Final Report for the European Commission

Transcription

1 Final Report for the European Commission TRIALOG The Enlargement of the EU and European NGDOs B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR Total Amount: 1, Reporting period: March 22, 2000 September 21, 2003 Beneficiary: HORIZONT3000, Austria (Lead Agency) Partners in the AGEH Consortium Brot für die Welt (Bread for the World) Cordaid Other Partners: CONCORD (former LC) Finnish Platform Swedish Platform Vienna, November 2003 Elisabeth Förg, Project Co-ordinator

2 Abbreviations AC Accession Countries LC Liaison Committee now CONCORD MFA Ministry for Foreign Affairs NP National Platform(s) PA Participants Descriptive Section 1.1. Summary of the project objectives Main objective: to raise public awareness in the candidate countries and in the EU of the need for development education and development co-operation between an enlarged European Union and the South To establish an effective network encompassing partner organisations in the candidate countries and sharing a joint approach to global development policy issues To enhance the capacity of NGOs in the candidate countries to lobby on North- South issues, and to conduct campaigns designed to raise public awareness of global development issues To support the establishment of national NGOs and NGO platforms to deal with development policy or at least the formulation of a development focus within existing NGO platforms in the candidate countries To promote political dialogue at the EU level on development policy in the enlargement process 1.2. Measures implemented: 22/03/ /09/ Participation in LC/CONCORD events and in thematic conferences. The aims of the project deepening co-operation with NGOs in the AC and introducing a southern perspective in the design of an enlarged Europe were presented and argued for in a variety of conferences, seminars and workshops. Participation in 23 events of LC/CONCORD, single national platforms and networks (see annex 1) was used for work related conversations in order to initiate and agree upon concrete co-operations, such as study visits. With the establishment of CONCORD, TRIALOG also took over the task of chairing the working group "enlargement. The founding meeting, at which the objectives and the work plan for the coming years were determined, took place in July TRIALOG staff accepted invitations to 36 international conferences, congresses and seminars (see annex 1), half of which took place in the AC. These events were organised by a diverse set of actors (UNDP, foundations, foreign ministries, European Commission, think tanks, universities and others). In papers and working groups staff members, as experts on EU enlargement, specified their objectives and demands, introduced NGO positions and exchanged experiences. In this way contacts to NGOs and other co-operation partners could be established and deepened. B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 2

3 Database The database of NGOs interested in North-South issues is based on the 1998 Vienna Conference "The Enlargement of the EU and the Role of NGDOs and has been constantly updated and enlarged by participation in conferences and by conducting extensive research at "related NGOs in the fields of environment, human rights and social affairs. The database is the basis of all networking, information and cooperation activities and is divided into two parts, namely an internal and an online component. It has been designed in a way that allows users to search and contact partners in the old and new member states as well as in the South according to various criteria. In September 2003 the whole database consisted of 1187 entries (630 AC), 401 of which are available online (185 AC, 141 EU countries, 75 South). In each project year about 300 datasheets had been added. In the last 6 months (extension of the project) the database was once again expanded with another 300 entries Website ( The website offers comprehensive information on the different project components and is regularly updated and modified to accommodate to new demands. The most important sections are information about the project, documents on development cooperation and enlargement, partially in 15 languages, the NGO database and an extensive link list. In 2002 the website was expanded with the sections "activities (includes all seminar documentations), "trialog publications and "development education. Membership in the Portal Oneworld and the exchange of links with a broad variety of related organisations (about 200 links from the TRIALOG website) guarantee that the project is well embedded in the worldwide net TRIALOG Publications (all attached) As Liaison News was discontinued in 2001, only one out of the 8 originally planned attachments could be published in As a substitute, an independent TRIALOG Newsletter was conceptualised and produced twice, namely in January 2002 (5000 English and 3000 French copies) and in April 2003 (3000 English). Within eight pages these two editions describe the status of the project implementation, the situation of development policy and NGDOs in selected ACs as well as the co-operation between various platforms. For postal dispatch the databases of LC and TRIALOG were updated, synchronised with each other as well as complemented with information about European Institutions concerned with enlargement and Foreign Ministries in the AC. Since November 2000 different information such as invitations to seminars, information on development co-operation, financial opportunities and so on were relayed on a weekly basis. In December 2001 this information relay was systematised and distributed to all the contacts in the database in the form of a weekly, later monthly, newsletter (TRIALOG Information Service TIS). Since the start of 2003 the editions of the TIS can also be downloaded from the website and an online entry into the list of TIS receivers is possible. In September 2003 the TIS reached an audience of 1069 receivers. The TRIALOG policy paper "Development Cooperation and Enlargement (January 2001) was re-issued in a revised edition in September In the process of B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 3

