NL-KVK-34106722-STP
AWEPA
NIMD-AWEPA Strategic Partnership with the NL MFA: Conducive environments for effective policy influencing: the role of political parties and parliaments
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate jointly on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe and other African countries under the flexible fund. Within this broad overarching goal, the partners jointly contribute to three specific goals: i. To improve the enabling environment for effective policy influencing on inclusive and equitable development in 10 countries in Africa and South-East Asia and 1 region (Central America) (system level change). ii. To strengthen the policy influencing capacities and responsiveness of political parties, parliaments, parliamentarians and civil society actors as drivers for inclusive social change through trust building, gender-sensitive agenda setting and inclusive dialogue in 10 countries and 1 region (actor and culture level change). iii. To develop the organisational capacities of a selected number of southern partner organizations (implementing partners, political parties and parliament) to autonomously and effectively advocate for effective policy influencing in partnership with civil society (actor level change). The themes of gender equality and inclusiveness are identified as important crosscutting themes for all proposed country and regional programmes. The departing point for the Strategic Partnership is a joint NIMD-AWEPA Theory of Change and the existing country programmes of both organizations. These country programmes –underpinned by a country specific ToC and baseline– are embedded in strong local political networks; are underpinned by a deep rooted knowledge of the local political economy and have a solid institutional infrastructure for programme implementation. To acknowledge the importance of cross-border themes and regional interdependencies that increasingly shape national policy agendas and to stimulate peer learning and exchange, dedicated strategies and instruments for peer learning, knowledge and innovation and PME will be developed as part of the strategic partnership. Furthermore, to maximize opportunities for regional and international lobby and advocacy on issues that emanate from national policy agendas, the programme foresees in the development of dedicated strategies for potential upstream policy influencing at regional and global fora and bodies.
System level: An enabling environment exists at national, regional and international levels for political and civic actors to interact and play their roles in inclusive policy making. - A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics - Safe (and institutionalised) space for dialogue between all relevant political and civic actors - Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament securing civil and political rights - (Parliamentary) political parties having equal access to state media and state funding Actor level: Political actors are embedded in society and responsive to citizens. - Political actors that voice and monitor citizen interests - Improved capacity of local partners (based on adapted 5 Core Capabilities of NIMD\\\\\\\'s scan) - Improved capability to attract and relate of political actors - MPs understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation - MPs have increased capacity to scrutinize government legislation, policy and performance. - Influencing policy control and domestic accountability by political and civic actors (including interest groups on gender and inclusion) - Distinctive programmatic profiling - internal, public and in parliament- in relation to electorates and support bases of political actors Culture level: A culture of accommodation and consultation between political actors and with civic actors exists that also facilitates system and actor level change. - Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors - Political actors are more aware of and have internalised democratic values, rule of law and gender sensitive & inclusive politics - (Political actors advocating for) Gender and inclusion are part of political consultation processes
Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - (representatives of) political parties - politicians - (Members of) Parliament and its Committees - Other elected representatives at local levels. NIMD will primarily focus on political parties and AWEPA on parliaments and parliamentarians.
NIMD
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA Association of European Parliamentarians with Africa
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012 AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
2324848
2646752
2224670
2219168
2273667
1891515
2324848
2224670
100000
2236691
2273667
333333.33
2219168
2017 Annual Plan Strategic Partnership
2017 Budget Strategic Partnership
SP Annual Report 2016
Impact story Kenya
Impact story Mozambique
Impact story Uganda
Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament securing civil and political rights
After the joint analysis of key challenges, NIMD-AWEPA facilitate the formulation of a shared national agenda for political and policy change. This reform agenda can target only one or two priority themes or legislations, but can also be an extensive agenda for change with regard to the formal democratic space and the possibilities for political and civic actors to engage in policy influencing. For instance in Mozambique, previous initiatives already identified key issues around the electoral law that the dialogue will focus on, creating space for the production of a more consensual and inclusive electoral legislation encompassing the aspirations and interests of all political actors and civil society. In order for political actors to become effective advocates and lobbyist for policy change, they need to understand policy processes and have the knowledge, tools and skills to understand the policy issues that form a barrier to effective social change and inclusive development. To assist stakeholders to build up this knowledge base, the NIMD-AWEPA alliance complements the dialogue process with trainings for political and civic actors on policy and budget processes, by organising thematic debates on relevant issues on the basis of papers and expert engagement, and provides skills training on dialogue, communication and negotiation. When concrete proposals for change (draft legislation, amendments, codes of conduct etc.) have been agreed-on a process can be started for actual joint lobby supported by the multi-stakeholder dialogue platforms. By linking these proposals to the existing network of contacts in parliaments this lobby has a higher chance of being successful. Similarly when thematic issues, for instance around inclusion and gender equality, are relevant in a country context and are identified as such by key actors, the dialogue mechanisms and platforms can also act as the supportive hub for coordinated lobby activities. For instance the gender equality mechanism that the Kenyan constitution prescribes will be high on the lobby agenda in the Kenya programme. A second approach in the strategy to support the enabling environment is to ensure better involvement of citizens and other civic actors in the policymaking work of political actors. Parliament has a clear role in scrutinizing government, drafting and enacting legislation and in representing and being accountable to their constituents. Parties need to link to supporters and other interest groups and translate their interest into party political positions that are in line with their objectives and principles. Since this approach tackles the capacity of actors but also contributes to enriching the democratic space it takes primarily place on the system and the actor level:
# and expected impact of legislation passed by Parliament to increase political tolerance and protection of citizens’ rights
# can be negative in the case of lesgilation decreasing political tolerance and citizens\\\' rights.
Disaggregated on Expected impact (low, medium and high impact).
# of legislative initiatives aimed at improving gender equality
Legislative initiative: policies that were at least submitted Disaggregate on Submitted, Adopted, Implemented and Low, Medium and High impact.
MPs understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation
Parliaments and parties need to be professional bodies accessible to receive and to process civic lobby & advocacy efforts. In this regard there is a need to capacitate the general operational professionalism of parliaments and parties, such as organisational rules and regulations, structures and tools, as well as to professionalize staff and their skills. For example in Mali the programme includes trainings on legislative processes for commission secretaries and direct policy development support to the 5 parliamentary groups. Other examples of institutional capacity support offered by NIMD-AWEPA include: - Parliamentary development plans and policy analysis - Professionalization of supporting functions (finance, branches, logistics, human resources) - Material support (PC’s, printers, or providing to print manuals, IT-support) Besides basic functioning, political actors need to be responsive to their supporters, their constituents and wider society. A first step includes awareness raising among the political actors in order to be open to receive and to process civic lobby and advocacy efforts as well as to hold governments accountable. A number of approaches are targeted in this regard: - Advisory and support on transparency of procedures and information of /for parliaments - Advisory / dialogue on internal deliberative culture and structure (rules and procedures in internal party constitutions and by-laws) for parties (internal ‘democracy’) - Highlighting the importance of rootedness in society - Working with local branches, thematic or constituent group platforms as well as bottom up input for party position determination - Content-specific training for MPs, parliamentary staff and women in politics, for example on parliamentary policy and procedures on public consultation - Theme or topic-based training for relevant committees and research capacity development for parliamentary staff to support evidence-based engagement - Broad-based learning for political actors through “schools of politics” and skills on how to engage audiences, interact with other actors on an open platform, and advocate from an evidence base.
# of Private Members\' Bills and amendments moved
Private member bills: a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. Disaggregate on % of Bills adopted
MPs have increased capacity to scrutinize government legislation, policy and performance.
A second approach to capacity development for lobby and advocacy is focused on supporting inclusive policy-making. Parliaments and political parties need to be well equipped to perform their core functions and should have the skills and knowledge to engage in L&A around policy development and improvement. In this regard, the following interventions are foreseen to capacitate political actors programmatically, in outreach and rootedness in society and individually in terms of knowledge and skills: Programmatic capacity - Support professional legal and committee support staff (in parliaments) - Provision or support of policy officers (in parties) - Support campaign message drafting, manifesto development and strategic planning (for parties and parliaments) Policy making based on outreach - Support dedicated outreach officers (parties) - Organise tours of Public Hearings and other outreach visits (parliaments) - Support use of interactive radio for dissemination - Provide media and training for parliamentary staff (parliamentarians) - Facilitate multi-stakeholder dialogue processes that link to existing knowledge on inclusive development Besides general capacity development, special attention is given to skills and knowledge on gender-sensitive policy making. It essential to especially work with men and convince them to take the views and perspectives of women and other marginalised groups into account in policymaking. By interacting with relevant interest groups from civil society that work on gender equality and inclusion issues, expertise and realities on the ground can be shared, enriching the policymaking process.
Average # of amendments per Bill
Safe (and institutionalised) space for dialogue between all relevant political and civic actors
One of the reasons why there is a weak or absent enabling environment in a country is because political actors often do not have the opportunity to informally interact and engage on policy issues. There is a need to relieve tensions and provide reassurance to the different political actors on the commitment to finding lasting solutions based on an assessment of underlying causes of tension and conflict. To assist in this, the NIMD-AWEPA alliance supports and facilitates the setup of (informal) dialogue consultations or safe spaces for politicians from all parties to meet, get to know each other, and gradually overcome barriers between them. Once basic levels of trust and confidence have been secured, NIMD-AWEPA facilitates a joint analysis of the deficits and challenges in having an enabling environment between the different stakeholders participating in the dialogue process. This includes explicit inputs from other civic actors. Building trust and relationships in an informal setting is often a critical precondition for political stability and subsequent dialogue on policy reforms. For instance in Mozambique, the programme aims to create space for the production of a more consensual and inclusive electoral legislation encompassing the aspirations and interests of all political actors and civil society. By investing in physical safe spaces with dedicated support structures where the dialogue process is underpinned and can be consolidated or institutionalised. These platforms can either be located at an existing local organisation, within a newly set up platform organisation, or form part of an NIMD or AWEPA country office. NIMD-AWEPA encourages diversity in the formation and make up of these spaces so that they are representative of and can accommodate the different views, interests and needs of all citizens, including those of minority and marginalized groups. Also especially in fragile and conflict settings, it is essential to have conflict mitigating mechanisms and fora to let of steam and solve issues before they become violent. The NIMD-AWEPA operated dialogue platforms can play this role. The section detailing the strategy for capacity development of partners and target group further elaborates on this. In 7 out of 11 country/regional programmes dialogue platforms will be supported.
# of laws and mechanisms ensuring safe engagement between political and civic actors
Civic actors: (Civil Society Organizations, citizen/interest groups) Political actors (Parliaments, Parliamentarians, political parties) Structural changes: Laws and policies adopted and implemented Space for greater engagement: to be defined at country level
# of dialogue platforms in place and level of representation / level of influence on policy formulation
Dialogue platforms in place: Regularly meeting dialogue platforms are active Level of influence on policy formulation
A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics.
Specific attention in strengthening the enabling environment for political actors is given to ensuring a level playing field. For a political system to operate according to democratic norms and which can accommodate inclusive policy making it is essential that all political actors have equitable access and freedom to operate in the political arena. This often relates to skewed legislation favouring ruling parties or state and party resource overlaps.
# of inclusive law making processes
Inclusive lawmaking is defined as lawmaking processes in which all the political parties, both opposition and government, are involved in the making of the law. This can be through consultation, but does not necessarily imply that all the parties are in total agreement with the law
# of law making processes with active CS consultation
Civic actors: Civil Society Organizations, citizen/interest groups
Disaggregation on \"Adopted\" and \"Implemented\"
# of consensual law making processes
Consensual law making process is a law making process where all the parties/parliamentarians voted in favor of a law.
CIVICUS Enabling Environment Index score
The CIVISUS Enabling Environment Index examines the conditions within which civil society work. Using secondary statistical data, it ranks the governance, socio-cultural and socio-economic environments for civil society in 109 countries.
Increased trust in the political process by different groups and citizens
The measurement of increased trust will be based on a source provided by the Dutch ministry of foreign affairs
# of structural changes and new mechanisms for greater engagement by political and civic actors
Structural changes and new mechanisms: laws, policies etc. that have been put in place to improve the engagement possibilities for civic actors with political actors. Disaggregate on the (Expected) effect
Improved capability to attract and relate of political actors
One of the key roles for political parties is to aggregate and articulate interests from citizens, while similarly MPs are elected to represent constituencies and relate to them. In this process it is therefore essential to have the right outreach and contact systems that can guide this contact with citizens. By linking to civic organizations or networks and groups of supporters a political party can check and test policy ideas or come up with new ideas that are in line with the party’s position. By meeting constituents MPs have better ideas on what might work or how policies are perceived in practice. As part of the capacity development of political actors this support to the responsiveness also directly contributes to the role of political actors in shaping the enabling environment.
# of active alliances (on relevant themes for NIMD/AWEPA) between political actors and/or between political actors and CS stakeholders
Active alliance: alliance which has been made public. Either through publicly announcing the alliance or because it has been made public through publications
Disaggregation on theme and whether it is between political actors or between political actors and CSO\'s
Afrobarometer score ‘Performance: MP/National Assembly rep ’
The Afrobarometer is published every 2/3 years. \"Do you approve or disapprove of the way that your Member of Parliament has performed its job over the past twelve months, or haven’t you heard enough about him/her to say?\"
Influencing policy control and domestic accountability by political and civic actors
Increase in score CPIA transparency, accountability, and corruption in the public sector
# of times oversight instruments are being used (questions, interpellations, missions of enquiry)
Oversight instruments: Official questions, interpellations, missions of enquiry
Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors
The awareness of the need and benefit to be open, receptive and accommodative to outside and other views and demands does not come over night. That is why exposing and sensitizing political actors to other norms and practices is key when addressing underlying relations and incentive structures. In essence the whole multiannual strategic partnership programme itself is a lobby effort to increase lobby & advocacy receptiveness of political parties and parliaments. A number of interventions contribute to convey the message: - Providing dialogue among political actors: safe spaces, political cafés, media performance and participation and public events - Democracy education and schools of politics - Peer learning exchange visits - Regional conference on priority themes, issues - Exchange briefing materials, documentation
% of parliamentary budget dedicated to consultation and outreach
The share of the Parliament\'s total budget dedicated to organizing consultation and outreach
# of structural changes and new mechanisms for greater engagement by political and civic actors
Structural changes and new mechanisms: laws, policies, internal rules and regulations, etc. that have been put in place to improve the engagement possibilities for civic actors with political actors
Afrobarometer score on “Trust Parliament/National Assembly”
Afrobarometer score is updated every 2/3 years.
