1.2. institutional framework of twinning operations in armenia - PAO

GUIDELINES ON TWINNING INSTRUMENT FOR PROGRAMME ADMINISTRATION AGENCY
2.2. TWINNING IMPLEMENTATION STAGE
Project implementation starts on the day of receipt of a notification letter from the ECD to Armenia.
The RTA is supposed to arrive in the BC within three months from the day of notification 11 on
signature of the Twinning Contract.
Duration of a Twinning project may be from 12 to 24 months.
2.2.1. Official Launch of the Twinning Project
After arrival of the RTA to the BA, the preparation process of the official launch of the Twinning
project starts. The official launch of the project is organized to raise awareness among all Twinning
project stakeholders.
The official launch of the project is organized and financed jointly by the BA and the partner
administration from the EU MS.
Invitees to the official launch of the project are the stakeholders, including representatives of the
Government, the Secretariat of the President of Armenia, the National Assembly of Armenia, the
PAO, other governmental bodies, representatives of the partner state, the ECD to Armenia, Non
Governmental Organizations, mass media, etc.
Kick-off meeting:
The Kick-off meeting is organized a few weeks after the arrival of the RTA. The scope of the
meeting, which is convened by the Twinning partners, is to formally launch the project. At the same
time, it is an opportunity to hold the first official gathering of the main project stakeholders, and to
set “a baseline” – starting position of a project.
Because PAO is the central point of communication between the EC and the BAs and between the
MS Administrations and the BAs, it is of paramount importance that PAO is involved from the
launching of the activities of a given Twinning project. In practical terms, this means that PAO has
to participate actively in the preparation of the Kick-off meeting, together with the BA and with the
chosen EU Partner MS(s) representatives who will represent the chosen EU MS Consortium which
will be implementing the Twinning project. The Kick-off meeting also gives the PAO Director and
staff members an occasion to make the acquaintance of the Twinned administrations, to know
“who’s who”, because very often key experts from EU MS participate in the official Kick-off meeting
in Armenia, and the list of officials is not limited to just the EU MS Team Leader and the RTA. Key
experts in charge of some important parts of the implementation of the Twinning project may also
participate in this very important event.
2.2.2. Implementation of the events/components under a Twinning project
For the purpose of monitoring the implementation of the Twinning project, making
recommendations and finding solutions to the problems that have arisen during the
implementation, a Steering Committee shall be established for each Twinning project. The
Committee shall be comprised of Project Leaders, BC RTA, MS RTA, the PAO representative and
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