Country

Engagement
for
Aid and Development
Effectiveness

NEWSLETTER
Issue 3  March 2011

Inside 25 Countries Engage in Aid

Upcoming Events 2011
Inter-Country
Consultations Continue at
the WSF
Country Outreach at the
WSF
Experience from a ‘Shadow
Report’ in the Making
2 Effectiveness with CORT in
2010
3 As the eventful Country Outreach Team (CORT) year 2010 came to
an end, so did a busy review and assessment period of CORT’s
activities for the past twelve months. The task at hand was
5 challenging, entertaining and inspiring at times. The following is a
short summary on some of the most important activities and
achievements for IBON/Reality of Aid’s (RoA) Country Outreach
Team in 2010.
7
CORT 2010:

In 2010 CORT facilitated and co-organized the conduct of a variety

of national civil society activities, answering to the specific needs of
Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in twelve countries in

IBON Asia/Pacific and Africa. CORT also assisted advocacy planning in

six further countries in Africa. Besides the Country Outreach also
International advised seven other countries in drafting country plans on aid
In cooperation with: effectiveness and participated in four regional workshops on the PD
Monitoring Survey. All in all, CORT’s activities in 2010 reached out
to approximately 800 CSOs.
Country Outreach Newsletter Issue 3  March 2011

Country Outreach Work in All its Diversity

The Country Outreach Team does not limit itself to consultations

and workshops, but engages through diverse efforts. In countries
where the engagement among CSOs, the government and donors
has been ongoing and advanced, CORT helps sustain and deepen
these relationships. Continuous dialogue with member
organizations, technical assistance and important international
affiliation, contributes in asserting CSOs’ roles as equal partners on
aid and development effectiveness issues. Furthermore, CORT
provides essential information on recent international activities and
events building bridges between the global and local level.

Country Outreach work also includes various other tasks, such as

Upcoming
the development and dissemination of a first booklet of Case Stories
(more on page 4) and an advocacy toolkit. The toolkit is designed to
Activity, First
be a series that will provide CSOs with practical information on Quarter 2011
advocacy work in aid and development effectiveness. Another
important undertaking of CORT is its facilitation of roughly 30
country-monitoring reports. Also known as the ‘shadow report’ on
the implementation of the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA) and the
Nigeria
– Nigerian CSOs to Hold
Paris Declaration (PD), these monitoring reports written by local
Consultation on Aid
CSOs will form the basis for an international report by the Reality of
Effectiveness
Aid network, directly responding to the Organization for Economic
April 19-20, 2011 (tentative)
Cooperation and Development (OECD) 2011 survey on monitoring
the Paris Declaration.

Emerging Impacts:
Restructured
Country Outreach work has shown important results over the past
year. As direct and indirect results of CORTs’ engagement, CSO CORT Website
networks became more dynamic in aid effectiveness advocacy. In
addition, existing CSO networks took on the task of integrating this
Coming Soon

advocacy into their current activities; while in other cases entirely
new working groups and networks were founded. This forms one
The Country Outreach is
important impact: a broader CSO base engaging in aid effectiveness
currently in the process of
work at the country level. CORT work also resulted in increased
awareness and familiarity with the technical language and aspects of
reviewing and updating its
aid effectiveness while providing a link to CSOs own issues. website space, hosted by
www.realityofaid.org. The
Towards Busan: restructured web site will be
online soon.
On the road to Busan for the High Level Forum (HLF) 4, the Country
Outreach team will step up its efforts to build a solid foundation of
CSOs world wide that can, and have to be engaged with, to make
aid and development effective.