\"How much do you trust parliament?\"
Scale: Don´t know, A lot, Somewhat, Just a little, Not at all.
Score is based on the sum of the categories \'A lot\' and \'Somewhat\'.
Afrobarometer score on “MPs listen”
Afrobarometer score is updated every 2/3 years. \"How much of the time do you think Members of Parliament try their best to listen to what people like you have to say?\" Scale: Don´t know, Always, Often, Only sometimes, Never. Score is based on the sum of the categories \'Always\' and \'Often\'.
Political actors advocating for gender equality and inclusion are part of political consultation processes.
In many countries NIMD and AWEPA work in, political parties and parliamentarians tend to suffer from gender blindness when defining the agenda for formulating policies. For the large part, they do not demonstrate the capacity or political interest to include the needs of minority and marginalized groups. NIMD and AWEPA therefore offer a set of instruments and encourage strategic planning and policy analysis from a gender and diversity perspective that is responsive to various needs, interests and desires of all different groups in society. Next to that NIMD and AWEPA work with key stakeholders in the democratization process like election and parliamentary commissions, media and civil society organizations. Special attention is given to building the capacities of (potential) female candidates, women’s benches and parties that represent marginalized groups. Through capacitating political actors in gender sensitive policy making the aim is to ensure parties’ and parliaments are equipped to develop inclusive policies. Furthermore, by specifically engaging with male political leaders on this theme, the views and perspectives of women and other marginalised groups are more likely to be taken into account in policymaking.
# of lawmaking processes in which interest groups and local experts on gender and inclusion were consulted
Consulted: where asked for input during the lawmaking process.
# of legislative initiatives coming from Women MPs
Disaggregated on successful/unsuccessful
% of interest groups and/or local experts on gender and inclusion that indicate that they have been actively involved in lawmaking processes by lawmakers a minimum of x times in the previous year
Actively involved in: consulted, involved in implementation etc. Disaggregated on Level of involvement
NL-KVK-34106722-BEN
AWEPA
Strategic Partnership for Benin: a conducive environment for effective policy influencing
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In Benin, the partners jointly contribute to three specific goals: i. To improve the enabling environment for effective policy influencing, by creating a level playing field for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. ii. To strengthen the policy influencing capacities and responsiveness of political parties, parliaments, MPs and civil society actors. iii. Increasing general interest in consulting and collaborating among and between political and civic actors. iv. Strengthening the voice and position of women and youth in the consultation processes. The departing point for the Strategic Partnership in Benin is a joint NIMD-AWEPA Theory of Change and Baseline. The country programme is embedded in strong local political networks, underpinned by a deep rooted knowledge of the local political economy and a solid institutional infrastructure for programme implementation. To acknowledge the importance of cross-border themes and regional interdependencies that increasingly shape national policy agendas and to stimulate peer learning and exchange, dedicated strategies and instruments for peer learning, knowledge and innovation and PME have been developed as part of the strategic partnership. Furthermore, to maximize opportunities for regional and international lobby and advocacy on issues that emanate from national policy agendas, the programme foresees in the development of dedicated strategies for potential upstream policy influencing at regional and global fora and bodies.
System level: A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. Actor level: Improved oversight and legislative function of the political actors. Actor level: Distinctive programmatic profiling - internal, public and in parliament- in relation to electorates and support bases of political actors. Culture level: Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors. Gender and inclusion: The voice and position of women and youth is increased and they are part of the culture of consultation and political actors are sensitized to working in accommodative and inclusive manners.
Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - Political parties and their representatives - The Assemblee Nationale and its Members, Committees and staff
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
243750
282299
76019
October - November 2016
12839
December 2016
31462
January - March 2017
27792
37325.67
Expenditures second quarter
18182
43670
Second quarter 2017
Benin programme
Outcome 5: Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors
The distance between political actors outside of National Assembly sessions is huge in Benin. Occasions when political actors getting in touch with civil society organisations are generally limited to elections and whenever a crisis or social tension arises. As an example the repeated pushing back of local elections, social tension as a result of corruption being exposed in public recruitment practices in 2013, and rumours of a revised constitution being drafted have all been instances where political parties have had to deal with trade unions towards the end of Yayi Boni's mandate. This gap between political actors and civil society actors (not to mention the gap between political actors themselves) can easily be explained by the lack of confidence in the processes in place as well as the poor perception of the need to work together to consolidate democracy and resuscitate politics for the common good. In the opinion of the individuals interviewed, the current context forces political actors to reposition themselves within society (the rebuilding of bases after making choices which have not been shared during the last elections) and creating new political alliances following the election of a new president. According to the MPs interviewed this repositioning would require cooperating with various actors.
Outcome indicator 5.1: The level of co-operation between political actors and members of civil society.
Scale: 1) Low - Co-operation in this regard is almost non-existent; 2) Medium - Some co-operation is present but is only superficial in nature and/or where what co-operation does occur is not satisfactory; 3) High - The quality of co-operation is excellent and is carried out in a structured way
No MP interviewed indicated they had been in a working relationship with a civil society organisation or any key actor from this area for the purposes of better improving their policy positions within the National Assembly. There are no structured, sustained working relationships between MPs and civil society actors either.
Outcome indicator 5.2: The level of co-operation between MPs and other political actors (including governmental actors).
Scale: 1) Low - Co-operation in this regard is almost non-existent; 2) Medium - Some co-operation is present but is only superficial in nature and/or where what co-operation does occur is not satisfactory; 3) High - The quality of co-operation is excellent and is carried out in a structured way
MPs stated they did work together with governmental actors as part of their parliamentary work, particularly during the hearings of National Assembly standing committees. Furthermore, MPs stated they regularly work with actors from their political parties although the quality of this relationship is not what it could be as parties are not consulted by parliamentary groups when voting on the texts for laws.
Outcome indicator 5.3: The Afrobarometer score on "Level of public confidence in the National Assembly”
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. Afrobarometer 2014/2015 participants were asked the following question: "Are you confident in the National Assembly?" 48.5% of respondents stated they were "Partially confident" or "Very confident".
Outcome indicator 5.4: The Afrobarometer score on " Public perception on how well MPs listen to the needs of their constituency”
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. Afrobarometer 2014/2015 participants were asked the following question: "How would you rate how well you think legislative elections guarantee National Assembly MPs will actually advocate for people's views?" 15.4% of respondents answered "Well" or "Very well".
IO2.1: Parliamentary staff are better able to assist MPs
i2.1.1: Level of increased capacity of staff to “assist MPs”.
Scale 1 to 4: 1 Awareness has been raised on methods and techniques to assist MPs. 2 Knowledge and skills regarding the assisting of MPs have increased. 3 Attitudes and behavior of individual staff on assisting MPs have changed. 4 Practices in parliament have changed.
start of the programme.
AWEPA supported parliament to establish an organic framework for parliamentary staff.
Outcome 6: The voice and position of women and youth is increased and they are part of the culture of consultation
Young people and women do not have political representation which is proportional to their vast numbers within Beninese society, with the renewal of the political class also proving a slow process. The last general elections have not seen the situation improve: out of 83 MPs only two are under the age of 40 (i.e. just over 2%) and during the Seventh Parliament women represent a bit less than 10% of the total sum of MPs. The importance of money within political life is once again given as the main factor keeping young people and women from moving up the ranks in politics. A more general awareness is emerging amongst young people and women compared to (older) men in politics. The young people active in politics are motivated to ensure qualitative succession, believing their elders to be out of touch and old-fashioned and their approach to politics being dark and dense, which is not conducive to the major, courageous overhauls required to consolidate democracy as it stands in Benin. It is against this background the AWEPA/NIMD joint programme with the School of Politics began in 2015, being targeted at young people (both men and women) and tasking them with seeing social groups better represented as part of political and electoral processes.
Outcome indicator 6.1 % of women involved in politics that feel that they are able to take part in decision making processes
No data was collected on this indicator.
Outcome indicator 6.2: The Afrobarometer score for "Men making better leaders than women”.
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. The following statements were put forward to participants: Statement 1: "Men make better political leaders than women; in elections priority should be given to men over women." Statement 2: "Women should have the same chance of being elected to political positions as men." 72.6% of respondents stated they "Agreed with statement 2" or "Strongly agreed with statement 2".
Outcome 1: A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics.
Benin's Seventh Parliament opened on 16 May 2015 against a background where political parties and civil society actors did not have any real ability to influence public policy; in short the playing field was not level and even if they wanted to do so they could not influence public policy. Political parties do not enter into structured working relationships with their MPs and help them develop a policy position when voting for laws. With respect to civil society organisations, their general distrust of and removal from the political scene and its actors considerably limits their ability to influence public policy. The political actors within the National Assembly (who have been elected by virtually all of the political alliances) vote on draft laws, which places them in a different league - that is to say a much more privileged position - when it comes to influencing public policy in comparison to members of civil society and the political parties. Currently the way the National Assembly is set up means there is no way to tell who is with the opposition and who is in the majority. In this case it is too early to say whether the parliamentary opposition and majority have equal footing in terms of influencing Beninese public policy.
Indicator 1.1: # of structural changes and new mechanisms introduced for greater engagement by political and civic actors
No structural changes which would stimulate engagement between political and civic actor have been noted since the start of the Seventh Parliament. According to the MPs interviewed the dialogue practices during parliament (which occurred during the Sixth Parliament) did not lead to any innovations. New measures to help stimulate dialogue between the various sensibilities, including revising the rules of procedure for the National Assembly, have yet to be taken. There are two major recent political events which have shaken up the current political environment in Benin, leaving it somewhat in flux: - The legislative elections held in 2015 weakened the FCBE and propelled the opposition to the fore of national politics. The FCBE alliance, which was the clear majority for the Sixth Parliament, was reduced to some twenty MPs. The opposition, in addition to seeing the number of seats held greatly increase, were able to capture the presidency and vice presidency of the National Assembly. - The 2016 election saw a candidate which did not belong to a political party run for head of State, who at the same time was supported by political parties, the opposition and the former majority, which has shaken up the landscape of the Beninese National Assembly. The political actors have taken a "wait and see" approach in terms of how they should position themselves within this new context, which may explain the hesitancy in producing mechanisms which would stimulate multi-actor engagement in terms of influencing public policy. The idea of a platform for dialogue which would stimulate momentum amongst the various actors to generate a vast overhaul of the system has been in the works since 2014, although the actual implementation thereof has been disrupted by preparation for the 2015 and 2016 general elections.
Indicator 1.2: % of political actors that experience an enabling environment in which they are involved in inclusive policy making
Following the opening of the Seventh Parliament neither political actors nor members of civil society have yet to undertake an inclusive think tank-style initiative on how to draft public policy. Currently informal exchanges on the conclusions reached in the recent report published by the Reform Committee are proving a motivational force for each of the rather isolated actors within their own environments. The official delivery of this report on reform to the Head of State constitutes a solid opportunity to stimulate inclusive dialogue (involving political actors and members of civil society) on political reform in the country.
Outcome indicator 1.3: % of MPs changing or abandoning their party in between elections
V-Dem score v2psswitch
V-Dem scores are based on the contributions of local experts who were asked the following question: "What percentage of National Assembly members have changed or even left their political party between two the legislative elections?"
Outcome indicator 1.4: Members of the Legislature vote with other members of their party on important bills
V-Dem score v2pscohesv
V-Dem scores are based on the contributions of local experts who were asked the following question: "Is it common for a member of the National Assembly to toe party line when voting on a major issue?" 0: Not really. Quite a few members have been elected as independents; intra-party discipline is not very strong. 1: More often than not. More often than not members vote in line with their political party rather than against it, however defections are common. 2: Often. Members almost always vote toeing party line. 3: Yes, absolutely. Members always vote toeing party line.
Outcome indicator 1.5: The Afrobarometer score for "Confidence in political parties".
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. The following questions were put forward to participants: "Are you confident in the party currently in power?" and "Are you confident in the opposition political parties?" 39% of people who responded stated they were "Partially confident in" or even "Very confident" for the party currently in power, with 38% saying they were confident in opposition parties.
IO1.1: Imperfections’ in the political system are addressed and trust and relations amongst political actors is improved
i1.1.1: # of outputs from the dialogue process
Total number of agreements / outputs reached by March 2017 as a result of the AWEPA/NIMD facilitated dialogue process.
One dialogue session held with political parties and civil society on the constitutional review. Four outputs came out of the session: the report and three documents presented by experts.
IO4.1: Political actors interact with civic-actors in a multi-party setup and have increased capacities to be responsive, recognizable, approachable and accountable towards civil society
i4.1.1: # of civic actors consulted on policy issues .
Total number of different societal groups that have been consulted in the various outreach activities of this year. Add up to the previous year(s).
start of the programme.
Two public hearings were organised with MPs accross the country in 2016: - Outreach on penal institutions: inmates, judges, police, public servants - Outreach on land policy reform: discussions with citizens of 17 different villages across the country.
i4.1.2: # of thematic policy issues discussed and brought to parliament.
Number of topics that were given follow-up in parliament.
start of the programme.
Following the outreach visit on penal institutions, MPs asked questions to the Minister of Justice in Parliament and followed up with written questions. This led to an increase of the national budget for penal institutions in 2017.
IO2.2: MPs have increased capacity to formulate and to scrutinize (government) legislation, policy and government performance.
i2.2.1: Level of increased capacity of MPs to “formulate and scrutinize legislation”.
"Scale 1 to 4: 1 Awareness has been raised on methods and techniques for the formulation and scrutiny of legislation. 2 Knowledge and skills on formulation and scrutiny of legislation have increased. 3 Attitudes and behavior of individual MPs regarding the formulation and scrutiny of legislation have changed. 4 Practices in parliament have changed. ".
start of the programme.
