Seminar title:

Shared Value through partnerships at IIRR : Overcoming Poverty Through Innovation and

Community Empowerment

Abstract Overcoming Poverty through Innovation and Community Empowerment

IIRR’s community development and capacity building presence in Africa dates back to 1995, and even over the past 30 years, hundreds of development practitioners from Africa have been trained at its international center in the Philippines. The Institute attributes its success to its conviction that interventions targeting the rural poor communities achieve better results when those implementing such interventions go to the people, live among them, learn from them and work with them in order to build from what they already know. This, combined with our values and vision over the long term creates shared value for partners, the learning communities themselves and the society. Creating partnerships that benefit from shared Values is therefore IIRR’s main occupation. That’s how it connects with society at large. The three pillars driving IIRR’s work are Equity, Justice and Peace. IIRR focuses on four main programmatic areas namely Food Security and Sustainable Wealth Creation; Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation; Education for Pastoralists and other Marginalized Communities and; Applied Learning, which deals with local learning for global sharing. IIRR’s Learning Community approach addresses the overall well-being of the rural communities, as partners, including rural farmers, small traders, marginalized groups, etc, whose intrinsic experiences are captured through the sharing of lessons learnt. The long-term immersions make IIRR capacity building sessions unique and effective. The success of IIRR’s strategy is anchored on its great capacity on value sharing, capturing lessons learnt and documentation of experiences. In this session, IIRR will share examples of how its value sharing concept has worked to the benefit of partners including communities in Africa.

Presenter’s BiodataNalere Patrick, is the Regional Director, The International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) Africa Regional Centre.

Patrick has been with IIRR for 3 years now. He is a Ugandan, and he is married with 4 children. He holds a Bsc degree in Economics, MA in Economic Policy & Planning, MBA and is a PhD student at Leeds Beckett University, UK.

He started his career in Economics with Ministry of Finance in Uganda, and has worked with various INGOs besides teaching in regional universities. Over 20 years of work experience at national and international level in senior management positions.

Who is IIRR? • The International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) is a research and capacity

building non-governmental, non-profit international organization that works with the rural poor in developing countries to eradicate poverty and to improve their lives by building on their unique assets and strengths. Its headquarters are in the Philippines.

• Through its Africa Regional office and Country offices in Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan and Zimbabwe, IIRR also works with partner organizations in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Rwanda.

• In these countries, the Institute has provided technical and training support in organizational development, strategic planning, project management, food security, and gender and communication issues.

VisionWe envision a world of equity, justice, and peace where people achieve their full potential and live a life of quality and dignity in harmony with the environment.

Mission

We enable communities and those who work with them to develop innovative yet practical solutions to poverty through a community-led development approach and widely share these lessons to encourage replication.

Values

Our continuous effort to build the capacity of the poor and those who work with them is based on our belief in the following principles:

1.Partnerships - We work in partnerships based on mutual respect, knowledge, trust, and help

2.Teamwork - A multi-disciplinary approach, valuing diversity, and inclusive communication

3.Excellence - Highly professional work that demands accountability and good governance4.Individual Qualities of Character, Competence, Commitment, and Creativity (the 4Cs)

IIRR credoWe are inspired and live by our credo.

Go to the peopleLive among themLearn from themPlan with themWork with them

Start with what they knowBuild on what they have

Teach by showingLearn by doing

Not a showcase but a patternNot odds and ends but a system

Not piecemeal but an integrated approachNot to conform but to transform

Not relief but release.

IIRR Structure

HQ (PHILIPPINES)

EthiopiaEthiopia

South SudanSouth Sudan

UgandaUganda

KenyaKenya

Africa Regional Centre(NAIROBI)

Asia Regional Centre(PHILIPPINES)

Zimbabwe (SA & ZM)Zimbabwe (SA & ZM)

CambodiaCambodia

PhilippinesPhilippines

Board (USA)

The four Program ThemesThe 4 themes to form the content of the Learning Communities and Training Activities:

1.Education for Pastoralists and Other Marginalized Communities;

2.Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation;

3.Food Security and Sustainable Wealth Creation;

4.Applied Learning, which cuts across the above three Learning Community programs.