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Country Outreach Newsletter
News from
BetterAid
BetterAid Discussion Paper Re-
launch Planned for March
BetterAid is currently finalizing a
discussion paper on development
architecture. "Making development
cooperation just: Governance principles
and pillars", is being revised following
discussion at the Workshop on Aid
architecture in Seoul last December
2010, and in consultation with our
wider membership. The final version
will be re-launched in March.
BetterAid Plans Further Thematic
Consultations on Aid and
Development Effectiveness
BetterAid is working hard to push for
ambitious outcomes at the Fourth High
Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness
(HLF4) in Busan at the end of the year;
the platform has submitted its
proposals for themes to be addressed at
the event. In January, in conjunction
with member organizations, BetterAid
held a consultation on development
effectiveness and agriculture and food
sovereignty. The platform is planning
to hold three further thematic
consultations on development
effectiveness in the coming months on
labor, women's rights and gender
equality, and agriculture and food
sovereignty.
For more information about the
BetterAid platform, visit:
www.betteraid.org
and follow BetterAid on twitter, at:
https://twitter.com/betteraid
Issue 3  March 2011
Inter-Country
Consultations Continue
The IBON/Reality of Aid (RoA) country outreach program increased
its efforts to facilitate country consultations of CSOs, on the broad
implementation of the AAA, to reach countries in Asia Pacific,
Africa and Latin America. The common objective of each of these
consultations was to increase CSO involvement and engagement
with government agencies, donor organizations and other aid actors
in ensuring the effective implementation of the AAA and PD.
Africa:
Cameroon
BUILDING A STRONG CIVIL SOCIETY ROLE IN AID AND
DEVELOPMENT EFFECTIVENESS
Yaounde – The Civil Society of Cameroon converged last January
18-19, 2011 at Hotel Jouvence, Yaounde, to address key challenges,
which affect the effective implementation of PD and AAA. The
AIDNET Group Cameroon organized the 2-day dialogue with the
aim of contributing a strong CSO message for the High Level Forum
in Busan. The message was formed around building and
strengthening effective partnership, strengthening the Ministry of
Finance and addressing leadership and democratic ownership
inherent in the implementation of PD and
AAA. The first day was
allotted for a CSO Consultation
while the second day was
designated for planning and a multi-stakeholder consultation.
Invited to this dialogue were CSO representatives from the capital as
well as CSOs from the regions, sector representatives, Members of
Parliament, UN Women, EU representative, members of the French
donor community, private sector and media.
The meeting paved the way to discuss how CSO participation can
move away from being token participants to actively engaging in the
process and influencing aid policy and practice. It also provided an
entry-point to include parliamentarians, media and the private
sector in development effectiveness process. In particular, the
Members of the Parliament were keen to bring the issue to the
house hearings in the coming months.
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Country Outreach Newsletter Issue 3  March 2011

Civil society organizations in Cameroon are starting to increase their

engagement through active participation, dialogue mechanisms and Country Outreach
lobbying for the inclusion of the development agenda into the aid
debate. There is a strong need to monitor aid flows and manner of Program at the
utilization. In addition, there is the demand of CSOs to influence
the donor community to harmonize and align their efforts using the
World Social Forum
existing country development plan and country systems.

Senegal
MAKE AID WORK FOR AFRICA
Dakar – CSOs demanded government and donor communities to
respect democratic ownership of countries in relation to the aid
provided to the region. The call was made during the World Social
Forum in Dakar on February 9, 2011. The activity was organized
by IBON/RoA’s Country Outreach Program with the aim of
showcasing CSO engagement in selected sectors and from
particular countries in Africa. CSOs highlighted the fact that African
countries remain to be the biggest recipient of aid and yet the
The IBON/Reality of Aid Country
continents’ poverty situation and other development issues remain Outreach Program participated in the
unchanged. 10th World Social Forum in Dakar on
February 6 – 11, 2011 with the aim to
CSOs from Senegal, Cameroon, and RoA/Africa presented their bolster the scope of its outreach
country aid and development situation and the key challenges CSOs engaging further CSOs in advocacy of
face in engaging with donors and government. Reality of Aid- Aid and Development Effectiveness.
Africa provided the overarching framework of aid and development
effectiveness and the main message of African CSOs to the HLF4. A Photo Exhibit showcasing the
Concrete cases of CSO involvement were also presented. In challenges of Aid Effectiveness was
Senegal, members of the trade union and the migrants sector are set up from February 7 to February
working with CSOs in the country to raise awareness of ineffective 10 at the Reality of Aid tent. The
aid to these sectors. CSOs from Cameroon presented the challenges exhibition attracted a continuous
of forming a CSO platform and of monitoring French aid and how stream of visitors, ranging from CSO
CSOs take advantage of every opportunity to assert their right to
representatives to donors and
students overarching a variety of
participate in dialogues. The presentations were attended by
different countries.
various CSO representatives, donor delegates and the University
Chiek Ante Diop studentry.
Besides active participation at the
various Reality of Aid events such as
MONITORING FRENCH AID FROM THE CSO PERSPECTIVE the ‘Forum on South-South
Dakar – The AIDNET Group Cameroon held a session on how Cooperation’, CORT facilitated and
CSOs in Cameroon are independently monitoring French aid. CSOs organized a consultation on ‘Aid and
relay that their main challenge is to secure funds as most donor Development Effectiveness among
partners refused to be monitored by CSOs. But despite this major CSOs in Africa’. In addition, CORT
challenge, CSOs from Cameroon are still affirming their role as representatives made the most out of
watchdogs of aid in the country. The AIDNET Group Cameroon the networking opportunities that
plans to conduct another monitoring report on the British aid once arose at the global event and attended
funds are secured. a variety of aid related activities.