4 enlargement the aspects of development policy and development co-operation have not received the necessary attention. The position paper identifies these deficiencies and derives demands to different political actors from them. Léna Krichewsky, who did a 3 month internship at TRIALOG, wrote a study on "Development Policy in the Accession Countries (February 2002), which was updated by her in March It provides a short overview of official development assistance in the AC and describes to what extent the necessary structures (administrative, legal, financial and political framework) have been set up and how the co-operation with NGOs works or how it is planned. These two documents are an important basis for the political dialogue, which was mainly carried out by the Policy Officer in Brussels (September 2001 June 2003) Translation into the languages of the Accession Countries The selection of documents to be translated was geared towards on the one hand the EU level development policy agenda and on the other hand the demand by NGDOs looking for material for development education and wanting to address a broader public. New translations are mentioned in the electronic newsletter TIS and are also available on the TRIALOG website. NGDO Documents NGDO Charter: Basic Principles of Development and Humanitarian Aid NGOs in the European Union (12 languages: Bulgarian, Estonian, Greek, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Rumanian, Czech, Slovak, Slovenian, Hungarian) Short information on TRIALOG (11 languages) Basic texts development education and the DEEEP project (Polish) Activity report and statues of the Czech NP (English) EU relevant documents Declaration of the Council and the Commission on the European Community's Development Policy (11 languages) Communication from the Commission: Participation of non-state actors in EC Development Policy (Estonian, Hungarian, Czech) Council Resolution on development education and awareness raising (Polish) Part of EuropeAid's "Standard grant contract for external actions (Polish, Czech) Basic information on EU institutions (Czech) Fair Trade Chapters Straightening the Bent World of the Banana, "Tea, Coffee, handicraft, "cocoa and "practical ideas of fair trade from the yearbook Fair Trade (Slovak) Folder "Being fair was never so easy (Slovak) True development aid for developing countries: the example of bananas in Ecuador (Slovak) Information sheets on fair produced / trade coffee, chocolate and rice (Slovak) Report Spilling the beans on the Coffee Trade (Czech) B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 4

5 Communication from the European Commission on Fair Trade (Czech) Other development policy issues Action handbook and short texts on the debt crises and debt relief (Czech) Handbook for children's' rights (Czech) Participation of NGOs from the AC in events from LC/CONCORD and other organisations Due to the financial crisis of the LC there were few events in the first two project years to which NGO representatives of the AC could be invited. In the course of the establishment of the New European NGDO Coordination in 2002, TRIALOG made intensive efforts to incorporate the concerns of the new members: visible outcomes are the full membership of three NPs (CZ, SK, Malta) in CONCORD, the active participation of AC representatives at the Development Education Forum and in the DEEEP project (independent of CONCORD membership) as well as the establishment of the CONCORD Working Group Enlargement. 15 LC/CONCORD events: Date Nature of the event PA from AC Apr 00 LC Conference and General Assembly 5 Jul 00 Development Education Summer School 5 May 01 NGO Forum at UN LDC III 4 March 02 Round Table on EU governance and the Convention on the 1 Future of Europe Apr 02 Task group II "From Consultation to Action 5 Jun 02 LC General Assembly 5 Nov 02 Round Table Future Role of Development Cooperation in the 1 EU Nov 02 Development Education Forum 5 Dec 02 Pre-Decision Meeting for the Founding of the new European 3 NGDO Confederation Jan 03 Founding Meeting of CONCORD 3 Apr 03 Information Working Group of DEEEP 1 May 03 Conference of CONCORD Working Group on Financing for 1 Development: Financing of MDGs May 03 CONCORD/BOND Conference: Europe in the World: Future of 3 Development in EU Foreign & Security Policy Jun 03 CONCORD Working Group Enlargement 7 Jul 03 Council Resolution Working Group of DEEEP 1 As there were fewer LC events as foreseen within the duration of the project, workshops and participation in conferences and seminars of other organisers was financially supported more strongly than originally envisaged. 11 other events: Date/Country Nature of the event PA from AC May 01 (A) Symposium Global Learning (Südwind Agency) 1 Oct 01 (E) WIDE Annual Conference 6 B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 5

6 Nov 01 (B) Seminar Sustainable development (Belgian EU Presidency) 3 Dec 01 (B) Europe: World Power or World Partner (Belgian EU 2 Presidency) May 02 (A) European Social Forum Preparatory Meeting 14 Oct 02 (D) Planning seminar with the ASA programme 5 Nov 02 (SA) 6 th Annual Meeting of IVSO (International Volunteer Sending 1 Organisations) and study tour Feb 03 (A) Workshop on NGO Government Relations, in the context of 7 the Regional Partnership Workshop (Austrian MFA) March 03 (F) Partners in Development Evaluation Learning and 3 Accountability May 03 (A) WIDE Annual Conference 6 June 03 (G) Planning seminar with ASA programme Steering Group There were six steering group meetings (10/00, 03/01, 09/01, 03/02, 09/02, 02/03) as well as two meetings of a smaller group for planning and discussing the successor proposal (11/2002) and for a concluding evaluation and transition to phase two (09/2003). The task of the steering group was mainly to monitor and supervise ongoing project activities. Based on the reports of the Vienna and Brussels offices and individual countries the state of the project implementation was critically assessed at these meetings and details of the working plan and the next concrete steps were discussed. The agendas and meeting reports are available in the co-ordination office. The meetings of the steering group were an important element for the project's European dimension as its members were delegates from the respective EU and AC NPs (where existent). In the course of the 3½ years more and more NPs could be convinced to collaborate in this first "East-West" forum where, well beyond the project implementation, different experiences and views on development policy were discussed; the steering group was attended by representatives from A, D, F, GR, I, NL, P, SF, S, UK, as well as from CZ, EE, HU, Malta, PL, SK. At the last meeting in February 2003 it was decided not to continue the steering group in its present form but rather to incorporate its experiences in the CONCORD Working Group Enlargement, established in June. The task of advising and monitoring was handed over to the smaller Advisory Group Seminars and workshops "Introductory Course on development policy Conceptualising and organising 10 three-day seminars (7 thematic, 3 on project management) was a major emphasis of TRIALOG's work. The agenda and the application form where sent to all addresses in the database. On average there where twice as many applications than available places. Criteria for selecting participants (12 30 per seminar) were their previous experience in North-South issues, their motivation to implement what they would learn at home and finally the geographic distribution within the 12 countries. To all thematic seminars except the first, experts from the South were invited so as to initiate a real "trialogue". Extensive seminar documentations were produced. In total, representatives of 200 NGOs from the AC participated in one or more seminars. The evaluation of the seminars clearly shows that motivation for exchanging information and experience with experts from the South was very high, as few such opportunities had previously existed in the AC. Working groups including practical B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 6

