Public and Social Sector Transformation Project (PSST)

closed

The objective of the Public and Social Sector Transformation Project for Antigua and Barbuda is to assist the borrower in: (i) strengthening its capacity in managing public policies and the public service; (ii) improving the efficiency of social protection spending through an integrated monitoring and targeting system; and (iii) improving the income and employability of the vulnerable population through temporary employment and training programs. The project has five components. The first component is build effective institutions for strategic management of government policies. This component will enhance the borrower’s capacity to improve the quality of decision-making through coordinated planning to facilitate alignment of resources with government policy priorities. The second component is Modernize Human Resource Management (HRM). This component will modernize the borrower’s public service human resource management through the following activities: (a) the establishment of an integrated public service employment regime; and (b) the establishment of an effective public service management system to support the new single public service structure. The third component is to improve the efficiency of social protection spending. This component will provide support to the Ministry of Health, Social Transformation and Consumer Affairs (MHST) to carry out the following activities: (i) the design and implementation of a unified targeting system and a single registry for beneficiaries of social protection programs for carrying out the recertification and identification of beneficiaries of social protection programs14 aimed at improving the efficiency and efficacy of social public spending; and (ii) strengthening its capacity to plan, coordinate and monitor the borrower’s social policy, including developing effective institutional arrangements for coordination of the social sector and establishing a mechanism to foster governance. The fourth component is support active labor market programs. This component will provide support to the Ministry of National Security and Labor (MNSL). The fifth component is project management. This component will provide support to the Project Management Unit (PMU), including: (i) the hiring of selected contract staff (a project coordinator, a financial management specialist, a procurement specialist, a HRM specialist and a communication specialist); and (ii) provision of assistance in carrying out of annual financial audits required under the project and process evaluations during project implementation.