OECD Development Co‑operation Peer Reviews: Sweden 2019

Annex A. Progress since the 2013 DAC peer review recommendations

Sweden’s global efforts for sustainable development

 

Recommendations 2013

Progress in implementation

Recommendation Sweden’s independent evaluation of PCD should help to renew and deepen its commitments and further improve coordination, monitoring and reporting, including the development of indicators. The evaluation’s investigations could include: the transparent management of conflicts of interest between development and other policies; and levels of understanding in government and diplomatic missions of how Swedish and EU policies affect development

Implemented

Sweden’s policy vision and framework

 

Recommendations 2013	Progress in implementation
Recommendation Sweden should urgently consult on, finalise and implement its planned aid policy framework, ensuring that it provides a clear hierarchy of policies, adequate criteria for effective prioritisation of goals and perspectives and indicates how these can be translated into concrete actions that get results.	Partially implemented
Recommendation As it finalises its new results strategies, particularly the bilateral ones, Sweden should allow sufficient time for adequate analysis and consultation with partners. Sweden’s new bilateral results strategies should include humanitarian assistance where relevant, and whole-of-government approaches.	Partially implemented

Sweden’s financing for development

 

Recommendations 2013	Progress in implementation
Recommendation Sweden should maintain efforts to concentrate its assistance on fewer countries and sectors.	Partially implemented
Recommendation Sweden should continue to monitor its in-donor costs, particularly those relating to refugees, and explain clearly and publicly how these costs are calculated and the reasons for any increases or decreases; Sweden should continue to ensure that its bilateral support for both state and non-state actors is reported to its partner countries; Sweden should continue to prioritise punctual and transparent reporting of its aid expenditures in line with Busan commitments and its role in IATI.	Implemented

Sweden’s structures and systems

 

Recommendations 2013	Progress in implementation
Recommendation Once the new aid policy framework, guidelines for results strategies and results strategies have been put in place, MFA and Sida would benefit from a period of consolidation to develop ownership and management of the reforms by those in charge of the development policy and its implementation.	Partially implemented
Recommendation Sweden should implement its human resource development plans within MFA and Sida, ensuring that staff have the capacity necessary for delivering the objectives set out in the aid policy framework. It also needs to ensure, particularly in its partner countries, the necessary skills and capacity to assure a strategic policy dialogue and to manage a range of partnerships and aid modalities, including programme-based approaches	Partially implemented

Sweden’s delivery modalities and partnerships

 

Recommendations 2013	Progress in implementation
Recommendation Sweden should increase the share of its aid delivered through programme-based approaches and make more use of partner country systems for programme design, management, expenditure, monitoring and reporting. It should continue to use an appropriate mix of aid instruments, balancing state and non-state partners, to suit specific country contexts and situations.	Partially implemented
Recommendation Sweden should continue to ensure that its bilateral aid is included on the budgets of its partner countries.	Not implemented

Sweden’s results, evaluation and learning

 

Recommendations 2013	Progress in implementation
Recommendation Sweden should build on its achievements in managing for results by ensuring that it: takes a balanced approach to risk in setting objectives and results; allocates sufficient resources for monitoring results; strengthens links between results that are being tracked within individual programmes and its broader development objectives and decision-making processes.	Implemented
Recommendation As planned, Sweden should strengthen and adequately resource its capacity to deliver and use high quality strategic and independent evaluations and ensure that the MFA and Sida fulfil their ambitions to be learning organisations.	Partially implemented
Recommendation Sweden should use the learning from its results monitoring and evaluation to sharpen its ability to define (and build) its comparative advantage.	Partially implemented

Sweden’s humanitarian assistance

Recommendations 2013	Progress in implementation
Recommendation Sweden should speed up its disbursements to humanitarian partners.	Implemented
Recommendation Sweden should increase efforts to inform partners about new administrative requirements resulting from reforms.	Implemented

Figure A.1. Sweden’s implementation of 2013 peer review recommendations