Shawbell Consulting – Overview of Projects

Shawbell Consulting has expertise in institutional reform and legal consultancy acquired through engagements with public and private sector institutions, multinationals, donor partners, NGOs and the private sector, in Ghana, Africa and globally. Though it is difficult to give you exact details of the projects you may be working on, we have selected a few to give you an idea of the kind of projects you could be doing.

Ministry of Justice - World Bank
Study to strengthen and modernise the judiciary & Ghana Bar Association

Our Managing Consultant directed a critical diagnostic study of the operations of the judiciary and the Ghana Bar Association (GBA). This was part of the Legal Sector Reform project aimed at strengthening the capacity of the legal system to support the government’s private sector development program. The objective of the assignment was also to enable the Ghana Bar Association and the judicial service to improve operational efficiency and to position themselves effectively in order to influence the development of the judicial system and the legal environment in Ghana. As such, institutional and functional analyses of both the judiciary and the Ghana Bar Association were undertaken with a view to defining their operational objectives and outputs. The work also demanded an all-inclusive examination of the current state of the judiciary and entire judicial service and legal profession in Ghana.
We analysed extensive findings and developed recommendations for re-structuring, along with a 3-year action programme and budget estimates for implementation. Separate proposals for a complex, but user-friendly information systems network were developed which captured all facets of judicial practice, as well as the administration of the business of the Ghana Bar Association. The assignment was undertaken from the following perspectives:

• Reform of Organisational and Operational Framework – The role and mandate of these institutions were reviewed to assist us in identifying their core functions vis-à-vis functions that could be contracted out in order to maintain the desired focus and effectiveness in service delivery. The institutional capacity necessary for achieving their assigned functions was also assessed and new organisational and operational structures proposed
• Human Resources and Productivity Enhancement – staff profiling, capability reviews, training needs assessments and proposals for staff performance enhancement.
• Information System – This was an inquisitorial review of the existing systems used in facilitating the information flow of these institutions. The review was followed by the design of an information system to capture all aspects of their service delivery.
• Financial and Budget Planning – Involved budgeting & resource planning, financial management & emoluments reviews and development of proposals on retention policy, regional budgeting, payroll administration and general management, and oversight and control of the finance function within the regional and district offices of the judicial service.

International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD) at the Hague
Project Management for Private/Public Partners of Global ICT Network

The IICD sponsored eight (8) ICT-based Development Partner Projects in Ghana, namely:

• Ministry of Food and Agriculture: E-commerce Project:
• Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology: Environmental Information
  Network:
• Ministry of Communications: National Information Clearing House Project:
• Ministry of Food and Agriculture: The Ghana Agricultural Information Network Project:
• Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR): The Centre for ICT - Internet Society of Ghana
• Ministry of Health: ICT Health Policy Programme
• The Global Teenager Project: NGO
• The University of Uganda: University of Uganda Project

The IICD required our firm to undertake a status review of the various projects, consider their current organisational arrangements and operational circumstances and determine the best way forward for more effective achievement of project goals through a skills and needs assessment. All in all, it sought to establish enhanced ICT services delivery and strategies for its projects in Ghana, along with fostering deeper in-country and foreign cooperation / collaboration between projects.

Shawbell Consulting undertook the following tasks over three (3) intensive weeks of elapsed time:

• Undertook in-depth Skills and Training Needs Assessments of the various IICD-sponsored projects and developed
  • Performance Models for each. The Performance Models set out:
  • Current/planned Project Structure
  • Project Operational Systems and Processes
  • Project Management/Organisational Design and Structure
  • Analysis of staff complement and allocations
  • Strengths and Weaknesses of all above elements
  • Areas requiring improvement
  • Determination of Skills and Training Needs
• With the results of the above, we developed a Performance Charter for each Project, and thereafter.
• Undertook Project Re-structuring and Management workshops for 23 Project Managers and IICD Representatives.
• Action steps for realising respective project objectives were evolved at the end of the workshops and our firm was accorded positive feedback and special commendation by the IICD a short period after the assignment was accomplished.

Ministry of Finance (European Union)
Review of Public Financial Management Legislative Framework

This was a Ministry of Finance project sponsored by the European Union which involved re-stating the Financial Administration Decree and Financial Administration Regulations in the light of Government of Ghana Financial Sector reforms. We assisted the Ernst & Young team of accounting/finance specialists in developing proposals for a reformed legislative framework for the public budgeting and financial management system.

Ministry of Health (MoH) & Ghana Health Service (Department for International Development UK)
Strategic Planning and Change Management Programme

Members of our team worked closely with officials of the MoH/GHS and development partners towards accomplishment and sustenance of the goals and objectives of the MoH 5-Year PoW. This became necessary in the coming into being of the Ghana Health Service as an autonomous body operating under the Ministry of Health. There were several mid-sized components to this work:

• Formulation of Ghana Health Service Mission and Vision;
• Recommendations for modernised Ghana Health Service organisational systems & management practices and procedures;
• Identification of appropriate platforms for information systems strategies; and
• Proposals for establishing a Performance Contracts and Monitoring system for the GHS.

A series of Executive Skills transition training programmes undertaken over a 5-month period for 50
senior officials of the MoH, GHS and other health management institutions in Ghana.