network

Project: Citizen Empowerment for the Promotion of Good Governance and Participatory Democracy in Algeria
Evaluation Date: January 2022
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

To strengthen collaboration between CSOs and States officials, it is necessary to consider the following:
a. The commitment of the authorities to grant authorisations for the financing and implementation of similar projects.
b. Planning awareness and targeted communication activities to overcome the mistrust and lack of motivation on the part of CSOs and youth.
c. Interventions must create spaces for dialogue and collaboration, managed by unbiased and trusted keys actors and facilitators.

Theme: Interaction with government

Algeria collaborate, considerations, credibility, engagement, environment, finance, focus, funding, funds, government, improve, initiatives, intervene, meeting, motivate, network, partner, partnership, project design, relationship, trustworthy, young people

Project: Creative Communication of the Nigerian Budget
Evaluation Date: July 2018
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

While civil society organizations are interested in budget monitoring and are seeking to build their capacities in this area, the project did not succeed in engaging them with project implementation activities with communities. However, the project did succeed in enhancing skills and capacities of the grantee. Positive outcomes for the grantee include the winning of a proposal to conduct a budget tracking activity on nutrition with UNICEF. In this way, UNDEF funds helped to enhance the grantee’s network with other UN organizations.

Theme: Media

Nigeria capacity building, donor, funding, network

Project: Increased Citizen Dialogue through Strengthened Media in Jordan
Evaluation Date: October 2017
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

A platform allowing journalists to detail the background of their created a consolidated network of like-minded professionals. The project’s “Maidan” platform became a space for journalists, citizen journalists, and engaged individuals to access continuing professional development of contributing to the professionalization of journalism in Jordan and elsewhere.

Theme: Media

Jordan development, digital, journalists, network

Project: Strengthening Democratic Participation and Inclusive Local Development in Indigenous and Peasant Communities in Bolivia
Evaluation Date: August 2017
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

Alliances with law schools provide a number of win-win benefits. On the one hand, the CSO can lower costs, expand reach and improve service quality through recruitment of students who are motivated and familiar with the target communities. Additionally, the students are given the opportunity to test their theoretical knowledge in a practical setting as well as gain experience that can benefit their career prospects.

Theme: Rule of law

Bolivia law, network, outreach

Project: Youth local councils for civic engagement and social change in Palestine
Evaluation Date: December 2013
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

The Youth Local Councils (YLC) in Palestine became very active on social networks; all opened a Facebook page and a common page was created to exchange best practices. The bringing-together of the YLCs in networking meetings and training and promoting a mentoring system to support new participants and retain the experience and expertise of young participants reaching the age limit of 22 were mentioned by a number of beneficiaries.

Theme: Youth engagement

Palestine network, social media

Project: Civil Society Empowerment in Advocacy and Policy Development in Vietnam
Evaluation Date: June 2014
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

The integration of different project components was undermined by the grantee’s effort to refocus a number of project activities in order to take advantage of an unexpected breakthrough with the Vietnamese government in building a CSO network. While the changes in design were understandable given the need to act quickly, the addition of new priorities to the project did leave some activities incomplete.

Theme: Community activism

Viet Nam adapt, network

Project: Developing alternative models of natural resource governance based on indigenous community participation in Aceh
Evaluation Date: July 2016
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

The project could have capitalised on existing successful natural resource governance models and fostered exchanges of experiences among Mukim communities. The needs that should have been addressed by the project involved strengthening of Mukim capacity to rule and manage their natural resources with a good knowledge of local constraints and specificities. Therefore, sharing lessons learned from other Mukims or other indigenous communities’ experiences could have played a key role in disseminating methodologies and techniques about governing natural resources.

Theme: Community activism

Indonesia collaboration, natural resources, network

Project: Promoting Freedom of Information Activism at the Local Level in Brazil
Evaluation Date: April 2014
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

The grantee partnered with the AMARRIBO network, which is the largest network fighting corruption in Brazil. An umbrella organization for some 200 grassroots groups, its purpose is to foster local participation in the fight against municipal corruption. The two organizations complemented each other well. The grantee contributed its experience and knowledge about civil rights issues, access to public information, and the law as well as experience in training and legal advice in these areas. AMARRIBO has a broad social base and extensive experience with intervention at the municipal level, especially as a leader and advocate with public entities. Its knowledge of the local context and stakeholders was a very positive factor in the implementation of the project.

Theme: Community activism

Brazil collaborate, network, partnership

Project: Promoting Freedom of Information Activism at the Local Level in Brazil
Evaluation Date: April 2014
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

The project directly contributed to local enforcement of the Access to Information Act and public transparency policies. This clearly has a positive effect on strengthening Brazil’s democratization process. The project also facilitated the integration of two social intervention practices that had not been used before in this context: the experience of punishing and fighting corruption through the grantee’s network and the preventive approach offering technical assistance to the governments and monitoring agencies to create an oversight system for curbing corruption.

Theme: Community activism

Brazil corruption, democratization, network

Project: Citizen Journalists for Free and Fair Elections in Georgia
Evaluation Date: April 2014
Report: [report link]

Lesson Learned:

The grantee relied heavily on personal contacts to recruit participants, including journalists from the Charter of Ethical Journalists which the grantee had created under an earlier EU project. This was efficient since these people were known to be independent and helped maintain the perception of impartiality. At the same time, this limited the reach of the project to people who were already civically active. There were no links apparent between this effort and other more substantial efforts for citizen journalism, election reporting or observation. The reach of the project could have been extended through better use of social networks beyond the staff’s Facebook pages, and the use of participating media organizations to promote citizen reporting, the website and project purpose.

Theme: Media

Georgia network, scope, social media