Kalium Bank Governance Hierarchy — Roles, Responsibilities & Reporting

Version: 1.0
Core Purpose: This document is to outline the governance-orientated hierarchical model adopted by the Kalium Bank and associated Kalium DAO. Within this document a nonexhaustive collective map is layed out of of the respective tiers, roles, responsibilities, decision authorities, advisory structures, and a section on autonomous projects / administrative collectives (i.e., specialised agencies or funds) operating under the Kalium governance umbrella.

Table of contents

1. Overview & Kalium Bank Governance Principles
2. Tier-by-tier governance structure & responsibilities¹
   • Tier $\alpha$: Kalium DAO - The Constituent Assembly / Plenary Body
   • Tier $\beta$: Kalium DAO Administration - The Independent Governing Council / Executive Board
   • Tier $\gamma$: Secretary-General & Chief Executive Staff
   • Tier $\delta$: Senior Secretariat Leadership
   • Tier $\epsilon$: Functional Departments & Technical Bureaus
   • Tier $\zeta$: Regional/Field Offices & Resident Representatives
   • Tier $\eta$: Programme Offices / Projects / Administrative Collectives
3. Hireachical Map — Governance Lines, Advisory Bodies & Reporting
4. Decision authorities, mandate scopes & delegated powers
5. Advisory & oversight mechanisms (committees, panels, ombudsperson)
6. RACI breakdown of Kalium governance processes
7. Escalation, dispute resolution & intergovernmental coordination
8. Integration of autonomous Projects / Administrative Collectives

1. Overview & Kalium Bank Governance Principles

This model focuses on the Kalium Bank governance principals. It is designed to define and ensure an organisational structure where member constituencies have the outright power to set strategic mandates, official approvals, and hold an executive secretariat to account.

Core governance principles:

• Representative Authority: Kalium DAO and associated members collectively define the mandate and approve major decisions.
• Separation of Governance and Management: Elected or appointed governance bodies define policy and oversight; an appointed executive implements and manages operations.
• Subsidiarity & Autonomy: Technical programmes and specialised collectives operate with operational autonomy within mandates granted by governance.
• Transparency & Accountability: decision-making, budgets, and audit mechanisms are explicit and reported to the Kalium DAO membership to ensure transparency and alignment between organisations.

2. Tier-by-tier governance structure & responsibilities

Each Tier lists title variants, primary purpose, key responsibilities, accountability, decision scope, typical committees/advisors, and examples of escalation triggers.

Tier $\alpha$: Kalium DAO — Constituent Assembly / Plenary Body

Equivalent Title variants: Assembly of Members / Plenary / General Conference

Purpose: The supreme decision-making body composed of all constituent Kalium DAO members. The responsibility is to approve and elect on the Kalium Bank’s proposed mandates, strategic framework, budgets and spending, election of members to the Governing Council, and ratifies key conventions and statutes.

Key responsibilities:

• Define and amend the constitution/charter and core mandates.
• Adopt the organisation-wide strategic plan and biennial/multi-year budget.
• Provide the initial financing and capital provisions for the sustained operation of the Kalium Bank and associated subsidiaries.
• Elect or appoint members to the Governing Council or Executive Board.
• Receive high-level reports (annual report, audited financial statements, high-level evaluation summaries).

Accountability & decision scope: Final authority on mandate changes, major treaty actions, approval of the consolidated budget and host-state agreements.

Escalation triggers: Fundamental mandate disputes, membership expulsions/suspensions, treaty ratification decisions.

Tier $\beta$: Kalium DAO Administration - Governing Council / Executive Board

Equivalent Title variants: Governing Council / Administrative Committee

Purpose: Elected or regionally designated representatives who act as the governing oversight body between plenary sessions. Responsible for oversight, strategic guidance, efficient relational coherence between Kalium DAO and Kalium Bank, oversight of budget implementation, and the enforcement of all mandates passed by the plenary.

Key responsibilities:

• Provide strategic guidance and oversight between plenary meetings.
• Approve work plans, programme-level budgets, and significant policy positions within plenary-approved mandate.
• Releases funds to the delegated subsidiary when and if approved by the Kalium DAO.
• Ensuring the safe guarding and upholding of the Kalium Governance and Operational Principals.
• Supervise the performance of the executive secretariat and recommend senior executive appointments to the plenary if required.

Accountability & decision scope: Accountable to the Kalium DAO; may have authority to approve mid-range budget reallocations, appoint special committees, and mandate evaluations.

Escalation triggers: Executive non-performance, material audit findings, contested interpretation of mandate requiring Kalium DAO guidance.

Tier $\gamma$: Secretary-General & Chief Executive Staff

Equivalent Title variants: Secretary-General / Director General / Executive Secretary / Chief Executive Staff

Purpose: The senior appointed official bodies² of the Kalium Bank responsible for implementing the decisions of the Kalium DAO and Kalium DAO Administration and for the day-to-day direction and orchestration of the secretariat.

Key responsibilities:

• Execute the mandate set by the Kalium DAO and manage the secretariat’s delivery of programmes and services.
• Serve as the primary representative in political or diplomatic engagements and signatory for implementing instruments within delegated authority.
• Make senior appointments within the secretariat as authorised and propose senior leadership appointments to the Administrative Committee or Plenary when required.

