TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Foreword..................................................................................................................................... i

Acronyms.................................................................................................................................. iv

Executive Summary................................................................................................................... v

List of Tables and Figures ................................................................................................. viii

1. Background

1.1 Makerere University ............................................................................................... 1

1.1.1 Brief history................................................................................................. 1

1.1.2 University setup........................................................................................... 1

1.1.3 Strategic planning at Makerere..................................................................... 2

1.2 Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics ....................................................... 3

1.2.1 Background.................................................................................................. 3

1.2.2 Organization and administration.................................................................. 3

1.2.3 Training programmes.................................................................................... 4

1.2.4 Facilities....................................................................................................... 6

1.2.5 Students and staff........................................................................................ 7

1.2.6 Consultancy and research activities............................................................. 8

1.2.7 Strategic Plan (2000/1-2004/5)..................................................................... 8

1.3 Concerns About Statistical Training in Africa........................................................ 8

1.4 Changing Environment ........................................................................................... 9

1.4.1 Management of the ISAE............................................................................ 9

1.4.2 Changing User Needs................................................................................ 10

1.4.3 Increased Competition............................................................................... 11

1.5 Need for Second Strategic Plan (2007/8 – 2011/12)............................................. 11

2. Process and Methodology for Elaborating the Strategic Plan (2007/8 – 2011/12)

2.1 The Process ........................................................................................................... 13

2.2 Methodology ........................................................................................................ 13

2.2.1 Literature review....................................................................................... 13

2.2.2 Design and send out questionnaires to stakeholders................................ 15

2.2.3 Stakeholders workshops........................................................................... 16

2.2.4 Focus group discussions............................................................................ 16

2.2.5 Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) Analysis..... 16

2.3 Review of Strategic Plan 1.................................................................................... 16

2.3.1 Plan ownership.......................................................................................... 16

2.3.2 Mission...................................................................................................... 17

2.3.3 Strategic objectives................................................................................... 17

2.3.4 Declining international image................................................................... 17

2.3.5 Was the Plan Successful?.......................................................................... 17

2.4 SWOT Analysis..................................................................................................... 18

3. The Strategic Plan (2006/7-2010/11)

3.1 Introduction........................................................................................................... 20

3.2 Vision, Mission and Core Values.......................................................................... 20

3.2.1 Vision...................................................................................................... 20

3.2.2 Mission...................................................................................................... 20

3.2.3 Core values................................................................................................ 20

3.3 Strategic Objectives and Key Outputs.................................................................. 21

3.3.1 Strategic objectives................................................................................... 21

3.3.2 Key outputs............................................................................................... 22

3.4 Strategies .............................................................................................................. 22

4. Plan Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation and Reporting

4.1 Implementation .................................................................................................. 45

4.1.1 Importance of plan implementation......................................................... 45

4.1.2 Mobilizing drivers of strategic success..................................................... 45

4.1.3 Business Plan and Resources................................................................... 47

4.2 Monitoring and Evaluation ................................................................................. 47

4.2.1 Importance of Monitoring and Evaluation .............................................. 47

4.2.2 Evaluation................................................................................................. 48

4.2.3 Monitoring Indicators............................................................................... 48

4.3 Reporting Framework......................................................................................... 48

4.3.1 Annual Review......................................................................................... 48

4.3.2 Mid-Term review..................................................................................... 48

4.3.3 Terminal Review.................................................................................... 49

References .............................................................................................................................. 50

ANNEXES

Annex I: Logframe Matrix ...................................................................................... 55

Annex II : Proposed Short Courses............................................................................ 60

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics

The Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics (ISAE) was established in 1969 within the legal framework of Makerere University, Uganda, to provide facilities for increasing the number and improving the quality of high-level professional personnel in statistics and applied economics urgently needed for social and economic planning and development in East Africa and other English-speaking African countries. Since then, the ISAE has trained a total of over 1,500 statisticians, planners, applied economists and demographers from Uganda and participating countries. Most of the alumni of the ISAE hold key and professionally important posts in their National Statistical Services or key positions in regional and international organizations.

The governance of the ISAE include: ▪ an Advisory Council that recommends policies governing the operations of the ISAE, reviews and approves the work programme and relevant budgets of the ISAE; reviews reports on the activities and progress of the ISAE; and provides guidance and support to the Director in the exercise of his/her functions; ▪ a Board of Studies that provides guidance on academic matters; ▪ and a Director as the Chief Executive Officer who is assisted by a Deputy Director and three Departmental Heads. There are also a number of Committees in place.

The ISAE runs five undergraduate and ten post-graduate training programmes. In addition to these programmes, the ISAE services statistics courses in different faculties and departments of the University. In turn, the ISAE is serviced by the Faculty of Science and Faculty of Economics and Management. The ISAE also conducts periodic short courses and workshops to meet specific skills needs of user countries. Available facilities at the Institute include two lecture rooms, three computer laboratories and Internet/e-mail connectivity, a Reference Library, a total of 19 offices used by staff, and an assortment of office equipment. The ISAE has a total of 43 academic staff and 24 administrative and support staff. In the 2005/2006 academic year, the ISAE had 1,792 students (1,520 undergraduate and 277 postgraduate students). Of the total student population, 50 are foreign students.

The ISAE has carried out a number of consultancies and research activities independently or in collaboration with other organizations. Members of staff also do consultancies for governments, national or international organizations, as individuals or in collaboration with other consultants.

The 2007/8 – 2011/12 Strategic Plan Framework

In line with the University strategic framework and guidelines, the ISAE first developed a medium-term Strategic Plan (2000/1 - 2004/5). A follow up plan for the period 2007/8 – 2011/12, has been designed to respond to the changing environment within African countries, the international diminishing image of the Institute and its loss of monopoly in statistical training. The plan provides for better equipping of the ISAE, giving the teaching of statistics a new orientation that involves: teaching statistics from the demand side rather than the supply side and introducing non-traditional courses and training methods; and improving the quality of teaching, learning and research environment. It also provides for greater use of holistic approaches, statistics to be seen as part of a broad knowledge network, harnessing IT in teaching processes, improving research and community services; and developing/strengthening partnerships for statistical training and research.

The design of the plan was participatory and it followed international best practice. It was also formulated in context of the University Strategic Framework and aims to build on the strengths of the ISAE, mitigate or eliminate the weaknesses, take advantage of opportunities and avoid threats.

