Tim za socijalno uključivanje i smanjenje siromaštva

One of the priorities of the Social Inclusion and Poverty Reduction Unit (SIPRU) is the enhancement of conditions for policies and measures created both on the national and local level to be implemented in line with evidence-based and empirical data, focusing on the impact on the poorest population in Serbia.

Evidence-based policy making should first of all contribute to creating accountable Government which uses all of its available resources in a more efficient and effective manner and thus contributes to social inclusion and poverty reduction in the country. By raising evidence-based policy making capacities and by applying policy impact assessment, the Government ensures approximation to international and EU standards in public administration.

In the period between 2010 – 2012 and in cooperation with the relevant actors, the Social Inclusion and Poverty Reduction Unit within the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration will be initiating a number of activities aimed at creating prerequisites for establishing a system approach to policy impact assessment process in Serbia. The activities will be carried out in several complementary directions:

1. Implementation of policy impact assessments relevant for social inclusion and poverty reduction (ex-ante and ex-post assessments);
2. Improvement of research and analytical practice in Serbia and cooperation between the decision-makers and the academic community;
3. Strengthening of Government policy and coordination function and advancement of decision-makers’ capacities for evidence-based policy making.

Implementation of the above-mentioned activities should contribute to creating more accountable Government and enable achievement of the following results:

• Responsible planning and decision-making in accordance with the needs, resources and objective facts;
• Harmonization of policies with the needs of different target groups and adequate management with the resources available;
• Continuity regarding the implementation of policies and measures.
• Higher transparency of the Government operations;
• Improvement of coordination between policy goals and priorities and better use of the existing and improvement of the needed resources and capacities.

1. Policy Impact Assessment – ex ante and ex post assessments

Ex-ante policy impact assessments shall be realized before certain policies have been adopted and implemented. Such assessment should enable timely advising of decision-makers on possible effects before certain measures and policies have been adopted and offer assistance in perceiving the measures to be implemented, before the processes have actually begun. Ex-ante assessments enable a systematic and consistent insight into the effects and costs of the planned measures.

This approach provides that high-quality strategy and/or measure requires government and its partners to understand the effect of the policies developed on diverse social groups, actors and institutions, including those not targeted by the specific policy. Such an approach is considered an important tool for democratization in emerging economies.

Ex-post policy impact assessment shall be implemented in the course or after certain policies and measures have been implemented. Ex-post assessments shall be initiated when it is required to verify if the anticipated results have been achieved and to establish whether the investments have been adequate to the effects achieved and identify possible lessons learned, possible advancements and next steps in policy developments.

Fundamental phases in conducting policy impact assessments

• Consultations with decision-makers and with civil society organizations and identification of policies the impact of which requires analysis (whether they are policies that are being conducted or are about to). Criteria for the selection of measures to be analyzed are as follows:
  • Relevance of measures and policies for social inclusion and poverty reduction of the most vulnerable groups in Serbia
  • Willingness of decision-makers (relevant ministries) to integrate assessment results and recommendations into the policies and measures that are created
  • Connection with the EU documents focusing on social inclusion indicators
  • Cost-effectiveness of the assessment – assessments which do not require excessive financial investments and human resources

• Impact assessment of measures identified
• Impact assessment-based recommendations making
• Consultations with relevant actors
• Monitoring the effects of the assessments realized and recommendations made

2. Improvement of Research and Analytical Practice in Serbia

Even though the importance of social sciences and humanities related to the development of economy, society and the state is often highlighted, that influence on reform changes in Serbian society is not yet visible and developed enough. The Holistic approach and multidisciplinary scientific and research teams are still rare in Serbia.

The research practice in social sciences in Serbia is not on the satisfactory level. In the Strategy of Scientific and Technological Development in the Republic of Serbia it is emphasized that social sciences and humanities should play the key role in defining strategies and policies, as well as the optimization of institutional functioning, human resources and management system improvement in line with the international experiences and achievements. At this moment in Serbia, researches have weak connections with the bearers of state policy and even with the civil servants. They rarely write about the most up-to-date topics for the state and they are rarely consulted during decision-making.

One of the significant priorities for the forthcoming period is the advancement of the research and analytical practice and cooperation between the decision-makers and the research community in the country in the function of evidence-based decision making.

Goals and directions of activities in this field:

• Development of incentive models contributing to active involvement of scientific and research community in realization of researches and assessments relevant for policy making;
• Development of models for presentation and promotion of research results presented in a simple language: (trainings for researchers focusing on communicating results of scientific projects to the general public including the decision-makers, civil society and the general public, etc.);
• Creating researcher and PIA expert database
• Supporting researchers so as to lobby and find necessary funds to conduct researches;
• Establishing regional cooperation and spreading good practice and joint use of resources (organization of regional meetings, developing recommendations for a more efficient use of databases by the decision-makers, thematic conferences, expert meetings, dissemination of good practices)
• Support for research projects of the researchers at the beginning of their career
• Support for the already-existing initiatives and projects enhancing research and analytical practice
• Establishing active cooperation with academic institutions
• Development and support for projects within EU concept of social innovation and social experimentation

3. Capacity Building for Policy Impact Assessment

A necessary resource for the improvement of evidence-based policy making includes strengthening of the function for assessment and coordination of government policies and capacity building of decision-makers, as well as of academic and research community for evidence-based policy making.

Goals and activity directions in this field:

• In cooperation with the Office for Human Resources Management, module development and support for training realization: Policy Impact Assessment; Public-Practical Policy Making; On-line course: Social Inclusion in Serbia; SRMOD– micro-simulation model.
• Realization of TAIEX EC funded seminars, intended for the training of high ranking public officials on evidence-based policy making;
• Compiling guidebooks for establishing participatory process for evidence-based decision-making within public administration;
• Establishing systems for monitoring and evaluation of effects of realized assessments on decision-making process.