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The PCNA Guidelines (comprised of two documents The Practical Guide for Multilateral Needs Assessments in Post-Conflict Situations and The Operational Note on Transitional Results Matrices) were developed jointly by the UNDG, UNDP and the World Bank and with support from GTZ based on needs assessments in Afghanistan, Iraq and Liberia. It was finalized and disseminated to UNCTs between 2004 and 2005. Since then, PCNAs have been completed in Haiti and Sudan and initiated in Somalia and Darfur. Following these recent evolutions of the PCNA, and a UN/Bank Roundtable on PCNAs held in December 2005, it became clear that there was a need for a review and revision of the available guidance to incorporate lessons and best practices to improve future PCNA exercises. The PCNA Review, conducted in 2006, identified gaps that must be filled in the PCNA guidance in order to meet strategic challenges.

The PCNA Guidelines have since been revised into a common Guidance Note on PCNAs and TRFs, which aims to combine the key elements of the two original documents (the PCNA Practical Guide and TRF Operational Note) to provide a clearer, more articulate link between the assessment process and the strategic and selective results framework that emerges from it. The Joint Guidance Note is available online with the expectation that revisions will continue with additional consultations and practical application in the field. The Joint Guidance Note is accompanied by an electronic PCNA Toolkit (still being finalized), that will be available online and on CDs, with specific guidance to cluster leaders and secretariats, including lessons learned, practical templates and TORs.

For more information, please contact Ana Maria Hermoso.

In December 2005, a series of PCNA Roundtables were held for the UN and WB to begin to capture the key best practices and lessons learned from the past three years of PCNAs. The Roundtable proposed a joint programme of work to improve the way that PCNAs are carried out and followed-through, including the way the prioritized needs identified in the Transitional Results Framework are implemented. Included in this joint work plan was the need for a review process of the recent experience with PCNAs to better understand their inputs and their outcomes, and improve upon existing tools and practice. The UN/WB PCNA Review took place in two phases between June-December 2006 and completed its Report in January 2007. Further work is currently ongoing related to supporting the PCNA process is  currently ongoing with financial support from both the European Commission and UNDOCO.