In light of the new challenges the ISAE faces, the plan framework reformulates the vision, mission, core values, strategic objectives and outputs of the Institute. The plan consists of complementary strategic objectives which are considered to be essential for the ISAE to achieve effective performance. The strategic objectives are:-

· To improve the strategic management of the ISAE

· To expand and increase the relevance of training programmes

· To improve the quality of teaching and learning environment and programmes

· To improve the quality and expand the scope of research

· To improve community services

· To increase support for evidence-based policy and decision-making

In pursuing the above strategic objectives, a number of outputs to be produced include: new training programmes and methods, excellent teaching and learning environment, staff further developed, research skills developed, highly professional graduates, resources secured, new knowledge and greater awareness about role of statistics to society generated. For each of the above strategic objectives, a number of strategies have been identified for achieving the objective. The strategies are:

1.	Improve strategic leadership of the ISAE
2.	Reposition the ISAE
3.	Periodically review and update the curriculum
4.	Enhance partnerships for statistical training
5.	Modularize courses
6.	Introduce e-learning
7.	Improve training in statistical analysis, reporting, presentation and communication
8.	Conduct short-term training courses
9.	Provide an excellent teaching and learning environment
10.	Improve academic and professional development of staff
11.	Expand undergraduate research and industrial training
12.	Strengthen graduate teaching programmes
13.	Improve management of assessments
14.	Improve the quality of research work
15.	Promote partnerships in research activities
16.	Increase consultancy services
17.	Increase advisory services
18.	Increase staff involvement in other community services
19.	Engage in statistical advocacy
20.	Conduct short training courses on policy and decision-making using statistics
21.	Mobilize resources

Implementation, monitoring, evaluation and reporting

Plan implementation aims to deliver the outputs, achieve purpose and contribute effectively to the overall plan objectives; manage the available resources efficiently and effectively, and monitor and report on progress to support performance. Plan implementation will essentially involve mobilizing drivers of strategic success as well as facilitating factors including: strengthening plan-supporting organizational structures; adopting a different management style; creating plan awareness; change management; promoting teamwork; promoting knowledge management; IT strategy; development of management systems and procedures; staff motivation; development of business plans; and mobilizing financial resources. A business plan has been elaborated to serve as a major instrument for setting standards of performance and for monitoring progress towards achieving long-term goals and objectives. It gives budget outlays including for operations and capital expenditure. It is expected that government will meet the bulk of the recurrent budget with development partners providing support for activities of a capital nature as well as technical assistance. Areas in which technical assistance will be required have been identified.

The implementation of the plan will be effectively monitored and at the end, its impact evaluated. Monitoring is essential: (i) to ensure that stated objectives are being achieved, (ii) for tracking inputs, activities and outputs, (iii) to determine if implementation is on course or not, (iv) to alert management to problems or potential problems before the situation becomes critical, and (v) for taking corrective actions to ensure that performance conforms to plan or that the plan is revised in light of new experience

. Monitoring will also involve internal and external benchmarking, and peer reviews. At the end of the plan period, there will be an evaluation to assess the most significant constraints, the most successful activities and generally, how well the strategies have met the set objectives.

There will be an annual review of the progress in the implementation of the plan, with mechanisms for changing activities and targets, if this proves necessary. The Annual Review (AR) will be undertaken by the University and the Uganda Bureau of Statistics. The annual review report will be presented at the Institute Board of Studies and the Advisory Board meetings. There will also be a Mid-Term Review (MTR) to ensure that the plan is still relevant and for agreeing on changes in both the plan strategies and work programmes, where these are needed and justified. In addition, the MTR will re-allocate resources according to performance and needs. This review will be undertaken by an independent consultant appointed by the Institute and the consultant’s report will be tabled at the Institute Board of Studies and the Advisory Board meetings. At the end of the plan period, there will be an external evaluation, Terminal Review (TR), which will also be undertaken by an independent consultant hired by the Institute. The consultant’s report will be tabled at the Institute Board of Studies and the Advisory Board meetings.

1 BACKGROUND

1.1 Makerere University

1.1.1 Brief History

Built on a lovely hill overlooking the city of Kampala (less than 3 kilometres away from the city centre), Makerere is one of the oldest and best institutions of higher learning in Africa. It was started as a Technical School in 1922 and soon shifted emphasis to training medical doctors (licentiates) and teachers (diplomates) for a number of Eastern and Central African countries.

In 1949, Makerere became a College of the University of London and launched programmes leading to various degrees (and diplomas) both general and professional. Affiliation to the University of London was terminated with the formation of the University of East Africa in 1963 with Makerere University College as a constituent college. The other colleges were in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The University of East Africa was broken up in 1970 in the interest of forming the three East African Universities and Makerere emerged under the "Makerere University, Kampala Act (1970)" with 9 Faculties, 6 Institutes and Schools made up of 69 Departments.

1.1.2 The University setup

Administration

The Makerere University administration is composed of the following bodies:

University Council which is the supreme governing body of the University.
The Senate which is the chief academic organ of the University.
Central Administration headed by the Vice Chancellor who is the Chief Coordinator of all administrative, academic and public relations affairs of the University. He is also the direct link between the University and the Government, the public and the academic institutions within and outside Uganda. Other key officials of the University are the Deputy Vice Chancellor, the University Secretary, the Academic Registrar, the University Bursar and the Dean of Students.

Faculties/Institutes/Schools/students

Today Makerere University has twenty-two (22) faculties/institutes/schools offering not only day but also evening and external study programmes. Following deregulation of higher education and reforms which started at Makerere University in 1993, there has been a lot of expansion in academic programmes as well as in student numbers. By 2005, there were 77 bachelors degree programmes up from 22 in 1993; 60 masters degree programmes up from 9 in 1993; and 12 Ph.D programmes up from 4 in 1993. Correspondingly, the student population increased from 6,352 in 1990/91 academic year to 34,506 in 2005/06 academic year. The current student enrolment constitutes about 61% of total student enrolment in Uganda’s five public Universities.

The University is also a very active centre for both basic and applied research. Through research, the University has over the years made profound contribution to different areas of national development.

It is important to mention that the massive expansion of study programmes and student numbers has constrained existing University infrastructure and in particular, space and staff numbers, with academic space (for laboratories and lecture rooms) deficit standing at about 62,000 square metres and with a staff-student ratio standing at 1:33 well above the 1:20 recommended by the National Council for Higher Education.

1.1.3 Strategic Planning at Makerere

Makerere University has a decentralized management system under which the basic unit/centre for planning is the College/Faculty/School/Institute. The University has a Strategic Framework which defines the strategic directions and broad parameters within which basic units/centres should formulate their strategic plans. In particular, this overarching framework provides three strategic directions for the University, namely:

Transformation of teaching environment, research and management through greater application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT),
Contributing to the attainment of a critical mass of science and technology experts in the country, and
Further devolution of power to operational units to continue expansion of the student population while ensuring quality.

In addition to the strategic directions, the framework provides guidelines for formulation of strategic plans for basic units/centres as well as broad outlines of such plans.

The Vision of the University is,

“To be a centre of academic excellence, providing world-class teaching, research and service relevant to sustainable development needs of society”, and

the Mission is,

“To provide quality teaching, carry out research and offer professional services to meet the changing needs of society by utilizing world-wide and internally generated human resources, information and technology to enhance the University’s leading position in Uganda and beyond”.

It is important to mention that statistics is one of the University’s priority areas of support during the period 2000 – 2007. Others are ICT, library services, research, science-based disciplines, good governance, human rights and gender mainstreaming.