7 exercises were always very welcome as they helped to arrive at concrete ideas for projects and also offered space for in-depth discussions; case studies were very important as well. While many participants had previously not been familiar with the topics under discussion some did have sound previous knowledge a fact which posed a challenge to planning every time. These differences were hardly avoidable, because the seminars were the first and the only East-West-South fora for further education and mutual exchange and because the objectives of the project included introducing NGOs which had not (yet) been familiarised with North-South issues to these topics. Sometimes it was criticized that TRIALOG did not provide a follow-up on the seminar issues; however, it would have been impossible to accomplish this in the framework of the project. Therefore, the participants themselves were called upon to become active and to use the opportunity for networking and bilateral follow-up work. Seminar EU development policy 2-4 April 2001 Participants: 25 AC, 6 EU Speakers: 5 EU Environment and Development 8-11 October 2001 Participants: 15 AC, 3 EU Speakers: 4 EU, 2 South Debt and Structural Adjustment Policies January 2002 Participants: 21 AC, 5 EU, 1 South Speakers: 1 South, 2 EU, 1 USA Human Rights and Development April 2002 Participants:22 AC, 5 EU, 2 South Speakers: 4 EU, 1 BL, 2 South Labour Issues and Globalisation 4-6 November 2002 Participants: 23 AC, 6 EU, 3 South Speakers: 6 EU, 3 South, 1 AC Gender Issues in Development Policies 9-11 March 2003 Particpants:24 AC, 3 EU Trainers: 2 EU, 2 South Democratisation and Civil Society June 2003 Participants:: 27 AC Speakers: 3 EU, 2 South, 1 AC Issues EU development policy, Cotonou agreement, NGO positions and lobbying strategies, NGDO networks in the EU. Follow-up activities (selection): AGEH Seminar on personnel sending agreed upon, NGOs translated documents in their mother tongues. Agriculture and food security, activities and demands of environmental NGOs in Brazil and Senegal, lobbying regarding Rio+10, biological and cultural diversity, comparison between AC and developing countries (water), climate protection, half-day on PR and media work. Follow-up activities (selection): discussion, meeting after the Johannesburg summit. Origin of the debt crisis; comparison between structural adjustment programmes in the AC and dev. countries; alternatives from civil society; campaigning and lobbying. Follow-up (selection): translation of material on debt relief into Czech. Connection between development, human rights and migration, women's rights, rights of indigenous peoples, situation of refugees and immigrants in the EU, 2 half-day workshops on PR and media work as well as on lobbying. Follow-up activities (selection): meetings with other NGOs to pass on information, enhanced media work. Labour rights in the formal and informal sector, the situation of women and children, multinational corporations and labour rights, international guidelines, fair trade, clean clothes campaign, cooperation between NGOs and trade unions. Follow-up activities (selection): realisation of the elaborated projects, bilateral seminar on fair trade in Verona, Italy. Gender-sensitive approaches, gender perspectives in development cooperation and education, EU gender regulations, case studies: gender in Guatemala and Sudan, gender issues in own work plan. EU policy in the field of democratisation and human rights in development co-operation, EU co-financing of NGO projects, case studies: democratisation and civil society in Guatemala, Namibia, Slovakia and selected AC. Capacity Building September Participants: AC 1 Trainer Basic concepts, internal and external aspects of an organisation, cooperations with organisations and networks, life cycle of an organisation, development of an organisation and changes in management. B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 7

