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 Fact Sheet
Institutional Capacity Building
Introduction to Institutional
Capacity Building
Over
the past decades the terms “Organisational Development” and “Institutional
Development” have been used to describe the support provided by donors to
their partners. These activities have usually had a focus on the organisation
(such as a government department) as a unit in which all resources were equally
assessed in relation to the products or services delivered (within the overall
institution, such as the HMGN “system”). The rapidly changing context in the
political arena in recent years, in particular the  democratisation and
decentralisation processes, has huge implications for the social sector and in
particular for local level public sector institutions. This has focussed
attention on the approach adopted to institutional development in recognition of
the fact that in order for any local development activity to be sustainable, the
role and capacity of organisations have to be addressed in relation to its
institutional setting.
At the dawn of the 21st century donors and
recipient countries realise the need not only to empower communities but also to
provide them with the necessary institutional capacities to take their destiny
into their own hands.
Today, international institutions, such as donor
agencies, put strong emphasis on Capacity Building. But what it signifies and how it is understood is still an
ongoing debate. This Briefing clarifies how RAP understands its Institutional
Capacity Building activities.
Institutional Capacity
Building in the RAP
context
Institutional
Capacity can be seen as an asset. Activities and actions are executed by a
particular organisation to deliver a service to customers. Within an
organisation, services are delivered by the people working there.  Consequently
when we talk about Institutional Capacity we must start by focussing on the
individual people working for the particular organisation. Capacity in an
organisation is not necessarily linked to the number of persons but to the
efficiency with which each individual or group performs a particular task.
Institutional Capacity should also encompass the ability to interact and
co-ordinate with external organisations and stakeholders.
RAP,
in its approach to Institutional Capacity Building, does not only consider the
task to be performed by an individual, but looks beyond and promotes a whole set
of skills necessary for adequate performance. An organisation consists of a
number of persons who work together. For a group to be efficient and effective
one has to assess the personal inter-relationships and the processes used for
sharing information among the group members.
In
its efforts to assess the capacity and needs of an institution RAP goes beyond
the mere investigation of individual employees’ skills and know-how. RAP
considers the institution as a system, where a number of  stakeholders
interact in their efforts to add value for its “customers”. Therefore,
Institutional Capacity Building is not only transferring skills through training
interventions but also assessing and addressing the organisation’s needs, to
enable it to add value. RAP provides its
partners with the required “hardware” (infrastructure and equipment) and
“software” (skills and know-how) to perform its tasks effectively. Together
these should assist each organisation to operate a system that performs
satisfactorily.
 Capacity
Building is closely associated with behavioural change at the individual level.
RAP considers Institutional Capacity Building not only as an enhancement of
skills and knowledge but also as a change in the individual’s, and therefore
the organisation’s, attitude towards the development of civil society. HMGN is
well aware off the needs to change individuals’ attitudes and has started to
support “Change Units” within several ministries to initiate and co-ordinate
the process of change at institutional level. Changes in attitudes, behaviour
and culture do not materialise overnight. Institutional Capacity Building is
therefore a long-term, process-oriented approach.
The
aim of the Institutional Capacity Building component within RAP
is to strengthen government, private and social sector organisations, and their
staff, to enable them to deliver essential services to the rural communities of
Nepal and manage them in a sustainable manner.
To
achieve the objective described above, RAP
will conduct studies to analyse the existing level of skills and know-how within
the collaborating institutions, and compare the outcome with the requirements
needed to implement the RAP approach in their zone of influence. This will be
the foundation for developing interventions to increase the individual’s
professional capacity and modify the organisation’s procedures for achieving
its objectives.
An
inquiry into the organisational set-up, vision, mission and goal will be made
for analysing opportunities to improve internal procedures, and therefore make
the whole organisation more efficient in delivering its services to the
community. 
To
help promote sustainability, RAP will,
together with its partner organisations, develop action plans for the
introduction of the agreed organisational changes. Then
it will establish and support a rigorous coaching programme to secure the
institutionalisation of the acquired skills and knowledge. Sharing of lessons
learned in the field of organisational change with the broader audience will
support the replication of the approach in different parts of Nepal.
Constant monitoring of the process will ensure
the implementation of the planned actions, which will be verified against clear
performance indicators. Feedback from the full spectrum of stakeholders should
be the guiding principle to adjust the action plans according to the evolving
environment and expressed needs of the beneficiaries.
Other
useful documents on Institutional Capacity Building
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