The IAEA will provide administrative and technical backstopping for the design, formulation and implementation of AFRA projects. The AFRA Programme Management Committee (AFRA-PMC) will establish annually a schedule of work and modalities for the design, formulation and implementation of projects which will be in full agreement with the countries participating in the project and be consistent with the IAEA Statute and Procedures, the IAEA Health and Safety Regulations, and the Peaceful Uses Undertaking.
The ownership and leadership for the formulation of new projects remain with AFRA.
Project design work will be carried out by Project Formulation Committees comprising of small teams of regional experts, including AFRA Project Scientific Consultants and the Focal Points of AFRA Regional Designated Centres. The AFRA Project Scientific Consultants will lead the teams.
The Terms of Reference of these committees are the following:
- Analyse past and present assistance in the field;
- Assess impact achieved, weaknesses and constraints;
- Identify regional priority needs and appropriate solutions;
- Clearly describe the role and relevance of the nuclear technology to achieve the project objective;
- Taking the above into consideration and also being guided by the approved Project Concept, the Project Formulation Committee will, using the Project Document Template provided on TC Programme Cycle Management Framework (PCMF), design the project using the Logical Framework Matrix methodology;
- Prepare a questionnaire to assess the readiness of Member States to participate in the project.
The Project Formulation Committees will submit their draft project designs to the AFRA Programme Management Committee for final endorsement and onward transmission to the AFRA Chair.
For all new AFRA projects, the Project Formulation Committee will prepare a technology specific questionnaire based on technical criteria to assess Member States capacity to participate in the projects. For new projects funded by the IAEA, the Project Scientific Consultants (PSCs) will also develop technical criteria which will be attached to the regional project concepts and included later on during the formulation of the project document. Member States will be requested to fulfil these criteria to participate in new AFRA projects.
The IAEA will identify the experts in the field and arrange for their travel to the host country of the design and formulation meeting. The IAEA may also take part in this exercise. The costs of the meeting will be charged to the AFRA Project on “Management of AFRA Programme”.