24 MPs attended a seminar on budget oversight. Awareness has been risen on current tools to scrutinize public finances and recommendations were formulated on how to improve budget oversight in the future.
IO3.1: Parties and parliamentary groups are better able to formulate and communicate their positions and prepare (gender sensitive/ more inclusive) policies.
# of political parties represented in the National Assembly having developed (alternative) policies, party programs or manifesto.
Total # of parties that at the time of measuring have any kind of policy document, party programme or manifesto.
start of the programme.
A training for representatives from 29 political parties was implemented on "how to formulate a party manifesto". None of the parties which attended the training had programmatic documents developed. A follow-up training will be implemented in 2017.
IO5.1: Women and youth civic and political aspirants are identified and recruited and empowered through the School of Politics
IO 5.1.1: # of women graduates from the Benin École Politique.
# of women participants in the school of politics who successfully fill all the criteria to graduate from the School.
start of the programme
Out of the 35 students who graduated from the 2016 School of Politics class, 11 were women.
Intermediate indicator 5.1.4: # of alumni who access medium and senior internal party functions.
Individuals previously graduated from the School of Politics who indicate that they have accessed party leadership position at local /national level.
start of the programme
3 alumni have been elected city councillors since they joined the school. In addition to this, 13 alumni have been given more responsibilities within their party (member of local /national board, president of women party caucus, in charge of reforms committees, etc,).
Outcome 4: Distinctive programmatic profiling - internal, public and in parliament- in relation to electorates and support bases of political actors
The current political situation in Benin is striking in the absence of structured political proposals made by political parties. In addition to the inability of political actors to provide polices based on a specific theme there is also tangible disinterest in how important programmes are. Several studies have shown how large is the role played by money as part of the electoral process in Benin, which the last legislative and presidential elections have only confirmed.
Outcome indicator 4.1: % of political parties that base their political and policy proposals on a distinctive profile
Political parties and alliances made for elections do not enter into electoral competition based on programmes which reflect their own political identity, if there ever was one to begin with. During the last general elections (2015 and 2016), although candidates did appear on television given their own more or less distinctive points of view regarding matters of national interest, it is not easy to say whether the statements made were in line with the official position of the political parties they represent or their political alliances.
Outcome 2: : Political Actors have the capacity to scrutinize government legislation, policies and performance
The Seventh Parliament has not yet shown any real capacity to control the actions of the government. None of the questioning government members were subject to over their first year in power led to debates during sessions, with the government successfully postponing the consideration of matters. The ministers in question always tend to say they have only just taken up the position and ask the MPs for the time needed to obtain documents and look over them. Upon presentation of the first report (covering October 2015 - March 2016) by the president of the National Assembly, the MPs themselves complained about their inability to hold the government to account. To improve this situation, they decided to hear oral questions on current affairs every Thursday (in the afternoon), although this decision has not had the desired effect.
Outcome indicator 2.1: The number of parliamentary legislative initiatives enacted into law.
So far during the Seventh Parliament no legislative proposal has been made by MPs. Over a dozen draft private members’ bills were recorded during the last term at the end of the Sixth Parliament, although none of these have been seriously considered and are currently deemed to be obsolete, with virtually the whole of the MPs who prepared the proposals not holding office during the Seventh Parliament.
Outcome indicator 2.2: The number of instances oversight instruments were used (questions, interpellations, missions of enquiry).
The following numbers give an idea of the control tools used for government action so far as part of the Seventh Parliament (period 17 May 2015 - 30 June 2016) Questions on current affairs: 11 Oral questions: 17 Written questions: 8 Parliamentary investigation committee: 0 Nevertheless, it should be noted that no questions have actually been considered by Parliament owing to multiple postponements being requested by the government, who have said they need more time to better prepare.
Outcome 3: Capability of the AWEPA Benin office to carry out lobby and advocacy
The AWEPA office in Cotonou was opened early 2016.
Outcome indicator 3.1: AWEPA Benin local office score on the 5-Capabilities scan
The AWEPA Benin office scores an average of 2.6/5 across the five measured capabilities. The specific scores are as follows: Commit and act: 2.8 Deliver results: 3.6 Adapt and self-renew: 2.2 Attract and relate: 2.6 Balance coherence and diversity: 1.8
NL-KVK-34106722-AGE
AWEPA
NIMD-AWEPA Strategic Partnership: Learning Agenda
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. The implementation of the country programmes of the Strategic Partnership (SP) programme between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be accompanied with a carefully defined Learning Agenda. The Learning Agenda will in essence be a strategy that will ensure that the experiences, knowledge and best practices being accumulated in the SP countries are not only tracked and systematically documented but they are also deliberately showcased and form a basis of learning to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, AWEPA, NIMD and the local partners.
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
30000
30000
3445.47
4644.85
Expenditures second quarter
15216
October - November 2016
7348
December 2016
Outcome 2: Showcased at international level the functioning and importance of the parliament-party nexus
I1: # of partners/country offices that have applied lessons learned in their programmes
Outcome 1: Best practices shared in mobilising MPs/parties in creating democratic space for Lobby & Advocacy and civil society
I1: # of partners/country offices that have applied lessons learned in their programmes
IO 1: Best practices and lessons learned documented in mobilizing MPs/parties in creating democratic space for Lobby & Advocacy and civil society
I1.1: # learning and advocacy events organised
IO 2: Awareness raised amongst stakeholders and recommendations formulated with regards to parliament-party nexus
I 2.1: # programme tools developed
NL-KVK-34106722-ETH
AWEPA
Strategic Partnership for Ethiopia: a conducive environment for effective policy influencing
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In Ethiopia, NIMD and AWEPA are currently carrying out a political economy analysis, to discover the needs in terms of capacity building for political actors and the possible added value of the Partnership in general.
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
65440
150000
-1256
Fourth quarter 2016
33967
January - March 2017
37995
Second quarter 2017
5408
18853.33
Expenditures second quarter
NL-KVK-34106722-KEN
AWEPA
Strategic Partnership for Kenya: a conducive environment for effective policy influencing
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In Kenya, the partners jointly contribute to four specific goals: i. To improve the enabling environment for effective policy influencing, by creating a level playing field for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. ii. To strengthen the policy influencing capacities and responsiveness of political parties, parliaments, MPs and civil society actors. iii. Increasing general interest in consulting and collaborating among and between political and civic actors. iv. Strengthening the voice and position of women and youth in the consultation processes. The departing point for the Strategic Partnership in Kenya is a joint NIMD-AWEPA Theory of Change and Baseline. The country programme is embedded in strong local political networks, underpinned by a deep rooted knowledge of the local political economy and a solid institutional infrastructure for programme implementation. To acknowledge the importance of cross-border themes and regional interdependencies that increasingly shape national policy agendas and to stimulate peer learning and exchange, dedicated strategies and instruments for peer learning, knowledge and innovation and PME have been developed as part of the strategic partnership. Furthermore, to maximize opportunities for regional and international lobby and advocacy on issues that emanate from national policy agendas, the programme foresees in the development of dedicated strategies for potential upstream policy influencing at regional and global fora and bodies.
System level: Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament securing civil and political rights. Actor level: MPs understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation. Actor level: Political actors that voice and monitor citizen interests. Culture level: Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors. Gender and inclusion: Political processes and policymaking includes the voice of women and minority groups and the gender equality agenda receives wider support in and out of parliament
Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - Political parties and their representatives - The Assemblee Nationale and its Members, Committees and staff
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
337057
321251
55288
October - November 2016
54814
December 2016
25344
27516
January - March 2017
145122
Second quarter 2017
42590.61
Expenditures second quarter
120294
Outcome 1: Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament, securing civil and political rights.
With the approach of the 2017 elections and all the controversy around these elections, the topic of electoral reforms has dominated the discussions in the political sphere. This is evidenced by the issues that have emanated from the CMD interparty dialogue platform i.e. electoral laws reforms, reform of IEBC and public participation in devolved governance. Regarding public participation through Civil Society in legislative processes, input into legislative processes was very active with input from multiple parties. Among others Civil Society, Private Sector, Private Citizens Law Society of Kenya (LSK) do regularly provide input through petitions to respective committees handling various legislation.
Outcome indicator 1.1: # and expected impact of policies securing civil and political rights, jointly formulated and submitted to Parliament by the ruling and opposition parties
Over the past one year the political debate has been dominated with reforms around the electoral process and the body in charge of the electoral process. In the last one year, three bills have been tabled in Parliament that touch on civil and political rights. These are; (i) The Elections Laws (Amendments) (No. 3) Bill 2015 No. 3; (ii) The Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill 2016; (iii) The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (Amendment) Bill 2016. The three bills were introduced by the Chair of the Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC) of the National Assembly Hon. Samuel Chepkonga, meaning that they are bills from the JLAC and hence bipartisan. JLAC has members from the following ruling Jubilee coalition parties: the National Alliance (TNA), United Republican Party (URP), and New FORD- Kenya (NFK). JLAC also has representation from the Kenya National Congress (KNC), and Federal Party of Kenya (FPK) which are opposition parties. The principal object of the first Bill was to amend the Elections Act, 2011 and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Act, 2011, in order to address the concerns that resulted following the general election held on 4th March 2013, which was the first under the new constitutional dispensation. Central to the conduct of the elections are the constitutional role and responsibility of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), and the Judiciary. However the delivery of the 2013 elections, like many aspects of public administration and management involved interplay of several agencies, both State and non-state actors. It is these aspects that this Bill sought to redress. The principal object of the second amendment bill is to amend various provisions of the Constitution dealing with electoral disputes. It is based on experiential lessons obtained from the challenges previously experienced (particularly the presidential election petition of 2013) in the determination of electoral disputes. This amendment seeks to provide for mechanisms that will facilitate seamless determination of election petitions. Principally the bill seeks to extend the period of hearing a presidential election petition from 14 to 30 days. The principal object of the third bill is to amend the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission Act (No. 9 of 2011), in order to reorganize the procedure for appointment of chairperson and members of the Commission. The bill seeks to establish a Selection Panel that shall be drawn from parliamentary parties on account of their relative strength in the National Assembly. The bill aims to have the commissioners serve on part-time basis. It provides for the formation of a seven-member selection panel approved by Parliament to recruit commissioners. That would mark a departure from the current arrangement that gives the President leeway in appointing the commissioners.
Outcome indicator 1.2: # of law making processes with active civil society consultation
Assessment of literature from parliament and Kenya Law Reports indicates that there is a fair level of involvement from CSs in various legislative processes. Total number of bills with active CS consultation in 2015 and 2016: 21 out of 65. 6 of these 21 bills with CS consultation have been assented to by the President.
IO1.1 Common issues emerging from the Inter-party Dialogue are presented to relevant parliamentary committees
# of thematic policy issues discussed and brought to parliament
- ‘# of policy issues’ – refers to those issues taken up or lobbied for by AWEPA and NIMD - ‘brought to Parliament’ – means that the issue was discussed by MPs (in or outside Parliament) and eventually tabled in Committee.
Begining of the programme
Total number of different themes that you plan to address either in parliament or in the Counties in the years 2016-2020.
2/3 rule: was handled by JLAC and voted in plenary FGM: was lobbied but not yet discussed in committee, awaiting big conference, find out about possible petition that was tabled. IEBC follow-up in parliament.
IO6.2: County assembly women are organised for collective action related to key gender issues in line with national initiatives.
i6: # of KEWOPA county chapters established.
- ‘KEWOPA county chapter’ – decentralized structure of KEWOPA on county levels. - ‘established’ – officially registered, launched and received first training.
Beginning of the programme
There are 47 counties, 22 are established already.
14 KEWOPA chapters established in 2016
i7: # of Kenyan women politicians empowered.
- ‘women politicians – any women MP on national or County level or board member of political party. - ‘empowered’ – any assistance provided by AWEPA to help the women politicians with visibility to retain their seats or bid for them and to advocate for women issues.
Beginning of the programme
10 per county, times 25; + 75 women MPs in parliament + 11 in Senate + 3 potential governors.
‘women politicians empowered by AWEPA assistance provided through workshops in 2016.
IO2.1 Parliamentary staff have more capacity to draft legislation.
i3: Strategic plan for the Center for Parliamentary Studies and Training CPST developed
- Strategic Plan– is defined as a management activity that is aimed at setting priorities, and focusing energies and resources to ensure that parliament staff are all working towards common goal. - ‘to analyze and develop legislation’ – this is determined by the intermediate outcome statement and by the capacity building activities’ objectives.
Beginning of the programme
1 strategic plan for 2018-2022
I4: Level of increased capacity of MP on “lobby and advocacy”
Scale of 1 - 4 1 Awareness has been raised on analyzing and developing legislation. 2 Knowledge and skills on analyzing and developing legislation have increased. 3 Attitudes and behavior of individual MPs/staff on analyzing and developing legislation have changed. 4 Practices in parliament have changed.
Beginning of the programme
Work with two parliamentary committees and or caucuses .
No trainings carried out in 2016, foreseen for 2017.
Outcome 3: Improved capability of the AWEPA Kenya office to carry out lobby and advocacy
The AWEPA Kenya office is responsible for planning and implementation of the SP activities in Kenya.
Outcome indicator 3.1: AWEPA Kenya local office score on the 5-Capabilities scan
The AWEPA Kenya office scores an average of 3.6/5 across the five measured capabilities. The specific scores are: . Commit and Act: 4 Deliver Results: 3 Adapt and Self-Renew: 4 Attract and Relate: 2 Coherence and diversity: 5
Outcome 2: MPs understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation
The level of MPs participation in parliament is low with most bills presented coming from government through the Leader of majority party. The study found that the number of MPs who presented bills to parliament was limited to a handful of MPs.
Outcome indicator 2.1: % of private member bills/amendments that are enacted into law
From assessment of parliamentary records, it was found that between 2015 and the time of the baseline study that 53.8% (35/65 bills) were private member bills. Of these 35, the following 6 have been assented into law by The President thereby implying that 17.1% (6/35) of the private member bills have been enacted into law in the period under review. I. The Division of Revenue Bill (No. 7), 2015 – assented II. The Finance Bill, 2016 – assented III. The Appropriation Bill, 2015 – assented IV. The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (Amendments) Bill, 2015 – assented V. The Supplementary Appropriation Bill (No. 2), 2015 – assented VI. The National Government Constituencies Development Fund Bill, 2015 – assented
Outcome 5: Political processes and policymaking includes the voice of women and minority groups and the gender equality agenda receives wider support in and outside of parliament.
