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October
3,
2001
His Excellency
Dr. Francisco Oviedo Br
ítez
Minister of Finance
Ministry of Finance
Asunción, Paraguay
Re:
Japanese Grant for the preparation of the Secondary Education 
Project Grant No. TF026846
Excellency:
I am writing on behalf of the International Bank for Reconstruction and
Development
(the Bank) to indicate the Bank’s agreement, as administrator of grant 
funds provided by Japan, to make a grant in an amount not exceeding five hundred forty
thousand U.S. Dollars (US$540,000) (the Grant) to the Republic of Paraguay (the 
Recipient).
The Grant is made in response to the Recipient’s request for financial 
assistance and for the purposes and on the terms and conditions set forth in the Annex
to this Letter Agreement.
The Recipient hereby confirms its request that the Bank
carry out the activities described in paragraph
1
of the Annex to this Letter
Agreement, and represents that it is authorized to contract the Grant for the said
purposes and on the said terms and conditions.
Please confirm your agreement with the foregoing, on behalf of the Recipient, by
signing, dating, and returning to us the enclosed copy of this Letter Agreement.
Upon
receipt by the Bank of the copy of this Letter Agreement countersigned by you, this
Letter Agreement will become effective as of the date of the countersignature.
Very truly yours,
INTERNATIONAL BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION
AND DEVELOPMENT
By
/s/
Myrna L.
Alexander
Director
Country Management Unit
Argentina, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay
Latin America and the Caribbean Region
AGREED:
REPUBLIC OF PARAGUAY
By
/s/
Francisco Oviedo Britez
Date:
October 19, 2001
ANNEX
Purposes, Terms and Conditions of the Grant
1.
The purpose of the Grant is to assist the Recipient in the preparation of the 
Secondary Education Reform Project, which has as its main objective to support a
comprehensive secondary education reform program
(the Project).
The activities
(the
Activities) for which the Grant is given are as follows:
(a)
Comparative Analysis of Secondary Education Alternatives:
(i)
Carrying out of an assessment of options for the Recipient’s 
secondary education reform, including: (A) presentation of diverse 
options being used successfully in similar countries;
(B) 
coordination of the debate of said options; and
(C)
support to the
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Recipient
’
s Ministry of Education
(
MOE
)
in making key decisions
regarding the secondary education reform strategy; and
(ii)
provision of technical assistance to MOE
’s Planning and Statistics
Department to introduce new statistical models to gauge the cost
effectiveness and efficiency of options for the education system
(these activities are estimated to cost US$82,840 equivalent).
(b)
Curriculum Development:
(i)
Design and preparation of an enhanced educational curriculum for 
the Recipient; and
(ii)
design and preparation of a more validated program for 
professional studies in line with the Recipient’s General 
Education Law, through: (A) the provision of international 
consultants;
(B) the analysis of similar programs being used in 
other countries; and
(C) the selection of areas in which said 
program will be implemented
(these activities are estimated to
cost US$166,900
equivalent).
(c)
Institutional Reorganization:
(i)
Carrying out of an assessment of MOE’s current organizational 
structures and hiring practices; and
(ii)
design and preparation of an institutional plan for MOE, in line 
with the Recipient’s education reform program (these activities 
are estimated to cost US$147,600 equivalent).
(d)
Training Programs for Human Resources:
Design of an enhanced training program to fulfill the Project’s objectives based
on:
(i)
An assessment of current and future training needs, including the 
procurement of logistics to carry out nationwide workshops to
gather consensus; and
(ii)
the assessment of programs offered by the Recipient’s Institute 
for Superior Education
(ISE) (these activities are estimated to 
cost US$76,840
equivalent).
(e)
Social Communication Plan:
Design and preparation of a national communication campaign to disseminate
information regarding the secondary education reform program
(these activities are
estimated to cost US$44,220 equivalent).
(f)
Technical Coordination of Information:
Provision of technical assistance to:
(i)
Organize an appropriate database to store statistical data and 
reports;
(ii)
elaborate plans and norms to share information and documentation;
(iii)
establish security measures to prevent loss of data; and
(iv)
design appropriate format for Project related documents (these 
activities are estimated to cost US$21,600 equivalent).