The University has embarked on elaborating a new strategic plan for the next ten years (up to 2017). Early indications about the likely strategic trajectory indicate that there will be emphasis or renewed emphasis on: making University education and research more relevant to national, regional and international development agenda, mainly the PSSP (PEAP in the case of Uganda); repositioning of the University, responding in a robust manner to challenges imposed by evolving knowledge economy and globalization, harnessing ICT and, of course, responding to the huge demand (massification) for University education. It is also expected that the University will further restructure with Faculties and Institutes regrouped into colleges.

1.2 Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics

1.2.1 Background

The Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics (ISAE) was established as an autonomous body within the legal framework of Makerere University in July 1969. The ISAE was expected to provide facilities for the high level professional training of personnel in statistics and applied economics to meet the human resource needs of Uganda and other English speaking African countries in the context of the formulation and implementation of national plans for economic and social development. Under the United Nations Statistical Training Programme for Africa (STPA) 1978-93 and the plan of the Coordinating Committee for Statistical Development (CASD), the ISAE was designated as one of the regional statistical training centres in the African region and was supported to spearhead professional training in official statistics for the English-speaking African countries.

When the STPA ceased, the ISAE maintained its regional character and indeed continued to provide training and advisory services to countries in East Africa and other African countries. The present core group of countries in this regional cooperation scheme include: Uganda, Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Swaziland, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The objective of the ISAE is to provide facilities for increasing the number and improving the quality of high-level professional personnel in statistics and applied economics urgently needed for social and economic planning and development in East Africa and other English-speaking countries in the African region. This makes the ISAE a regional statistical training centre. In addition, the ISAE is also a mainstream University unit.

Since 1969, the ISAE has trained a total of over 1,500 statisticians, planners, applied economists and demographers from Botswana, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe up to undergraduate and postgraduate professional level. Most of the alumni of the ISAE hold key and professionally important posts in their National Statistical Services. Others hold key positions in regional and international organizations.

1.2.2 Organization and administration

Organization

Advisory Council: The ISAE has had an Advisory Council since its inception in 1969. Its membership includes: The Vice-Chancellor, Makerere University (Chairman); Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development, Government of Uganda (Alternate Chairman); Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education and Sports, Government of Uganda; Permanent Secretary, Ministry responsible for Regional Co-operation, Government of Uganda; Executive Director, Uganda Bureau of Statistics; Academic Registrar, Makerere University; Dean, Faculty of Science, Makerere University, Dean, Faculty of Social Science, Makerere University; Director of the Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics (Secretary); Director, Eastern Africa Statistical Training Centre, Dar es Salaam; Representatives of the Governments of Botswana, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Various donor agencies, Heads of Departments in the ISAE and the Deputy Director participate in an ex-officio capacity on matters within their fields of competence. The Council may co-opt members as necessary.

The Advisory Council has the following functions: it recommends policies governing the operations of the ISAE including the general conditions of admission of students and recruitment of staff, keeping in view the objectives of the ISAE; reviews and approves the work programme and relevant budgets of the ISAE; reviews reports on the activities and progress of the ISAE prepared by the Director; and provides guidance and support to the Director in the exercise of his functions.

The Advisory Council meets once a year in a regular session and may hold a special session at the request of its Chairman or the Director of the ISAE to discuss and review policies governing the operation of the ISAE, work programmes, budgets, and reports and provide guidance to the Director.

Board of Studies: On University academic matters, the ISAE is guided by a Committee of Senate called the "Board of Studies of the Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics" whose membership includes: The Director of the ISAE (Chairman); the Vice-Chancellor (ex-officio); the Academic Registrar (ex-officio); Executive Director, Uganda Bureau of Statistics; all full-time teaching staff of the ISAE (Makerere University); Two representatives of the Faculty of Social Sciences (Dean and a representative of the Institute of Economics); two representatives of the Faculty of Science (Dean and a representative of the Department of Mathematics); representatives of other Faculties, ISAEs, Schools and Centres; and such other members as Senate may approve from time to time on recommendation of the Board.

Departments: The ISAE has grown both in the scope and depth of its programmes and services since it was founded three and a half decades ago. In order to consolidate its past successes in training statisticians at professional level and to adequately develop the post-graduate and specialized programmes, the University Council approved three departments for the ISAE, namely:

· Department of Statistical Methods

· Department of Planning and Applied Statistics

· Department of Population Studies

ISAE administration

The ISAE is headed by a Director who is elected by academic staff of the ISAE and appointed by the University Appointments Board for a period of four years. The Director is assisted by a Deputy Director and three Heads of Department who are all elected by the ISAE staff also for four years, an accountant and other support staff.

There are also committees to assist in the administration of the ISAE including the Finance Committee and the Post-Graduate Committee. Management meetings are also important in the administration of the ISAE.

1.2.3 Training programmes

The ISAE runs five undergraduate and ten post-graduate training programmes. All undergraduate programmes have a duration of three years. The post-graduate diploma programmes are run for one year and the masters degree programmes are run for two years. All Ph.D programmes take at least three and half years and a maximum of five years.

Undergraduate programmes

These include:

1. Bachelor of Statistics

2. Bachelor of Science in Actuarial Science

3. Bachelor of Science in Quantitative Economics

4. Bachelor of Science in Population Studies

5. Bachelor of Business Statistics

Post-graduate programmes

These include:

1. Postgraduate Diploma in Demography

2. Postgraduate Diploma in Statistics

3. Master of Statistics

4. Master of Science in Quantitative Economics

5. Master of Arts in Demography

6. Master of Arts in Population and Development

7. Master of Science in Population and Reproduction Health

8. Master of Science in Population Studies

9. Ph.D in Population Studies

10. Ph.D in Statistics

Two programmes (Bachelor of Science in Actuarial Science and Bachelor of Business Statistics) have no post-graduate components for more specialized training. However, the ISAE is working on a proposal for consideration by the University Senate and Council to start them.

It is important to mention that in addition to these programmes, the ISAE services statistics courses in different faculties and departments. In turn, the ISAE is serviced by the Department of Mathematics, Faculty of Science and Faculty of Economics and Management.

Short courses and workshops

In addition to the above regular programmes, the ISAE conducts from time to time short courses and workshops to meet specific skills needs of user countries. Table 1.1 gives the 21 short courses and workshops undertaken by the ISAE since 2000.

