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People master the hurdles of criticizing and influencing the local governments‘ policies
Marion FISCHER | 09/07/2018
On July 5thand 6thof 2018, 45 women and men from grassroots-level units of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) joined a training workshop on supervision and social criticism, which are assigned tasks of the VFF and its member organizations. Mass organizations in Vietnam are entitled to be heard at all levels of local government, who in turn have to respond in kind to criticism and proposals. In the workshop, the VFF activists practically trained how to make their supervision plans, complete with the most relevant topics for monitoring the government decisions and actions at their administrative level.In the second part of the workshop, the participants worked to compose a qualified response to a real half-year report and half-year action plan of socio-economic development, submitted by the district government. In one of the evaluated district reports, the VFF activists found many flaws and “half truths” and demonstrated that the local government had no vision and coherent understanding of the local socio-economic development plan, while the training participants acted in a very knowledgeable and professional way. The workshop demonstrated how a constructive two-way communication between citizens and government can effectively improve the responsiveness and accountability of local governance.
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Agricultural training translates into multiple profits for rural farmer
Sylvia NABANOBA | 06/07/2018
“Before I joined the Complementary Farmers’ Group and received training from CEFORD, I only produced food for subsistence purposes using traditional methods of digging. My harvest was low; just enough to feed my family without any surplus for sale,” says 42-year-old Ronnie Ajobe, a farmer in Tulenge village, Rhino Camp refugee settlement, where he stays with his two wives and eight children. Ajobe’s story today is a far cry from what he was going through in the past. Having joined a farmers’ group, he received training in improved farming skills as well as farm inputs and, as they say, the rest is history. Ajobe is one of the many farmers supported by Community Empowerment for Rural Development (CEFORD), a non-governmental organisation based in West Nile implementing the Support Programme for Refugees and Host Communities in Northern Uganda (SPRS-NU), which is funded by the European Union Emergency Trust Fund (EUTF). Through its livelihood programme, CEFORD works with groups comprising refugees and Ugandans (host communities), facilitating them to achieve home-based food security as well as income to enable them meet their other needs and save. “Ultimately, we hope to achieve the SPRS-NU objective of improving the communities’ livelihoods through better food and nutrition security in the settlement and host community as well as a stronger business environment and improved commercial flow between the communities,” says Godwin Amege, CEFORD Project Coordinator. Ajobe belongs to Complementary Farmers’ Group, made up of 25 members, 17 of whom are refugees from South Sudan (12 females, 5 males) and eight Ugandans (3 females, 5 males). CEFORD ensured that the group received training in group dynamics to enable peaceful co-existence, strengthen their leadership and resource mobilisation skills and team work. The group was taken through the Participatory Agro Enterprise Development (PAED) training, under which they learnt how to develop business plans and select enterprises. They realised that cassava production was a profitable business in the refugee settlement and therefore selected it as their investment venture. The program supported selected farmers to participate in the production of cassava cuttings for seed multiplication and Ajobe was one of them. “I received six bags of cassava stalk (NASE 19) as part of the start-up input, which I planted on three acres of land at a cost of UGX400,000. I had to cut the stalk into smaller sizes in order to fill the three acres. Weeding cost me UGX2,400,000, making a total cost of UGX2,800,000,” says Ajobe. After just nine months, Ajobe and his family are reaping twofold – the cassava tubers provide food while the stalks can be sold for re-planting. Ajobe currently sells cassava stalks to farmers in new groups; having harvested 150 bags of stalks, he sells each at UGX40,000, earning UGX6,000,000. Ajobe expects to earn an additional UGX6,000,000 from the unharvested stalks as well as UGX7,200,000 from selling the cassava tubers. Cassava tubers are a common food in West Nile, and can be boiled or dried and ground to make cassava flour. He will earn a total UGX19,200,000, making a profit of UGX16,400,000! “I am grateful to CEFORD and the European Union for this project, which has opened our eyes to achieve what we want through farming – not only food but income as well,” Ajobe says. Ajobe also participated in business training, which empowered him with knowledge about marketing: he now knows how, where, when and to whom to sell his produce. From his earnings, Ajobe has already bought a piece of land in the nearby trading centre. “Our plan as a family is to construct a permanent house in Kubala. We will also expand our cassava plantation,” he says.