Inclusion of women, youth and minority groups is a factor that is being adopted from the constitution across the political environment. Though the actualization of the two thirds gender requirement is still to be achieved, it is observed that most organizations / players have enshrined the same in their various policy documents.
Outcome indicator 5.1: % of MPs voting in favour of the two-thirds gender principal Bill
On the 28th of April out of 242 members of the National Assembly present, 195 voted in favour of the gender equality bill, 28 against and 19 abstained. 195 makes 55.9% of 349. On the 5th 178 MPs voted in favour of the two-third gender bill whilst 16 voted against and there were 5 abstentions. 178 makes 51% of 349. The average of 55.9% and 51% = 53.4%. Thus it could be said that the support for gender equality among political leaders in Parliament averages about 53.4%. Interviews with the leaders of political parties indicated that all political leaders are willing to and are actively taking measures towards gender mainstreaming. Very few if at all, of the political leaders in and outside of Parliament, including male leaders, speak negatively about realization of gender equality. However, a key and clear test is of how many and what percentage of those in Parliament actually vote in favour of policies geared to realizing gender equality. This is particularly crucial since stipulations such as that required to realize that each gender has at least 1/3 and not more than 2/3 of representation in Parliament can only be realized if passed in Parliament. Key leaders outside Parliament such as the President and leaders of the opposition CORD Coalition may speak in favour, but in the final analysis this ball is very much in Parliament. On the 28th of April and 5th of May 2016 a Bill to amend the constitution to ensure that no less than 1/3 and no more than 2/3 of either gender was presented in Parliament but failed to garner the 2/3 majority of 233 out of the 349 members of the National Assembly in order to be enacted into law.
Outcome 4: Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors.
Although interaction and trust among political and between political and civil actors takes place, it is not regular or institutionalized. Actors seek interaction dependent on the issues at hand and that are in their own immediate interest. The relations between the actors are not always characterized by trust or a sense of mutual understanding, but are rather strategic alliances aimed at progressing political gains.
Outcome indicator 4.1 : % of political actors who indicate that they collaborate with other political actors (including government actors), at least weekly
The average frequency of inter-party collaboration over the past one year: 21 times a year, i.e. 0.4 times a week. It emerged from the study that the level or frequency of interaction between political actors and government/other political parties was determined largely by the burning issue of the day. In light of the prevailing electoral reforms discussions, this topic has dominated the types and topic of interaction/collaboration between political parties and government. Feedback from the political parties indicated that there is a high level of interaction with the frequency of interaction dependent on the thematic issue. This would range from a frequency of daily with the current debate and controversy around electoral reforms to about quarterly for other issues such as internal dispute resolution. It however was noted that the level of interest and interaction for the political actors was largely determined by political economics i.e. will the party gain materially from the interaction and less by the interests of the citizenry.
Outcome indicator 4.2: % of political actors who indicate that they collaborate with other civic actors at least weekly.
The average frequency of party collaboration with civic actors over the past one year: 19 times a year i.e. 0.36 times a week. Through the inter-party consultative forums organized by CMD as well as other civil society actors, most political parties reported to having regular interactions. Most of the interaction between political parties and CSs was skewed towards interaction with CSs that were in the democratic capacity enhancement space e.g. The National Democratic Institute (NDI), Institute for Education in Democracy (IED), Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa (EISA) among others where as CSs that were focused on governance oversight appeared not to feature in the list of collaborators mentioned.
IO5.1: Relations between political actors, both on national and county levels, are improved both on national and county levels.
i3: # of civic actors consulted on policy issues.
- ‘civic actors’ – those actors that are not involved in political decision-making: civil society organizations, women’s groups, citizens, etc. - ‘consulted’ – relates to any kind of interaction between MPs and civic actors that has as objective to increase mutual understanding and the sharing of information. - ‘policy issues’ – thematic topics that are subject to public policy and lawmaking.
Beginning of the programme
Approximately 20 outreach/consultation activities per year (5). In each activity approx. 10 civic actor groups are consulted.
Opinion leaders, practitioners, women’s groups, youth groups, community based organizations, affected persons, health care providers, children rights officers, clergy, law enforcement offices, politicians.
i4: # of political and government actors consulted on policy issues through parliamentary consultation
- ‘political actors’ – MPs, parliamentary organs, political parties, government authorities and civil servants. - ‘consulted’ – relates to any kind of interaction between MPs and other political actors that has as objective to increase mutual understanding and the sharing of information. - ‘policy issues’ – thematic topics that are subject to public policy and lawmaking.
Beginning of the programme.
total number of political actors that you plan to reach through parliamentary consultations in 2016-2020.
involvement of political/government actors in the lobby activities (IEBC/ 2third rule) through outreach activities and through dialogue involvement of political/government actors in field outreach FGM forums.
I5: # of civic and parliamentarians petitions received through online platforms in the 12th Parliament
- ‘civic petitions’ – grievances or concerns by the public presented to legislators for their attention. - ‘online platforms’ – relates to the digital platform of presenting petitions. - ‘policy issues’ – thematic topics that are subject to public policy and lawmaking.
Beginning of the programme.
720 number of civic and parliamentarian’s petitions in 2016-2020. Approximately 12 petitions are presented per month to the national assembly, per year (5)
Opinion leaders, practitioners, women’s groups, youth groups, community based organizations, affected persons, clergy, law enforcement offices, politicians - draft petitions that are evidence based.
NL-KVK-34106722-MAL
AWEPA
Strategic Partnership for Mali: a conducive environment for effective policy influencing
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In Mali, the partners jointly contribute to four specific goals: i. To improve the enabling environment for effective policy influencing, by creating a level playing field for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. ii. To strengthen the policy influencing capacities and responsiveness of political parties, parliaments, MPs and civil society actors. iii. Increasing general interest in consulting and collaborating among and between political and civic actors. iv. Strengthening the voice and position of women and youth in the consultation processes. The departing point for the Strategic Partnership in Mali is a joint NIMD-AWEPA Theory of Change and Baseline. The country programme is embedded in strong local political networks, underpinned by a deep rooted knowledge of the local political economy and a solid institutional infrastructure for programme implementation. To acknowledge the importance of cross-border themes and regional interdependencies that increasingly shape national policy agendas and to stimulate peer learning and exchange, dedicated strategies and instruments for peer learning, knowledge and innovation and PME have been developed as part of the strategic partnership. Furthermore, to maximize opportunities for regional and international lobby and advocacy on issues that emanate from national policy agendas, the programme foresees in the development of dedicated strategies for potential upstream policy influencing at regional and global fora and bodies.
System level: Formulation, proposition et approbation de politiques formulées de maniere conjointe par le Parlement, assurant la promotion des droits civiques et politiques. System level: Une situation équitable entre tous les acteurs politiques et civiques ayant la volonté d'influencer les politiques. Actor level: Les députés comprennent le processus législatif et ont des capacités améliorées pour développer et traduire des idées de politiques en législation. Actor level: Les acteurs politiques expriment et suivent les intérets des citoyens. Culture level: Intéret pour la consultation, la collaboration, l'harmonisation, le sens de la résponsabilité et la compréhension mutuelle parmi les acteurs politiques et civiques. Gender and inclusion: Les partis politiques et le Parlement encouragent la participation politiques des femmes et des jeunes, et cette participation est améliorée.
Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - Political parties and their representatives - The Assemblee Nationale and its Members, Committees and staff
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
340506
386108
58366
October - November 2016
36041
December 2016
55695
January - March 2017
37923
Expenditures second quarter
74015
99980
Second quarter 2017
25282
Outcome 1: Formulation of, proposals for, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament, securing civil and political rights
As a result of the dominance of the executive power on Parliament in the Malian political system, the drafting and proposal of public policy occurs exclusively at the governmental level. The political setup of Parliament, where three out of four parliamentary groups support the presidential majority, is not conducive to involvement in this area as the vast majority of laws are passed unanimously, with little or no amendments being made. The parliamentary opposition accounts for less than 10% of MPs, a figure which means they are not in any position to fulfil their role as counterweight within the institution. Joint initiatives combining majority and opposition proposals are non-existent. Furthermore, even if there was actual dialogue between parliamentarians and civil society, the latter does not actually play a part in the drafting and approval of public policy.
Outcome indicator 1.1: The number of draft laws which have been amended as a result of dialogue between the parliamentary majority and the opposition
Currently there have been no draft laws submitted to vote which were the result of a harmonisation of the various points of views held by parliamentarian groups and in support of government actions and the opposition. Additionally, no formal dialogue structure between groups within the National Assembly is in place. As part of the CMDID platform two draft laws have been submitted for debate since 2015 between the majority and the opposition: the electoral law and political party charter. The political parties have duly considered the content of the laws and suggested modifications, with the draft law having been submitted to the National Assembly for due amendment and voting on. The CMDID Foundation and AWEPA have succeeded in implementing a monitoring committee made up of MPs and political leaders, whose mandate involves advocating for due consideration of the proposed changes to the platform by MPs.
Outcome indicator 1.2: The quality of civil society consultations carried out by the National Assembly committees
Scale: 1) Low - civil society is not consulted; 2) Medium - civil society is only superficially consulted; 3) High - civil society fully participates in committee work)
Civil society (associations, organisations, unions and other notable plays) is included within the National Assembly general committee contacts and is regularly consulted when discussing certain draft laws during the committee review stage. Nevertheless, the actual consultation takes place during quite an advanced stage of the legislative process, when laws have already been drafted and tabled by the National Assembly. The CSO inputs considered by commissions may therefore only be taken into account via amendments submitted by MPs during plenary sessions. However, the new initiative brought forward by the Law Committee is worthy of note in that in 2016 it organised sessions with CSOs to discuss institutional reform with a view towards initiating a legislative process in this regard which allowed society the chance to actually get involved in the legislative process.
Outcome 2: A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics.
Favourable conditions are in place so all public actors can interact and participate in public policy: Freedom of political expression is not restrictive and is guaranteed by constitutional prerogatives which are actually respected. The free press (radio and newspapers) has room to openly give its opinion on political actors even if some censorship remains in place for national TV, which is under the influence of the ruling powers. The adoption of the law on the status of the opposition would likewise strengthen freedom of political expression. Nevertheless, it is not possible to confirm a level playing field exists between actors nor are their specific ways for them to influence public policy. In the current political situation in Mali, where the executive branch wields tremendous power, the political parties represented in the National Assembly do not have any real influence over their respective parliamentary groups, who themselves are limited in terms of their legislative function. Civil society, which does not have a strong level of organisation, does not maintain structured dialogue with political actors aside from its involvement with the National Assembly committees, such that it is not able to influence policy.
Outcome indicator 2.1: The number of structural changes and new mechanisms introduced to engage political and civil society actors.
The prospect of the Algiers Peace Agreements has provided a new mechanism for co-operation between political actors and civil society to have exchanges and suggest proposals to make improvements to regional policies. Political actors and civil society have been highly consulted with respect to changes to the Agreement. Some points of convergence between certain politicians and civil society have been noted, although the actors from the two sides have been engaged separately. Consultations have also taken place between certain parties and CSOs condemning the institutionalisation of interim authorities, although generally speaking these points of convergence have not been the subject of reconciliation. The explanation for all of this would be how fragile co-operation is in the first place as well as the need for each actor to discuss the matter for visibility's sake rather than actually proving to be an influential factor on decisions.
Outcome indicator 2.2: Percentage of political actors who enjoy a conducive environment in terms of policy making
Baseline description: All of the MPs interviewed said they did see the political environment as conducive in terms of being able to produce laws, pointing to the following factors: - The power held by the executive branch versus that held by the legislative branch, with the former controlling what is on the agenda for parliamentary sessions as well as restricting parliamentary legislative initiatives. - The high rates of MP turnover after each legislative election, preventing the continuity needed to work on producing laws. - Problems tied in to the recruitment of parliamentary staff, which is based more on candidates' political affiliations rather than their actual skillset, resulting in staff who are not qualified to support MPs in their legislative mandate. - Practical problems concerning MPs: outside of members of the parliamentary Leadership and committee Chairs, MPs do not have actual physical offices where they can perform legislative tasks, nor do they have support staff, with parliamentary assistants being solely assigned to standing committees. Regarding parties outside of parliament, recent experience shows they have often played the role of catalyst for reform without actually initiating things in this respect owing to the above-mentioned difficulties in terms of proposing laws.
Outcome 3: MPs understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation
Following the interviews with National Assembly legislative services and parliamentarians, it became apparent that the majority of MPs participating in the Fifth Parliament have limited capacities to understand the legislative process as well as how to develop legislation. In Mali the initiative to prepare laws rests solely with the executive power who, as stated above, also sets the agenda for draft laws to be voted on by the Assembly. MPs therefore play only a very minor role in the legislative processes, as only two private members bills have been passed by the current Parliament. Furthermore, most laws receive a unanimous vote, with no amendments being made. The same problems involving competency also arise with parliamentary administrative staff, who are not sufficiently equipped to assist MPs in their legislative mandate.
Outcome indicator 3.1: The number of Private Members' Bills tabled in Parliament
There have been two laws enacted which came about at the initiative of members of the Fifth Parliament: - The proposed law amending the Malian Law of 4 November 1996 on the creation of municipalities by Hon. Moussa Biadaga (16 December 2015) - The proposed law amending the Malian Land and Property Code by Hon. Moussa Coulibaly (24 May 2016) It should be noted here that the two private members’ bills enacted by the current Parliament are texts amending a pre-existing law and cannot be completely considered as new legislation. Although the number of laws enacted by parliamentary initiative have increased compared to previous Parliaments, the obstacles faced by MPs still remain and are various in nature: the parliamentary administrative staff's inability to support MPs in their legislative work; the fact the MPs themselves are ill-equipped for their position; the fact the government sets the agenda for parliamentary sessions (laws drafted by parliament are not deemed a priority); the fact a law drafted by parliament cannot affect the State budget, which severely limits areas MPs can act in; and the fact the government is "allergic" to laws drafted by parliament and does everything in its power to limit their effect.
