The EC and the Non State Actors

1
The EC and the Non State Actors

• Stakeholders Advisory Group
• 25 October 2007

2
Introduction

• Process some information on NSAs/LAs involvement
  and consultation was already available.
  Delegations were requested to provide extra
  information to fit the DEV questionnaire.
• Requests sent to Asia and Latin America
  Delegations. 33 requests sent ? 19 answered 11
  Asia and 9 Latin America
• Asia Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, India,
  Indonesia, Lao, Mongolia, Pakistan, Philippines,
  Sri Lanka, Vietnam
• Latin America Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica,
  Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela
• A rapid scan of the answers provided us with the
  information presented today. More in-depth study
  and report will be done at a later stage.

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EC works with a Wide range of NSAs

• European, local and regional NGOs networks
• cooperative associations
• local authorities and municipalities
  associations networks
• trade unions, business and organized economic
  interest groups (like employer associations and
  consumer associations)
• universities, researchers and foundations, think
  tanks

4
Mapping of the NSA situation

• Mapping studies exist or are considered China
  Lao Chile (Venezuela)
• Mapping study does not exist or is not considered
  because
• Initiatives have already been taken to gather
  such information Argentina, India, Vietnam,
  Bangladesh, Philippines
• At this stage, it is difficult to produce such
  study given the situation of the NSA in the
  country (e.g. Afghanistan, Indonesia)

5
Involvement in the policy dialogue

• Linked to the country situation
• In some countries national forums involving
  NSAs e.g. The Philippines Development Forum
• The policy dialogue mainly takes place in a
  sectoral framework (e.g. around SWAPs education
  sector in Paraguay trade sector in China).
• In some countries, the dialogue is limited for
  the time being given the situation (e.g.
  Afghanistan). In developing the (for the time
  being limited) policy dialogue, the EC intends to
  include the NSAs (e.g. Mongolia).
• Example of a specific space set up for dialogue
  EU-CSOs the EU-Central America Civil Society
  Forum on regional integration.

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Involvement in policy dialogue

• Coordination between EC and MS offers also
  possibilities for policy dialogue with civil
  society (Peru, Bangladesh).
• Main topics discussed future programming
  priorities, human and social development, human
  rights, governance, decentralization process,
  economic cooperation modalities, regional
  integration, migration, corruption, environment,
  gender, need for HIV/AIDS mainstreaming, rural
  development

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NSAs consultation in the programming process
How this consultation was organized?

• Most of the time, initiated by the Delegation.
  Uruguay both Delegation and Government.
• Most used scheme meetings and workshops
  (regional, national and/or local) on concept
  notes/draft CSP or on specific issues relevant
  for the CSP
• Scheme followed in several Central America
  countries
• pre-programming mission/pre-consultation,
  drafting of a concept note, website consultation,
  workshops around the concept note, seminars
  around the draft CSP
• Indirectly via a national development process
  (Afghanistan).

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Type of consultations

•  Consultative  type main type used (16
  countries)
• Several stages of meetings, involvement in the
  preparation of the drafts, inputs taken into
  account Sometimes shorter process e. g. one
  big workshop in India
• More  informative  type Lao (Sri Lanka,
  Afghanistan)

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Involvement in implementation

• Mostly through the thematic budget lines (mainly
  NGO, EIDHR, environment, food security)
• Also implementation of geographical programmes
• human and social development (e.g. in
  Afghanistan)
• rural development (e. g. in Mongolia)
• economic development (e. g. Panama),
• culture (India),
• decentralization (e.g. Costa Rica).

10
NSA/LA capacity building

• Main source will be thematic programme on NSA
  LA (in the past NGO budget lines) - Annual Action
  Programme 2007 total EC contribution
  207.852.900. Support is also foreseen through the
  EIDHR programme.
• Through the geographical programmes mostly in
  the framework of sectoral activities
• Health, education, social cohesion, trade and
  development of SMEs, regional integration...
• Or as specific governance focus (e.g. China the
  Governance for Equitable Development).

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Main Preliminary Findings

• Preliminary findings based on the first
  information gathered. Need to be more developed
  and precised to allow us to formulate concrete
  recommendations.
• In general, the Delegations have a quite positive
  assessment of the role and input of NSAs. However
  this can vary quite significantly from one
  country to another and within the same country
  from one NSA to another because of the different
  levels of capacity and resources
• Thematic and regional programmes are often put at
  the forefront by the Delegations as useful tools
  to involve and support NSAs/LAs. Examples of
  regional programmes
• ALFA focuses on the promotion of co-operation in
  higher education between the two regions
• ATLAS relations between Chamber of Commerce
• ASIA URBS city-to-city cooperation between
  Asian and European local governements.

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• The consultation process has taken place in most
  of the Delegations but sometimes the process had
  to be limited due to time constraints. Most of
  the Delegations mentioned that the NSAs remarks
  were taken into account in the drafting of the
  CSP. ? A more structured and regular dialogue is
  needed.
• Major obstacles identified for the involvement of
  NSAs/LAS are capacity and resources limits. In
  this framework, capacity support for NSAs/LAs is
  foreseen for most of the countries mostly
  through the Thematic Programmes. ? NSAs/LAs
  capacity building must be a priority goal.