Table 1.1: Short courses and workshops undertaken since 2000

	Date	Title	Source of funding
1.	6 – 23 November, 2000	Monitoring and Evaluation Workshop	Mellon Foundation
2.	15 – 26 October, 2001	Leadership Training in Population and Reproductive Health	Mellon Foundation
3	6- 23 November, 2001	Monitoring and Evaluation Workshop	Mellon Foundation
4	6- 23 November, 2002	Monitoring and Evaluation Workshop	Mellon Foundation
5	December 2002 (1 week)	Training of Trainers course in DEMPROJ and FAMPLAN from the Spectrum System of Policy Dialogue Models	Futures Group International
6	March 2003 (1 week)	Training of Trainers course in RAPID, EPP and AIM: The Spectrum System of Policy Dialogue Models.	Futures Group International
7	2003 (1 week)	A Training Workshop in: “Family Planning and Reproductive Health Policy Analysis Using CPRro”	US Census Bureau
8	2004 (2 weeks)	Indicators for Policy Management and Statistical Literacy	UNDP
9	2005 (2 weeks)	Indicators for Policy Management and Statistical Literacy	UNDP
10	31 October –17 November, 2006	Using Microsoft Excel for Statistical analysis	Privately sponsored
11	3 – 14 July, 2006	Data Capture and Processing using EPIINFO	Privately sponsored
12	14 February – 4 March, 2005	A Practical Approach to Data Analysis using Selected Statistical Computer Applications for Consultants/Researchers	Privately sponsored
13	25 July - 12 August 2005	A Practical Approach to Data Analysis using Selected Statistical Computer Applications for Consultants/Researchers	Privately sponsored
14	31 July – 18 August, 2006	A Practical Approach to Data Analysis using Selected Statistical Computer Applications for Consultants/Researchers	Privately sponsored
15	13 September – October 1^st 2004,	Regional Training Workshop Economic statistics and National Accounts	Privately sponsored
16	11 – 29 July, 2005.	Regional Training Workshop Economic statistics and National Accounts	Privately sponsored
17	12 – 23 September, 2005	Data handling, Biostatistics and Use of STATA	Danish Bilharziasis Laboratory Institute for Health Research and Development
18	15 – 25 September 2003.	Data handling and Biostatistics use of SPSS for windows	Danish Bilharziasis Laboratory Institute for Health Research and Development
19	13 – 24 September 2004.	Data handling and Biostatistics Use of STATA for Windows	Danish Bilharziasis Laboratory Institute for Health Research and Development
20	12 – 23 September 2005	Data handling, Biostatistics and Use of STATA	Danish Bilharziasis Laboratory Institute for Health Research and Development

1.2.4 Facilities

The ISAE has the following facilities available to students and staff:

Lecture rooms

Currently, the ISAE has two lecture rooms. One room can accommodate up to 100 students and the other room can accommodate 60 students. These rooms are not for the ever increasing number of students. The ISAE hires space from other faculties for lectures on a needs basis.

Computer facilities

The ISAE operates three computer laboratories, namely the laboratory for undergraduate students, the laboratory for post-graduate students and a laboratory for Ph.D students. The laboratories for undergraduate and post-graduate students are used by students for all computer and software related instructions, project work, tests and assignments while the laboratory for Ph.D students, which was donated by the School of Graduate Studies, is used in training the Ph.D students on data management, processing and analysis.

There are altogether 103 computers at the ISAE. Of these, 31 computers are used by staff, 65 by students and 7 by Institute administration. However, it was reported that up to 28 computers (27% of the total) are not in working condition and need repair. All the computers in the Institute are networked and there is an intranet. The Institute also has Internet connectivity and a web site which is currently being updated. Internet connectivity has made it possible for staff and students to benefit from the shared global information resources and knowledge. It has also increased the possibility of collaborating and sharing information with participating countries and development partners.

Library facilities

A library is an essential infrastructural component of any knowledge-generating institution. It is used as the main depository of books and other reference materials e.g. books, journals, periodicals, magazines, etc. The University Main Library, housing over 200,000 books (and similar materials) and subscribing to 7,415 journals, is the biggest in Eastern and Central Africa (and is also the national information depository of Uganda).

The ISAE has its own Reference Library that started to generate/collect/receive library reading materials in 1970. The reading materials range from textbooks to periodicals such as journals in volumes that are received periodically, reviews, supplements, handbooks, electronic materials on CDs, etc. The materials come from participating and other countries in the African region, the United Nations and its agencies, and many international organizations. It has six sections namely; Demography, Statistics, Computing, Reference, Book Bank and Dissertations. The ISAE Reference Library is supported by the Main University Library in stocking statistics materials for ease of reference to students and staff of the ISAE and the University. The ISAE library, however, is not computerized and is inadequately staffed.

Offices

The ISAE has a total of 19 offices. These are hardly enough for 40 or so academic staff of the ISAE who have to share offices – up to four in an office. The staff need adequate office space to read, prepare lectures and meet students one-on-one.

Other

The office equipment at the ISAE include photocopying machines, scanning equipment and Power Point projectors.

1.2.5 Students and Staff

Students

The ISAE has expanded from 60 students at the time of its establishment in 1969 to the current 1,792 students in 2005/2006 academic year. Of this number, 1,520 are registered in undergraduate programmes and 277 in postgraduate programmes. Currently there are 7 Ph.D candidates. Over the years, the number of foreign students declined due to lack of fellowships. However, the number of foreign students has been going up in the last few years from 6 in 2002/2003, 22 in 2003/2004, 26 in 2004/2005 to 50 in 2005/2006 academic year.

Staff

The ISAE has a total of 43 members of academic staff and 24 administrative and support staff (table 1.2). Of the total academic staff, 14 or 33% have Ph.D and only 3 are females. The number of academic members of staff is inadequate but the University has already advertised for some posts which will somewhat ease the work load.

To improve the quality of service to students, the University has embarked on training of staff. A number of staff members have registered for further studies at Makerere University or outside Uganda. However, because of the policy of holding a Ph.D to be appointed a Lecturer, the staff development funds at Makerere University had been overstretched. The candidates from the ISAE have, therefore, not benefited as much as was expected.

Table 1.2 Staff of ISAE

Rank	Total
Professor	1
Associate Professor	1
Senior Lecturers	6
Lecturers	14
Assistant Lecturers	4
Teaching Assistants	5
Part time Lecturers	12
Administrative/Support staff	24
Total	67

1.2.6 Consultancy and research activities

As an organization, the ISAE has carried out a number of consultancies and research activities independently or in collaboration with other organizations. A number of members of staff also do consultancies for governments, national or international organizations, as individuals or in collaboration with other consultants. This has helped to deepen the professional credentials of the ISAE and its staff.

It is important to mention that the University-wide research agenda identified in 2003 is linked to the national development goals, principally the PEAP and international development agenda, principally the MDGs.

The Most Recent Research Projects include:-

1. Longitudinal Study on Primary Schools in Uganda. A Study aimed at assessing the quality of teaching and learning in primary schools in Uganda over a period of 5years. The study will, among other things document changes in the quality of teaching and learning over the study period and describe events that result into changes in the quality of teaching and learning.

2. Implications of HIV/AIDS in Public Service Capacity and Performance. Funded by the World Bank

3. The Uganda AIDS/HIV Integrated Model District Program, USAID/CDC. HIV/AIDS Situational Analysis and Needs Assessment.

4. Youth Services and Peer Counselling in Northern Uganda, a PEARL Project in the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development. Funded by European Union.

