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In the framework of a long-term support project with the Ministry of Finance (MoF) of Gabon, the DMFAS Programme organized two online training workshops in last quarter of 2021. A tailored one-week online training for IT personnel took place from 8 to 12 November 2021, and a two-week workshop on basic DMFAS 6 functionalities, designed specifically for new staff, was delivered from the 7 to 21 of December 2021.
This long-term, ambitious support project and is aimed at strengthening capacities in debt management and continuous learning in the Gabonese debt management office. The two workshops marked the restart of activities after the project schedule was affected by the COVID-19 Crisis.
The support of the Gabonese authorities, in particular of Mr. N. Mayangah, Ms. L. Ongaye and Mr. S. Ngoua, was instrumental in ensuring that all necessary arrangements were made to support and organize the online training.
Despite initial concerns from the MoF on the organization of online activities (e.g. technical challenges, connection), both activities took place smoothly with the effective support of the DMFAS helpdesk and the local database administrator, Mr. S. Olloury.
Creation of a training database
This success is also due to the implementation of a training database designed for creating a controlled environment for learning. This database, set up by local IT staff, contains a mix of sample instruments per module and was used by participants for completing exercises at the end of each session which greatly facilitated practical sessions.
DMFAS IT training on software functionalities
Providing effective IT support to users is key and the role of the IT staff is to support DMFAS users in detecting and solving possible technical issues. In the IT training developers were trained in the basic functionalities of the DMFAS software to better anticipate issues that may impact the integration of the debt database with the other systems.
During the activity, fifteen IT staff of the MoF were trained on the DMFAS software and the basic concepts of debt management. Despite the course addressing some public finance concepts IT staff were not previously familiar with, they welcomed it and participated actively. They scored well on the quizzes demonstrating a high level of interest and capacity on a topic not traditionally taught to IT staff.
Basic DMFAS training online
The second online training was organized for debt managers that were new to the DMFAS software. Nineteen participants attended this online activity which covered all the DMFAS modules. After each session, participants applied their lessons to practical sessions on the training database, allowing participants to familiarize themselves with all the procedures and basic reporting using DMFAS. They were also trained on the use of the Trac system to better communicate with the DMFAS helpdesk in Geneva.
Thanks to the commitment of all participants and technical staff, this successful online training will continue with intermediate level activities expected to start in May 2022.
Mr. Andres Blondet, DMFAS trainer, provided examples for each DMFAS 6 module.