8 Capacity Building 3-5 June Participants: AC Capacity Building September 2002 Participants:: 10 AC, 2 EU Project Cycle Management (PCM): project planning, evaluation, monitoring, implications, utilisation of results. Because of the great demand, the June training was repeated in September 2002 for other participants Media activities, Public Relations and lobbying Media- and Public Relations work Activities for the media were carried out on the occasion of the opening of the coordination office in Vienna and on the occasion of each TRIALOG seminar. Additionally, the presence of experts from the South was utilised for information and discussion events with local NGOs as well as for visits to the Austrian MFA and the Parliament. As an example of the kind of activities conducted, the panel discussion with a Peruvian economics researcher and a Hungarian representative of the CEE Bankwatch network can be mentioned; it was entitled "30 years of structural adjustment in Latin America 10 years of reforms in Central and Eastern Europe. Experiences, lessons, perspectives". Furthermore, membership in the Internet portal Oneworld made it possible to reach a wider audience. In the AC there is little or no media coverage of North-South issues. Via the project NGO media could be reached, both through the newsletter and through reports by participants about TRIALOG seminars and study visits. A comprehensive press review does not exist; however, reports on development issues and/or TRIALOG are in evidence for the Slovak, Maltese, Czech, Rumanian, Slovenian and Estonian press Lobbying The part time position of a policy officer in Brussels was filled for 22 months. Firstly, considerable emphasis was put on the promotion of political dialogue with the European Institutions about development policy in the framework of enlargement. The aim was to convince members of DG Development to implement the necessary steps for integrating their new colleagues in this field and, furthermore, to promote the issue of enlargement in DG Development and in EuropeAid. Moreover, the European Council and members of the European Parliament were regularly contacted, although with a varying degree of success. Further emphasis was put on calling the attention of politicians and civil servants from the AC to the issue of development policy. This was done through lobbying at enlargement events in Brussels, in particular at the enlargement fora and the breakfast meetings of the European Policy Centre (EPC), as well as on visits to the AC (PL, EE). The third emphasis was put on increasing the profile of the enlargement process in the setting of CONCORD. Here, the aim was to timely position enlargement as a strategically important topic for development NGOs and to integrate the topic in all activities of CONCORD and other networks (such as the fair trade network). All these efforts led to a major increase in the visibility and Europe wide relevance of the TRIALOG project. A further issue of considerable importance was the integration of AC NGOs in the field of development education and public relations. The TRIALOG policy officer was admitted to the management group of the DEEEP project in order to integrate enlargement as a cross-cutting issue and to ensure the participation of AC in DEEEP activities. B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 8

9 Bilateral seminars and study visits ("Exposure Programme") Alongside meetings of the steering group, bilateral seminars and study visits were the most effective measure to promote both the European dimension of the project and the active integration of the AC. Because some platforms contributed their own resources it was possible to realise 13 activities in 8 EU countries (S, SF, D, UK, DK, NL, I, P) instead of the originally foreseen six seminars and three exposure programmes. Written agreements were signed with the individual partners regarding the agenda, organisation and financing of these events. Event Seminar "EU Enlargement and NGDOs" April 2001 Stockholm organised by Forum Syd 30 participants from AC, South, EU Seminar "Estonian Development Cooperation" May 2001 Helsinki organised by KEPA 13 participants from 1 AC Study Visit UK NP 18 February 1 March 2002 London organised by BOND 5 participants from 4 AC Workshop Personnel Sending in Development Cooperation February 2002 Cologne organised by AGEH 7 participants from 5 AC Study Visit Danish NP September 2002 Copenhagen organised by Care Denmark 7 participants from 5 AC Study Visit Dutch NP November 2002 Maastricht and Amsterdam organised by NCDO 9 participants from 7 AC Study Visit Portuguese NP November 2002 Lisbon organised by NP Issues Aim: exchange of experiences, visions and goals between representatives of NGOs and governments Topic: integration of AC NGOs in the conception of national development policy Aims: introduction of Estonian development co-operation, exchange with Finnish positions. Topics: co-operation of governments with NGOs. Why development co-operation? Follow-up up: deepening of the co-operation between Finnish and Estonian NGOs agreed upon. Aims: building up contacts; getting to know functions and tasks of a platform. Awareness raising of British NGOs on EU enlargement. Topics: meetings with Oxfam, Save the Children, Allavida, Sense International, Skillshare and Everychild; participation in BOND assembly; training on "Developing a strategy for influencing the EU ; meeting with the BOND Eastern European Working Group; discussion with members of the platform and the Ministry for Development. Evaluation: 3 articles published in the BOND newsletter; intensive exchange; successful awareness raising (British NGOs had assumed that NGOs from AC participated only to learn, not for an exchange); good networking opportunities. Aims: supporting NGOs who are developing a personnel sending programme or are already active in this field; exchange of experiences. Topics: the role of foreign aid workers in development co-operation projects; selection of personnel; preparations; accompanying measures; evaluation; reintegration; legal framework, contracts. Evaluation: expectations of the participants were completely fulfilled. Aims: Exchange with Danish NGOs, function of a platform, awareness raising of Danish NGOs on EU enlargement. Topics: visit of various NGOs, participation in the conference Asem4people in the framework of the Danish EU presidency. Evaluation: individual meetings with Danish NGOs according to the subject area of the AC NGOs, intensive exchange and a lot of new information due to participation in the Asem4people conference. Aims: integration in the debate on "Global Education, getting to know the tasks and function of a platform. Topics: Europe-wide Global Education Congress "Achieving the Millennium Goals ; Meeting with the Dutch platform, Cordaid and the Ministry responsible for development co-operation. Aim: development of contacts with Portuguese NGOs who want to conduct co-operation projects in Angola and Mozambique, function of a NGDO platform, awareness raising of Portuguese NGOs on EU l t B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 9