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How Congolese refugees can bring economic opportunity to Uganda
Hanna DEKERK | 05/07/2018
On the occasion of World Refugee Day, Enabel’s Support to Skilling Uganda project together with the Embassy of Belgium and the European Union Delegation to Uganda, organised a seminar on "Early Development Preparedness and Response to the Expected DRC Refugee Influx in Uganda". The idea for the seminar stems from a recent scoping study by the International Refugee Rights Initiative on the Congolese refugee influx to Uganda, which assessed the current displacement dynamics in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The study confirmed a high probability of continued violent conflicts, resulting in a large-scale exodus of Congolese refugees in the following months and years. These vulnerable people will search for protection, access to basic services and livelihood opportunities in neighboring countries such as Uganda. Therefore, the seminar explored ways to ensure that DRC refugees can be woven into the Ugandan socio-economic fabric, hereby focussing on a close collaboration between humanitarian and development partners. The seminar consisted of two panels, with the first one focusing on stability and security issues of the expected influx, and the second one on the economic integration of these Congolese refugees. According to Niels De Block, International Skills Development Expert at Enabel, ”Refugees don’t have to be a burden. They can bring economic benefits to Ugandan society provided that their economic integration is encouraged. By being economically active and entrepreneurial, refugees often push economic growth which then stimulates job creation for the host community.” Eminent researchers, such as Dr. Naohiko Omata (Refugee Studies Center of the University of Oxford), and Dr. Nassim Majidi (Sciences Po’s Center for International Studies), fueled the discussions with keynotes. At the closing round table Belgian ambassador to Uganda, Hugo Verbist, concluded that “In addition to formal education, we should focus on training the youth in refugee and host communities. They need to be skilled, on the work floor or elsewhere, in trades that will facilitate their entrance in the labor market.”
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Bilan de la première année d’exécution des conventions de subsides PAIOSA
Jean-francois DETRY | 05/07/2018
Entre septembre 2016 et avril 2017, le PAIOSA a signé 10 conventions de subsides avec différents partenaires actifs dans le secteur agricole au Burundi. A l’issue d’une première année d’exécution de ces conventions, le PAIOSA a réuni ses partenaires au cours d’un atelier de 2 jours pour dresser conjointement un bilan de l’état d’avancement des activités et échanger sur les difficultés rencontrées et les solutions arrêtées, aussi bien sur le plan technique que sur le plan administratif et financier. L’atelier visait 1) à partager les réalisations entre tous les acteurs pour améliorer la synergie et la mise en cohérence des différentes actions contribuant à l’atteinte des objectifs globaux du programme PAIOSA, 2) à préciser les modalités de consolidation / clôture des interventions pour garantir au mieux la pérennisation des acquis après les conventions PAIOSA et 3) à produire des recommandations visant à améliorer / faciliter l’outil « conventions de subsides ».
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Grassroot mediators: how Vietnam promotes mediation through music, drama and knowledge contests
Erwin DICKENS | 05/07/2018
knowledge contestvisit us at www.facebook.com/hatinh.ralg.1
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Grassroot mediators: how Vietnam promotes mediation through music, drama and knowledge contests
Erwin DICKENS | 05/07/2018
drama contest on domestic violence
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Grassroot mediators: how Vietnam promotes mediation through music, drama and knowledge contests.
