The International Management Group (
IMG)
is an
international
organisation enjoying all
privileges and immunities under international law established by 13 EU
Member States (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany,
Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and The United
Kingdom) plus Norway and Switzerland, which is financed with public
funds for development cooperation.
IMG is a legal entity in its own merit and by its very nature is
not for profit.
Its Presidency is ensured by the Chairman of its Steering Committee and
Government Support Group and is headed by a General Manager who acts in
the capacity of executive director and oversees the implementation of
all activities carried out by the Organisation.
IMG was established in 1994 to address the specific challenges faced by
the international community for the reconstruction of Bosnia and
Herzegovina. At the request of its members the mandate of the
Organisation has been extended both in terms of geographic and sector
coverage. The current mandate of IMG is to operate wherever its members
request or direct it. IMG can intervene at all stages of the project
cycle: identification, formulation, implementation and evaluation. Its
main areas of expertise have been developed through significant
projects in infrastructure, environment, energy, rural development, SME
development, regional development, education and governance.
The experience it has gained in providing support to institutional and
capacity building activities in developed countries, as well as the
significant resources it can call upon, has given the organisation a
skill set which it is sometimes called upon to apply also in specific
post-crisis/post-conflict areas.
IMG has been assessed by the European Commission as meeting the
criteria for so-called “Joint Management”, a
mechanism whereby the European Commission entrusts some of its
implementing tasks to an international organisation that complies with
international standards in regard to accountancy, internal control,
audit and procurement.
IMG has the possibility to work on a peer to peer basis using
practitioners (civil servants from EU Member States) thanks to its
privileged position with IMG members as well as to use experts provided
through the
European
Platform of IMG Partners that
includes public sectors bodies from EU 27 MS (network of institutions).
In all of its projects, IMG associate the most qualified local
expertise to pair the international experts in their mission.
IMG is currently implementing technical as well as institutional and
capacity building projects to the value of EUR 50 million, financed by
Norway, Sweden, Spain, Switzerland, Italy and the European Commission
in both developed and developing countries.
In
the Western Balkans, IMG is
managing many projects in the field of institutional building in the
areas of judicial reform, education, environmental policy, civil
service reform and training, customs reform and policing.
In
Serbia, a potential EU
candidate country, IMG is undertaking a range of projects designed to
support the authorities to reform their institutions and prepare for EU
integration. These projects are spread across several ministries and
include the following:
• Support to the Unit for Aid
Coordination of the Ministry of Finance to create an effective
partnership for improved aid effectiveness.
• Support to the Serbian Customs
Administration through the introduction of a business intelligence
system.
• Improvement of the delivery of
justice including a revision of existing juvenile law and its
application.
• Ongoing improvement of
business procedures within the Ministry of the Interior
• Capacity building to create an
effective programming and management team at the Ministry of the
Environment
• Capacity building of
occupational safety and health experts through the enhanced
application of EU and national health and safety standards
In
Montenegro, an EU candidate
country, IMG is working closely with the Ministry of Justice and the
Higher Judicial Council on a comprehensive reform of the misdemeanour
system and its application through the courts. This also includes
expert support in the drafting or re-redrafting of legislation.
In
the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia,
another EU candidate country, IMG has undertaken several projects aimed
at supporting the country’s progress towards candidate
status. These included support to a community-based approach to local
policing, support to the education sector as well as a comprehensive
programme for the management of its rich cultural heritage.
In
the Peoples’ Republic of China,
IMG has provided high-level expertise to assist in the drafting of
comprehensive new legislation on the rights of the disabled. This
married European know-how and experience with the specific needs and
requirements of the Chinese to produce and have passed into law a
completely new legal instrument.
In
Uruguay, IMG has provided
capacity building support to the Ministry of Health in public
procurement policy and practice in order to take advantage of
favourable credit lines for the purchase of medical equipment.
In
the Lao Peoples’ Democratic Republic,
IMG has worked closely with the Ministry of Health to establish a
network of clinics countrywide to support the effective implementation
of a new policy of pre and post-natal care. This was also supplemented
by a localised programme of small scale economic development.
In
Azerbaijan, under the
framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy Instrument (ENPI), IMG
will undertake a project to provide institutional and capacity building
support to the Programme Administration Office at the Ministry of
Economic Affairs to further develop their ability to access the
resources provided through Twinning and TAIEX mechanisms.
In
the Middle East, IMG is
managing many projects in the field of institutional building in the
areas of administrative and judicial reform, education, environmental
policy, civil service reform and training.
In
Lebanon, through the European
MEDA programme IMG is providing expert technical support to the
Lebanese authorities, CDR (Council for Development and Reconstruction)
and OMSAR (Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform)
for the preparation of projects for EU funding, design and supervision
of projects financed with EU funds as well as a programme of training
of local authorities on public procurement procedures for goods, works
and services.
In
the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem,
through the European Neighbourhood Partnership Instrument
(ENPI) IMG is working on institution building activities and reform,
providing expert support to the Palestinian National Authority in the
fields of private sector recovery, planning and project management for
the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, support to the Ministry
of Finance to manage infrastructure projects, provision of expert
assistance to establish the State Auditors Office, support for
establishing a rural development system, support for the development of
the Customs Administration, environmental management as well as ad hoc
support in many other sectors such as justice and policing, public
procurement, public infrastructure and health.
In
Haiti, financed through the
European Instrument for Stability (IfS), IMG is managing an ambitious
programme for strengthening the capacity of the Haitian Civil
Protection Directorate (DPC) to establish and manage efficiently a
national system of risk and natural disaster management. This programme
is being implemented in partnership with the development cooperation
body of the French Ministry of the Interior as well as the civil
Protection Agencies from 5 EU member states.