Report of the Round Table on
Partnership with Civil Society to
Implement the ICPD - Programme of Action
Dhaka, Bangladesh
27-30 July 1998
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The
Round Table on Partnership with Civil Society to Implement the Programme
of Action, International Conference on Population and Developmen, was
the
third round table in a series of expert meetings and technical symposia held
on selected population and development issues. These meetings have been
organized to assess the
progress achieved regarding the goals of the ICPD Programme of Action since
Cairo in 1994, and to identify priorities for future action.
The findings, conclusions and proposed future actions from the round table
meetings and other symposia will constitute significant inputs for the ICPD+5
International Forum to be convened in The Hague, The Netherlands, 8 to 12 February 1999,
and for the report of the Secretary-General for the Special Session of the United Nations
General Assembly, 30 June to 2 July 1999.
The Round Table was attended by more than 85 participants from civil
society, Government and the international donor community, including United Nations
organizations and agencies. The Round Table, held from 27 to 30 July 1998 in Dhaka,
Bangladesh, was organized by the United Nations Population Fund, in collaboration with the
United Nations Population Division, and was hosted by the Government of Bangladesh.
During the Round Table, participants:
reviewed the status of partnership among civil society, Government, and
the international community to advocate for and implement the ICPD Programme of Action;
identified successes, constraints and lessons learned since the ICPD
with respect to policy, legislative, administrative, managerial, strategic and financial
aspects regarding tripartite collaboration and partnership, particularly at the country
level; and
proposed future actions to further promote and enhance partnership among
civil society, Government, and the international community to achieve the goals and
objectives of the ICPD Programme of Action.
Notable progress had been achieved by the civil society, Governments and
the international community in undertaking collaborative efforts. The Round Table adopted
the following key recommendations to promote and strengthen the partnership process to
implement the ICPD Programme of Action:
AN ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR EFFECTIVE PARTNERSHIP
All Governments should adopt measures to facilitate the involvement
of civil society in the formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation
of policies,
strategies and programmes. The following actions will assist in the process
of creating an enabling environment for an effective partnership among
civil society, Government and the
international community to advance the implementation of the Programme of
Action:
Create common forums
for dialogue. Regular and systematic dialogue is to be the key to partnership.
Such dialogue should lead to
increased involvement of
civil society in the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation
of national policies and programmes and to more coordinated development
efforts by Governments, civil
society and the international community;
- Re-examine
concepts, assumptions, agendas, priorities. For partnership to
flourish, reflection on and re-examination
of agendas
and priorities, as well as the basic concepts of partnership
and assumptions about possible partners, are essential;
- Listen to and respect the experiences of other partners;
and Identify and build on the comparative strengths of partners and
utilize existing relationships. Mutual
respect increases with regular interaction with partners. In this way,
the strengths, comparative advantages and weaknesses of each partner
can be identified, evaluated and put
to use accordingly;
- Identify key issues. Key common issues regarding legislation,
policy and programmes have to be identified as the basis for collaborative
action;
- Identify key players and institutions. The identification
of key players is crucial. Different approaches may be used to assist
in the identification of
potential key partners, such as during joint efforts on social issues
with other institutions or civic leaders;
- Develop mutual accountability among partners. It is
essential to develop transparent systems by which partners become
accountable to each other and to the
respective communities and constituencies which they serve;
- Develop joint plans of action at various levels The
process of dialogue should lead to joint or complementary plans of
action, developed in a transparent
and participatory manner; and
- Continue monitoring the implementation of the
Programme of Action. Mechanisms are needed to monitor implementation and to provide
feedback. Various modalities might be used, such as country-level assessments by
Governments, CSOs and donors.