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Country Outreach Newsletter
CSO Stories
Booklet Out Now
On February 9, succeeding the
launch of the Reality of Aid 2010
Report on “Aid and Development
Effectiveness: Towards Human
Rights, Social Justice and
Democracy”, the Country Outreach
Program launched its very first
publication, the booklet “Case Stories
of Civil Society Engagement on Aid
Effectiveness”. Over 50
representatives from various CSOs,
donors and government ministries
attended and actively participated in
the presentation.
The booklet of Case Stories of civil
society engagement on aid
effectiveness is primarily meant to
document and share civil society
organizations’ experiences and
involvement in national aid policy
reform. It aims to provide insights
into mechanisms and processes that
demonstrate CSO involvement in aid
effectiveness policy reform and the
implementation of the PD and AAA.
Towards the 4th HLF in Busan, the
intention of this booklet is to provide
lessons to be learned while serving as
a tool for CSOs, donors and
governments engaging with aid
effectiveness issues towards
development effectiveness.
Issue 3  March 2011
Tanzania
MAKING THE AID AGENDA INCLUSIVE
Dar Es Salaam – A Workshop for CSOs was held on January 26,
2011 to increase the capacity of CSOs engaging in the aid and
development effectiveness agenda. Specifically, the workshop
aimed to build understanding of CSOs around aid and development
issues and to develop a CSO-led action plan. Around 25
representatives from the CSO sector, both national and regional, the
Ministry of Finance and External Affairs (MOFEA) as well as the
media attended the workshop.
MOFEA provided an overview of the general aid situation and the
aid effectiveness program of the country. CSOs, on the other hand,
shared their experiences of the aid situation at the grassroots level,
with a concrete case study from the agricultural sector. CSOs in this
workshop agreed to address challenges related to CSOs capacity,
issues on access to information, and the exclusion of CSOs from the
regional and other sectors in the aid discussions. CSOs also agreed
to build and strengthen the CSO Platform for Aid Effectiveness. The
CSO workshop was conducted a day after a donor Workshop on
Mutual Accountability concluded in Dar Es Salaam where CSOs
were given very limited space to participate.
Zimbabwe
CSOs DEMAND PARTICIPATION IN AID-COORDINATION
Harare – The Zimbabwe Coalition on Debt and Development
(ZIMCODD) organized a CSO consultation in the nation’s capital of
Harare to sound off the importance of CSOs in the aid debate and
also to assert for CSO spaces in official dialogue mechanisms. The
country recently established an Aid Coordination Policy to guide aid
flows. It also provided an opportunity for CSOs to engage in the aid
debate.
Asia – Pacific
China
CHINA TAKES STEPS TOWARDS AID EFFECTIVENESS
Xi’an – An initiative of the China Development Effectiveness
Network (CDEN) in cooperation with IBON/RoA’s Country
Outreach Team, China’s first CSO consultation workshop on Aid
Effectiveness was conducted in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, on
November 20-21, 2010. A total of 32 representatives from civil
society organizations and nine delegates from donor institutions and
the government were present. The two-day workshop was divided
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Country Outreach Newsletter Issue 3  March 2011

into three parts: understanding aid effectiveness; multi-stakeholder

consultations; and formulating CSO-led country plans. About IBON/RoA’s
Overall, the participants viewed the activity as a great success. The
Country Outreach
workshop succeeded not only in opening up dialogue between
CSOs from many different areas with the government, but also
The IBON/Reality of Aid country
brought attention to the importance of aid effectiveness, a topic
outreach program for the broad
many CSO representatives never before engaged with. A short implementation of AAA seeks to
survey at the end of the workshop revealed that 73 percent of achieve greater and more
participants learned significantly from the common discussions, and meaningful involvement of CSOs
63 percent considered the overall quality of the discussions as high. in bringing change in aid
An interesting outcome of the activity was the realization of CSOs effectiveness policy and practice.
own limitations. In order to explore innovative ways to improve and The strategy towards this is
engage with aid effectiveness issues, CSOs realized that it is capacity development of CSOs in
imperative to first improve their own capacities. order for them to initiate policy
dialogue spaces that allow for
Philippines broader and inclusive
VISAYAS-WIDE CSO-NEDA WORKSHOP participation of various kinds of
Cebu City – The nationwide series of consultation workshops on the CSOs at country and local level.
Country Level Evaluation (CLE) on the Implementation of the Paris These efforts are expected to
Declaration in the Philippines was conducted in Cebu City on contribute to changes in policies
December 1, 2010 at the Rajah Park Hotel. The one-day workshop along a development effectiveness
was held in two sessions. In the morning, Jazminda Lumang of approach.
AidWatch Philippines gave the introduction of the meeting, the
basic issues and questions regarding Aid, the Paris Declaration and Country outreach work will be
based on the country-level plans
the CSOs participation on the issue of aid effectiveness while Lirio
of CSOs who are involved in aid
Abuyuan of the CLE Team presented the draft final report of the CLE
effectiveness and development
Phase 2.
effectiveness advocacy. A broad
range of CSOs will be encouraged
An open forum was facilitated after the two inputs. In the afternoon, to participate and work together
Lumang presented the CSO initiatives on Aid Effectiveness post- to engage their respective
ACCRA while Mr. Vince Cinches, Executive Director of the governments, parliaments and
Fisherfolks Development Center (FIDEC, Inc.) in Cebu presented a development partners in the
case study on the ODA funded Coal-fired Power Plants in the implementation and monitoring
province. of AAA implementation.