Accountability & decision scope: Accountable to the Administrative Committee and Plenary; has delegated authority for operational decisions, emergency responses, and implementing approved budgets within the Delegation of Authority (DoA) limits.

Escalation triggers: Strategic crises requiring member guidance, major breaches of mandate, large emergency resource mobilisations requiring Kalium DAO approval.

Tier $\delta$: Senior Secretariat Leadership

Equivalent Title variants: Deputy Executive / Under-Secretary / Directors of Secretariat

Purpose: Senior management team that organises the secretariat’s functional architecture, ensures policy coherence, and coordinates inter-departmental delivery.

Key responsibilities:

• Translate governance mandates into institutional policy, staffing, budget allocations and operational directives.
• Lead cross-functional coordination (for example: programme delivery, finance, legal, human resources, and external relations).
• Provide regular briefings and required documentation for the Kalium DAO Administratin and Kalium DAO.
• Acting as senior quartermaster in manging allocated resources issued by the Governing Council.

Accountability & decision scope: Accountable to the Chief Executive Staff; authorised to make medium-level operational decisions within delegated limits and implement policies set by governance.

Escalation triggers: Disputed technical interpretations of policy, cross-departmental resource conflicts, systemic compliance failures.

Tier $\epsilon$: Functional Departments & Technical Bureaus

Title variants: Bureaus / Technical Departments / Offices

Purpose: Deliver technical work, standards, programmes and services aligned to the organisation’s mandate (e.g., normative work, capacity building, technical assistance, regulatory standards).

Key responsibilities:

• Design and execute programmes, develop normative guidance, produce technical reports, and deliver capacity building to stakeholders.
• Manage specialised teams of experts, maintain technical partnerships and oversee programme-level budgets under governance-approved mandates.

Accountability & decision scope: Accountable to Directors of Secretariat; may have delegated authority to enter into technical partnerships, implement grants, and manage programme budgets within thresholds.

Escalation triggers: Technical disagreements requiring governance clarification, major programme non-compliance, requests for mandate extension by projects.

Tier $\zeta$: Regional / Field Offices & Resident Representatives

Title variants: Regional Office / Field Office / Resident Representative / Head of Office

Purpose: Localised presence to execute programmes, engage members and partners in the field, and coordinate with host governments and stakeholders.

Key responsibilities:

• Implement regional specific programmes, maintain relationships with host authorities, manage local staff and ensure compliance with local Kalium Bank policies.
• Provide regional reporting to central secretariat and advise on local risks or opportunities.

Accountability & decision scope: Operationally accountable to relevant Directors and Resident Representative reports to the Chief Executive Staff; authorised for country-level resource allocation within DoA, and local operational decisions.

Escalation triggers: Security incidents, host-government disputes, major funding shortfalls affecting local operations.

Tier $\eta$ — Programme Offices / Projects / Administrative Collectives

Title variants: Specialised Agencies / Programme Funds / Administrative Collectives / Project Offices

Purpose: Semi-autonomous entities or projects established under the umbrella of the Kalium Bank to deliver specialised mandates (technical programmes, humanitarian operations, normative standard-setting, large funds). They can be legally and financially semi-autonomous while remaining politically accountable to the Secretary-General.

Key responsibilities:

• Manage programme-specific strategy, fundraising, technical delivery and partnership networks within the mandate and policies set by General Conference.
• Report on performance to both the central secretariat and directly to designated oversight committees or Governing Council sub-committees.

Governance relationship & accountability: These collectives typically have a dual accountability line: operational reporting to their own governing board or steering committee and political/accountability reporting to the organisation’s Governing Council or to designated committee(s). Their budgets and strategic frameworks usually need endorsement by the central governance bodies.

Escalation triggers: Misalignment between collective’s activity and the central mandate, financial irregularities, requests for mission expansion beyond original mandate.

3. Hierarchical Map — Governance Lines, Advisory Bodies & Reporting

The flowchart below emphasises governance (solid lines) and reporting/advisory (dotted lines). Plenary sits at the top as the sovereign decision-maker.

flowchart TB
  subgraph Plenary / Assembly of Members
    P["**Kalium DAO**
(Supreme decision-making body)"]
  end

  GC["**Kalium DAO Administration**
(General Council Appointed Representatives)"]
  SG["**Secretary-General & Chief Executive**"]
  SL["**Senior Secretariat Leadership**
(Deputies & Directors)"]
  FB["**Functional Bureaus / Technical Departments**"]
  RO["**Regional / Field Offices**
(Resident Representatives)"]
  PC["**Programme Offices / Administrative Collectives**
(Autonomous/ Semi-autonomous)"]
  AC["**Advisory Committees**"]
  AC_tech["Technical"]
  AC_dip["Diplomatic"]
  AC_sci["Scientific"]
  AC_mgr["Managerial"]
  AC_fin["Financial"]