5. African Youth Alliance (AYA) Baseline Survey. Funded by UNFPA

6. An Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health study in 24 districts funded by UNFPA

7. A Needs Assessment and Situational Analysis Study of HIV/AIDS in Uganda commissioned by AIM-USAID

8. A Post Enumeration Survey for the Uganda Bureau of Statistics and DFID

9. The first National Integrity Survey for Uganda in conjunction with CIET International. The survey among other things identified the most corrupt public institutions and assessed the community opinions and perceptions about the level of corruption in Uganda’s Public Service.

1.2.7 Strategic Plan (2000/1 – 2004/5)

In line with the University strategic framework and guidelines, the ISAE developed a medium-term Strategic Plan (2000/1 - 2004/5) which we shall refer to as Strategic Plan 1 (SP1). The objectives of the SP1 were to:

improve the quality of teaching
improve the quality and expand the scope of research at the ISAE
improve the effectiveness of ISAE library
increase office and laboratory space available to the ISAE
increase the number of students at the ISAE

The SP1 gave the vision for the ISAE as,

“To be an internationally recognized centre of excellence in statistics and applied economics with capacity for training, research and information policy”

and the mission as,

“To produce high quality professionals in statistics, applied economics, population studies and information technology so as to spear head informed policy making in both the public and private sector through training, research and community service”

1.3 Concerns about statistical training in Africa

In 1992, the 16^th Meeting of African Ministers responsible for Economic Planning and Development adopted the Addis Ababa Plan of Action for Statistical Development in Africa in the 1990s. The purpose of the plan was to reverse the decline in statistical production witnessed in the 1970s and 1980s. The evaluation of the implementation of the Addis Ababa Plan of Action which was undertaken in 2000 raised a number of concerns about statistical capacity building in Africa including the following:

training especially at Universities tends to be theoretical (there are few practical-oriented training centres)
training is invariably done from the “supply side” and generally crowds out “demand issues” (what have we learnt from economists – demand determines supply?)
there is insufficient collaboration between training centres and National Statistical Offices (NSOs).

Associated with the above concerns and directly relevant to statistical training is a two-pronged need. The first aspect is to get statisticians to understand and talk more about development policies and issues on the one hand. The other is to get data users (especially policy and decision-makers) to appreciate, understand and talk more about statistics, invest in statistical production and use statistics extensively in their work.

These concerns have been brought on board in the design of the new Strategic Plan for the ISAE.

1.4 Changing environment

1.4.1 Management of the ISAE

During the implementation of SP1, modern management principles of openness, participation, teamwork and innovation were not fully applied. As a result, the SP1 was not as successful as it could have been. In addition, the international image of the ISAE declined and its ability to effectively network internationally suffered. Consequently, the ISAE experienced problems in attracting donor funding as well as enrolling foreign students, both of which affected the capacity of the ISAE to deliver on its mission.

There have been changes in the leadership of the ISAE in form of a new Director and Deputy Director. It is expected that the new leadership will be more strategic and champion the changes needed to reposition the ISAE to play a greater role in statistical development in Africa.

1.4.2 Changing user needs

In recent years, new development paradigms have been adopted in all African countries. These paradigms have radically changed the demand for data as can be seen below. This demand for data has triggered reforms of National Statistical Systems and in turn posed major challenges for statistical training centres in Africa.

At the dawn of the third millennium, developing countries including those in Africa and development partners have committed themselves to managing for development results or the results agenda which involves focusing on performance and the achievement of outputs, outcomes and impact. The results agenda includes sectoral and national development plans (Poverty Reduction Strategies (PRSs or the Poverty Eradication Action Plan – PEAP in the case of Uganda) and other national development plans); regional development frameworks e.g. New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD); and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

The results agenda is data intensive. It requires highly integrated, consistent and timely data. In particular, there has been an unprecedented increase in the demand for multi-sectoral statistics with a focus on development statistics for informing national and international development agenda, and for supporting democracy, good governance and accountability in countries. This means that there is a need for emphasizing integrative and consistency frameworks in statistical work and in statistical training centres. Secondly, there is greater demand from NSSs for consistent data within economic groupings such as the East African Community (EAC), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). This suggests that greater attention should be paid to issues of harmonization and convergence of national statistics within the economic groupings.

The results agenda is also predicated on the notion that there is both the capacity to demand and effectively use statistics for policy analysis and design (statistical demand) and the capacity to produce better statistics in a sustainable manner, on a scale, and in a time frame that are relevant to policy makers (statistical supply). This has created the urgency to begin to balance demand and supply issues in statistical training programme by introducing courses on demand for statistics. Since weaknesses in data demand and supply are mutually reinforcing, lack of the said balance in the training programmes may lead to prescription of supply solutions that are inadequate or inappropriate. There is, therefore, a need for the ISAE and other training centers to cover demand (sub-national, national and international) for statistics in their curricula and the implications for monitoring progress toward achievement of the goals and targets set in these agenda. The training centres also need to provide catalytic support to countries to strengthen and reform their NSSs as well as providing strategic support for policy research for countries to move forward in their development agenda and especially the PRSs and MDGs. There is also greater need now for formalizing and deepening links between training centers and NSOs so that the latter can influence what is taught and also that training centres can contribute to the development of appropriate methodologies and improved analyses of existing datasets, data presentation and reporting.

It is also important to mention that the profile of data users has changed considerably over the past decade. Whereas, traditionally, the users of data were experts in government departments and researchers, present day users belong to all walks of life including NGOs, citizens’ groups and peoples’ organizations. In addition, more and more data users are becoming more critical and are demanding access to datasets so that they can do their own analyses to suit their needs. This has increased the need to establish user-friendly and accessible databases with appropriate metadata (complete description of the data and methods for collecting them). Development of databases and their access has therefore become a critical part of national statistical development.

The said increase in demand for development statistics created by the results agenda, has put a lot of pressure on already weak and vulnerable NSSs in Africa, and triggered the need for poor developing countries to reform NSSs and build, in a sustainable manner, greater national statistical capacity. The urgency to do this has been given impetus at the international level by the Marrakech Action Plan for Statistics (MAPS) and at regional level, by the Reference Regional Strategic Framework for the Development of Statistics (RRSF) (see sub-section 2.2). In this context of the MAPS and the RRSF, a number of African countries have designed a National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS) as a medium-term framework for reforming the NSSs in a holistic manner to make them more robust, more transparent and responsive to user needs, and much better coordinated. The NSDSs aim to change the trajectory of the development of statistics in the countries. In Uganda, a five-year (2006/7 – 2011/12) Plan for National Statistical Development (PNSD) was launched late last year.