10 2 participants from 1 AC (SK) enlargement Topics: meetings with NGOs, ministries (relevant for development cooperation) and embassies, tasks of the Portuguese platform Evaluation: Support of Portuguese institutions for Slovak NGOs envisaged. Study Visit Brussels Aim: participants should act as multipliers and follow the work of the May 2003 EU institutions in development co-operation. organised by TRIALOG Topics: meetings with relevant EU civil servants and NGOs 10 participants from 7 AC (Commissioner Nielson, Parliament, Commission, EuropeAid, ECHO, Eurostep, CONCORD, Aprodev, DEEEP, and others). Evaluation: all meetings were extremely informative and useful; preparation for and debriefing after the meetings was very helpful. Study Visit Finnish NP (3 Topics: fair trade, development education, exchange with platform phases) members, MFA and University of Helsinki Feb June 2003 Results: start of a fair trade campaign in Estonia in May 2003, Helsinki Deepening and continuation of the co-operation between Finnish and organised by Finnish NP 5 participants from 1 AC Estonian NGOs, joint project visit to Georgia planned. Study Visit Finnish NP Aim: co-operation between Finnish and Slovak platform on June 2003 development education. Helsinki Topic: development and global education. organised by KEPA 4 participants from 1 AC (SK) Workshop on Fair Trade Topics: history, principles, main actors of fair trade, presentation of Juni 2003 CTM-Altromercato, participation in general assembly Verona Evaluation and Follow-up: The workshop provided significant impetus organised by Altromercato 10 participants for the fair trade initiatives in SK, CZ, EE and PL Studienbesuch German NP Aim: check on possibilities for co-operation, awareness raising of 27 Juli 1 August 2003 Cologne organised by Venro 4 participants from 4 AC Study Visit Portuguese NP August 2003 Lisbon organised by NP 2 participants from 1 AC (SK) German NGOs regarding EU enlargement, discussion on EU enlargement and development co-operation with Ministry for Development Co-operation and platform members. Topics: Cotonou process, tasks and workings of Venro, EU enlargement and development co-operation, training on B Evaluation: Cotonou study day was a good introduction to the topic, necessity to further deepen understanding of the topic; criteria for platform membership and the relations between NGOs and government were intensively discussed. Follow-up: Malta wants to organise a training on Cotonou, EU enlargement is increasingly on the agenda of German NGOs. Aim: Deepening of the contacts built up in Nov 02. Topics: detailed meeting on a common project; visits to several NGOs and institutes to concretise co-operations. Result: agreement on project in Mozambique, future co-operation with NGOs foreseen Annual Evaluation At the end of the first project year a self evaluation was conducted via a questionnaire; it was sent to 79 addresses in the database, namely to national delegates and platforms, the members of the steering group, the participants of the first TRIALOG seminar and selected NGOs in the AC with which future co-operation seemed likely. 29 questionnaires were returned, with the highest response rate coming from the seminar participants. The project objectives and implementation up to that date were evaluated (very) positively; further education seminars and various possibilities for exchange were rated as most important, concrete suggestions for improvement were implemented as far as possible. B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 10

11 External evaluation, originally planned for the end of the project, was rescheduled to the first half of the third year (April to June 2002) so as to have a well founded basis for developing a follow up project. The evaluation report contains a summary of the most important results (see attachment). At the end of the third year, the two services that an external evaluation by accession countries had identified as most important (seminars; newsletter and website) were subjected to a self-evaluation via a questionnaire. 55 out of the 180 seminar participants and 140 out of the 1050 recipients of the newsletter TIS answered. Their suggestions regarding improvement of the website and more focussed trainings have been incorporated in the second project phase Have problems or delays occurred during the given period? Did they hinder the proper implementation of the project? If yes, to what extent? How could the danger of such problems be avoided with similar projects in the future? One general difficulty in achieving the project objectives was the fact that it was impossible to financially support activities outside the EU member states. Several aspects of this regulation were also criticised in the evaluation report of Fabio Poelheke (see attachment). If seminars, planning meetings and other activities could have been conducted in the AC, significantly more participation, broader impact, more ownership and more capacity building of the partners could have been achieved. This obstacle could be partially compensated by the good co-operation with the Canadian ODACE programme which directly supports the development of NGDO platforms in the V4 and the Baltic states, both financially and content wise. Regarding the reform of B it needs to be taken into account that it should be possible to fund development education and capacity building measures in the accession countries in the future. This will have no effect on those countries joining in May 2004 but will be important when looking to the not so distant future (Rumania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Turkey...) In the event of major modifications to the original planning and advance estimates of the project, specify the reasons for these, the nature of the modifications and their impact on the project's objectives. Because the situation of the LC had been precarious since Summer 2000 a fact that eventually led to the restructuring of NGDO representations at the European level several activities had to be carried out in a modified form: Instead of the 8 planned supplements to the LC Newsletter which was discontinued in 2001 one four-page supplement, two TRIALOG newsletters with eight pages each and one policy paper with two editions were produced. As there was no possibility to access a Europe-wide up-to-date database, a higher administrative effort in sending out those documents resulted from this. The part time position of a policy officer was only filled in September However, by 2003 the delayed start of the lobbying activities had been compensated for by an increase in working time (30 instead of 20 hours per week). B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 11