  AC --> AC_tech
  AC --> AC_dip
  AC --> AC_sci
  AC --> AC_mgr
  AC --> AC_fin

  %% Solid governance lines
  P -->|elects/mandates| GC
  P -->|approves charter & budgets| SG
  GC -->|appoints & oversees| SG
  SG -->|manages| SL
  SL -->|directs| FB
  FB -->|implements| RO
  PC -->|reports to| GC
  PC -->|reports operationally to| SL

  %% Dotted advisory/oversight lines
  AC -.-> SG
  AC -.-> FB
  RO -.-> AC

  classDef gov fill:#f3f7ff,stroke:#333,stroke-width:1px;
  class P,GC gov;

Diagram notes:

• Programme Offices / Administrative Collectives may have their own steering boards and legal structures; the chart shows their dual-reporting nature.
• Advisory bodies provide independent technical recommendations (dotted lines).
• Independent Auditor and Ethics Office report to the Governing Council and Plenary for impartial oversight.

4. Decision authorities, mandate scopes & delegated powers

Provide clear definitions of what governance bodies decide vs. what the Secretariat can execute. Example categories:

• Plenary-level decisions (reserved): amendments to charter, approval of consolidated budgets, admission/suspension of members, major treaty/adoption decisions.
• Governing Council decisions: endorse multi-year strategic plans, approve programme-level budgets within the plenary budget envelope, mandate evaluations.
• Chief Executive Staff / Secretariat powers: implement approved plans, deploy operational reserves in emergencies (within DoA limits), sign agreements for programme delivery within delegated thresholds.
• Functional Bureau authority: technical programme implementation, grant management within thresholds, partner MOUs for delivery of technical assistance.

Each delegation must be captured in a formal Delegation of Authority table (DoA) attached to the charter / governance manual.

5. Advisory & oversight mechanisms

Common governance best-practice implemented to separate advisory/conflict-resolution roles from executive action.

Additional oversight/advisory bodies:

• Audit & Finance Committee: oversight of financial integrity, audit reports and risk registers.
• Programme & Evaluation Committee: reviews major evaluations and programme performance.
• Ethics / Safeguarding Office: independent office with confidential reporting channels.
• Scientific / Technical Advisory Panel: provides independent technical advice on normative work.
• Logistic Advisory Panel: provides independent managerial, logistiic, diplomatic and other operational level assistance and support.

Ombudsperson / Mediation: an independent officer or panel to handle disputes between members and the Secretariat or inter-member disputes.

6. RACI breakdown of Kalium governance processes

Outlines is the genealised RACI focusing on governance activities and operational execution of Kalium mandate classes.

Key: R = Responsible, A = Accountable, C = Consulted, I = Informed, # = Variable/Dependent on Topic

Examples of various mandates classes and instances: Class 1: Charter amendments, Kalium DAO issued mandates, urgent orders and requests. Class 2: Approval of consolidated budget, Modifications to risk management strategy, changes to global operational strategy. Class 3: Appointment of Executive Staff, amendments to operational/organisational structure, mandates on beneficiaries and payments Class 4: Mandate new Programme Office, implementation of new projects and targets Class 5: Commission external evaluation, approval of projects and credits, project level validation and approval. Class 6: Emergency fund release, execution of short term strategic decisions, issuance of dispute resolutions. Class 7: Other non specified classes

7. Escalation, dispute resolution & intergovernmental coordination

Escalation ladder (governance focus):

1. Programme Office ↔ Regional Office (local issue resolution)
2. Regional Office → Secretariat Directorate (for policy or operational conflicts)
3. Secretariat Directorate → Chief Executive Staff (if unresolved or strategic)
4. Chief Executive → Administrative Committee (if legal/strategic/financial threshold breached)
5. Administrative Committee → Kalium DAO (for constitutional/mandate decisions)

Dispute resolution mechanisms:

• Use mediation panels or Ombudsperson for staff-member or member-state disputes.
• Use independent external reviews for technical or programmatic disputes.
• Require formal advisories for cross-cutting mandate questions prior to expansion of activities.

8. Integration of autonomous Projects / Administrative Collectives

This section explains how semi-autonomous entities relate to the Kalium Bank governance hierarchy and the controls used to maintain coherence across the system.

Design patterns for collectives:

• Mandated Special Programme: Created by Kalium DAO or Kalium DAO Administration with a specific mandate, budget and performance indicators. May have its own intra-collective board but remains politically accountable to the main Governing Council.
• Dedicated Fiduciary Allotments: Financial mechanism established to gather voluntary contributions for a specific purpose; managed by appointed Secretariat fiduciary staff with oversight by a donor advisory board and reporting to the Governing Council.
• Specialised Technical Agency: Operates with legal autonomy and a dedicated board, but subject to a regular reporting and review cycle by the Kalium DAO or Administrative Committee.

Control & coherence mechanisms:

• Mandate letters that define scope, budget envelope, reporting cadence and evaluation triggers.
• Periodic joint reviews and audits.
• Clear naming / branding rules to avoid misrepresentation of the central organisation.

Reporting cadence: Quarterly operational reports to Secretariat; bi-annual or annual reports to Governing Council; repeated comprehensive evaluation.

End of document — Governance Hierarchy v1.0