Increased competition

It is important to mention that the ISAE no longer enjoys a monopoly in providing training in statistics and related subjects in the country and in the African region. New Universities in Uganda have started statistical training programmes and also a number of old Universities in the African region are now teaching statistics. Unfortunately, this has taken place at a time when the Institution was beginning to lose its lustre, international networks, donor support and enrolment by foreign students. There is a need for the ISAE to respond to this loss of monopoly by better marketing its facilities and being more innovative and creative in order to maintain a competitive edge as well as to distinguish itself as a centre of excellence in statistical and related training, and research.

1.5 Need for the Second Strategic Plan (2006/7 – 2010/11)

When the Strategic Plan 1 (SP1) period ended, the ISAE saw it fit to review the performance of this plan and thereafter to design a second strategic plan, Strategic Plan 2 (SP2) covering the period 2006/7 - 2010/11. In addition and as mentioned in sub-section 1.4 above, there have been changes in demand for data from traditional statistics to development statistics for informing results policy and development agenda. The ISAE has also lost monopoly in statistical training both in Uganda and in the region. All this has necessitated a major review of the training that goes on at the ISAE. SP2 provides such a review and new approaches to meeting new training needs for NSSs of the user countries. Needless to say, the SP2 also builds on the success of SP1 and is in line with the University planning framework and follows international best practice.

2 PROCESS AND METHODOLOGY FOR ELABORATING THE STRATEGIC PLAN (2006/7 – 2010/11)

2.1 The Process

Text Box: Stakeholder groups:
Group I: User countries
Group II: University administration and
relevant faculties/institutes
Group III: Institute management and staff
Group IV: Current students
Group V: Former students
Group VI: Donors and International
Organisations It is well known in the trade that the process of elaborating any plan is as important as the plan itself. Best practice requires that the process is consultative and participatory with key stakeholders fully involved at every stage of the process. It also requires that the process empowers key stakeholders and confers on them ownership both of the process and the product. Stakeholder groups in the ISAE and the services it offers are given in the following text box.

The process included the following:

· review of achievements of Strategic Plan 2000/1 – 2004/5

· stakeholder mapping (their identification, identification of their respective roles, interests and relationship among them)

· multi-stakeholder consultations in Uganda, namely:

√ University administration and relevant faculties/institutes,

√ ISAE students – past and present,

√ lecturers,

√ employer organizations (e.g. Uganda Bureau of Statistics)

· multi-stakeholder consultations outside Uganda, namely:

√ user countries,

√ donor agencies and international organizations,

√ other statistical training centres

· Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis

· Visioning and strategizing exercises

· Elaboration of an Action Plan

2.2 Methodology

A combination of methods was used in the process of elaborating the SP2, including:

2.2.1 Literature Review

A number of documents were accessed and reviewed to understand the environment in which the ISAE operates, including user country and international policy frameworks and development agenda, the University development framework, current prospectus and teaching programmes. Also reviewed were policy documents of different development partners as well as sub-regional and regional initiatives on statistical development. These included:

· University structures, plans, etc.

· ISAE structures, organization, programmes and previous plan, various recommendations of the ISAE organs.

· National and international development frameworks and especially results-based agenda.

· International standards and frameworks including:

E The United Nations Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics

These principles were adopted by the United Nations Statistical Commission in 1994 and are now a universally agreed overarching framework for the mission of NSOs and the statistical work of official international organizations[1].

E Data Quality Assessment Framework (DQAF) of the IMF

This is a comprehensive framework, which was introduced by the IMF for reviewing, in a systematic manner, the essential aspects of statistical operations. It covers the external environment (laws, users, respondents and resources), processes including managerial and technical support and outputs of a statistical system. DQAF can therefore be used to provide a snapshot reading of the current status of statistics, a framework for planning statistical development, and a framework for tracking (monitoring and evaluating) statistical capacity.

E Statistical Capacity Building Indicators of PARIS21

The PARIS21 (Partnership in Statistics for Development in the 21st Century) Task Team on Statistical Capacity[2] has produced a number of indicators and tested them at country level in a number of countries. These indicators are expected to help track progress of countries in building their statistical capacity[3].

E Guide to General Data Dissemination Standard (GDDS)

General Data Dissemination System (GDDS) is an initiative of the IMF Statistics Department, and is intended to assist participating countries by encouraging them to improve data quality, provide a framework for evaluating needs for data improvement, and set priorities in this respect. GDDS also guides member countries in the dissemination to the public of comprehensive, timely, accessible and reliable economic, financial, and socio-demographic statistics.

E United Nations Handbook of Statistical Organization

This Handbook, which was released by the United Nations in 2003 provides guidance in many areas of statistical development. The handbook is intended to serve as a “checklist of items a successful statistical agency must take into consideration; a set of examples that illustrate how principles can be put into practice in certain typical contexts; a list of factors that may persuade an agency’s staff to favour one application over another”[4].

E Marrakech Action Plan for Statistics (MAPS)

The International Roundtable on Managing for Development Results held in Marrakech, Morocco in 2004 recognized that good statistics are crucial not only to support development policies but also to measure the impact of interventions. It thus identified better statistics as a priority of the results agenda and the Marrakech meeting came up with an action plan for improving statistics popularly known as The Marrakech Action Plan for Statistics (MAPS). MAPS has set 2006 as the target date by which all poor developing countries should have developed a National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS) and to have started to implement it the following year with a view to producing better statistics for national and international use by the time of the next Millennium Review in 2010.

E Reference Regional Strategic Framework for Statistical Capacity Building in Africa (RRSF)

The Reference Regional Strategic Framework for Statistical Capacity Building in Africa (RRSF) was endorsed by the meeting of Directors of National Statistical Offices in Africa and the Forum on African Statistical Development (FASDEV) both held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in February 2006. The RRSF has been designed to provide strategic directions and appropriate mechanisms for guiding and accelerating the development of sustainable statistical capacity in Africa for managing for results.

· Experiences of other training institutions in developing statistical capacity including best practices and knowledge of what has and has not worked in similar circumstances. In particular, programmes and operations of the following centres were reviewed with a view to peer learning: Eastern Africa Statistical Training Centre (EASTC) in Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Advanced Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics (Ecole nationale supérieure de statistique et d’économie appliquée) (ENSEA) in Abidjan (Côte-d’Ivoire), InWent (Capacity Building International) in Bonn (Germany) and International Programs Center (IPC), part of the Population Division of the U.S. Census Bureau (USA), the Survey Research Centre, Institute for Social Research, the University of Michigan (USA) and the Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific.

2.2.2 Design and send out different questionnaires to stakeholders

In order to collect information from stakeholders inside and outside Uganda in a more consistent manner, a number of questionnaires were designed and sent out for completion by different stakeholders. In particular, questionnaires were sent to: selected Directors of NSOs of South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Swaziland, Uganda; a sample of current under-graduate students; some former students (under-graduate and post-graduate) from different countries; some staff of the ISAE; and some questionnaire with lists of questions was sent to development partners including United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), British Department for International Development (DFID), the African Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank.

