The International Management Group (IMG) is an international organisation enjoying all privileges and immunities under international law established by 13 EU Member States (Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and The United Kingdom) plus Norway and Switzerland, which is financed with public funds for development cooperation.


IMG is a legal entity in its own merit and by its very nature is not for profit. Its Presidency is ensured by the Chairman of its Steering Committee and Government Support Group and is headed by a General Manager who acts in the capacity of executive director and oversees the implementation of all activities carried out by the Organisation.


IMG was established in 1994 to address the specific challenges faced by the international community for the reconstruction of Bosnia and Herzegovina. At the request of its members the mandate of the Organisation has been extended both in terms of geographic and sector coverage. The current mandate of IMG is to operate wherever its members request or direct it. IMG can intervene at all stages of the project cycle: identification, formulation, implementation and evaluation. Its main areas of expertise have been developed through significant projects in infrastructure, environment, energy, rural development, SME development, regional development, education and governance.


The experience it has gained in providing support to institutional and capacity building activities in developed countries, as well as the significant resources it can call upon, has given the organisation a skill set which it is sometimes called upon to apply also in specific post-crisis/post-conflict areas.


IMG has been assessed by the European Commission as meeting the criteria for so-called “Joint Management”, a mechanism whereby the European Commission entrusts some of its implementing tasks to an international organisation that complies with international standards in regard to accountancy, internal control, audit and procurement.


IMG has the possibility to work on a peer to peer basis using practitioners (civil servants from EU Member States) thanks to its privileged position with IMG members as well as to use experts provided through the European Platform of IMG Partners that includes public sectors bodies from EU 27 MS (network of institutions). In all of its projects, IMG associate the most qualified local expertise to pair the international experts in their mission.


IMG is currently implementing technical as well as institutional and capacity building projects to the value of EUR 50 million, financed by Norway, Sweden, Spain, Switzerland, Italy and the European Commission in both developed and developing countries.


In the Western Balkans, IMG is managing many projects in the field of institutional building in the areas of judicial reform, education, environmental policy, civil service reform and training, customs reform and policing.


In Serbia, a potential EU candidate country, IMG is undertaking a range of projects designed to support the authorities to reform their institutions and prepare for EU integration. These projects are spread across several ministries and include the following:
•    Support to the Unit for Aid Coordination of the Ministry of Finance to create an effective partnership for improved aid effectiveness.
•    Support to the Serbian Customs Administration through the introduction of a business intelligence system.
•    Improvement of the delivery of justice including a revision of existing juvenile law and its application.
•    Ongoing improvement of business procedures within the Ministry of the Interior
•    Capacity building to create an effective programming and management team at the Ministry of the Environment
•    Capacity building of occupational  safety and health experts through the enhanced application of EU and national health and safety standards


In Montenegro, an EU candidate country, IMG is working closely with the Ministry of Justice and the Higher Judicial Council on a comprehensive reform of the misdemeanour system and its application through the courts. This also includes expert support in the drafting or re-redrafting of legislation.


In the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, another EU candidate country, IMG has undertaken several projects aimed at supporting the country’s progress towards candidate status. These included support to a community-based approach to local policing, support to the education sector as well as a comprehensive programme for the management of its rich cultural heritage.


In the Peoples’ Republic of China, IMG has provided high-level expertise to assist in the drafting of comprehensive new legislation on the rights of the disabled. This married European know-how and experience with the specific needs and requirements of the Chinese to produce and have passed into law a completely new legal instrument.


In Uruguay, IMG has provided capacity building support to the Ministry of Health in public procurement policy and practice in order to take advantage of favourable credit lines for the purchase of medical equipment.
 

In the Lao Peoples’ Democratic Republic, IMG has worked closely with the Ministry of Health to establish a network of clinics countrywide to support the effective implementation of a new policy of pre and post-natal care. This was also supplemented by a localised programme of small scale economic development.


In Azerbaijan, under the framework of the European Neighbourhood Policy Instrument (ENPI), IMG will undertake a project to provide institutional and capacity building support to the Programme Administration Office at the Ministry of Economic Affairs to further develop their ability to access the resources provided through Twinning and TAIEX mechanisms.


In the Middle East, IMG is managing many projects in the field of institutional building in the areas of administrative and judicial reform, education, environmental policy, civil service reform and training.


In Lebanon, through the European MEDA programme IMG is providing expert technical support to the Lebanese authorities, CDR (Council for Development and Reconstruction) and OMSAR (Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform) for the preparation of projects for EU funding, design and supervision of projects financed with EU funds as well as a programme of training of local authorities on public procurement procedures for goods, works and services.


In the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, through the European Neighbourhood Partnership Instrument  (ENPI) IMG is working on institution building activities and reform, providing expert support to the Palestinian National Authority in the fields of private sector recovery, planning and project management for the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, support to the Ministry of Finance to manage infrastructure projects, provision of expert assistance to establish the State Auditors Office, support for establishing a rural development system, support for the development of the Customs Administration, environmental management as well as ad hoc support in many other sectors such as justice and policing, public procurement, public infrastructure and health.


In Haiti, financed through the European Instrument for Stability (IfS), IMG is managing an ambitious programme for strengthening the capacity of the Haitian Civil Protection Directorate (DPC) to establish and manage efficiently a national system of risk and natural disaster management. This programme is being implemented in partnership with the development cooperation body of the French Ministry of the Interior as well as the civil Protection Agencies from 5 EU member states.