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Community activism

LESSON

Lesson Learned: Campagne d’Education au respect des Principes Démocratiques et Promotion du dialogue Démocratique au Burundi

The project strategy assessed the needs of municipal elected councillors’ through a survey. Based on this the project undertook trainings, meetings, and debates amongst political leaders and Parliamentarians. The project also translated the Electoral Code into Kirundi from French to make it more accessible to citizens. This activity was not foreseen in the project document. The project aimed to propose improvements to the electoral code however, the electoral code was already modified by the authorities and agreed political parties when the project started.
Project Partner
Coalition de la Société civile pour le Monitoring Electoral
Project Description
This project was focused on the preparations for the general election planned for 2015 in Burundi. The project’s objective was to empower local councilors in the Municipality of Bujumbura, leaders of political parties and parliamentarians and educate them regarding the importance of democratic culture within the political bodies and to create dialogue between political leaders so as to build a climate of trust and cooperation in the 2015 general elections.
Evaluation Date
November 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Campagne d’Education au respect des Principes Démocratiques et Promotion du dialogue Démocratique au Burundi

The grantee did not differentiate between political leaders and elected members when targeting participants. All elected members are not always political leaders and vice versa. The grantee did not take into account the pyramidal structure of political parties in Burundi in which only few people decide for all members. Interviewees’ comments showed that beneficiaries do not consider themselves as autonomous political actors who can activate internal changes within their own political parties. The change of beneficiaries’ perceptions is essentially individual opinions, which are not able to have an impact on political parties’ practices.
Project Partner
Coalition de la Société civile pour le Monitoring Electoral
Project Description
This project was focused on the preparations for the general election planned for 2015 in Burundi. The project’s objective was to empower local councilors in the Municipality of Bujumbura, leaders of political parties and parliamentarians and educate them regarding the importance of democratic culture within the political bodies and to create dialogue between political leaders so as to build a climate of trust and cooperation in the 2015 general elections.
Evaluation Date
November 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Representation and political participation of five urban indigenous populations in Santa Cruz de la Sierra

The project had important sustainability components. The grantee’s track record and competence in fighting for respect for the rights of indigenous peoples, especially in urban environments, have given it credibility in the eyes of its public and private stakeholders.
Project Partner
Apoyo Para el Campesino - indígena del Oriente Boliviano
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Representation and political participation of five urban indigenous populations in Santa Cruz de la Sierra

Well-established indigenous organizations displayed some resistance to the founding of the grantee’s network, which was to serve as an umbrella group for all urban indigenous organizations.
Project Partner
Apoyo Para el Campesino - indígena del Oriente Boliviano
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Empowering Civil Society Groups to Promote Social Accountability

The project worked constructively to draw attention to deficiencies in governance in Papua, and contributed to building a broader awareness of social accountability and what it entails. There was potential for the project to have a catalytic effect. As the grantee represented a highly-credible, mainstream Indonesian policy research institution, it would have been in a position to facilitate dialogue between government and civil society in Papua in a way that locally-based organizations might find more difficult. Had it managed to secure additional funding, lessons learned from the project could have represented a beginning rather than an end.
Project Partner
Centre for Strategic and International Studies
Project Description
The overall goal of the project was to improve governance in Papua, Indonesia. Specifically, it focused on developing and implementing a practical strategy to build a forum for civil society organizations where civil society could develop skills in social accountability and promote accountability and transparency of the provincial and city governments. Given the deep suspicion of civil society on the part of government in Papua, the intention of the project was to establish the CSO Forum as a legitimate body in the eyes of both decision-makers and the public. Training was provided to all stakeholders – including government officials and a series of dialogue sessions was also organized. However, gaps in the initial baseline analysis and stakeholder consultations, along with a decision to implement the project without a local partner, reduced the project’s relevance to the Papuan context and the needs of beneficiaries. Eight visits to Papua over a two-year period by members of the Jakarta-based project team limited opportunities for contact between the visiting team and beneficiaries, and a lack of continuity across activities restricted what the project was able to accomplish.
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Empowering Civil Society Groups to Promote Social Accountability

As a result of the limited scope of initial stakeholder consultations, the experience of existing CSO networks in Papua, Indonesia, was not taken into account.
Project Partner
Centre for Strategic and International Studies
Project Description
The overall goal of the project was to improve governance in Papua, Indonesia. Specifically, it focused on developing and implementing a practical strategy to build a forum for civil society organizations where civil society could develop skills in social accountability and promote accountability and transparency of the provincial and city governments. Given the deep suspicion of civil society on the part of government in Papua, the intention of the project was to establish the CSO Forum as a legitimate body in the eyes of both decision-makers and the public. Training was provided to all stakeholders – including government officials and a series of dialogue sessions was also organized. However, gaps in the initial baseline analysis and stakeholder consultations, along with a decision to implement the project without a local partner, reduced the project’s relevance to the Papuan context and the needs of beneficiaries. Eight visits to Papua over a two-year period by members of the Jakarta-based project team limited opportunities for contact between the visiting team and beneficiaries, and a lack of continuity across activities restricted what the project was able to accomplish.
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Empowering Civil Society Groups to Promote Social Accountability