Outcome indicator 3.2: The Afrobarometer score on "Performance levels for National Assembly members"
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. Afrobarometer 2014/2015 participants were asked the following question: "Do you approve of how MPs have performed their roles over the past twelve months?" 53.2% of respondents stated they "Approved" or "Strongly approved" their MPs' performance.
Outcome 5: Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors
Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors
Outcome indicator 5.1: The level of co-operation between MPs and other political actors (including governmental actors).
Scale: 1) Low - Co-operation in this regard is almost non-existent; 2) Medium - Some co-operation occurs but is only superficial in nature and/or the amount that goes on is not satisfactory; 3) High - The quality of co-operation is excellent and is carried out in a structured way
MEDIUM All of the MPs interviewed stated they regularly work together with governmental actors. Contact in this regard occurs as part of their work as parliamentarians, with government members being present during Parliament plenary sessions and frequently summoned by standing committees. The actual frequency with which this happens is down to the parliamentary schedule, with contact on a daily basis occurring when Parliament is in session. Moreover, this contact happens as a result of MPs' personal initiatives, who frequently meet with political actors from the government or from their own political parties. However, actors from political parties have noted that even though they regularly work alongside MPs, the latter do not always toe party line, with priority being given to their own personal interests.
Outcome indicator 5.2: The level of co-operation between political actors and members of civil society
Scale: 1) Low - Co-operation in this regard is almost non-existent; 2) Medium - Some co-operation occurs but is only superficial in nature and/or the amount that goes on is not satisfactory; 3) High - The quality of co-operation is excellent and is carried out in a structured way
MEDIUM Exchanges between MPs and civil society are frequent and occur mainly within the framework of the standing committees who invite CSOs to hearings for relevant legislation (e.g. the law on the creation of the National Observatory of Cities was subject to intense consultation between the Law Committee and civil society). Contact likewise also occurs via parliamentary thematic networks such as the Women Parliamentarians' Network (REFEP), who frequently consult with CSOs on gender-related matters and activities. Lastly this contact also occurs at the personal initiative of MPs, who are requested by CSOs on a daily basis to advocate for causes against other parliamentarians. Nevertheless, the quality of these interactions is not optimal as they remain quite formal and restrictive (as they are only for specific legal texts). Outside of Parliament co-operation between political and civic actors is difficult and almost non-existent. Relationships are not institutionalised and mutual suspicion and manipulation is common. It should be noted nevertheless that the CMDID has involved civil society organisations in all of its activities starting from 2013 and takes into account civil actors' contributions when considering political matters. This experience is behind the above statement that no sustained, organised co-operation is in place.
Outcome indicator 5.3: The Afrobarometer score on "Level of public confidence in the National Assembly”
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. Afrobarometer 2014/2015 participants were asked the following question: "Are you confident in the National Assembly?" 62.2% of respondents stated they were "Partially confident" or "Very confident".
Outcome indicator 5.4: The Afrobarometer score on " Public perception on how well MPs listen to the needs of their constituency”
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. Afrobarometer 2014/2015 participants were asked the following question: "How would you rate how well you think legislative elections guarantee National Assembly MPs will actually advocate for people's views?" 55.9% of respondents answered "Well" or "Very well".
IO2.2: Parliament strengthens its procedures of public consultation.
i2.2.1: # of initiatives developed by Parliament to improve public consultation.
"Initiatives developed by Parliament: activities, decisions, new mechanism, resolutions, taken by the parliamentary leadership, the clerk, committees or parliamentary groups. Public consultation: inform or involve citizens and civil society organisations in the work of the parliament in Bamako or in the distritcs".
start of the programme
The outreach initiative " Le parlement chez vous" (Parliament at your doorstep) brings a framework for consultation between MPs and various actors (Local authorities, citizens, NGOs, political partis, community and religious leaders).
i2.2.2: # of thematic policy issues discussed and brought to parliament.
Number of thematic policies discussed with MPs in the framework of activities implemented by AWEPA.
start of the programme
An exchange workshop between the parliamentary Law committee and civic & political actors on improving the electoral law has been implemented in August 2016.
IO6.1: The relations, interactions and mutual understanding between political actors and citizens are improved.
i6.1.1: # of new content brought to the parliamentary radio.
Number of new shows (debates, interviews, interactions with audience, etc.) added to the parliamentary radio's broadcast planning.
start of the programme
The first parliamentary outreach activity has been entirely broadcasted on the parliamentary radio.
I6.1.2: # of civic actors consulted on policy issues.
- ‘civic actors’ – those actors that are not involved in political decision-making: civil society organizations, women’s groups, citizens, etc. - ‘consulted’ – relates to any kind of interaction between MPs and civic actors that has as objective to increase mutual understanding and the sharing of information. - ‘policy issues’ – thematic topics that are subject to public policy and lawmaking.
start of the programme
MPs have interacted with 17 political actors during the first outreach visit.
i6.1.3: # of political actors consulted on policy issues through parliamentary consultation.
Political actors: political party representatives, MPs, local elected authorities (mayors, presidents of regional and district councils, etc,)
start of the programme
During the outreach visit in Ségou, civic actors representing civil society, traditional and religious authorities, youth and women were 38.
Outcome 6: Political parties and Parliament encourage young people and women to participate in politics; additionally, participation from these groups has improved.
Parliament initiatives encouraging women to participate in politics occur mainly via the Women Parliamentarians' Network (REFEP), which is quite active and frequently organises field visits, although it does not have the financial resources it needs. They are supported in their activities by technical and financial partners from the National Assembly such as the NDI-NIRAS consortium and United Nations agencies. Institutional initiatives from Parliament are non-existent, particularly as the number of women MPs remains quite low (14 out of 147). The Malian Law on Gender Equality which was passed in 2015 should help contribute to improving women's participation in politics as part of the National Assembly. The CMDID has been leading initiatives arising from a gender-based strategy prepared in 2008 with the objective of carrying out in-depth work within parties to make their actions and decisions more gender-sensitive on the one hand and, additionally, contributing to the strengthening of women's leadership abilities so they can compete on equal footing with men. Within the scope of the implementation of this strategy three CMDID Foundation member parties decided via circular notice they would try to get more women into eligible positions during the (now aborted) upcoming council and regional elections.
Outcome indicator 6.1: The Afrobarometer score on “How women are perceived as leaders”.
Afrobarometer results are based on public opinion polls. Afrobarometer 2014/2015 participants were asked to react to the following statements: Statement 1: "Men make better political leaders than women; in elections priority should be given to men over women." Statement 2: "Women should have the same chance of being elected to political positions as men." 57% of respondents stated that they "Agreed with statement 2" or "Strongly agreed with statement 2".
Outcome 4: Capability of the AWEPA Mali office to carry out lobby and advocacy
The AWEPA office in Bamako opened early 2016.
Outcome indicator 4.1: AWEPA Mali local office score on the 5-Capabilities scan
The AWEPA Mali office scores an average of 3.6/5 across the five measured capabilities. The specific scores are shown below: Commit and Act 4,5 Deliver Results 3,5 Adapt and Self-Renew 4,5 Attract and Relate 2,5 Coherence and diversity 5,5
NL-KVK-34106722-MOZ
AWEPA
Strategic Partnership for Mozambique: a conducive environment for effective policy influencing
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In Mozambique, the partners jointly contribute to four specific goals: i. To improve the enabling environment for effective policy influencing, by creating a level playing field for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. ii. To strengthen the policy influencing capacities and responsiveness of political parties, parliaments, MPs and civil society actors. iii. Increasing general interest in consulting and collaborating among and between political and civic actors. iv. Strengthening the voice and position of women and youth in the consultation processes. The departing point for the Strategic Partnership in Mozambique is a joint NIMD-AWEPA Theory of Change and Baseline. The country programme is embedded in strong local political networks, underpinned by a deep rooted knowledge of the local political economy and a solid institutional infrastructure for programme implementation. To acknowledge the importance of cross-border themes and regional interdependencies that increasingly shape national policy agendas and to stimulate peer learning and exchange, dedicated strategies and instruments for peer learning, knowledge and innovation and PME have been developed as part of the strategic partnership. Furthermore, to maximize opportunities for regional and international lobby and advocacy on issues that emanate from national policy agendas, the programme foresees in the development of dedicated strategies for potential upstream policy influencing at regional and global fora and bodies.
System level: A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. System level: Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament securing civil and political rights. Actor level: Improved capability to attract and relate to political actors. Culture level: Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors. Gender and inclusion: The voice and positioning of female politicians in political debates is improved.
Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - Political parties and their representatives - The Assemblee Nationale and its Members, Committees and staff
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
325389
383280
116232
October - November 2016
99183
December 2016
114500
20408
46139
January-March 2017
85285
Second quarter 2017
41765.32
Expenditures second quarter
Mozambique programme
Outcome 1: A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics.
Political actors (political parties and members of parliamentary) in Mozambique have a tradition of working individually. Trust between political actors that would ensure an environment where they are able to work collectively and promote policy dialogue and implementation in the interest of the country remains weak. Civic actors interviewed believe that the political environment for their participation is very limited and that there is an increasing level of political intolerance and intimidation of actors with opposing views to government and the ruling party.
Outcome indicator 1.1: % of political actors that experience an enabling environment in which they are involved in inclusive policy making
Both FRELIMO and RENAMO acknowledge that the working environment between them has deteriorated over the years, more so since the last presidential and legislative elections. In order to restore the positive working relationship between RENAMO and FRELIMO there are many important aspects that would need to be addressed first at a high political level by the two main parties and government. These aspects include the causes of political and military conflicts (such as decentralization/provincial autonomy) and reaching a security and peace agreement on the Joaquim Chissano Conference Center conversations. The MDM also indicated that its relationship with both RENAMO and FRELIMO is challenging. Further the relation with the ruling party has often been complicated, especially at local, provincial, district and municipality levels. Interviews revealed that there is also a lack of trust among the opposition parties (MDM and RENAMO), which have only been able to reach consensus in parliament on few occasions, including the 2012 vote against a government/ruling party law proposal regarding the Public Probity Law.
Outcome indicator 1.2: % civic actors that experience an enabling environment in which they can influence or are involved in policy making
The collected information reveals that the government of Mozambique recognizes civic actors as key partners in the process of building inclusive and sustainable political and socio-economic development and this is reflected in the national constitution. Furthermore, they recognize that civic actors’ have the right to participate in democratic policy dialogue with government. However, in spite of an existing national comprehensives legal-framework and formal mechanisms to promote civic actors’ participation in the policy making and implementation process, the level of trust and collaboration has deteriorated significantly in the past years. The civic actor understanding is that the political environment for their participation is very limited and that there is an increasing level of political intolerance and intimidation of different actors who think differently to government or the ruling party. Civic actors and academics feel that they are consulted in order to legitimize the process. However the government does not always take their input into a consideration within the policy making process. Additionally, the civic actors believe that the government is not focused on communicating and promoting a dialogue about key aspects of the national development policy. Some of the individuals who were interviewed revealed that the reason for this deteriorating relationship is mainly because of the current economic and political governance challenges that are ongoing in the country, specifically the prolonged armed conflict between RENAMO and government military-forces. Other aspects on which civic actors and academics believe that government has become less tolerant in the last few years include the contention regarding the possible decentralization of government, the attempt at prohibiting civic protests related to social discontent such as socio-economic grievances and the exclusion of citizens within a democratic process, and the increasing cases of kidnappings and alleged assassinations of Professor Gilles Cistac, Persecutor Marcelo Vilankulo and scholar and TV political commentator, Prof. Jaime Macuane). This data reveals that despite the achievements of the recognition of civic actors in the political process within the national constitution, the level of political engagement and collaboration between government and civil actors, is still low.
Outcome 3: Improved capability of political actors to attract and relate
The capacity of political actors to connect with their bases (such as women and youth league party representatives), is still challenging, despite all parties having women and youth leagues. There is no political document, such as a manifest, election program, position paper or policy proposal approved or adopted by political parties based specifically on the inputs from a defined support base.
Outcome indicator 1.1: # of types of collaborations between MPs and political actors or civil society stakeholders that are perceived as being active
The political actors that were interviewed identified three mechanisms of collaboration between them, namely: (i) Sharing of information, (ii) Consulted meetings and (iii) joint activities. The civil society organizations that were interviewed identified five mechanisms of collaboration among them and with political actors, namely: (i) Development of laws; (ii) Participation in debates, (iii) Participation in consultation sessions, (iv) Provision of capacity to some parties and through (v) Providing inputs to the electoral manifest for some politic parties. All of the respondents (politics actors, MPs and civil society stakeholders) stated that they collaborate with each other. These actors have a similar perception about the level of collaboration between each other, for instance 70% of political actors view their collaboration with civic actors as being active and 30% of them as being partially active. Likewise, 71% of civil stakeholder’s have an active collaboration with political actors, while 29% think that their collaboration is partially active. Although evidence from the field indicate there is active collaboration between civic and political actors, this collaboration does vary between actors. In the current legislative term, most MP’s from RENAMO and MDM indicate that they consult civic actors mainly on imminent legislative debates, meaning that frequency of this collaboration varies from occasion to occasion. While there are peak periods such as during the electoral season, when law proposals are under discussion, both political and civic actors tend to collaborate more intensively. However, there are times when collaboration is required but challenges arise which prohibit effective collaboration. Most representatives from the opposition political parties and civil society pointed out several challenges that limit their collaboration with the government. These challenges were traced back to 1994. The main challenge identified includes the claim that the process of peace building, democratization and decentralization was imperfect which mainly benefited the ruling party and excluded other key political actors such as RENAMO. The representatives interviewed believe that this is the reason for the current socio-political and economic inequalities as well as military conflicts in Mozambique. Furthermore, despite the progress made in some areas, limited political space for government, political and civil actors to work together has been established in the country. The Mozambican state and government has not yet consolidated an adequate system of checks and balances in governance processes; within the decentralization process of power and institutions this has also not been completed yet. Participants also regard the judiciary system as not being totally independent from government interests. Furthermore, the lack of a culture of sharing information and the lack of skills of most political and civil actors was considered to be a key barrier to greater engagement between various stakeholders. Although Political actors stated that they have a close collaboration with civic actors, civic actors claim that such collaboration is conditional on the interest coming from the political parties. Whereas collaboration tends to be more difficult when it is requested by civil actors. Civil society organizations indicated that they faced challenges of having their plans or request for information accepted by political parties which shows lack of trust, even though their request may be accepted at a later stage. They also stated that they often used informal channels to access information from political actors. Thus one conclusion that could be made is that civil society organizations may be serving the interests of specific political parties. Despite the above mentioned challenges, civil society organizations have collaborated with political actors in the development of many laws such as the law against domestic violence (2009); Family law (2004); revision of the criminal code (2014) as well as participating in debates, consultation sessions, collaboration through capacity building of party members and have also given inputs to the electoral manifesto of some politic parties. On the basis of the information that was collected, it is concluded that the collaboration between the political parties, as well as that between civil society and political parties, still needs improvement. Further, more space for formal dialogue and for the increased inclusion of civil society stakeholders needs to be established or used effectively in order to allow for better collaboration in the process of policy development and implementation.
