CARE is working with four Austrian NGOs and seven East African partner organizations on strengthening the capacities of NGOs in policy dialogue.

Problem

Austrian NGOs have long-term relationships/partnerships with local CSOs that could or already do engage in policy dialogue activities. However, no screening and capitalizing of the experiences of these local CSOs’ engagement in policy dialogue has been done so far. Moreover, no discussion on adequate supporting structures for capacity and skills development and financing models for CSO engagement in policy dialogue has taken place within the Austrian development cooperation sector so far. After a mapping of CSO policy dialogue activities within the projects and programs of all Austrian NGOs that are co-financed with ADC funds, 5 Austrian NGOs, all having partner organisations in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, decided to build a consortium and to elaborate a program to strengthen civil society engagement in policy dialogue. The main areas of interest for policy dialogue of this consortium and its local partner organisations are food sovereignty, children’s/youth rights and women’s empowerment.

Expected Results

Result 1. Capacity development and cross-learning plan for partner CSOs is developed.

Result 2. The ability of East African CSOs to engage in policy dialogue has been further strengthened in their field of work.

Result 3. Recommendations/ guidelines for CSOs engagement in Policy Dialogue are further complemented and used/ applied.

Participants

The target group of this project are seven local partner organisations in East Africa, namely GROOTS Kenya, DESECE, WORUDET, CARE Uganda, MIONET, SOS-Children Villages Tanzania and the Kenya Red Cross Society, as well as five Austrian consortia partners, namely Horizont3000 (lead), Österreichisches Rotes Kreuz, CARE Österreich, CARITAS Zentrale Österreich and SOS-Kinderdorf Österreich.
The direct beneficiaries are around 20 persons of the 7 local partner organisations. They will be directly involved in capacity development activities (trainings, cross-learning and sharing events, experience capitalization, etc.). Around 15 persons of the 5 consortia partners in Austria will also directly participate in cross-learning and sharing events. Furthermore, other Austrian and East African CSOs are directly targeted by being invited to the trainings, cross-learning and sharing events.
Indirect beneficiaries are the target groups of the 7 local partner organisations benefitting from a more effective engagement of the CSOs in policy dialogue in their field of interest.