PROGRAM GOALS1. Education for Pastoralists and Other Marginalized Communities

“Reaching out and transforming pastoralists and marginalized communities through education”

Quality education is a foundation for human development. In the years to come, IIRR and partners will focus their efforts in Early Child Development, Primary and Secondary Education and Livelihoods-led Adult Literacy to attain the following goals and objectives.

The Goal: Children and youth, especially girls of pastoralists and other marginalized communities, have access to quality basic education through responsive alternative approaches.

2. Food Security and Sustainable Wealth Creation

“Empowered communities and entrepreneurs for food security and prosperity”

The Goal: Communities, smallholder producers and young entrepreneurs, including women, become productive and protect their environment, meet their nutritional needs and create wealth.

At the individual, household and community levels, the program endeavors to ensure food security.

Smallholder producers (youth and women) in addition to ensuring food security, build assets,generate wealth.

3. Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation

“Building resilient communities in safe environments”

The Goal: Communities are resilient to increasing disaster risks and are able to adapt to climate change.

•Strengthen the Community-Managed approaches for disaster resilience enabling people to continuously assess their risks, realize their current capacities, take effective preparedness measures, and have a timely response to minimize risk of disaster with no or minimum external support.

4. Applied Learning“Local learning for global sharing”

To reaffirm our commitment to the Credo and the methods of people-centered development, use Applied Learning efforts (trainings, technical assistance, and publications) to strategically link our work in the Learning Communities with practical hands-on learning.

The goal: To ensure development work globally is effective and impactful, IIRR will coach peer development organizations (NGOS, CSOs and government) and contribute to the body of knowledge on organizational/program effectiveness and good governance.

•Trainings are conducted near IIRR Learning Community locations. •Transform field experience into a unique, informed, evolving, training curriculum and also enrich field work and on-site learning through the participation of the Applied Learning attendees.

IIRR Program Design Chart

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LEARNING COMMUNITYPROGRAM THEMES

LEARNING COMMUNITYPROGRAM THEMES

CROSS CUTTING ANDSUB‐PROGRAMS

APPLIED LEARNING

Food Security, Asset Building, and Sustainable Wealth Creation

Education forPastoralists andmarginalizedcommunities

Disaster RiskReduction andClimate ChangeAdaptation

Trainings

Publications andWriteshops

Technical Services

Education of Pastoralists and Marginalized Communities• Gender/HIV and AID• School Health and Nutrition• Nutrition / Big

DRR/CCA• Gender and HIV /AIDS• Sustainable AgNRM t• Demographic Health

Food Security, , and Sustainable Wealth Creation• Gender and HIV/AIDS• Enterprise Development and value Chains• Community Health and Nutrition

Approaches to attain program goals1. Learning Community Approach• Community members affected by poverty lead and fully

participate in the entire process of development so that the efforts can be sustained.

2. Working in Partnership• Partnership with communities and those who work with them

3. Documentation and Publication using Writeshops

• Engage in generation, acquisition, documentation, simplification, packaging, sharing and translation of knowledge using writeshops among many organizations in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the US and Europe.

Approaches to attain program goals cont…

4. Linking Applied Learning to Learning Community Centers;

•Conduct training both in classrooms or implement field projects

5. Unleashing the Potential of Women and Youth;

•Investing in a girl’s education has been shown to increase her skills and confidence, delay marriage, which in turn puts population growth in check, prevents domestic and gender-based violence, and improves household economy and health, resulting in reduced morbidity and mortality.

6. Integration of Programs

•attempt to combine programs within Learning Communities and communities where we work for a deeper impact.

IIRR goals for the next 2010-15 years related to partnerships.1. Partnership strategy with a standardized contract checklist, MOPs,

and guidelines;

2. Screened current partners and selected those that fit within our strategy;

3. Continue to learn from partners and support capacity development of partners to effectively implement programs;

4. Form strategic alliances with selected organizations to jointly fundraise, network and advocate for meaningful change on a larger scale;

5. To grow partnerships with UN agencies, donors and other international organizations to replicate and scale up some of its good work with communities;

6. IIRR will forge new partnerships with universities and other academic and research organizations in the North and South to catalyze science simplification, joint research, and publications and experience exchange.