Outcome 5: Interest in consulting, collaborating, harmonizing, being responsive and a sense of trust and mutual understanding among and between political and civic actors
Political actors (political parties and MPs) and, Civic actors (civil society organizations) recognized each other as relevant actors for the process of policy development and implementation, but not all stakeholders are willing to collaborate. The collaboration between the political parties, as well as that between civil society and political parties is still fragile. More activities need to be undertaken through a collaborative process in order to build trust based on the understanding that inclusive and sustainable socio-political and economic development of Mozambique is based on their ability to work together.
Outcome indicator 5.1 : # of opposition political actors that consider members of the governing party as a constructive partner in policy development and implementation.
The political actors need to build trust in each other. This is particularly complicated when it comes to establishment of working partnership between RENAMO and FRELIMO. The two parties recognize that their political history has had a major effect on developing an effective working relationship. RENAMO members interviewed stated that FRELIMO was not open and interested in promoting democratic policy dialogue within the country, and was not prepared to accept outside FRELIMO policy inputs, especially when it came from the opposition party such as RENAMO. The information collected reveals that despite the lack of trust between the two parties, during the time of President Joaquim Chissano’s administration, the political environment was significantly conducive for the opposition parties’ collaboration with the ruling party/government in many important policy processes. They understand that during that time the two parties were often able to find common ground and interests in order to work together for the benefit of socio-political and economic development of the country. This environment is considered to have deteriorated since the conclusion of President Chissano’s term of office, with the political environment for opposition parties to operate freely collaborate on common development policy being considered to have become structurally and systematically limited. The political actors interviewed from RENAMO believe that between the two main political actors in the country an eventual collaboration in policy making and implementation is critical. But eventually collaboration would be possible after the two parties have reached an agreement on the political and military national conflicts causes, such as the decentralization/provincial autonomy process, and the Joaquim Chissano Conference Center conversations (which was stopped after the outbreak of the military attacks by government forces and opposition parties). Contrary to the perception of RENAMO, the perception of political actors from FRELIMO are that the political environment is conducive for the political actors to collaborate in policy making and implementation processes and, Mozambique has the legal-framework to allow the opposition parties to operate freely since the political actions are based on the national constitution. The FRELIMO political actors also said that they are always open to receive new policy ideas and inputs from all national political and developmental stakeholders. However, they highlighted that the problem is the opposition parties who are not prepared and also do not have the capacity to actively participate in national politics using democratic means. The MDM on the other hand indicated that their relationship with FRELIMO is not healthy. Further their relations with FRELIMO are often complicated, especially at local, provincial, district and municipality levels were the MDM is in power, such as Nampula, Quelimane and Beira. In terms of working relationship between MDM and RENAMO, the MDM members interviewed revealed that their relationship with RENAMO is at lower level but does not necessary have a great impact on political activities of the both parties. Although political parties recognize the gains of collaboration in Mozambique, not all political actors see each other’s as partners in the process on development and implementation of legislation. Data revealed political actors from the opposition do not perceive the ruling political party and MPs as their partners (67% RENAMO, 33% MDM). Only FRELIMO (100%) consider other parties and MPs as partners. Political actors (mainly MPs) and civic actors see each other as important partners in the process of policy making and implementation, with 100% of both actors seeing each other as partners in process of policy making and implementation to enhancing an inclusive and sustainable socio-political and economic national development. There has been some successful policy collaboration and partnership between civic political actors. The civic actors were able to strongly influence the processes. Some laws that have been passed in the parliament and enacted by the executive which were proposed by civil society, for Instance, the Law against Domestic Violence (2009) and the new Family Law (2004) were both suggested by the civil society.
Outcome indicator 5.2: % of civic actors that consider members of the governing party as a constructive partner in policy development and implementation
Civic actors were critical of the ruling party’s MPs and government because of some cases in which laws and policy formulation were approved and adopted by the government based on top-down approach without including the input from the civil society. The interviewed civic actors also revealed that their participation in policy making and implementation has deteriorated post-President Chissano. Since then they perceive that the government and national parliament often do not respect the existing mechanisms of policy dialogue among government and civil society. The room given to civil society for contributing in policy making and implementation is increasingly limited; the time usually allocated to them is not enough to provide sound inputs. For instance, the scholars interviewed in this baseline study feel that in significant cases they were consulted for a practical policy making processes but most of their inputs were not integrated into the final product in the form of implemented policy. The civic actors revealed that their relationship with government became challenging after the civil society national agenda shifted from a simple humanitarian developmental focus to interests in economic and governance agendas. With the discovery of natural resources, civil society have significantly increased their demand for good governance, inclusive and sustainable resources development and management policy which would allow the government and state to be transparent and accountable to its citizens.
Outcome 6: Political actors advocating for gender equality and inclusion are part of political consultation processes.
Women are fairly well represented in Mozambican parliament. 36% of the 250 total MPs of the National Assemblies in the current legislature are women; the National Assembly itself is led by a woman; two of the three parliamentary benches are also headed by women and the National Assembly has women parliamentary cabinet. Nevertheless, women’s participation in politics is still not effective. Women MPs have not yet led any policy initiatives in parliament.
Outcome indicator 6.1 : # of legislative and policy initiatives coming from Women MPs
Mozambique has been exemplary in terms of improving the inclusion of women in key executive positions and more particularly in the National Assembly. In 2014, Mozambique was located at 14th place in the world ranking of women representation in parliament, with 39.2% of parliamentarians being women (from 250 parliamentarians, 98 are women). The information collected during the interviews with female Members of Parliament (MP) shows that there is no policy initiative or laws that were led by women MPS in Mozambique. Policy and law initiatives that are submitted in the National Assembly usually come from the executive, parliamentary benches, parliamentary commissions, and sometime also from the civil society. This is despite the fact that: (I) 36% of the 250 total MPs of the National Assemblies in the current legislature are women; (ii) the National Assembly itself is led by a woman; (iii) two of the three parliamentary benches are also headed by women; (iv) the National Assembly has women parliamentary cabinet. The fact that women MPs have not yet led policy initiatives although they are fairly represented in parliament is related to the fact that they are attached to political parties in which a strong patriarchal culture still exists. This leads to the rise of two main perceptions. Firstly, women MPs may not feel comfortable to act effectively in the public sphere and lead law and policy initiatives, a task which legitimacy to perform is still granted to men; and secondly, when women in top executive positions sometimes do not exercise their power effectively, the general perception is that they operate under male dominance. These perceptions become the cornerstone for not only numerical enhancement of women’s presence but also their ability to transform outcomes, the content and the ways in which policy actors make public policy. Women MPs, members of Women leagues interviewed (MDM) and members of civil society organization working on issues of women’s empowerment, political participation and representation agreed that women’s participation and representation in decision-making bodies involves their enhanced presence as well as their empowerment through participation. A balance between women’s representation at the parliament and their effective participation still needs to be found. Thus, women in politics should develop political agendas and effectively take part in politics through a range of activities such as discussions, debates, lobbying and activism in formal and informal ways.
Outcome 2: Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament securing civil and political rights.
Both political and civic actors recognize the influence of the multiparty and democratic system in Mozambique in enhancing political and civil rates of the Mozambican citizens. There has been investment towards reforming and building new political institution (legislation) aimed at enhancing political pluralism and citizens’ rights, as well as an inclusive and sustainable economic and political and governance development. Amongst the legislation that has been referred to by civic actors and the opposition party the national Constitution is often mentioned, which strongly emphasizes and secures the rights of political pluralism and diversity, as well as citizen’s rights. Additionally, the Constitution’s Law of Party (1991), the Law of Freedom of Association (2009), the Right of Access to Information also emphasizes the importance of political pluralism. Despite this legislation and institutions enhancing pluralism and the possibility to work together as political opponents, working together across parties does not happen a lot in Mozambique. Also there seems to be a trend towards less space for civil and political rights in Mozambique.
Outcome indicator 2.1: # and expected impact from legislation passed by Parliament in the previous five years, increasing political tolerance and protection of citizens’ rights
The political actors from the opposition parties and civic actors admit that since 1994, the period in which the country moved to a multiparty democratic system, the country has made significant progress. There has been investment towards reforming and building new political institution (legislation) aimed at enhancing political pluralism and citizens’ rights, as well as an inclusive and sustainable economic, political and governance development. Amongst the legislation that has been referred to by civic actors and opposition parties, the national constitution is often mentioned, which strongly emphasizes and secures the rights of political pluralism and diversity, as well as citizen’s rights. Additionally, the constitution’s Law of Party (1991), the Law of Freedom of Association (2009), the Right of Access to Information also emphasizes the importance of political pluralism. However political actors from the opposition and civic actors highlight that legislation does not always necessary respond to the national needs. Despite this fact, 47% of civic and political actors in general believe that the enacted legislation does promote political tolerance and protects citizen’s rights; while the remaining 53% of political and civic actors (mainly those from the opposition parties, civic actors and academics) believe that the same legislation has limited impact on promoting political tolerance and protecting the citizen’s rights for the following reasons: (i) Mozambican laws do not yet fully reflect/serve the interest of the majority and (ii) there is a significant gap between what is written in laws and the implementation . Despite the existing sound legal framework the legislations passed by parliament to increase political tolerance and protection of citizen’s rights still need improvement.
Trust and relations amongst political actors and other stakeholders involved in the electoral process is improved.
# of meetings of the multi- stakeholders electoral dialogue platform.
start of the programme
1meeting of the multi- stakeholders electoral dialogue platform has been conducted since the start of the programme.
# of thematic policy issues discussed and brought to parliament.
1 thematic policy issue has been discussed and brought to parliament since the start of the programme.
Trust and collaboration between political and civic actors is improved.
Level of diversity and inclusivity of actors participating in the policy platform.
Level of diversity and inclusivity of actors participating in the political sphere.
# of platform meeting.
3 platform meetings have been organised.
# of interactions between citizens and politicians during radio programmes with questions and comments.
1 interaction between citizens and politicians during radio programmes with questions and comments since start of the programme.
Women’s participation in policy and decision making processes is promoted.
# of women involved in politics that feel that they are able to take part in decision making process.
# of male leaders in political parties that are willing to enhance gender equality in party regulations and practices.
Male MPs who promotes gender equality in party regulations and practices.
start of the programme
1 Male MP expressed desires to promote gender equality since the start of the programme.
Outcome 4: Improved capacity of local partners.
This is the measurement of the capacity of the AWEPA Mozambique office via the organizational 5c assessment, a methodology originally developed by ECDPM, but adjusted by AWEPA for its purposes. It measures five different organizational capabilities. Through the SP, AWEPA will continue to invest in the capacity of this new organization.
Outcome indicator 4.1: AWEPA Mozambique office score on 5-Capabilities Scan
Commit and act: 3.5 Deliver results: 3.9 Adapt and self-renew: 3.2 Attract and relate to external stakeholders: 4.4 Balance coherence and diversity: 3.8
The capacity of MPs to scrutinize and develop legislation is improved.
# of amendments proposed by MPs.
1 amendment has been proposed by MPs since the start of the programme.
Outcome 7: Capability of the AWEPA Mozambique office to carry out lobby and advocacy.
Outcome indicator 7.1: AWEPA Mozambique local office score on the 5-Capabilities scan.
The AWEPA Mozambique office scores an average of 2.6/5 across the five measured capabilities. The specific scores are as follows: Commit and act: 2.8 Deliver results: 3.6 Adapt and self-renew: 2.2 Attract and relate: 2.6 Balance coherence and diversity: 1.8
NL-KVK-34106722-INT
AWEPA
NIMD-AWEPA Strategic Partnership: International Lobby and Advocacy
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. A key component of the Strategic Partnership (SP) programme between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the international lobby and advocacy (ILA), linking the local agendas in programme countries with the international arenas of policy and decision-making. Two agendas were set out for the ILA: (1) Influencing international and regional organizations and actors to ensure the role and importance of an enabling environment for policy influencing is recognized. (2) Influencing international policies on political party support and parliamentary strengthening, including the allocation of sufficient donor funds.
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
50000
50000
5829.73
16108
October - November 2016
10416
December 2016
16677
258.46
Expenditures second quarter
5773
January - March 2017
Outcome: Awareness raised and best practices shared on the roles of parliaments and political parties in influencing policy on national, regional and global levels.