A small number of activities, including a national seminar in Jakarta, a study-tour to Australia, added little to project results and diverted resources which might have been better used elsewhere.
Project Partner
Centre for Strategic and International Studies
Project Description
The overall goal of the project was to improve governance in Papua, Indonesia. Specifically, it focused on developing and implementing a practical strategy to build a forum for civil society organizations where civil society could develop skills in social accountability and promote accountability and transparency of the provincial and city governments. Given the deep suspicion of civil society on the part of government in Papua, the intention of the project was to establish the CSO Forum as a legitimate body in the eyes of both decision-makers and the public. Training was provided to all stakeholders – including government officials and a series of dialogue sessions was also organized. However, gaps in the initial baseline analysis and stakeholder consultations, along with a decision to implement the project without a local partner, reduced the project’s relevance to the Papuan context and the needs of beneficiaries. Eight visits to Papua over a two-year period by members of the Jakarta-based project team limited opportunities for contact between the visiting team and beneficiaries, and a lack of continuity across activities restricted what the project was able to accomplish.
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Civil Society Empowerment in Advocacy and Policy Development in Vietnam

The project design demonstrated an appreciation of the gaps in CSO’s understanding of what could be accomplished through public advocacy, and of how to organize advocacy work in Vietnam. The blend of training and support for focused advocacy projects, funded by small grants, with hands-on support from the grantee’s team, amounted to an imaginative strategy for capacity development.
Project Partner
Research Center for Management and Sustainable Development
Project Description
The project’s overall objective was to increase the participation of Vietnamese civil society organizations (CSOs) in democratic policy-making. The grantee sought to achieve this through: building the capacity of CSOs to advocate for democratic participation in the policy development process; enhancing networking, cooperation and communication among CSOs and related government bodies; implementation of existing legal frameworks and policies; and actual, successful participation of CSOs in the policy-making process. The objectives of the project were directly relevant to exploring new possibilities in civil society engagement with government agencies in Viet Nam on public policy, at both local and national levels. The project helped facilitate CSOs voice in discussions and problem-solving on issues of concern to particular disadvantaged and vulnerable communities.
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Civil Society Empowerment in Advocacy and Policy Development in Vietnam

The training-of-trainers component of the project was well planned and implemented. It was delivered through a 3-day course given to ten CSO staff members, selected from those who participated in the initial advocacy training, and two others. On completion of the course, the grantee provided further guidance to the twelve trainees working in small teams of 2 or 3, to prepare and conduct their own training courses. Custom-designed training manuals were provided to assist them in their task.
Project Partner
Research Center for Management and Sustainable Development
Project Description
The project’s overall objective was to increase the participation of Vietnamese civil society organizations (CSOs) in democratic policy-making. The grantee sought to achieve this through: building the capacity of CSOs to advocate for democratic participation in the policy development process; enhancing networking, cooperation and communication among CSOs and related government bodies; implementation of existing legal frameworks and policies; and actual, successful participation of CSOs in the policy-making process. The objectives of the project were directly relevant to exploring new possibilities in civil society engagement with government agencies in Viet Nam on public policy, at both local and national levels. The project helped facilitate CSOs voice in discussions and problem-solving on issues of concern to particular disadvantaged and vulnerable communities.
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country
LESSON

Lesson Learned: Civil Society Empowerment in Advocacy and Policy Development in Vietnam

A number of the training graduates pointed out that the financial vulnerability of CSOs in Vietnam made it difficult for them to allow staff members to devote time during working hours to preparation for training course delivery.
Project Partner
Research Center for Management and Sustainable Development
Project Description
The project’s overall objective was to increase the participation of Vietnamese civil society organizations (CSOs) in democratic policy-making. The grantee sought to achieve this through: building the capacity of CSOs to advocate for democratic participation in the policy development process; enhancing networking, cooperation and communication among CSOs and related government bodies; implementation of existing legal frameworks and policies; and actual, successful participation of CSOs in the policy-making process. The objectives of the project were directly relevant to exploring new possibilities in civil society engagement with government agencies in Viet Nam on public policy, at both local and national levels. The project helped facilitate CSOs voice in discussions and problem-solving on issues of concern to particular disadvantaged and vulnerable communities.
Evaluation Date
June 2014
Country