supervising project implementation and addressing, after consultation, any major issues which might arise during the project implementation.

The PSC consists of one representatives from APFNet, the government authority and the donor respectively, and at least one representative from the executing agency.

2. Project Director

The project director, appointed by the executing agency with the approval of the government authority and the APFNet, should take the main responsibility of project implementation and management.

3. Project Management Office

The executing agency shall establish project office to implement the project activities.

Chapter VII Financial Management

1. Financial Rules

The executing agency shall abide by the local laws and regulations, accounting standards and the provisions of the project agreement, and establish systems for strict financial management and supervision.

The APFNet grants shall be used exclusively for the purposes specified in the project document and be subject to independent accounting. Use of the grants is limited to the expenditures identified in the budget and annual work plan. The interest generated in the project account can not be used without approval by APFNet.

The executing agency shall record all project expenditures in a timely manner, and provide the project account balance and financial statement to APFNet upon request.

2. Grant Disbursement

APFNet grants will be transferred to the project account in installments according to the requirements in the approved progress report and annual work plan.

3. Procurement of Consultant Services

Selection and recruitment of consultants through competition is open to all APFNet members, in line with the principles of fairness, transparency and cost effectiveness. The APFNet Secretariat is responsible for the selection and recruitment of international consultants, whilst the executing agency is responsible for the employment of local experts.

Remuneration for the consultants is calculated based on the norms of the international organizations within the project budget lines. The payment for international consultants specified in the project document shall include fees for service, international travel costs and daily subsistence allowance. Payments shall be disbursed upon approval by APFNet.

4. Procurement of Equipment

The procurement of equipment is open to the markets of all APFNet members, with the priority given to local and donor markets.

5. Eligible and Ineligible Costs

Eligible costs refer to all expenditures which meet the following requirements:

incurred in the implementation of the project agreement and project activities listed in the budget plan;
identifiable, verifiable, cost-effective, and recorded in the accounting records of executing agencies according to local accounting standards and practices;
labor costs, travel costs and living expenses of project staff and other personnel which do not exceed local rates, and those justified to be necessary for implementation of the project.

Ineligible costs include - but are not limited to - debts, interest owed, items financed from other sources, the purchase of land or buildings, currency exchange losses, taxes (including VAT), credit to third parties, penalties, deductions and mortgages.

6. Subcontract

The executing agency can subcontract part of the project tasks, but the agency or its partners must carry out the main activities. Those to be subcontracted shall be specified in the project document or annual work plan and all costs incurred shall meet the related provisions of the project agreement and project document.

The subcontracts can be entered into effect only upon approval of the APFNet Secretariat.

7. Closure

The project account shall be closed within six months after project termination and no expenditures are allowed after that time. Any remaining balance and interest accumulated from the grant shall be transferred to APFNet within 45 days of the closure of the account.

8. Budget Adjustment

Any adjustment to the budget, proposed by the executing agency can only be implemented with the approval by the Project Steering Committee and the APFNet Secretariat.

9. Auditing

The project executing agency shall establish an internal auditing system for stringent review of the use of project funds.

The independent external audit shall be conducted, drawing on the suggestions of donors and based on the progress of the project. The external auditors shall be either selected by the executing agency with approval by APFNet or be appointed directly by donors.

10. Recovery of Funds

Any unauthorized expenditure will be repaid by the executing agency or deducted from any installment not yet released.

In the case of unsatisfactory implementation, misappropriation, retention or infringement of funds, APFNet has the right to make a unilateral decision to suspend/terminate the project and recover all unused grant.

APFNet reserves the rights to terminate the project unilaterally and recover all unused funds if the executing agency fails to submit project reports on time without any reasonable written explanation.

Chapter VIII Project Reporting and Publicity

1. Project Reporting

Progress report, completion report and financial reportshall be written in English and submitted to the APFNet Secretariat with the approval letter of the project director.

The progress report and financial report shall be submitted within one month after each reporting period. The completion report shall be submitted within three months after project termination.

Should the APFNet Secretariat require additional information, the executing agency shall provide it in a timely manner.

2. Records

The executing agency shall keep and file sound records of project activities and transactions to ensure proper monitoring, evaluation and auditing both during implementation and after project completion.

3. Disclosure of Information

The executing agency will allow APFNet to state the names and addresses of the government authority and of the agency itself in APFNet’s publications and other pertinent documents. It will also authorize the inclusion of additional information such as project objectives and funding arrangements.

4. Publicity

The executing agency shall summarize and disseminate the best practices during project implementation in a timely manner. The publicity shall prominently bear the name and logo of APFNet and clearly state that “the project is funded by AFPNet”.

Chapter IX Monitoring and Evaluation

1. Internal Monitoring

An internal monitoring system shall be established after inception of the project to ensure successful implementation.

2. Project Review

The executing agency shall provide support and make arrangements for experts dispatched by the APFNet Secretariat to conduct an on-site review of project implementation.

APFNet can organize an independent financial review, as it deems necessary.

3. Project Evaluation

Independent experts employed by APFNet will conduct mid-term and final evaluations of project implementation in an objective and unbiased manner and submit their reports to the APFNet Secretariat.

4. Suspension

The executing agency shall suspend activities when it is facing difficulties in implementing the project, and refrain from incurring any further expenditure, including by giving immediate notice to subcontractors to cease work and to cease disbursing funds. If the agreement is not terminated, the executing agency shall endeavor to minimize the time of suspension, resume implementation as soon as circumstances permit, and promptly inform APFNet of the situation. Upon approval of the APFNet Secretariat, the duration of the project shall be extended by a period equivalent to the suspension.

5. Project Termination

APFNet may terminate the project agreement without any compensation or notification when the executing agency:

fails to fulfill its obligations without justification;
stops operations, becomes insolvent and/or is placed in the custody of the court;
is found guilty of fraud or corruption, has ties to a criminal organization or is involved in any other illegal activity (this provision also applies to any related entity or person of the executing agency);
makes forged or incomplete statements to obtain the grant outlined in the agreement or provides reports that deviate from the facts.

6. Project Extension

If the project is not likely to be completed on schedule, the executing agency must apply for an extension and submit all supporting documents to APFNet, through the local government authority, at least six months before the project is due to terminate. The project can only be extended with the approval of APFNet.

7. Conflicts of Interest

The executing agency shall take all necessary precautions to avoid conflicts of interest and shall promptly inform APFNet of any circumstances which arise that can potentially cause conflicts.

Chapter X Project Completion

The executing agency shall complete all activities on time and submit a final project report and a financial report to APFNet within three months after completion.

Upon completion of the project, the executing agency shall submit a plan to APFNet to dispose of equipment purchased with project funds

Chapter XI Supplementary Provisions

Prior to the establishment of Directorate/Steering Committee of APFNet, the Secretariat will temporary fulfill their functions to make vital decisions.

In case of differences in the interpretation of these guidelines, the views of the APFNet Secretariat will prevail.

This Guideline will enter into force on the date of its release and could be further revised as the need arises.

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