Assessing Capacity Enhancement for Local Government and Civil Society: Perceptions of the Niger Delta by Bill Knight

1
Assessing Capacity Enhancement for Local
Government and Civil Society Perceptions of the
Niger Deltaby Bill Knight

• To differing extents State and Local Governments
  (and most people) have little (some zero)
  capacity / interest in investing and tracking
  funding efficiently, transparently and
  productively. All funding is targeted by Benefit
  Captors (some violent) who prefer to share and
  enjoy at the expense of others. Local
  Government, especially, is an extractive
  industry of a sort.
• Government training institutions have been
  neglected and are essentially dormant/ineffectual.
  Such training workshops as there are (funded by
  different groups) tend to be repetitive, to
  target the same people at the top and have little
  impact on the bottom. Training tends to be theory
  rather than experience based. One (only?)
  exception is PNIs ISD and the living
  university.
• The standard practice in reporting all kinds of
  government and much of civil societys activity
  (including capacity development) is to create
  illusions that will generate (more) funding.
• As for measuring other economic, social, or
  environmental impacts of EI, there is little
  reliable data available to measure anything. For
  many consultants, field work is anathema cut
  and paste plagiarism and spin rule.
• Niger Delta Near total lack of local government
  institutions /corruption rife/ little
  understanding of rights and responsibilities
  resulted in under-development conflict which 2
  complementary models seek to reverse.

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PNI Nigeria Partnering model for Sustainable
Community Development
Partnering model 1 has already created limited
but successful, multiple, multi-sectored
partnering in 3 Local Government Areas helped
bring about development peace. Each has had
their own attendant difficulties multiple, but
limited available funding, different stakeholder
agenda and commitments, as well as different
requirements for accounting reporting.
Purpose To Empower "whole communities" to
leverage funding from stakeholders and to
kick-start sustainable community-led,
stake-holder partnered development programmes
designed to meet locally perceived needs and
priorities.
e). International bilateral aid development
agency contribution
d). Federal Government Development Agencies (NDDC)
c). State Government Development Initiatives
b). Local Government Development Objectives
a). Windfall payments (e.g. "compensation" )
payable to community
ii) LGA monthly subvention to cover running costs
essential activities (e.g. planning)
i) Community Contribution raised by levy
Community Entry
Proactive Facilitation
Supervise / Mentor
Exit
3
Bayelsa Partnership Initiative

• Partnering model 2 is still under development, in
  Bayelsa State. It has similar goals but intends
  coordinated and statewide funding for
  community-driven development.
• CDFs will draw down (as of Right) on Stakeholder
  allocated funding for Grants and Loans that will
  service Community Plans initiated by individuals,
  groups and entrepreneurs at the CDI level.
• Both models (will) rely on developing extensive
  Participatory ME systems that use non-fiscal
  indicators e.g. happiness and peace, as well as
  standard accounting and reporting methods.
• Institutional Development Capacity Building is
  an essential part of both models.

Note Top down support for bottom up development
stream-lined efficient no strangle-hold by
middle management
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Capacity Building Assessment Solutions

• Two models aim to build capacity in community led
  development, both civil society and local
  government
• Investments in building skills and awareness are
  best monitored and evaluated by measuring their
  impact at the grass roots in terms of
  sustainable development, better governance and
  peace,
• Measuring intangibles i.e. happiness, well being,
  social inclusion how reduced incidents of
  conflict, involvement in local, functional
  institutions, confidence in health and education
  services
• What are community development outcomes improved
  access to health, education, better
  infrastructure promoting local economies, roads,
  electricity, improved natural resource management
• Methodologies improved implementation and
  efficiency of projects initiated by government
  and community, less financial wastage and
  therefore fewer abandoned projects publication
  of financial reports on regular basis
  socio-economic analyses to measure intangibles
  and tangibles incidents of conflict
• Certification of ISD living university
  courses
• Millennium Development Goals should be used as a
  checklist to monitor community development
  progress
• What is missing to properly do this assessment
  resources, skills, lack of political will,
  skepticism
• What role for stakeholders beyond funding
  political support, technical assistance,
  constructive feedback, networking, representation
  at a global level

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Essential Components Activities

• Awareness Creation Publicity
• Advocacy And Empowerment Letting The People See
  And Say
• Letting People Know Their Own Rights And
  Responsibilities And Of Those That Handle Money
• Procedures
• Definition Of Clear And Well Known Procedures For
  Accounting Reporting
• Transparency
• Publishing What You Pay/Radio/TV/Papers...
• No Confidentiality Right Of Access To
  Information
• Making Reporting Field Based, Clearer Credible
• Using Digital Cameras GPS To ID Report
  Projects Clearly
• Creating Avenues For Protest Congratulations
  
• Newspapers
• Whistle Blowing Mobile Phone /SMS Texting /
  Emails / Blogging

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Institutional Development Capacity Building
Through A Chain Of living universities
The living university of Akassa Akassa
Development Foundation

• Example The ADF living university of Akassa
• Classroom is the community
• Teachers are community members
• What they teach is what they have learned about
  developing themselves
• Students are visitors from other communities and
  institutions

Certificate of Attendance Is awarded
to _____________________________________________
______ For attending the living university
course Introduction to Participatory Community
Development Organised by Akassa Development
Foundation and Pro-Natura International
(Nigeria) dd mm - yyyy
The Hub model places the ISD at the centre of
development learning
Experiential learning takes place in the field
skills and knowledge are shared
Akassa Training Resource Centre plays important
role.
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Reporting To Communities Funders
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Reporting to the Public