SOCIAL AND RESOURCE MOBILIZATION
Governments and civil society should strengthen and intensify their social
and resource mobilization efforts as well as formulate IEC and advocacy strategies which
are bolder and more innovative, based on sociocultural and economic research, and designed
to reach specific audiences within a broader spectrum of civil society. The following
actions would advance this process:
Communicate directly and clearly. The Programme
of Action's message must be translated not only into the local
language but, equally important, explained in terms which relate
to the life experiences of the selected audience;
Use media more effectively. More time and money should
be devoted to the effective use of the media. Quality and creativity
must match the quantity of media
output;
-
Develop new strategic alliances. New models and inclusive
approaches should be used to reach selected audiences, including private
sector organizations, parliamentarians and religious communities;
Engage ICPD critics and adversaries. There is a need to conduct
detailed study and research on the objections and concerns of the critics and adversaries
of the Programme of Action, and, to educate and support effective spokespersons, at all
levels, to address these issues;
Address controversial topics and cultural taboos. Public
discourse on controversial issues should be opened up for discussion in a culturally
sensitive manner and with a commitment to the promotion of justice and sound health; and
-
Mobilize resources. Increased attention must be given
to mobilization of financial and other resources at all levels to
ensure that the Programme
of Action is well supported.
HUMAN RESOURCES AND INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITIES OF CIVIL SOCIETY
Governments and the civil society, particularly CSOs, with the assistance,
as appropriate, of international organizations, should give increased attention to
improving and strengthening their respective human resource management and technical
capabilities as well as institutional capacities and financial viability. Innovative
financial and technical assistance approaches, including direct funding to CSOs, should be
adopted to foster partnerships. Actions might be taken to:
-
Strengthen capacities at all levels. Governments and
civil society should formulate a common framework for working together.
Donor and NGO
partnerships should be broadened to include the provision of financial
and technical assistance by donors to build the human resource and
institutional capacities of their
partner organizations;
- Promote accountability and transparency. NGO accreditation should
be encouraged. A formal mechanism among NGO partners, Governments and
local communities as well as donors should be instituted to ensure exchange
of information on programme
activities and financing, and to assist in planning strategically,
determining future directions, identifying lessons learned and strengthening
partnerships. There should be
periodic internal and external programme, management and financial
auditing;
Ensure sustainability Government, civil society institutions
and the international community should address the critical issue
of institutional viability
and programme sustainability; and
-
Encourage coalition-building and networking Civil society
institutions, especially NGOs, should give increased attention to coalition-building
and networking at the national and regionallevels in order to promote
programme replicability,
complementarity and synergy, in addition to facilitating information
exchange and concerted action for policy and legislative inputs.
ACCESS TO HIGH QUALITY REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND FAMILY
PLANNING SERVICE
Given the pressures of economic globalization, Governments, NGOs, the
private sector and international organizations should significantly increase their efforts
to identify areas and to promote innovative modalities for concerted action to achieve
programme complementarity and synergy, particularly with respect to provision of
reproductive health services. Actions might be taken to:
-
Formulate reproductive health policies. Policies
and programmes should be formulated by Governments and international
donors through consultative
processes involving the civil society, particularly the providers and
users of reproductive health services;
- Undertake strategic programme
planning. The sociology of demand
and supply, as well as the mode of service delivery, should be reviewed.
Capacity-building must be strengthened to ensure that appropriate quality
services can be provided,
especially to groups such as youth/adolescents, mothers at high risk,
and hard-to-reach or underserved, marginalized groups;
-
Provide core financing. A core grant should be
earmarked by Governments to support NGO/civil society involvement
and a percentage of country programme
funds set aside by international aid agencies for NGOs and civil society
participation and execution;
-
Develop quality assurance. Governments, through
legislative action, must enact standards of quality assurance for
the provision of reproductive health
services and contraceptive commodities. NGOs and professional organizations
should take a leadership role in assisting the Government in determining
and setting appropriate quality
standards and in disseminating these standards among providers and
clients;
-
Create built-in sustainability. Service charges should be
introduced on an incremental basis, as appropriate. Clients should
be empowered so that they become active seekers of quality services from private
and other facilities, on a
fee-paying basis, if and as feasible; and
-
Continue External Assistance. As long as there
are unserved, underserved, marginalized, poorer persons who are unable
to obtain the basic necessities
of life in many developing nations, external assistance will be needed.
This assistance must reach poorer persons - through those institutions,
Government or NGOs, which are
working in the field to provide quality reproductive health services.
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