2.
The Grant shall be used to finance consultants’ services (US$521,600 equivalent) 
and workshops
(US$18,400 equivalent) required for the Activities.
3.
The Bank shall carry out the Activities on behalf of the Recipient.
The
Recipient shall cooperate with the Bank to the extent necessary to permit the Bank to
carry out the Activities promptly and effectively, and to evaluate the results of the
Activities.
The Recipient shall indemnify the Bank against any costs or liabilities
incurred by the Bank as a result of claims against the Bank in connection with the
Activities, except those resulting from the gross negligence or willful misconduct of
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its staff or external consultants
.
4.
The Activities shall be completed by not later than September 10, 2002, or such 
later date as the Bank may establish by notice to the Recipient
(the Closing Date).
Except in special circumstances, no proceeds of the Grant shall be used to fund
Activities after Bank approval of financing for the Project, and the Closing Date
shall not be extended beyond the expected date of such approval.
After the Closing
Date, the Bank may at any time cancel the remaining balance of the Grant.
5.
The engagement and supervision of the consultants (the Consultants) required to 
assist in the carrying out of the Activities shall be the responsibility solely of the
Bank and shall be governed, except as otherwise decided by the Bank by the provisions
of the Attachment to this Annex.
6.
The Recipient shall be responsible for the payment of any taxes levied by, or in 
the territory of, the Recipient on the Consultants or any of the Consultants
’
personnel
(other than nationals or permanent residents thereof)
in connection with the
Activities.
7.
The Recipient may at any time request the Bank in writing to terminate the 
Activities. Whether or not the Recipient has made such a request, the Bank may at any 
time suspend or, after consultation with the Recipient, terminate the right of the
Recipient to receive Grant funds for the Activities if any of the following events has
occurred and is continuing: (a) the Recipient has failed to perform any of its 
obligations under this Letter Agreement; or
(b)
the right of the Recipient, or any
other entity to which the Bank has made a loan with the guarantee of the
Recipient, to
make withdrawals under any loan agreement with the Bank or any development credit
agreement with the International Development Association shall have been suspended.
The Bank may also terminate the right of the Recipient to receive Grant funds if: (a) 
the Bank has decided, at any time after consultation with the Recipient, to withdraw
its support to the Project; or
(b) the Recipient has withdrawn its request for the 
Bank’s assistance in the financing of the Project. 
8.
The Bank is not an agent of, or trustee for, the Recipient and shall not have 
any fiduciary relationship with the Recipient.
The Recipient shall have no right to
any portion of the Grant that is not expended by the Bank pursuant to this Letter
Agreement.
Attachment
Consultants' Services
1.
Consultants' services shall be procured in accordance with the relevant 
provisions of Statement
15.00 of the Bank's Administrative Manual, dated November 2000 
(the Administrative Manual), the "Guidelines: Selection and Employment of Consultants 
by World Bank Borrowers" published by the Bank in January 1997 and revised in 
September
1997
and January
1999
(the Consultant Guidelines) and the following 
provisions of this Attachment.
2.
Services rendered by consulting firms for the Activities under paragraph 1 of 
the Annex to this Letter Agreement may be procured under contracts awarded in
accordance with the provisions of paragraphs
3.1
and
3.7
of the Consultant Guidelines
(Selection Based on Consultants' Qualifications).
3.
Services rendered by consulting firms for the Activities described under 
paragraph
1
of the Annex to this Letter Agreement may be procured under contracts
awarded in accordance with the provisions of Section II of the Consultant Guidelines
applicable to Quality- and Cost-based Selection of Consultants.
4.
Services rendered by consulting firms for the Activities described under 
paragraph
1
of the Annex to this Letter Agreement may be procured under contracts
awarded in accordance with the provisions of paragraph
3.6 of the Consultant 
Guidelines
(Least-Cost Selection).
5.
Services rendered by individual consultants for the Activities under paragraph 1 
of the Annex to this Letter Agreement shall be procured under contracts awarded to
individual consultants in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs
5.1 through 5.3 
of the Consultant Guidelines.
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