2.2.3 Stakeholders’ workshops

Three workshops were held. The first workshop aimed to empower key stakeholders so that they could in turn play an informed and meaningful role in the process of designing the plan and its implementation. The workshop covered such issues as strategic management and statistical planning, introduction to the concept of results-based management, national and international results-based agenda including the PRSP and MDGs. The second workshop involved a review of SP1 (the vision, mission, objectives and strategies); the conduct of a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis (see below); and discussing possible strategies for the follow-up plan.

The third workshop involved presenting and discussing SP2, and building a broad consensus on strategies for strengthening the ISAE. The SP2 was finalized after this workshop, taking into account issues raised and proposals made in the workshop.

2.2.4 Focus group discussions

These were small groups of mainly staff of the ISAE and UBOS organized to address different aspects of the work e.g. elaborating the vision, mission and strategies, and a programme of short-training courses.

2.2.5 Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis

A Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) analysis diagnostic tool was used with the ISAE staff to identify and evaluate (a) internal strengths and weaknesses in functional areas so that the SP2 could build on the strengths and aim to mitigate or eliminate the weaknesses, and (b) external opportunities and threats so that advantage can be taken of the opportunities and threats could be avoided or their impact reduced.

The strengths and weaknesses were identified and evaluated in terms of resources, infrastructure, efficiency, customer care, competitive advantage, quality of products and services (course content), staff, management, cost (fees) and general capacity. And the opportunities and threats were identified and evaluated in terms of competitors’ actions, economic conditions, increasing market saturation and changes in laws and regulations.

2.3 Review of SP1

A general review was made of the SP1 before SP2 could be designed.

2.3.1 Plan ownership

Although it is stated in the SP1 document that the plan was prepared in a participatory manner, interviews with current academic staff show little knowledge about and lack of ownership of the plan. This could suggest that the plan was not popularized among stakeholders as it should have. It cannot be over-emphasized that plan ownership is essential for its effective implementation.

2.3.2 Mission

The mission of the ISAE was given as:

To produce high quality professionals in Statistics, Applied Economics, Population Studies and IT so as to spearhead informed policy-making in both public and private sector through training, research and community service

It can be seen from the above mission statement that:

(a) the important area of decision-making is excluded from use of statistics, and

(b) civil society sector is excluded from key data users.

2.3.3 Strategic objectives

The SP1 gave the strategic objectives as:

Strategic objective 1: To improve the quality of teaching

Strategic objective 2: To improve the quality & expand scope of research

Strategic objective 3: To improve the effectiveness of ISAE library

Strategic objective 4: Increase office and laboratory space at ISAE

Strategic objective 5: Increase the number of students at the ISAE

The review of the strategic objectives aimed to determine whether these were the right objectives to meet the stated mission of the ISAE. In order to do this, the mission was broken into the following statements of intentions related to the functions of the ISAE that must be achieved:

• High quality professionals

• Spearhead informed policy & decision-making

• Training

• Research

• Community service

It can be seen from these statements that some of the stated strategic objectives (e.g. to increase office and laboratory space) are in fact activities rather than strategic objectives.

2.3.4 Declining international image

As was mentioned in chapter 1, the leadership of the ISAE in recent years did not do enough to maintain the international image of the institute with the result that critical networks were not serviced, there was a decline in donor support as opportunities were not taken advantage of and the number of foreign students enrolling at the ISAE remained low.

2.3.4 Was the Plan successful?

The plan had mixed success judging by the objectively verifiable indicators given in the logframe. The plan achieved some success in the following areas: increasing the scope of the training programme (some new courses were introduced); the number of students increased; new equipment were bought including power point projectors and computers; the number of research activities increased. These are given in Table 2.1 as the strengths of the ISAE.

However, many goals of the SP1 were not achieved as can be seen from the list of weaknesses in the same table. The weaknesses include diminishing international image; infrequent review of the curriculum; inadequate focus on data analysis, presentation and reporting; a critical shortage of space (for lecture rooms, offices, laboratories, library); a high student-staff ratio; too few Professors to manage post-graduate programmes; inadequate equipment including computers; inadequate library services; weak management including knowledge management; some gaps in research capabilities; poor staff remuneration and an inactive ISAE Consultancy Bureau. The SP2 aims to mitigate or eliminate these weaknesses.

There are tremendous opportunities for the SP2 to mitigate the said weaknesses of the ISAE including greater demand for statistics on account of the new focus on results agenda nationally and internationally, new partnerships (national and international) in support of statistical development, proposed new programmes that will increase student intake and hence resources, advances in ICT that have made computers and related equipment cheaper and more accessible and the current reforms of the NSSs including the design of the National Strategy for the Development of Statistics (NSDS) that is expected to lead to increase in demand for and use of data.

2.4 SWOT analysis

The following table presents a summary of the SWOT analysis.

Table 2.1. Summary of SWOT analysis

Current Strengths	Current weaknesses
1. High esteem and recognition regionally and internationally as a training centre of excellence	1. Diminishing international image of the ISAE resulting in diminished donor support and low enrolment of foreign students
2. Practical-oriented training programmes on official statistics making the graduates of the ISAE more relevant	2. Infrequent review and update of the curriculum and continuing to teach statistics mainly from the supply side and inadequate attention to demand side
3. Broad-based training (various under-graduate and post-graduate programmes as well as short courses)	3. Inadequate focus on data analysis, reporting, presentation and communication in the training programme
4. Inter-disciplinary and highly qualified staff, and diversity of skills in various information areas. Most of the staff are in active age bracket.	4. Shortage of space (lecture rooms, laboratories, library and offices)
5. Availability of computer facilities (including e-mail and Internet connection)	5. A high staff - student ratio leading to heavy staff workloads and limited supervision/ coaching/ mentoring/research and participation in community service
	6. Inadequacy of academic staff especially at senior level (Associate Professors, Professors and gender) and by gender. This is a pattern across the University.
	7. Inadequate equipment (e.g. computers and software) and limited use of audio-visual aids (e.g. projectors, flip charts, etc. for teaching)
	8. Inadequate library services (library under-stocked for some disciplines and not computerized)
	9. Management in the past has been weak as characterized by infrequent management meetings of committees, inadequate teamwork and inadequate internal communication.
	10. Inadequate knowledge management including documentation and records, datasets, etc.
	11. Some gaps in research capability - some disciplines are not properly covered.
	12. Poor staff remuneration which has affected morale and led to high staff turnover – 12 members of staff left between 2000 and 2006.
	13. Low research culture among staff
	13. Inactive ISAE Consultancy Bureau
Opportunities	Threats
1. There is now new management at the ISAE with the possibility to be a force for change	1. Constrained African economies leading to limited subventions from Uganda government and limited number of government-supported students from user countries
2. Greater demand for statistics in view of the new focus on results agenda e.g. PRS, NEPAD and MDGs.	2. Limited fellowships from development partners which has led to limited participation of user countries
3. New partnerships among developing countries and development partners, and between policy and decision-makers and data producers in support of statistical development	3. Inter-faculty competition (several faculties teach statistics courses) and new Universities offering statistics courses
4. Advances in ICT that have made computers and related equipment cheaper and more accessible	4. Inability to attract and retain high calibre staff due to limited subventions from government.
5. It is increasingly becoming apparent that training of statistics should start in schools
6. Reform of NSSs and the design of the NSDS that is expected to lead to increase in the demand and use of data in countries

3 THE STRATEGIC PLAN (2006/7 – 2010/11)

3.1 Introduction

This Second Strategic Plan (SP2) aims to reposition the ISAE to play a greater role in current statistical reforms and development in Africa. In particular, it aims to address three critical challenges namely, strategic management of the ISAE, dynamic user needs in African countries and loss of monopoly in statistical training. In order to put the ISAE at the cutting-edge of statistical reforms and development in the region, the plan provides for:

improving the management of the ISAE;
a new orientation in the teaching of statistics;
introduction of non-traditional courses and training methods; and
improving the quality of teaching, learning and research environment.