12 The near complete absence of an effective NGDO representation led to a stronger direct involvement of national platforms in the project and to more cooperation on a bilateral level, for instance with WIDE; considering all the negative consequences, this fact, however, can be seen as a positive side effect. Due to sound financial and strategic planning up to 30 instead of the originally envisaged 15 people could participate in each thematic seminar. It was thus at least partially possible to meet the immense need and the high demand on average twice as many applications than available places for further education in development policy. The resulting additional organisational and administrative work as well as the production of the detailed seminar documentations could not have accomplished without the dedicated and non-remunerated collaboration of 8 interns in total, each for a three month period. Due to a delayed implementation in the first year, the project period has been extended to 3½ years Visibility of the Community financing The 85% co-financing by the Commission was mentioned in all print publications (folders, newsletters, policy paper, report on "Development Policy in Accession Countries ) as well as on the start page of the website and in the chapter "structure and financing" of each project presentation Which results have been achieved? How H does the NGO estimate the impact of the project on the target group? TRIALOG started its work at a point in time when the actors involved in development policy saw enlargement largely as a threat to co-operation with the South. In contrast to the fields of environment and human rights there were only few and restricted contacts in development policy, mainly between Scandinavian and Baltic and between Austrian and Hungarian and Slovakian organisations. Against this background TRIALOG pursued the pro-active approach of delivering information activities in "East" and "West" and of arranging as many opportunities as possible for meetings and mutual exchange right from the beginning of the project. Comparison with the project objectives specified in 1.1. Ad In most countries (exceptions: Latvia, Cyprus) a core group of contact partners and multipliers could be established. Networking was not unreservedly accepted as something positive: by some it recalled memories of forced integration into associations and of (state) control. Co-operation between Church and non-church groups and between different Church groups is not a matter of course in every country. In particular the ten seminars held in Vienna and the study visits at national platforms made positive learning processes possible and initiated networking and multiple forms of co-operation between NGOs from the same country, from various accession countries and between current and new member states. However, the crisis of the EU level NGDO representation negatively affected the speed and intensity of the establishment of networking and alliances. B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 12

13 On a basic level it is possible to refer to a common understanding of global issues in development policy ; however, there are different approaches and divergent points of emphasis, which are rooted in history. Some discussions clearly showed that in the area of "Human Rights and Development" individual freedom and not social basic rights are important for AC NGOs (keyword Cuba). Furthermore, common terms in the Western debate, such as "social justice" and "international solidarity", are associated with political propaganda and rather provoke rejection in the public at large. Practically this implies that material for campaigning and development education needs to be adapted to the situation in the AC to a much larger extent than previously anticipated. A big deficiency is the fact that there were, and still are, few connections to the South on the civil society level many newly established organisations do not want to make connections with the state-prescribed development co-operation of the past. Study visits, internships and common projects with experienced EU partners can remedy this situation in the long term. Ad Some of the newly founded platforms were already able to establish themselves as partners in a dialogue with their governments even though there are no clear rules for a structured dialogue. Many of our contact persons emphasised repeatedly how important it is for their credibility in their own country that they can refer to co-operation with a EU co-financed project. What is almost completely lacking, however, is the financing of projects on the national level, either in the field of education or in co-operation with the South. In this regard, too, the exchange about models in different EU countries is extremely important and helpful. There are a few NGOs that have already conducted campaigns with an impact on the public for instance in the field of human rights without having to rely on the support of TRIALOG. In the second phase the main emphasis in the launch of joint projects will be on developing awareness raising campaigns suited to the size of the NGO and the needs in their own country. Ad In Malta, Hungary as well as the Slovak and Czech Republic, NGDO platforms were established; similar processes are ongoing in Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and even in Bulgaria and Rumania. Three of those platforms became members of CONCORD before the official EU accession, which is the best framework for deepening partnerships and co-operation in the second project phase. Networking on the national level was primarily supported through study visits to existing NPs (see ). However, without the direct financial support by the Canadian ODACE programme for the co-ordination of NPs in the AC, this rapid development would not have been possible. Particularly noteworthy is the establishment of NGOs in CZ, PL and SK which are specialised in fair trade; these are the result of the seminar "Labour Issues and Globalisation and a workshop at Altromercato in Italy. Translations of key documents supported this professionalisation process. Ad At a time when the accession of 10 countries seemed to be far away the project effectively campaigned for a dialogue between old and new member states, both on the level of civil society and the institutions; this was achieved primarily through the work of the policy officer in Brussels (details see ), supported by B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 13

