12 Payment Methods and Financial Control
3) any other such documents as may have been agreed upon by CIDA and the EA.
12.4 Financial Control
CIDA must keep financial records for the purposes of budgeting, project management and reporting to parliament.
When responsible for project procurement, an EA must control the procurement budget and send CIDA financial reports on a regular basis. An EA must keep an accurate record of commitments, disbursements and balances. CIDA must reconcile these accounts to ensure that project funds and any PWGSC delegation authorities are not exceeded.
As detailed in the PWGSC/CIDA MOU, when procurement is the responsibility of the Government of Canada, CIDA must maintain "Direction and Control" over any EA which it has selected to assist with the procurement process. This is normally accomplished with a detailed Procurement Plan (see chapter 3) to which CIDA has approved and/or the specific services contract under which the EA has been selected.
12.5 Advance Payments to RCs and Eas
Section 4.5 discusses CIDA's policy on advance payments. If certain preconditions exist, such as adequate financial security for payment, receipt of value commensurate to the payment, adequate funding, etc., then CIDA may make advance payments.
Advance cash payments to the government of a RC or to EAs designated by the government of the RC and agreed to by Canada for procurement of commodities, goods and services must be:
1) restricted to a limit of $500,000 for each individual advance;
2) restricted so the total value of advances outstanding at any one time does not exceed
$1,000,000;
3) conditional on submission of quarterly of more frequent financial statements acceptable in form and content to CIDA, indicating disbursements made against such advance payments together with any other information CIDA may require;
4) in accordance with CIDA's Advance Payments Policy. Refer to section 4.5; and 5) limited in total to a sum not exceeding the total cost of the procurement authorized.
CIDA's project team should provide EAs with details concerning advances on a project-by-project basis.
Finally, whatever type of payment method or financial control mechanism selected should be reviewed with a Financial Management Advisor (FMA) for review to ensure compliance with the
Financial Administration Act.
13 Reporting 13.1 General
Reports are required throughout the duration of CIDA aid projects. The type, frequency and format of reports required from EAs must be specified in their contracts, and should be established at the start of a project. These reports may be required both by CIDA and Rcs.
This chapter addresses those project reports that contain procurement related issues.
13.2 Types of Reports
There are basically five types of project reports that may contain sections addressing procurement activities:
1) Inception Reports (Refer to section 13.3.);
2) Periodic or Progress Reports (Refer to section 13.4.);
3) Reports on PWGSC Delegated Procurement (Refer to section 13.5.);
4) End of Project Reports (Refer to section 13.6.); and 5) Exception Reports (Refer to section 13.7.).
13.3 Inception Reports
An Inception Report details how an EA intends to fulfill its mandate. A detailed Procurement Plan (refer to chapter 3) should form part of an Inception Report.
13.4 Periodic or Progress Reports
Periodic or progress reports are usually required on a monthly or quarterly basis. In addition to reporting on the progress of a project in general, these reports should include details on the status of project procurement relative to the last reporting period. Any procurement problems and solutions (either implemented or proposed) should be mentioned in these reports. Reports should set out the procurement activities and goals for the period leading up to the next periodic report.
Related to the need for periodic reports is the requirement for quarterly financial statements on the status of any advance payments given by CIDA . The statements must indicate any disbursements made against these advance payments. Refer to section 12.5 for more information on advance payments.
13.5 Reporting on PWGSC Delegated Procurement
When procurement authority has been delegated to CIDA by Public Works and Government Services
Canada (PWGSC), the procurement, whether it is conducted by CIDA itself or with assistance of an EA, is the responsibility of CIDA - CIDA is accountable. All procurement activities including the methodology, the dollar values and types of purchases made, including transportation and related services, have to be documented in order to report to PWGSC on a regular basis according to the requirements of the PWGSC/CIDA MOU. As a result of this, an EA must undertake to maintain detailed written records of the activities undertaken on CIDA's behalf.
Section 2.2.2 addresses PWGSC's goods delegation to CIDA.
Reporting requirements on PWGSC delegations are currently being reviewed by CIDA and PWGSC.
13.6 End of Project Report
At the termination of a project, an End of Project Report must be submitted to CIDA and the RC.
This report should reflect the success or shortfall of each activity identified in the procurement plan, and should elaborate on experiences that might benefit future projects of a similar nature. It should also include an assessment of supplier performance, as well as an assessment of the suitability of goods and services provided. The report should also contain copies of documentation provided under acceptance and handover procedures (refer to chapters 11 and 15 for details).
Finally, an End of Project Report must confirm that all items purchased have been accounted for.
Goods must be shown to have been either consumed during the project or are now in the possession of a RC designated authority. These goods may have been received directly from suppliers or given to a RC through a formal handover process. (Refer to chapter 15 for more details concerning the formal handover process).
13.7 Exception Reports
There may be instances where special or emergency reports are needed. The requirement for such a report may come from CIDA, a RC, or even from an EA who considers that a situation warrants it.
This type of report usually addresses a particular subject or concern that requires immediate consideration. This may, for example, be a proposed change to a procurement plan or a loss or damage of goods during transit. Procurement activities or procedures that are different from those approved in procurement plans must be brought to the attention of CIDA for approval before any action is taken.
14 Inventory Management Responsibilities