New Backstopping Mandate to the SDC’s Decentralisation and Local Governance Network

The main purpose of the mandate is to support the network in implementing its learning projects in three selected topics: local governance assessments, power analysis and political economy, and social inclusion. IC is expected to contribute to these learning projects on the basis of its “field” experience in the implementation of SDC funded projects in these topics – so that learnings from practice are brought in, and IDS is expected to contribute with insights from its wide thematic and methodological expertise in social science research.

Specific ToRs for each of the three learning projects have been defined. Activities will include for instance a capitalization and review of innovative experiences in social inclusion in local governance carried forward by SDC, other donors and INGOs at a global level. IC and IDS will review and document approaches which favour broad and inclusive community participation in their direct or indirect relationship with authorities (via representation or direct participation) in local governance and decentralisation processes, as well as approaches aiming at strengthening authorities’ commitment to pro-poor policies.

Round table on land management and land use planning in Madagascar	Voting in a village council meeting in Kosovo

A capitalization of SDC experience in conducting Local Governance Assessments will also be carried out around five relevant SDC and IC project experiences in Bangladesh, Southern Africa, Afghanistan, Nicaragua and Bosnia and Herzegovina. This mandate is part of a broader learning project on LGA, which is a core topic of interest for the DLGN. The main findings and lessons learnt of this capitalization will be linked to a roster of LGA tools. This roster, which also compiles experiences from other organisations, is currently being developed with the support of an external consultant based on the UNDP publication “A User’s Guide to Measuring Local Governance”.

Initial results from these learning projects will be shared in the next face to face meeting of the DLGN (Sarajevo, March 2011).

For more information about the mandate and these learning projects, please contact: pascal.arnold@intercooperation.ch