I1: # of adaptations in international and regional funding instruments, policies and frameworks
Start of the programme
IO 2: Enhanced knowledge amongst the ACP EU JPA on the roles of parliaments and political parties in influencing policy on national, regional and global levels
I2.1: # of outputs from the dialogue process and their expected impact
I2.2: # participants in the dialogue initiatives
IO 1: Political approach to development promoted by AWEPA through its Sections and members in the parliaments in Europe
I1.1: # of follow-up undertaken by AWEPA Sections
I1.2: # participants in the dialogue initiatives
IO 7: EU's staff awareness of Strategic Partnership programmes improved
I7.1: # programme staff visits to EU
IO 3: Political approach to development promoted by EPD through evidence-based advocacy
I3.1: # of lobby events for International Lobby & Advocacy
IO 4: EU effectively lobbied on implementation of relevant articles of EU Action Plan
I4.1: # lobby initiatives
IO 5: Contributions to mid-term review of EU financial instruments provided to the EU
I5.1: # staff training sessions
IO 6: Strategic Partnership staff's knowledge of the EU improved
I6.1: # programme staff visits to the EU
NL-KVK-34106722-UGA
AWEPA
Strategic Partnership for Uganda: a conducive environment for effective policy influencing
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In Uganda, the partners jointly contribute to four specific goals: i. To improve the enabling environment for effective policy influencing, by creating a level playing field for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. ii. To strengthen the policy influencing capacities and responsiveness of political parties, parliaments, MPs and civil society actors. iii. Increasing general interest in consulting and collaborating among and between political and civic actors. iv. Strengthening the voice and position of women and youth in the consultation processes. The departing point for the Strategic Partnership in Uganda is a joint NIMD-AWEPA Theory of Change and Baseline. The country programme is embedded in strong local political networks, underpinned by a deep rooted knowledge of the local political economy and a solid institutional infrastructure for programme implementation. To acknowledge the importance of cross-border themes and regional interdependencies that increasingly shape national policy agendas and to stimulate peer learning and exchange, dedicated strategies and instruments for peer learning, knowledge and innovation and PME have been developed as part of the strategic partnership. Furthermore, to maximize opportunities for regional and international lobby and advocacy on issues that emanate from national policy agendas, the programme foresees in the development of dedicated strategies for potential upstream policy influencing at regional and global fora and bodies.
System level: A level playing field, for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. System level: Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in parliament securing civil and political rights. Actor level: MPs understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation. Actor level: Political actors that voice and monitor citizen interests. Culture level: Political actors are more aware of and have internalised democratic values, rule of law and gender sensitive & inclusive politics. Gender and inclusion: A more conducive environment for inclusive participation of women and youth in leadership and political processes.
Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - Political parties and their representatives - The Parliament and its Members, Committees and staff
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
355078
369805
57231
October - November 2016
88588
December 2016
39258
January - March 2017
22990
126171
Second quarter 2017
43782.51
Expenditures second quarter
92580
Outcome 4: A more conducive environment for inclusive participation of women and youth in leadership and political processes
Currently in Uganda all political actors, political parties and civil society organizations are sensitive on gender issues. They include youth and women issues in their programs. This is partly because of the power play in the game changing politics where youth and women present a desire for political actors to address social injustices. Political parties show responsiveness to the call for increased representation of women and youth. However, the numbers are still low and structural change is yet to be achieved. For example, out of every 8 representatives of a political party at an event, there is always, on average one female and one youth. At the IPOD Council table, of the 18 members, only 16 percent are women. However, there are some instances where women and youth are disadvantaged for example towards the 2016 elections, nomination fees for parliament were disproportionately increased to the disadvantage of women and youth who are relatively poor compared to other sections of the population. This calls for more efforts to advocate for a more conducive environment to enhance the participation of women and Youth in both political and policy processes.
Outcome indicator 4.1: % of political actors that propose concrete policies/actions in their manifesto/public statements to improve democratic values, the rule of law and gender equality
None of the political actors that we are aware of pushes for exclusive agendas against women and youth. Evidence from practices of 9th Parliament show that parliamentary staff and MPs are exposed to the democratic and gender sensitive norms and practices. MPs tabled private members Bills in support of gender causes. In the some way, Parliamentary staff helped MPs to table amendments favorable to gender legislations tabled by government. Nonetheless, gaps in awareness and capacity exist among the new MPs in 10th Parliament on the dynamism of gender issues. The gaps are obviously explained by the dynamics high turnover in February 2016 elections There are no legal requirements for the gender and equity certificate as the condition for the passage of bills. As such bills passed in Parliament of Uganda do not possess it. Nonetheless there is notable semblance in some bills and determination in others for MPs to make bills gender sensitive. This notion originates mainly from the knowledge and sensitization of MPs and staff on gender issues. The determination part of it especially is an indicator that Parties and MPs have the capacity to design gender equal legislations that is untapped. The best example for this untapped potential is found in the bill tracking of the Public finance management bill 2012. In a bipartisan decision, the committee recommended to Parliament to compel minister of finance to present a certificate of gender equity accompanying the budget framework paper and national budget. They recommended to Parliament to compel ministers to present their budget statements to Parliamentary committees with certificates of gender equity. Parliament adopted the recommendation. Consequently under section 15(g) of Public finance management Act 2015, the minister for finance in consultation with the equal opportunities commission must issue a certificate of gender equity for all budget statements to Parliament. Under the rules of procedure, the committee of equal opportunities is mandated to examine relevant bills and make recommendations and other matters to ensure compliance with relevant constitutional provisions and favorable responsiveness to gender and marginalized groups (9th Parliament rules, 156(2a). The committee can also initiate bills and motions appropriate for the protection, equalization of opportunities and protection of women, youth, workers and the disabled (156(2b). However, during the entire life of the 9th Parliament, the committee did little to perform any of the two functions. It never sponsored any private members bill. Also, it did not scrutinize any of the bills before committees that scrutinized bills or give suggestion on majority bills (especially the legal and Parliamentary affairs committee). The committee seems to have concentrated more on the budget process.
Outcome 2: MPs understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation
Since 2001, there has been a high rate of turnover in Parliamentary elections. Above 50% of MPs who are voted in do not understand the legislative process. In February 2016, the turnover was 83 %( the highest in Uganda’s legislative history since 1986). The majority of MPs are young in the age cohorts below 40 years and are having their first job in public service as legislators.
Outcome indicator 2.1: Number of Private Members bills and Substantive amendments.
Evidence from the 9th Parliament shows that the composition of the private members bills to the total number of bills passed was approximately 10%. Approximately 42% of the 15 private members bills tabled were passed. Women sponsored slightly more than one half of the bills and opposition MPs sponsored only one fifth of private members bills. Qualitative analysis of the Private member bill data is consistent with the facts stated in the description above. All motions of seeking leave to table PMBs in 9th Parliament, except one, were moved starting with the 3rd session. One half on these motions was tabled by new MPs. This suggests that new MPs pick the issues involved in the legislative process as Parliament gets in the middle of its term. It is also consistent with what is documented in speeches of authorities at Parliament of several occasions. That, “It takes up to two years for new MPs to get conversant with legislative processes and procedures”. A further indicator, though not spectacular, is embedded in the fact that none of the 15 Private members bills tabled was transformed in a cabinet bill. Conversely, in the three Parliaments before 9th, which had a turnover below 60, government transformed several private members bills into cabinet bills. This trends points to the fact that long serving and experienced MPs table PMBs on issues that are attractive and of great concerns to Government, that if not attended to can have adverse effects on the conduct of business by the executive. Also, in the 9th Parliament, none of the private Members bills was transformed, instead in two cases Government tried to introduce its own version of bills to counter private bills.
IO7.1: MPs are exposed to the needs and interests of citizens and special interest groups.
i3: # of civic actors consulted on policy issues.
- ‘civic actors’ – those actors that are not involved in political decision-making: civil society organizations, women’s groups, citizens, etc. - # of actors – is defined as each separate (representative of) a civic group or civil society organization - ‘consulted’ – relates to any kind of interaction between MPs and civic actors that has as objective to increase mutual understanding and the sharing of information. - ‘policy issues’ – thematic topics that are subject to public policy and lawmaking.
start of the programme
- 2 consultation/outreach missions per year (4), 3 regions per mission, 10 civic actors consulted per region. - 1 consultative meeting per year (4), 6 civic actors per meeting. - 2 informal lobby meetings per year (4), 4 civic actors per meeting.
MPs from the committees on human rights and Equal opportunities conducted consultative meetings with women, local leaders, youth, People with Disabilities (PWDs) and elderly people in Eastern Uganda region.
IO5.1: MPs and Committee staff have increased capacities to analyze and develop legislation.
i2: Level of increased capacity of MPs/Staff to analyze and develop legislation.
- ‘Level of increased capacity’ – is defined by AWEPA’s capacity strengthening model and is based on four levels of evidence of capacitation, further explained below and in the AWEPA Activity reporting form. - ‘to analyze and develop legislation’ – this is determined by the intermediate outcome statement and by the capacity building activities’ objectives.
start of the programme
1st training, date, etc. Training workshop in Policy scrutiny and analysis for staff of Parliament took place from the 29th – 30th march 2016. Topic covered. • Best practices in policy and Law making. • An insight into drafting cabinet memorandum. • Basic principles of Regulatory Impact Assessment. 2nd training. Induction training workshop for three Parliamentary committees ie Gender Labor and social development, Equal opportunities and Public service and local Government. These induction trainings took place from the 3rd -4th August 2016 for the committee of Public service, 12th -13th August 2016 for committee on Gender labor and social development as well as 29th -30th July 2016 for committee of equal opportunities.
Organisational capacity scan AWEPA offices: Uganda
This tool is used to do a quick scan of the capacities of the AWEPA offices. It is based on the 5C-model, which stands for the 5 core Capabilities: the capability to act and commit, to deliver on development objectives, to adapt and self-renew, to relate to external stakeholders and to achieve coherence.
AWEPA Uganda local office score on the 5-Capabilities scan.
The AWEPA Uganda local office scores an average of 4.4 over 5 across the five measured capabilities. The specific scores are as follows: Commit and act: 4, Deliver results: 3, Adapt and self-renew: 4, Attract and relate: 3 Balance coherence and diversity: 5
Outcome 1: Formulation of, proposing to, and approval of jointly formulated policies in Parliament, securing civil and political rights
In 9th Parliament, there was an attempt under IPOD to present a joint position on a number of issues to Parliament. But the efforts made no impact mainly because of inattention by the ruling party.
Outcome indicator 1.1: Number of inclusive policies (securing civil and political rights) jointly formulated and submitted to parliament by the ruling and opposition parties.
IPOD presented to the legal and parliamentary affairs committee joint positions on electoral and constitutional amendment bills. It included 43 proposals for political and electoral reforms. There were also some unsuccessful efforts to present joint position to the committee of defense and internal affairs on the NGO bill. Outside the informal arrangements of political parties, there was yet another attempt in 9th Parliament by a coalition of MPs and CSOs to sponsor Private Member’s Bills. The coalition of MPs was composed of NRM, Opposition and independent MPs. Efforts of this coalition were unsuccessful because NRM MPs silently withdrew from the activity due to pressure from the party. The failure by IPOD to present joint positions to Parliament led the passage of clauses in the bills, especially the NGO bill that are unfavorable to operations of CSOs and unleveled the playing field for political parties. The composition of committees in Parliament follows strict gender sensitive criteria of including a mandatory 1/3 (one third) of women committee members. In 9th Parliament the minimum number of women MPs on every committee was 6/20 (six out of twenty) MPs. 1/3 (One third) of the entire committee leadership of session committees was women. The Speaker rejected any proposals for composition of committees that violated this criterion.
Outcome 3: Improved capacity of local implementing partner
AWEPA has a local office in Kampala based in the National Assembly. It is supported by the AWEPA Regional Office that is also based in Kampala. An assessment was carried out in 2016 to measure the capabilities of the implementing office, in line with the 5-C model.
Outcome indicator i3.1: Kampala local implementing office’s average score on 5-Capabilities scan
The organisational score on a scale of 5 for each of the Cs was as follows: commit and act 4; deliver results 3; adapt and self-renew 4; attract and relate 2; balance, coherence and diversity 5.
IO8.1: MPs have increased capacity to use parliamentary tools to promote gender equality.
4#Level of increased capacity of MPs/staff to use parliamentary tools for gender equality.
Gender equality: parliamentary tools:
start of the programme
A scale of 1-4 ranging from exposure to change in practices has been used.
Knowledge and skills on using parliamentary tools for gender equality have increased. The committee of parliament on Equal opportunities was facilitated to conduct consultative meeting with women and other marginalized groups in selected districts of Eastern Uganda (Soroti, Tororo and Mbale). The committee collected views and aspirations of women and other marginalized groups that would inform sector budget appropriation to ensure their needs are taken into consideration.
IO3.1: Joint policy reform agenda developed.
1# of issues discussed and brought to parliament .
PWD Bill 2015 : AWEPA contributed to the process of the People with Disabilities bill 2015 by funding the committee of equal opportunities to carry out consultative meetings with the People with disabilities, Civil society organizations and other special interest groups like Women, Youth and workers. MPs were able to get information to use in developing PWDs bill 2015 through interacting with the stake holders in eastern Uganda. The Child amendment act 2016: When the act was passed in early 2016, the issue of the budget for the National children authority established by the act was differed to 2017/2018 financial year. This issue was highlighted in AWEPA sponsored induction of the Gender and social affairs committee. Members of the committee tabled this matter in committee deliberations with Gender ministry official on the budget plans of the said financial year in February 2017. Support for private members bills: The minimum wage bill 2015. Still in AWEPA sponsored committee inductions the committee members leant about the stalled process of Minimum wage bill in 9th Parliament and government’s discomfort about it . Because the bill protects workers rights, the Gender committee discussed plans of re-tabling it and pass it into law in 10th Parliament -Capacity to scrutinize legislations: When passed into law, the bill will domesticate the 2nd Optional protocol to the international covenant on civil and political rights that seek to abolish the death penalty, which Uganda is party. Furthermore, it will give effect to the commitments made by government of Uganda to the United Nations following the first universal periodic review of Uganda’s human rights record.
start of the programme
Inclusion of marginalized groups (PWD Bill 2015) - Gender mainstreaming of Bills (gender equity certificate) - Implementation of Human Rights charters - Space for Civil society -Sponsorship/ support for private members bills
3 issues have been discussed and brought to parliament since the start of the programme.