Erwin DICKENS | 05/07/2018
On July 2nd, 2012, at the meeting hall of Son Ham Commune, Huong Son District, Ha Tinh province, Vietnam, the Department of Justice with support of Support for responsive accountable local governance project in Ha Tinh have organized a “Good Commune Mediators” contest. A contest is a very popular format to promote important social topics. In total 103 teams will participate in the contest during the months of July and August. Each commune sends a team to compete in three disciplines: the music for sensitisation, indepth knowledge of mutiple on social issues and drama to present social issues. The aim of the contest is to enhance the understanding the legal provisions on mediation at grassroots level, display and promote the skills of reconciling conflicts, disputes and law violations. Up to date, 3 contests have been organised with the cheerful atmosphere and attracted a full house each time! music contest
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Closing of the ECIB Work-Based Learning Program
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 02/07/2018
Last week, Enabel celebrated the closing of the ECIB Work-based Learning Program in Palestine in two workshops held in Gaza and the West Bank. The Enhancing Capacities for Institution Building (ECIB) Program, implemented by the Belgian Development Agency (Enabel) on behalf of the Belgian Development Cooperation, aimed to counter the high youth unemployment in Palestine by creating a better match between the skills offered by TVET institutions and those demanded in the labor market. ECIB achieved this by supporting the integration of the Work-Based Learning (WBL) apprenticeship schemes in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Palestine. Additionally, specialized Continuous Vocational Education and Training (CVET) courses were organized in close collaboration with the private sector. Between 2014-2018, ECIB helped to implement 82 WBL and 42 CVET initiatives in 53 TVET institutions in the West Bank and Gaza in a variety of vocations. In total, 2939 trainees participated in these initiatives and 2267 trainees were supported with scholarships, with 49% of trainees coming from a disadvantaged area (Area C, seam zone, refugee camp, East-Jerusalem or Gaza), 45% from a poor background and 35% were women. Each of these initiatives has known many success stories of graduates finding employment because of the new skills they developed during the courses. The program has been considered a huge success by all stakeholders and Enabel was happy to present the final results and products of the program in the presence of the Head of the Belgian Cooperation in Palestine, the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, the Ministry of Labour and the Private Sector Federations to the participating TVET institutions, sector federations, international agencies and graduates. We would like to thank all our stakeholders for participating in this program!
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Festival for children in Beit Leqya
Laura SCHILLEMANS | 02/07/2018
The Joint Services Council for Planning and Development of Beit Leqya - Kharbatha Al-Misbah celebrated Eid Al Fitr with a festival for the children of the community. Numerous activities were organized: a live show with clowns, a bubble show and the distribution of toys and gifts to the 500 children who attended the event. The Joint Service Council regularly organizes social activities for the community to get to know the council and its services, to promote mutual and voluntary work and to enhance the communication with the citizens.
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Lancement officiel du projet SANITA (villes propres) en Guinée
Guido COUCK | 29/06/2018
Joachim Lamah, secrétaire général du ministère des finances, et Elizabeth Peri, conseillère politique de la délégation de l'UE à Conakry - Photo: Enabel/Colin DelfosseConakry, 22 juin 2018 - Cérémonie de lancement du projet SANITA - Villes propresLa croissance démographique rapide de Conakry et de Kindia n’est pas accompagnée des infrastructures et services indispensables à une vie urbaine saine. La gestion des déchets solides y est particulièrement problématique. Un système de collecte des déchets est présent, mais il n’est que partiel, certains quartiers n’étant pas couverts, faute d’accessibilité adéquate pour certains. Face à cette problématique, l’Union Européenne et le gouvernement guinéen ont intégré l’assainissement urbain comme secteur de concentration dans le Programme Indicatif National (PIN) du onzième Fonds Européen de Développement (FED). Il vise à améliorer le cadre stratégique et institutionnel