Purpose and RationalePartnerships are central for IIRR in successfully implementing this new strategy.

Like other development actors, IIRR believes that no single organization can work in isolation as long as the needs of the communities that they serve remain many and diverse.

IIRR is obliged to work with others to fulfill is mandates, strategic goals and specific objectives.

To IIRR the “partnership concept” refers to:

“formal relationship between IIRR and other development actors to achieve a common development goal or objective ”

Value addition/ BenefitsOur partnership give several benefits, some of which are:

1. Enhance effectiveness and efficiency of our development efforts;

2. Provides access to crucial resources, - expertise, Facilities;

3. Produces new knowledge to inform our development efforts – based on Sharing of information & best practices and lessons learnt derived from partnership;

4. Stimulates collaboration which will build collective voice that will have greater impact on policy and governance.

Areas of Possible Partnership• Knowledge management, documentation and dissemination;• Domestic and international trade through VCD & Actors

empowerment ;• Downscaling climate change predictions, especially DRR/CCA ;• Promote non-wood products interventions e.g beekeeping,

etc);• Food security and wealth creation ;• Renewable energy, energy saving, watershed management;• Facilitating strategic thinking and development;• Facilitating Results based programming M&E, tailored on NRM;• Internship program for fresh graduates on DRR/CCA;• Providing consultancy and customized technical assistance;• Institutional and human capacity development ;• Regional platforms for networking and learning.

Who Do We Partner With?Globally we work with more than 150 organizations: 1. Donor/ development partners2. Government Ministries and parastatals3. Private sector4. Local and international NGOs5. Community based organizations6. Etc

Example of our partners• UN Habitat; FAO; AGRA; ILRI; RACIDA; CIFA; HEIFER

International; ACT!; ICRAF

Our Principles of Sustainable Partnership Our partnership principles are built around mutuality which is imbedded in our core values of mutual trust, mutual respect, mutual knowledge, and mutual help. These also inform effectiveness:

3. Mutual Trust between partners

True and lasting partnership is built around mutual trust, which lead to mutual transparency through dialogue (on equal footing), with an emphasis on frequent consultations and open sharing of information.

1. Mutual respect• At an individual level, IIRR recognizes that all people have worth and right to make

their own decisions and lead their lives. At the organization level, IIRR and partners recognize and respect each other’s autonomy and find common grounds for attaining development goals.

2. Mutual Knowledge/ Join learning

This principle recognizes that all people and organizations have experiences, resources, talents; local and traditional know-how which form the ingredient for successful partnership.

Our Principles of Sustainable Partnership cont…

4. Mutual Help

The diversity of our partners (PO, CBO, NGO, LGU) is an asset to build on and complement each other’s contributions. E.g local knowledge of POs and CBOs is one of the main assets to enhance and on which to build upon.

5. Mutual Accountability and Good Governance • IIRR and partners are accountable to each other and more so to public and

communities as well as the development process at large.

Measurement of effectiveness

We measure effectiveness of our partnerships through:

1. Partners’ satisfaction

2. Achievement of program goals and objectives

Importance and ChallengesImportance and lesson learnt

1. Produces strategic advantage in program implementation;

2. Allows donor funds to make a greater impact – potential for scaling up;

3. Control in partnerships tends to lie with those who have the money, skills and administration ;

4. Promotes advocacy for policy change

5. Enhances resource mobilization

6. Generates and dissemination of evidence-based practices;

7. Establish appropriate decision-making structures and rules

Challenges

1. How to balance power

2. Financial constraints

3. Leadership capacities

Recognition of come current Trends1. A shift in the degree of influence and

responsibility being accorded to local partners;

2. Resource contribution ( matching) by recipient organization not only in in-kind form but in hard cash;

3. Acting as partners rather than as contractors

Questions to Pose1. What is the future of partnership especially

in Africa?

2. Can smallholder farmers become genuine partners in development? What needs to be done?

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Thank you