MINDANAO-WIDE CSO-NEDA WORKSHOP RoA is the partner agency of the

Cagayan de Oro City – The Mindanao leg, the last of the BetterAid in this program. IBON
nationwide series of NEDA-CSO consultation workshops on the CLE International is implementing
evaluation in the Philippines was conducted in Cagayan de Oro the outreach through the RoA
City on December 14, 2010. Similar to the previous consultations, network.
the workshop was conducted in two parts and concluded with an
open forum that saw a lively debate on the impacts of ODA in the
region.

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Country Outreach Newsletter
Updates from
RoA’s Shadow
Report
Responding to the need for an
objective and comprehensive Civil
Society analysis on the
achievements of the Paris
Declaration and Accra Agenda for
Action, the Reality of Aid network
began in late 2010 with the
research phase of its CSO based
Country Monitoring Report.
Commonly known as the ‘Shadow
Report’, the report overcomes the
limited participation from
development actors such as
parliamentarians and CSOs. It
aims to deepen the understanding
of key issues surrounding aid and
development effectiveness that
may or may not be addressed by
the Phase 2 Evaluation and offers
country-level evidence based CSO
monitoring that may enrich or
reinforce the findings of the
official Monitoring Survey.
With writing and research well
under way, the first quarter of
2011 has seen already the
submissions of several shadow
reports. Cameroon, Cambodia,
the Philippines and Sri Lanka
were among the first countries to
send in their drafts. While in over
ten further countries the research
and writing continues the
Country Outreach Team
continues its communication with
CSOs in ten additional countries.
Issue 3  March 2011
Mongolia: Experiences of a
‘Shadow Report’ in the Making
Long interviews, feverish desk research, writing, consolidation,
verification of information, it is all well under way with the
‘Shadow Report’ taking shape in many countries around the world.
Mongolia is one of those countries and a deeper look reveals it to
be a great example of the difficulties, challenges and opportunities
that arise from this task.
The Country Core Group (CCG), a coalition of Mongolian CSOs
working on various issues, including aid effectiveness with the
support of the Reality of Aid Network, has taken on the task of
preparing Mongolia’s Shadow Report. To date, the CCG was able to
interview representatives from 10 ministries, each interview lasting
between 2 to 3 hours. From an intended 26 donor organizations,
the CCG however was only able to interview a total of 7
representatives. The challenge was that a majority of embassies and
bi-lateral donors declined CCG’s invitation letters, reasoning that
they are not in a position to provide any information. If CSOs would
like to access their data they have to speak to the ministry of
finance instead.
In spite of the challenges, work on the Shadow Report provided
new opportunities for engagement with government and donors as
meetings led to contact and new focal points. Urantsooj
Gombosuren, Executive Director of the Centre for Human Rights
and Democracy (CHRD) and CCG member, ensured the support of
the presidential office to organize a donor validation consultation,
after meeting with an advisor to the president on civil society
participation and human rights. The meeting is now scheduled to
take place in the week 14-18th of March.
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Country Outreach Newsletter Issue 3  March 2011

Contact us
Interested in
participating in country
processes? Do you want
your country stories
disseminated? The
following members of the
Country Outreach Team
are ready to work with
you:

Country Nicole Benedicto

Engagement Team Leader and Outreach
Officer
for
for Latin America
Aid and Development
Effectiveness nbenedicto@realityofaid.org

IBON Center
114 Timog Avenue, Quezon City 1103
Philippines
http://iboninternational.org
www.realityofaid .org
Ava Danlog
Outreach Officer
for Asia Pacific
adanlog@realityofaid.org
Myrna Maglahus
Outreach Officer
for Africa
mmaglahus@realityofaid.org

Nicolas Gloeckl
Communications Officer
ngloeckl@realityofaid.org