du développement urbain aux niveaux national et local en renforçant les capacités institutionnelles, la planification urbaine nationale, ainsi que la planification de la ville de Conakry. SANITA –villes propres– vise particulièrement à professionnaliser la filière de gestion des déchets solides afin de mettre en place un système de gestion performant et durable pour la ville capitale. Il aborde l'assainissement liquide et le désenclavement des quartiers à travers le développement d'infrastructures telles que voiries tertiaires, réhabilitations et extensions du réseau pluviale… SANITA, mis en œuvre par l’agence belge de développement, vise, pour un budget de 35 millions d’euros, l’amélioration du système de collecte porte-à-porte des déchets de quartiers prioritaires de Conakry et de Kindia en s’attaquant à la partie amont du système, soit du foyer jusqu’aux points de regroupement des déchets. Pour Conakry, le transport jusqu’à la décharge et la gestion de cette dernière ne rentrent pas dans le cadre de l’intervention, étant sous la responsabilité du gouvernement guinéen. Au vu de la spécificité de chacun des contextes, des stratégies différentes sont proposées pour Kindia et Conakry. Pour cette dernière, des investissements relatifs à la voirie, au drainage des eaux pluviales et à la gestion des points de regroupement sont intégrés. Dans la capitale, le programme s’articule autour de trois phases. La phase d’urgence prévoit des interventions impératives sur les points noirs (décharges sauvages). La première phase inclut un travail sur les points de regroupements existants opérationnels prioritaires (sur les cinq communes), ainsi que des actions de désenclavement de certains quartiers prioritaires dans les communes de Kaloum, Dixinn et Matam), qui seront sélectionnés en concertation avec les autorités locales. Cette phase sera finalisée par le schéma directeur des déchets solides de Conakry. La deuxième phase mettra en œuvre les actions prioritaires de cette étude ainsi que le désenclavement des quartiers prioritaires principalement dans les communes Ratoma et Matoto (avec possibilité de continuer des actions dans les trois autres communes). Le service de collecte des ordures étant peu performant et l’adhésion de la population étant basse, beaucoup des fossés et drains existants sont obstrués par les déchets, ce qui fragilise les routes, crée des inondations et ravines et constitue des endroits d’insalubrité propices aux risques sanitaires. Afin de répondre à ces manquements, un volet de sensibilisation de la population et d’appui institutionnel, d’une part, et la réalisation de voiries et de réseaux de drainage, d’autre part, sont prévus comme étant partie intégrante de la stratégie de gestion des déchets solides de Conakry. Un appui organisationnel aux PME en charge de la gestion des déchets est également inclus. Il importe en effet que le fonctionnement des services de collecte soit optimisé et qu’il soit assumé par un mécanisme de financement autonome et pérenne, sur le principe de pollueur payeur, basé sur un montage impliquant les pouvoirs publics et la société civile. Afin de maximiser la diminution du volume de déchets transférés à la décharge, des actions, pilotes puis à échelle plus grande, de tri, recyclage, de transformation des déchets appuieront le système des déchets, les PME et les pouvoirs publics. Afin d’assurer la cohérence de l’ensemble de la filière de gestion des déchets, l’intervention appuiera la réalisation d’un schéma directeur des déchets, tout en tenant compte de la planification urbaine. SANITA - Villes propres est financé par le onzième FED de l’EU, mis en œuvre par l'agence belge de développement en synergie avec l’Agence Nationale de l’Assainissement et la Salubrité Publique (ANASP) et la Direction de l’Aménagement du Territoire et de l’Urbanisme (DATU).
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Future perspectives
Erwin DICKENS | 29/06/2018
A short briefing by the national project assistant director on the future perspectives.
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CDPR support for public investment management
Erwin DICKENS | 29/06/2018
This video talks about how Enabel through CDPR supported the process of improving public investment in Vietnam.
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how does the public investent law makes a difference in your daily life
Erwin DICKENS | 29/06/2018
Improving governance and a new Public Investment Law might seem far away from people's daily business. In fact it is quite the opposite: this video is an example of what has really changed
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Planning Reform makes a difference every day life.