14 specific TRIALOG publications. The numerous invitations to lectures are another visible proof of the project staff members expertise in this field. In the project description the objectives and a part of the activities were formulated very openly. Thus, sufficient free space was left to approach the open and very blank field of "development co-operation in the context of EU enlargement". This flexible framework for implementation was a vital precondition for the success of this pilot project. In this first phase TRIALOG established the foundations upon which the second phase will build in order to further support and strengthen development NGOs in the accession countries through targeted trainings and capacity building measures. Attachments Liaison News (Nov-Dec 2000) TRIALOG Newsletter 1 and 2 (Jan 2002 and Apr 2003) TRIALOG Policy Paper (Sep 2002) TRIALOG Study Development Policy in Accession Countries (March 2003) Evaluation report (Aug 2002) B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 14

15 ANNEX 1 ad Participation in LC/CONCORD events and in thematic conferences Date/Place Event Activity Purpose /Result LC/CONCORD/NATIONAL PLATFORMS/NETWORKS Wels (A) Wien Stockholm (S) Salzburg (A) London Roma Lisbon (P) LC conference and general assembly Informal meeting of the steering group Getting to know the LC structure and its representatives Development Education Summer School Special interest group CEE participants, cooperation Inquiry into the interests and needs of NGOs in talks CZ, EE, SK and HU WIDE consultation EU Enlargement: Empowerment or Marginalisation Information exchange and contact conversations Establishing the co-operation with womens' networks in CEE countries and the South LC general assembly Information exchange and contact Integrating the aspect of enlargement into the conversations discussion on reforming the LC NGO forum on the occasion of the UN Information exchange and contact Extending and deepening contacts conference LDC III conversations Round table discussion "Enlargement and Presentation of TRIALOG Establishing contacts with representatives of NGDOs governments and NGOs from EE, LV, LT, PL LC meeting Report on the status of implementation of Integrating the aspect of enlargement into LC the project debates Meeting of NP s secretariats Information exchange, introduction of the Strengthening co-operation with NPs, identifying project component "Exposure programme contact persons Restructuring of NGDO representation Participation (Policy Officer) Integrating AC in LC reform process Seminar on EU development policy Participation (Policy Officer) Issue of "EU enlargement" introduced into the discussion Austrian Development Conference Participation in working groups, contact Contributed necessity of networking with conversations NGDOs in the AC to the discussion General meeting of the BOND East Presentation of TRIALOG, debate Agreement on a study visit with BOND and European Working Group (EEWG) EEWG in February Development Education Forum Presentation of TRIALOG and initiatives of Co-operation talks NGOs in AC (Policy Officer) From consultation to action International seminar "The European Union Development Policy Discussion about establishing a working group enlargement Presentation of TRIALOG Participated in shaping the future NGDO representation Deepening contacts to representatives of the NPs and the Commission B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 15

16 Helsinki Paris LC assembly Information exchange and contact conversations Contributed issue of "EU enlargement" Meeting on the new coordination structure Discussion on future structure Represented interests of AC NGOs DEEEP Management Group Discussion on project implementation Ensuring integration of AC NGOs in all activities Internet work Coordination Meeting Presentation of TRIALOG's objectives Information exchange Round table meeting on Future of Europe Participation in discussion and presentation Lobbying for concerns of AC NGOs of TRIALOG s Policy Paper Meeting on the work plan of the new Information exchange and discussion about Integrating NGOs in AC coordination structure the structure of the future working groups Development Education Forum (DEF) Working group with participants from AC Arriving at suggestions for deepened cooperation between TRIALOG DEF Founding Committee: Pre-Decision Meeting Represent interests of AC platforms Integrating NGOs in the AC Founding meeting of CONCORD Information exchange and work related Full membership of the NPs from Malta, CZ and conversations SK CONCORD Convenors Forum Information exchange with other Discussion about the objectives and working CONCORD working groups methods of the Convenors Forum Meetings with national platforms and the Presentation of TRIALOG s experiences, Agreement on study visit in September 03, Comité PECO meeting with new consortium partner collaboration in working group Enlargement CONCORD Working Group Enlargement Founding assembly Definition of goals and structure, establishment of a work plan CONCORD Convenors Forum Presentation of the working group Exchange with other CONCORD working Enlargement groups CONCORD General and Consultative Working group on EU enlargement Work- and co-operation talks Assembly CONCORD Convenors Forum Exchange with other working groups Discussion of work methods, closer co-operation with Cotonou working group EVENTS OF CO-OPERATION OPERATION PARTNERS, IN ACCESSION COUNTRIES, OTHER Praha (CZ) The role of NGOs in the Czech Development Co-operation operation and Humanitarian Aid Presentation of the structure and goals of the LC and the TRIALOG project Establishing contacts to 18 NGOs active in development co-operation, humanitarian aid and environmental protection B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 16