NL-KVK-34106722-ZBW
AWEPA
Strategic Partnership for Zimbabwe: a conducive environment for effective policy influencing
The Strategic Partnership between NIMD, AWEPA and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs aims to contribute to a conducive environment in which political and civic actors can effectively lobby and influence political and policy processes to advocate for inclusive and equitable social change. The partners concentrate on a selected number of countries in Africa: Benin, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Uganda and Zimbabwe. In Zimbabwe, AWEPA and NIMD are partnering with the Zimbabwe Institute, an independent local political think tank. The partners jointly contribute to four specific goals in Zimbabwe: i. To improve the enabling environment for effective policy influencing, by creating a level playing field for all political actors and civic actors wanting to influence politics. ii. To strengthen the policy influencing capacities and responsiveness of political parties, parliaments, MPs and civil society actors. iii. Increasing general interest in consulting and collaborating among and between political and civic actors. iv. Strengthening the voice and position of women and youth in the consultation processes. The departing point for the Strategic Partnership in Zimbabwe is a joint NIMD-AWEPA Theory of Change and Baseline. The country programme is embedded in strong local political networks, underpinned by a deep rooted knowledge of the local political economy and a solid institutional infrastructure for programme implementation. To acknowledge the importance of cross-border themes and regional interdependencies that increasingly shape national policy agendas and to stimulate peer learning and exchange, dedicated strategies and instruments for peer learning, knowledge and innovation and PME have been developed as part of the strategic partnership. Furthermore, to maximize opportunities for regional and international lobby and advocacy on issues that emanate from national policy agendas, the programme foresees in the development of dedicated strategies for potential upstream policy influencing at regional and global fora and bodies.
System level: Enhanced credibility and acceptability of the NPRC in promoting healing and peacebuilding in Zimbabwe. Actor level: MPs and parliamentary staff understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation. Gender and inclusion: Enhanced participation of women in parliament and in internal parties’ democratic decision making.
Political actors are defined as the combined main target group of the Strategic Partnership: - Political parties and their representatives - The Assemblee Nationale and its Members, Committees and staff
AWEPA
AWEPA
AWEPA
NIMD
Zimbabwe Institute
The inception phase of the Strategic Partnership started on 1st of January 2016, with activity implementation planned for April 2016.
The Strategic Partnership end on 31st of December 2020
AWEPA
+31 20 524 5678
amsterdam@awepa.org
http://www.awepa.org
Prins Hendrikkade 48-G 1012AC Amsterdam The Netherlands
219900
266299
44007
October - November 2016
-5467
December 2016
34900
Second Installment
24208
January - March 2017
29082
Second quarter 2017
70000
Contractual commitment with the Zimbabwe Institute
AWEPA
Zimbabwe Institute
35000
Contractual commitment with the Zimbabwe Institute
AWEPA
Zimbabwe Institute
11334
Contractual commitment with the Zimbabwe Institute
AWEPA
Zimbabwe Institute
43155
Expenditures
70000
First disbursement
AWEPA
Zimbabwe Institute
9323
Benin programme
Outcome 1: Enhanced credibility and acceptability of the NPRC in promoting healing and peacebuilding in Zimbabwe
On 18 December 2015, the Government of Zimbabwe gazetted the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) Bill which sought to set up the NPRC as per provisions of section 251 to 253 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe. The Portfolio Committee on Justice; Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and Senate Committee on Human Rights conducted public consultations relating to the NPRC Bill. Through the public consultations, strong reservations were raised by the public about the bill. Consequently, the NPRC Bill was withdrawn from parliament in May 2016 to allow for re-consideration and re-drafting of the bill to take into account the adverse report from the Parliamentary Legal Committee and the views from the public consultations. The Commission is therefore currently not operational. The Commission’s ability to fully execute its constitutional mandate is therefore currently limited and reconsideration of the bill to align it with constitutional provisions would enhance its credibility in promoting national healing and peacebuilding in Zimbabwe.
Outcome indicator 1.1: # of parliamentary parties that publicly express their support for the NPRC
Qualitative description: From the research undertaken, there was one recorded instance of expression of support for the NPRC by an official party spokesperson or members of parliament in the last twelve months. This was in the form of MP (MDC) for Umzingwane Priscilla Misihairabwi - Mushonga who was reported in online news (ZimbabweSituation.com) reports to have made public statements in support of the NPRC but with negative sentiments regarding the bill and the manner in which it was crafted. The general finding is that parliamentary parties did not make any positive statements on the NPRC.
Outcome indicator 2.2: Parliamentary Legal Committee passes NPRC Bill as constitutional
0 = Negative 1 = Positive
The importance and significance of public consultations in the legislative process was well demonstrated by the withdrawal of the NPRC Bill from parliament on the 10th of May 2016. On 18 December 2015, the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) Bill was gazetted. This bill sought to set up the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission as per the provisions of Sections 251 to Section 253 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe. The Parliamentary Legal Committee (PLC) of the Parliament of Zimbabwe conducted public consultations relating to the NPRC Bill. Through the public consultations, several reservations were raised by members of the public about the bill. The concerns were detailed in the Adverse Report of the Parliamentary Legal Committee on National Peace and Reconciliation Bill [H.B. 13, 2015.]. Among other concerns that were raised was the contravention of sections of the Constitution of Zimbabwe by the provisions of the NPRC Bill. • For example, by having the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission report to the Minister for National Peace and Reconciliation, the NPRC Bill(Clause 6(1) (b)), would contravene Section 235 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe which provides for the independence of a commission. • The NPRC Bill further sought to limit the functions of the Commission to only producing a report and making recommendations to the Minister which contravenes Section 252(b) of the Constitution which states that the function of the Commission is to “develop and implement programmes to promote national healing, unity and cohesion in Zimbabwe and the peaceful resolution of dispute”. • The Report cites Clause 8 of the NPRC Bill of 2015 as giving the Minister for National Peace and Reconciliation power to issue a “Ministerial Certificate” that the evidence presented during a hearing is contrary to public or economic interests and that evidence should then be heard in camera. This is problematic because conducting closed hearings would not guarantee that justice was served based on that evidence and therefore impinges on the fundamental rights to administrative justice and right to fair hearing • Further detailed concerns raised in the report can be found in the PLC Adverse Report - National Peace and Reconciliation Bill As a result of the feedback, the NPRC Bill was withdrawn from parliament on the 10th of May 2016 to allow for the re-drafting of the bill for alignment with constitutional provisions and mandate of the Commission.
Outcome 3: Enhanced participation of women in parliament and in internal parties’ democratic decision making
With Amendment No. 20 of the Zimbabwe Constitution of 2013 and the SADC protocol on Gender and Development that took effect on 22 February 2013, efforts have been made towards gender parity in the Parliament of Zimbabwe. The Constitution now provides for 60 proportional representation seats for women in the National Assembly for an effective 10 years from its enactment. Two provisions in the Zimbabwe Constitution encourage the participation of women in the National Assembly and the Senate. Section 120(2)(a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that Senators be elected on the basis of zebra listing; alternate listing of male and female party candidates in party lists, which are required to be headed by a female candidate. Section 124(1)(b) provides for the 60 proportional representation seats for women in the National Assembly. Women’s representation in the National Assembly has increased from 11% in 1990 to 31% in 2013. Zimbabwe currently ranks in the top 5 Southern African countries in women’s participation in parliament. The changes in the constitution and the protocol on Gender have had a positive impact on women’s participation in internal party processes and efforts to promote women’s participation in political leadership. However, only one of the three parties (ZANU PF) has a resolution on parity and levels of participation remain well below the recommended 50% whether or not the internal party policies have rules on this. Internal party policies require updating for compliance and practice.
Outcome indicator 3.1: % of women in the national executive council (or equivalent) of political parties represented in parliament
MDC: 30.2% MDC-T: 33.5% ZANU-PF: 16.7% The MDC has the lowest proportion of women to men on its register at about 33% of members being women; while MDC-T and ZANU-PF both stand at over 50% women members on their registers. Having said that, ZANU-PF scores lowest on the percentage of women in decision making positions within its ranks. Despite the one-in-three quota that is meant to apply to all its organs, ZANU-PF has not achieved this across all structures: an all-male Presidium and Central Committee membership of just over 16% being women, has the party falling short of its own policy. However, at its National People’s Conference in December 2015, the party adopted a resolution to ensure 50% of all leadership positions in the party’s organs are held by women. While women make up the majority of its members, MDC-T has a one-in-three women’s quota in its structures. Women in leadership in MDC-T make just over 30%: 33.3% in the Standing Committee, 30% in the National Executive and 33.5% in the highest decision making body of the party – the National Council.
Outcome indicator 3.2: % of women in senior national leadership positions of political parties represented in parliament
Parliament Principal Officers: 40% 5 2 Speaker’s Panel: 40% 5 2 Cabinet: 24% 66 16 Qualitative description: Participation in administrative functions of parliament In addition to membership of parliamentary committees, two women Members of Parliament hold positions as principal officers in the Parliament of Zimbabwe. Hon. Edna Madzongwe is the President of Senate and Hon. Mable Chinomona is the Deputy Speaker of Parliament and Chairperson of Committees. The speaker of the National Assembly, Deputy President of Senate, and Deputy Chairperson of Committees are men. Of the five Members of Parliament in ‘Principal Officer’ roles in the Parliament of Zimbabwe, 40% are women. Of the five members of the Speaker’s Panel, two are women. The speaker’s panel consists of the Speaker of Parliament and the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, and three Members of Parliament. The representation of women in the Speaker’s panel is therefore 40%. MDC The MDC has one Member of Parliament in the Standing Rules and Orders Committee and one member in the SADC Parliamentary Forum. The party’s chief whip in parliament is a woman, Hon. Jasmine Toffa. MDC-T The presidium of the MDC-T consists of the president and vice president. The president of the MDC-T is a man, Morgan Tsvangirai, and the deputy president is a woman, Thokozani Khupe. The MDC-T’s shadow government consists of 16 members. Of the 16 members of the shadow cabinet, 5 are women. Cabinet Following a cabinet shuffle in September 2015, there were a total of 66 ministers in cabinet. Of the 66 ministers, 16 were women. 9 of the women held the post of minister, while 7 were deputy ministers. Women constituted 24.2% of the cabinet.
Outcome indicator 3.3: % of women candidates for constituency seats in the last elections
Women candidates in the 2013 totalled only 49.5% of the number of constituency seats that were contested in 2013 elections Female candidature in 2013 elections: - # of Contested Seats: 210 - Total # of Candidates: 846 - Total # of male candidates: 742 - Total # of female candidates: 104 - Female candidates as %: 12.3% - Female candidates as a % of number of contested seats: 49.5% Source: Inter-Parliamentary union A relatively low number of 104 women candidates stood for election in the 2013 elections for the National Assembly on First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) basis. On this basis, if every woman had won a seat in the 2013 election, the highest possible representation of women in the National Assembly would have been 49.5%. Achieving gender parity would therefore require that more women candidates are fielded in elections. Only 25 of the 104 women candidates were elected in the 2013 elections, meaning a 24% probability of a being elected.
Outcome indicator 3.4: % of women MPs elected in the last elections
Excluding the 60 seats reserved for women in the National Assembly, the percentage of seats won by women after the 2013 election was 12%, down from 15% prior to 2013. The 60 seat women’s quota in the National Assembly brought the women’s representation up to 31.48%; with an aggregate representation of women in both the national Assembly and the Senate to 35.1%. The 60 seats women’s quota lapses after 2018 as provided for by Section 124(1)(b) of the Constitution.
Enhanced credibility and acceptability of the NPRC in promoting healing and peace-building in Zimbabwe.
# of MPs on joint committee that have been trained/oriented on NPRC oversight.
National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) established for a period of ten years as an independent commission to ensure peace-building, post conflict justice, healing and reconciliation among other things.
start of the programme
Since 2016, 42 MPs have been rained on NPRC oversight role.
# of MPs and parliamentary staff trained on public consultation processes.
Public consultation: Consulting citizens on certain issues of public interest to inform policy formulation.
start of the programme
4 MPs have been trained on public consultation sine the start of the programme.
Outcome 2: MPs and parliamentary staff understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation
All three political parties represented in parliament were represented in the study and the majority indicated their parties do not provide training on the role of parliament. It therefore happens frequently that individuals are elected without full knowledge of the role of parliament and their roles as MPs. Once elected MPs and committee clerks(not elected) have some knowledge of the roles of parliament and parliamentary committees due to training provided by parliament; however this training is extremely brief and focuses on introductory 1 day awareness raising); etc. However, there are low levels of appreciation of the representative role of parliament which is an important aspect of formulating relevant policy ideas.
Outcome indicator 2.1: # of Private Member Bills/amendments moved and % adopted
Qualitative description: In analysing the Hansard over the last twelve months, there are no recorded Private Member Bills (PMBs) in this period. In corroborating with Veritas, there was also no information listed of PMBs moved in this period. The period was pushed back to January 2015 and there were still no listed PMBs. There were none adopted.
Outcome indicator 1.2: Afrobarometer score ‘Performance: MP/National Assembly rep’
Qualitative description: Afrobarometer carries out regular public opinion surveys. The following question was asked: Do you approve or disapprove of the way that our Members of Parliament have performed their jobs over the past twelve months? 39.1% of the respondents answered with “Approve” or “Strongly approve”.
Outcome indicator 2.3: "Afrobarometer score on “MPs listen”
Qualitative description: Afrobarometer carries out regular public opinion surveys. The following question was asked: How much of the time do you think Members of Parliament try their best to listen to what people like you have to say? 17.3% of the respondents answered with “Often” or “Always”.
Outcome indicator 2.4: Afrobarometer score on “Trust parliament/national assembly”
Afrobarometer carries out regular public opinion surveys. The following question was asked: How much do you trust Parliament? 52% of the respondents answered with “Somewhat” or “A Lot”.
Enhanced participation of women in parliament and in internal parties’ democratic decision making.
# of women trained in Lobby and Advocacy strategy.
38 female MPs have been trained in lobby and advocacy since 2016.
MPs and parliamentary staff understand the legislative process and have increased capacity to develop and formulate policy ideas into legislation.
# of MPs trained/oriented on oversight role.
Oversight: Parliament function to oversee government actions and advise on ways and means to improve.
start of the programme
2 MPs have been trained of parliament function of government oversight.