Erwin DICKENS | 29/06/2018
A short video on Public Investment management before the new Planning and Investment Law (PIL) came into effect. The new PIL makes a strong link between planning and budget on one hand and on the other it defines clearly responsibilities within the different levels of Government.
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The Water Supply System in Tomanine: One Year Later
Anke VANDEVELDE | 26/06/2018
Last year, Enabel joined Governor Stella Pinto at the inauguration of the water supply system in the village of Tomanine in Guijá district in honour of World Water Day. One year later, a delegation of Enabel and two delegates from the Mozambican government returned to see how the community is dealing with the water supply system constructed by the Enabel Gaza project. Upon arrival in the town of Tomanine, the manual pump that was used so frequently before Enabel’s intervention appeared to be completely out of use, an observation that was confirmed by the community. There also seemed to be more livestock in the village, which could be a consequence of the availability of drinkable water. Furthermore, the community members became more and more interested in having water taps even closer by home. A Mozambican private company was appointed for the installation of these taps. The private “family” water taps are shared between approximately ten families and managed within themselves by a small committee who keeps track of every family’s consumption. Apart from this kind of taps, the company has also started with installing water taps in a private house for one family only, which is the type of tap we are familiar with. The price for the tap water is very affordable: approximately 50 eurocents per m³ with a fixed minimum payment of 85 eurocents. Since the start of this initiative in June 2017, 160 of these private “family” connections were installed, as well as 12 private house taps, bringing the total to 172 private (family/house) connections. However, due to lack of payment the management of the water network shut down the water supply for these private users. For the families this clearly marked a break with the past, as this time payment backlog would not be tolerated anymore. Furthermore, the appreciation of easy access to water by the families led to an agreement to restart the water supply in return for reliable payments. Currently, the company is preparing the installation of 85 new private (house) connections. These family and house private water taps make up two out of four possibilities for the community to obtain drinkable water. There are still two community fountains, open to any community member of which the sale is managed by a small Water and Sanitation Committee. Lastly, there is a water fill station for trucks: the truck pays at the station and sells the water in surrounding villages where there is no clean water. The delegation held a final stop in the village of Chinhacanine where Enabel is building a similar construction to the one in Tomanine. There are two tanks of 150 000 liter each and an elevated tank on 20 meter height with a content of 60 000 liter. The latter will provide water to the people living in the higher areas. Moreover, the water network will supply to the private network (such as the hospital and other private suppliers), which currently has troubles with water cuts and low-quality, even undrinkable water. The mixture with the new water supply network will ensure an automatic 24/7 supply of drinkable water, as the fusion with the high quality water of Enabel’s project will turn the “private” water clean and drinkable. The water will be provided from three wells and will be distributed to the community through taps: per ten families there will be one tap. In the end 12,000 people will benefit from drinkable water, although the project is struggling with some delays. Therefore, the project is putting a lot of effort in community outreach by providing information, working and talking with the inhabitants thus preparing them for the new supply systems. This social aspect is taking more time than expected, but is nevertheless very important. The visit to Tomanine showed some of the success and sustainability of the Water Gaza project. The increasing demand for private connections demonstrates that families in Tomanine strongly value easy access to drinkable water. This is facilitated by the very reasonable prices of the new water supply system. The project puts considerable emphasis on its sustainability, by ensuring the partnerships with local companies, communities and government. Lastly, access to drinking water, incorporated in Sustainable Development Goal 6, has improved the general livelihood of these families, with a positive impact on health[1] (SDG 3) and on the production of livestock in the village (linked to SDG 1: zero poverty, and SDG 2: zero hunger). [1] The consumption of salty water can cause dehydration and kidney infections. Moreover, this salty groundwater can damage the pipe and pump system and the erosion of the water supply system might cause metallic parts to enter the water, causing cancers, cardiovascular diseases and many other health issues.This article was written by Anke Van de Velde with the valuable input of Hélder Cumbi and revised by Evert Waeterloos.