17 Wien (A) Olomouc (CZ) Paris (F) Budapest (HU) Warsawa (PL) Budapest (HU) Ljubljana (SL) Göteborg (S) Wien MFA, UNDP, Tallinn (EE) Praha (CZ) Hirschluch bei Berlin St. Pölten (A) Bucuresti Praha IWF-NGO seminar Participation Establishing contacts with NGOs in the AC Summer School of Development Aid and Cooperation, Palacký University Paper on the objectives of EU NGDOs and presentation of the project TRIALOG Announcing the project Seminar on the international Cooperation in Presentation of TRIALOG in the Workshop Discussion about the implications of EU the EU between civil societies and states "What s new in the East? enlargement Conference "Civil Europe Civil Hungary Participation Establishing contacts with NGOs interested in global topics Conference "Building Partnership between the Polish and the European Union NGOs" Workshop APRODEV "Development Cooperation Policies of Accession countries" Workshop "Development Cooperation in Slovenia, Slovakia and Hungary" Conference "Europe s way towards Sustainability and Solidarity" EU Enlargement and Sustainable Development Partnerships for Development Co- operation Meeting of EU Accession Countries in Central Europe and the Baltic IVSO Annual Conference (International Volunteer Sending Organisations) "Europäische Entwicklungspolitik (k)ein Platz für NROs", INKOTA Conference "Zukunftsfähige Regionalentwicklung Bildung für Nachhaltigkeit" Statement on LC Enlargement strategy, chairing a thematic work shop Presentation of TRIALOG and discussion about future co-operation Work- and contact conversations Participation in workshop on EU Enlargement Participation and informal contact conversations Paper "Multilateral Co-operation and Government NGO Dialogue and Partnership and presentation of TRIALOG Introducing the activities of TRIALOG Paper and discussion in the working group "Von Monolog und Dialog zum TRIALOG Presentation of TRIALOG at an INTERREG project Lower Austria Slovakia Debate about the goals of EU development policy Establishing contacts to representatives of governments and NGOs (HU, CZ, PL, D, B) Assist in the exchange between the 3 countries Working conversation with SID representatives on co-operation, extension of contacts Deepening contacts with environmental NGOs from CZ, SK, PL, H, SL, BG Discussion of the co-operation with the UNDP Regional Programme to support the governments of emerging donor countries Extension of contacts with CEE NGOs, Suggestion for trilateral projects Stronger integration of East German NGDOs in TRIALOG Discussion on closer co-operation with Slovak participants Regional Programme Meeting Working Together Partners Romania Foundation Presentation of TRIALOG Work visits at various NGOs Intensified co-operation NetWork Seminar Presentation of TRIALOG and discussion of Information talks with NGOs and EU financing opportunities representatives of US foundations Meeting of ACP Committee of Ambassadors Presentation of the report Development Presentation of the objectives of TRIALOG at the with the EU candidate countries Policy in the Candidate Countries level of the European institutions EPC: Meet the New Member States Participation in discussion Lobbying for integrating development cooperation in the enlargement process B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 17

18 TAIEX Olomouc (CZ) MFA, Praha EADI, Ljubljana Havana Oxford (UK) Tallinn MFA, Wien Warsawa Berlin MFA, Budapest UNDP, Bratislava The EPC: Meet the New Member States Cyprus The EPC: Breakfast Meeting with Commissioner Verheugen The EPC: Meet the New Member States Romania The EPC: Meet the New Member States Lithuania The EPC: Meet the New Member States Poland Seminar on Development Policy Summer School of Development Aid and Cooperation, Palacký University Conference "Development Cooperation Challenge for Emerging Donors" Conference EU Enlargement in a Changing World The EPC: Meet the New Member States Malta 10 th International Conference on European Studies INTRAC NGO Research Programme Forum Meeting with the Estonian Development Cooperation Round Table Participation in discussion Participation in discussion Participation in discussion Participation in discussion Participation in discussion Presentation Development Policy in the Candidate Countries and of TRIALOG Paper on EU development policy, NGO government relations Paper Role of NGOs in development cooperation Discussion contribution for session F: From aid recipients to re-emerging donors Participation in discussion Paper EU Enlargement and North-South relations Paper EU Enlargement: TRIALOG and NGOs in New Member Nations Presentation of TRIALOG and EU development policy Lobbying for integrating development cooperation in the enlargement process Lobbying for integrating development cooperation in the enlargement process Lobbying for integrating development cooperation in the enlargement process Lobbying for integrating development cooperation in the enlargement process Lobbying for integrating development cooperation in the enlargement process Underlined importance of NGOs in development co-operation Information- and education activities Strengthening the role of Czech NGOs on the national level Exchange, information and co-operation talks Lobbying for integrating development cooperation in the enlargement process Discussion on the relations between former communist countries and Cuba Working conversations on co-ordinated cooperation Information on and Discussion about the goals of EU development policy Regional Partnership Workshop "EU Enlargement and Development Cooperation Chairing a half-day NGO workshop Exchange and co-operation (old and new member states, NGOs and governments) Seminar with Polish NGOs Presentation on CONCORD and TRIALOG Support for the attempts to create a Polish platform International Policy Dialogue: The Enlarged Participation Working conversations EU Partner of the Developing World Conference "Promotion of National Presentation of the TRIALOG experiences Working conversations with various Hungarian Capacities for Development Cooperation NGDOs Regional Workshop "Promoting East-East Co- Presentation of TRIALOG Working conversations with various participants operation" B7-6000/ED/2000/107/CSR: Final Report 18