Dialogue in Pursuit of Development - Are you looking for one of ...

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In other words, when talking about aid practitioners’ competence in communication
and social relations, it is not only a matter of capacity in methods
and techniques, it is a broader concept and has to do with interest in
other people and willingness to seek new perspectives. It is also a question
of being conscious of underlying effects that an intervention may have and
of developing a capacity to interpret situations. Another important ability is
self-understanding. To live according to principles is very difficult, if there is
no reflection on how you live and act. This goes beyond the discussion
about aid-workers’ practical arrangements, even though a large difference in
living conditions can obstruct contacts between foreigners and local citizens.
However, there is no guarantee that a simple lifestyle in material terms will
automatically lead to genuine contacts and an understanding of the surroundings.
It is more a matter of being flexible, open and willing to learn and share.
What can we learn from civil society organisations?
At present there is a general agreement that there should be a wider participation
in aid co-ordination processes and that dialogue should take place
between different actors in the development arena. With a broadening concept
of ownership all stakeholders in a Southern country should be involved
in the development agenda, not only governments. When formulating documents
such as Poverty Reduction Strategies the importance of involving
civil society and the private sector is increasingly stressed. With CSOs moving
from a traditional role of being implementers of social projects to a role
where they are to take part in and influence policies, their dialogue with
partners is also taking a new path. However, as Christian Aid points at in a
study (Richmond and McGee, 1999) there is still a long way to go before
they are truly included: “If the desirability of better aid co-ordination
and Southern ownership of national development programmes are ‘wellestablished
facts’, how to achieve effective civil society participation is less
clear.” Christian Aid therefore gives some recommendations both to donors
and to civil society. They bring up the importance of taking CSOs seriously
and providing the support mechanisms and time required for CSO consultation.
It is obvious that it is not enough for donors or Southern governments
only to invite civil society to their meetings, there must also be a
commitment to listen and learn from CSOs. Christian Aid’s study focuses
on formal meetings like CG-meetings and Round Tables, but much of what
is raised is important for other processes as well.
Most CSOs have direct contact with communities and quite a number
are working with participatory methods so they can therefore make valuable
inputs not only on content, but also on processes, especially concerning
dialogue. In a booklet on running community workshops produced by the
CSO Legal Education Action Project (LEAP, 1991), some very basic rules
are presented such as: