ACE Impact Workshop Results Verification Guidelines & Troubleshooting

Senegal Togo Niger Nigeria Djibouti Burkina Faso Cote D Ivoire Ghana Gambia Guinea Benin 6th ACE Impact Virtual Regional Workshop ACE IMPACT RESULTS VERIFICATION Process, Guidelines & Troubleshooting Regional Workshop November 10, 2021 Adeline Addy M&E Specialist, AAU Maud Kouadio-IV Education Consultant, WB Emmanuel Ansong Procurement Specialist, AAU Schenineda Ankomah M&E Analyst, AAU

Scope of Verification Results achieved over following periods: May 2021 September 2021 December 2020 April 2021 (outstanding issues) Specific Results targeted Results Verification: Summary Report DLR 3.3 (Professional short-course) DLR 4.1 & 4.3 (Programme Accreditation/ Teaching and Research Environment) DLR 5.1 (External Revenue) DLRs 6.1 6.4 (Fiduciary Results) Verification pending for: PhD, Masters and Bachelor Enrolments (DLRs 3.1, 3.2 & 3.4) Research Publications (DLR 4.2) Internships (DLR 5.2) Disbursement Achieved Total of USD 12,063,607 disbursed to 50 out of 53 centres 1stACE Impact: USD 7,025,832.47 2ndACE Impact: USD 5,037,774.58

Verification Issues Submission of results under the wrong period Submission of unsolicited results Incomplete submission of results Late submission of results Non-alignment of results dates with reporting period Tampering with previously submitted results/reports Lessons Learned Results should only be submitted in the digitalized M&E platform in response to calls from AAU Request/Notify AAU before submitting additional results outside verification calls Results to be submitted should have been achieved under the specified period for correct performance tracking Mistakes in results submission can result in non-verification of results Submission of the relevant support documents within due date facilitates timely verification Regular engagement with AAU will help correct resolve challenges, correct mistakes and ensure higher rate of verification Reference to the Verification Protocol in the Project Operations Manual will help avoid common mistakes

Outstanding Issues All issues reported within due date have been addressed and revised verification letters issued to correct some issues Issues reported after due date have been recorded and will be addressed Report new issues to AAU promptly (research@aaau.org, cc skankomah@aau.org) via email (with prompts on WhatsApp and phone calls if necessary) Outstanding issues reported after due date to be resolved and reflected in next set of verification letters so that the disbursement process is not unduly delayed research@aaau.org skankomah@aau.org

DLR 4.3 (Teaching & Research Environment) Lessons/Recommendati ons Progress Issues 53 Formulations approved for implementation 70 milestones expected to be achieved by 2021 27 Milestones reported for verification by 12 centres in Burkina Faso, Gambia, Ghana, Niger and Nigeria 5 Milestones for Ghana verified, and process is ongoing for the verification of 3 milestones in Burkina and 2 milestones Nigeria Additional documents/information required for the verification of 17 milestones Incomplete dossiers absence of necessary supporting documents Requesting for verification of civil works without an approved Environmental and Social Management Plan (ESMP) Certificate Blank submissions No weblinks provided to access relevant documents on centre websites Formulation Checklists provide guidance on all result submission requirements Providing specific placeholders for DLR 4.3 on websites would facilitate verification all related documents including the ESMP Certificate can be uploaded for ease of reference The Self-certification document is a formal letter/email addressed to WB Task team confirming that institutional procurement regulations were followed in the execution of the milestone

Verification: Fiduciary Management (DLRs 6.1 6.3) SUMMARY OF VERIFICATION Issues ACHIEVEMENT (% of yearly earnings) DLR Progress Recommendations Submit all documents as indicated BY DUE DATE to achieved results Send to Country FMS (copy reg. team) & submit on M&E Portal First submission for Internal Audit Committee requires decree of creation, chart and first minutes Centers to complete internal audits ASAP for full achievement DLR 6.1 5 centers achieved 100% DLR 6.2 DLR 6.3 6.1 - Timely Submission Late submission of results 11 centers achieved 100% All centers submitted results DLRs 6.1, 6.2 and 6.3 19 centers achieved 100% 8 centers achieved 75% 6.2 - Functional Internal Audit Unit Missing key documents Minutes of Committee Internal audit report Websites not accessible Missing key documents Difficulty in locating documents on website 6 centers achieved 75% 10 centers achieved 50% DLI 6 results not yet due for Nigeria centers, but 10 centers submitted under DLR 6.3 3 centers achieved 50% 12 centers achieved 50% 6.3 - Online Transparen cy Display all documents on center website in addition to submission on the M&E Portal. Ensure documents are easily accessible from center s homepage Check that links work and documents are downloadable 1 center achieved 25% 9 centers achieved 0% 8 centers achieved 0% 2 centers achieved 25% 1 center achieved 0% 6

Verification: Fiduciary Management (DLR 6.4) ACHIEVEMENT (% of yearly earnings) SUMMARY OF VERIFICATION DLR Progress Issues Recommendations DLR 6.4 Auditor's report does not state the percentage of yearly procurement activities contracted. 1. Auditor s report should contain percentage of total procurement activities contracted or delivered Should be clearly included in the auditors ToRs 6.4 - Procurement Quality 12(CEA-SMIA, C2EA, COE-EIE, CEA-2iE, ITECH-MTV, COE-2iE, CERSA, RWESCK, WACCI, RCEES, WACWISA, & COE- KEEP) centers submitted results for DLR 6.4 11 centers achieved 100% 1 center achieved 72% AAU worked with centers that submitted procurement audits to extract the required information for the past verification 2. All submissions should be submitted to AAU/WB procurement specialists with copy to AAU/WB regional team and on M&E portal Approved procurement plans Procurement audits Results not submitted (20 centers) 11 fully achieved the results 7

Verification Schedule: December 2021 September 2022 ACE Impact Project DLRs 3.1 3.4, 4.2 & 5.2 (Students, Publications & Internships) Report Submissions: 1 8 Dec 2021 Feedback & Revisions: 15 Dec 2021 4 Jan 2022 Launch of survey: 25 January 2022 DLRs 3.3, 4.1 & 5.1 (PSTC, Prog. Accreditation & Revenue) Status: May Sept 2021 results verified and letters issued October 2021; Omissions to reflect in next set of letters Verification: Results Validation and letters in December 2021 IFRs, Audit Reports, etc. submission: 18 Jul 12 Aug 2022 Verification: 15 Aug 1 Sept 2022 Revisions: 15 23 Sept 2022 Verification letter: 30 Sept 2022 DLRs 6.1 6.4 (Fiduciary Management) DLR 2.1 & 2.2: 1 Nov 2021 March 2022 DLRs 5.3, 4.1, 4.3, 5.1, 7.1 7.6 Every trimester Other DLRs

Thank you questions welcome Merci questions bienvenue Senegal Togo Niger Nigeria Djibouti Burkina Faso Cote D Ivoire Ghana Guinea Gambia Benin