The plan presents strategies for creation of partnerships for training and research, and is also linked to recently designed national and global statistical initiatives aimed at supporting national and international development agenda including the PRSs, NEPAD and the MDGs.

In light of the new challenges the ISAE faces, the plan framework reformulates the vision, mission, core values, strategic objectives and core products (outputs) which are essential for the Institute to function effectively. This chapter presents the SP2 which, as was mentioned earlier, builds on the achievements of SP1.

3.2 Vision, Mission and Core Values

3.2.1 Vision

The vision for the ISAE is to be:

A regionally and internationally recognized centre of excellence in training and research in basic and emerging areas of statistics and related sciences

3.2.2 Mission

The mission of the ISAE is:

To produce high quality professionals in statistics, applied economics, population studies and IT through training, and to undertake research, consultancy and community service in support of informed policy and decision-making in the public, private and civil society sectors in Africa.

3.2.3 Core values

The corporate values and principles that guide the conduct and behaviour of students, staff and decision-making at the ISAE are:

Academic freedom

The ISAE is committed to upholding the freedom by staff and students to pursue knowledge wherever it may lead, without undue or unreasonable interference. Academic freedom is the hallmark of University education.

Customer focus

The focus of the work at the ISAE will be on assisting African countries develop a culture of evidence-based policy, planning and decision-making at every level. Not only will the ISAE produce the type of information professionals to manage NSSs but also it will do research and provide professional advice to countries on all aspects of statistical development and social needs.

Highest integrity and ethical standards

Teaching, research, consultancy and community services will be undertaken by the ISAE with the highest integrity and according to high professional and ethical standards.

Professional and scientific breadth and depth

For it to remain a training centre of excellence, the ISAE will continue to put a lot of premium on broadening and deepening the professional and scientific standing of its staff.

3.3 Strategic Objectives and Key Outputs

3.3.1 Strategic objectives

The SP2 consists of complementary strategic objectives (goals) which are considered to be essential to achieve effective performance of the ISAE. These are:

· Improve the strategic management of the ISAE

· To expand and increase the relevance of training programmes

· To improve the quality of teaching, learning environment and programmes

· To improve the quality and expand the scope of research

· To improve community services

· To increase support for evidence-based policy and decision-making

Each of these strategic objectives provides a “pillar” for the plan. And for each one of these objectives, a number of strategies have been identified; so too have the activities, expected outputs, performance indicators and measures/verification, and assumptions. The logical interrelationship among these elements is charted using the logical framework (logframe) approach and the corresponding logframe matrix is given in Annex I. The approach facilitates an analysis of these interrelationships and their relationships with the surrounding environment. Using this approach, the vertical logic is the hierarchy of objectives of the plan. The horizontal logic is charted as follows: for a given level of objective (equivalent to a horizontal row of cells) the horizontal logic describes: how the achievement of the objective will be measured or verified, how this information will be obtained and the external factors that could prevent the project manager and staff from achieving the next level objective.

3.3.2 Key outputs

In pursuing the above strategic objectives, the following key outputs will be produced:

International image of the ISAE enhanced
Current training programme reviewed and updated, putting greater emphasis on holistic approaches such as national accounting, satellite accounts, integrated information systems,
New training programmes and courses designed (especially in new areas of application like measuring development, governance, human rights, gender and poverty),
New training methods introduced,
Short courses conducted,
Excellent teaching and learning environment created,
Staff further developed (staff get higher degrees, become members of professional organizations, attend scientific workshops/conferences, etc),
Both hard and soft skills developed,
Research skills developed,
Partnerships developed for statistical training and research,
ISAE Consultancy Bureau formally established,
New research projects designed,
Resources secured for both training (new Statistics Building and other infrastructure and for fellowships for both students and staff) and research,
Highly trained professionals produced (these will be produced in official statistics, applied economics, population studies and IT),
New knowledge generated and disseminated (research systems established, research papers published in professional journals; books and manuals written; and guidelines on the development of official statistics written),
Greater awareness about the role and importance of statistics to society created,
Increased use of data in support of policy, planning and decision-making.

3.4 Strategies

A strategy is a means by which long-term objectives are achieved. It is a declaration of intent, defining where an institution wants to be in the long-term, and ensures that day-to-day decisions fit in with long-term interests of the institution. As mentioned earlier, for each strategic objective, a number of strategies have been identified for achieving the objective. The strategies are presented in the following table.

ADB	African Development Fund
AR	Annual Report
CASD	Coordinating Committee for Statistical Development
DFID	British Department for International Development
DQAF	Data Quality Assessment Framework
EASTC	Eastern Africa Statistical Training Centre
ENSEA	Ecole nationale supérieure de statistique et d’économie appliquée
FASDEV	Forum on African Statistical Development
GDDS	General Data Dissemination System
ICT	Information and Telecommunication Technology
IMF	International Monetary Fund
IPC	International Programs Centre
ISAE	Institute of Statistics and Applied Economics
IT	Information Technology
MAPS	Marrakech Action Plan for Statistics
MDG	Millennium Development Goals
MDG	Millennium Development Goals
MISR	Makerere Institute for Social Research
MTR	Mid-Term Review
NEPAD	New Partnership for Statistical Development
NSDS	National Strategy for the Development of Statistics
NSO	National Statistical Office
NSS	National Statistical System
PARIS21	Partnership in Statistics for Development in the 21^st century)
PEAP	Poverty Eradication Action Plan
PNSD	Plan for National Statistical Development
PRS	Poverty Reduction Strategy
RRSF	Reference Regional Strategic Framework for Statistical Capacity Building in Africa
SP1	First Strategic Plan (2000/1-2004/5)
SP2	Second Strategic Plan (2006/7-20010/11)
STPA	United Nations Statistical Training Programme for Africa
SWOT	Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats
TR	Terminal Report
UBOS	Uganda Bureau of Statistics
UNDP	United Nations Development Programme

Strategic objective 1: Improve the strategic management of the ISAE
Strategies
1.