In post-disaster contexts, rapidly deployable and flexible information management systems are crucial. They support informed decision-making by tracking actionable information, help monitor the progress of recovery and reconstruction activities, and ensure that funds are spent transparently and effectively.

The Interim Haiti Recovery Commission (IHRC) is the special Haitian-international body set up after the January 12 earthquake to plan, coordinate, and monitor development priorities and projects for the country’s recovery. A key part of its mandate is to review and approve projects and programs funded by bilateral and multilateral donors, NGOs, and the private sector. The Commission has so far received more than $1.6 billion in new project proposals on various aspects of Haiti’s recovery and development, including agriculture, education, and disaster preparedness.

In close partnership with the IHRC, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and the Office of the Special Envoy for Haiti, Synergy developed an innovative Project Submission and Monitoring System to help the IHRC lead the recovery process. The system allows organizations (donors, NGOs, the private sector) to submit project “concept notes” (or proposals) and report approved or existing projects through intelligent online forms. The IHRC reviews proposals for approval and monitors ongoing projects for effective implementation.

“Our goal is to support the Haitian government and its international partners in their collective effort to rebuild Haiti through a transparent, results-driven, and ultimately effective and sustainable approach,” said Synergy’s CEO Dr. Ashot Hovanesian.

The system features a powerful workflow capability that enables the review, feedback, revision and approval processes. The system is customizable in that it provides registered users with a personalized workspace, known as “My Portfolio,” for managing their portfolio of draft or submitted concept notes and projects. Moreover, an “organization profile” feature is being developed to provide a summary, consolidated view of each organization, including its financial contribution and areas of intervention.

The project submission and monitoring system is available on the IHRC’s website at www.cirh.ht and also on the Haiti Reconstruction Platform (HRP) at www.refondation.ht, which is the Haitian government’s one-stop-shop on recovery data. It is important to note that the data in the IHRC system and in the Haiti Reconstruction Platform are stored in one comprehensive back-end database system for further analysis, report generation, and automatic publishing of analytics on portals. Using its software technology, Synergy developed the HRP and the back-end database system.

Synergy’s landmark Development Assistance Database (DAD) for Indonesia, won the award for the best Information Management project at the second annual Asia-Pacific Government Technology Awards, held in Bali, Indonesia, on 17 October 2008. The Awards recognized best practice public sector projects, and outstanding achievement by public sector organizations in the field of information communication and technology (ICT) by local and central government agencies, as well as education and healthcare organizations. The year-long awards process is the largest in the Asia-Pacific region, and has been dramatically growing in popularity. The 2008 Awards received 450 nominations from 14 countries, up from 212 the previous year. Over 200 senior government officials from Asia-Pacific countries attended the Awards.

The winners were selected from a shortlist of nominees in a number of categories, such as information management, business process/service innovation, and e-government. The award categories were sponsored by some of the leading IT companies in the world, including Microsoft and IBM.

The RAN Database won the award in the Information Management category (sponsored by EMC), which recognizes “excellence in the efficient capture, storage, and distribution of citizen information.” Currently, the RAN Database tracks over 1700 projects carried out by more than 600 donors, NGOs, and private entities, totaling approximately 3.8 billion US dollars.

Synergy developed the DAD for Indonesia almost immediately after the December 2004 Tsunami to track post-natural disaster reconstruction projects in the Aceh-Nias region. The DAD was named the Recovery Aceh Nias (RAN) Database to reflect the national ownership of the system, and was installed at the BRR Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Agency.

The RAN Database has become the central coordinating database for Tsunami recovery and national development data in Indonesia. The Report, Chart, and Map modules have facilitated national reporting and provide a strategic overview of the aid landscape in the country, thus enabling informed decision-making and planning.

Within the RAN Database, Synergy implemented its core DAD system, including online data entry, Charting, GIS Mapping, and Reporting. Furthermore, Synergy developed a number of other systems to build the capacity of the Government to track tsunami reconstruction and enhance the management of the workflow processes. These included a Donor/Partner Profiles Module and a Concept Note Submission and Approval Module for organizing and streamlining the bottom-up and top-down planning process of the reconstruction. The Concept Notes online submission and approval process involved the entire NGO community in sharing data on their planned activities for better coordination.

The novel Concept Note Submission and Approval Module automates the existing workflow for project approval, allowing the government to track the external assistance activities and ensure the proper distribution of funds (that is, avoiding gaps and duplications) among priority sectors and locations. The Profiles Module provides statistical aid information that is organized by Donor, Partner and Sector (rather than project), thus enabling easy monitoring of the efficiency and effectiveness of all stakeholders involved in the Tsunami reconstruction process.

Synergy worked with the government of Indonesia to define Sector specific Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for measuring progress of reconstruction at various levels including the project level and overall sector level. The RAN Database provides a tool for analyzing trends of KPIs against baseline and target values, as well as financial and other project data.

The RAN Database was also integrated with the Regional DAD that includes information from other Tsunami affected countries including Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Maldives.

The Development Assistance Database (DAD) Vietnam was launched by Synergy International Systems through the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Vietnam.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that the MPI Deputy Minister Cao Viet Sinh spoke on the need for the DAD Vietnam by stating, “it is significant not only to government agencies or donors involved, but also to aid beneficiaries.”  UNDP Resident Representative Subinay Nandy stated that the DAD was part of the overall ODA management effort to realize the commitments set forth in the Paris Declaration and the Hanoi Core Statement on Aid Effectiveness.

The DAD Vietnam will allow the government of Vietnam to track up-to-the-minute information on ODA commitments, disbursements, and project status.  The DAD will support ODA reporting, monitoring and evaluation, harmonization, and will enhance government and development partner accountability and transparency.

Historical data from the past decade of ODA has been released by UNDP to be included in the DAD.  This will facilitate monitoring and evaluation and aid tracking as Rwanda’s development partners look toward the future.