Volunteer Cooperation Program: Governance Support in Haiti – Canada Corps

The Volunteer Cooperation Program: Governance Support in Haiti - Canada Corps was signed with CIDA in June 2005 by a consortium of four NGO’s: CECI (Centre canadien d’étude et de cooperation internationale), WUSC (World University Service of Canada), CESO (Canadian Executive Service Organization) and FPGL (Fondation Paul Gérin-Lajoie).

The purpose of the program is to strengthen the institutional and organizational capacities of sectoral actors that are key to the achievement of  Haiti's Interim Cooperation Framework. The program’s duration is three years and it will be implemented in three of Haiti’s departments:, the Western, the Artibonite and the Southeast departments.

The program will mobilize Volunteer Advisers in Canada, to provide support to Haitian partner organizations and institutions through short term assignments. The Volunteer Advisers’ assignments will vary in length between two weeks to one year depending on the needs of the Haitian partners. Security issues arising from the situation in Haiti are carefully assessed and specific security procedures will be implemented both during the preparation of Volunteer Advisers and throughout their assignments.

Through this project, CECI will provide support to women organizations and unions, CESO will work with the public administration and organizations in the private sector (business associations). WUSC will collaborate with universities and professional training institutes, and FPGL will strengthen primary education institutions.

The first Volunteer Advisers will be recruited in January 2006.

Canada-Cameroon Project to Promote Greater Public Involvement in Local Governance

In May 2005, the Canadian government made an announcement to provide for over $8 million in funding to Canadian civil society and private-sector organizations to support projects that promote and facilitate innovative approaches to strengthening good governance practices in the developing world. These projects were to be funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) through Canada Corps.

In all, 161 proposals were received and 16 projects were selected for funding. CESO | SACO is pleased to announce that among those selected was a proposal submitted jointly by CESO | SACO and Canada25. The project will focus on Cameroon.

The main objectives of this project are:

1. to strengthen the capacity of two branches of a major association of elected municipal officials, L'Association des Communes et Villes Unies du Cameroun (or CVUC; Association of Villages and Communities of Cameroon). The two branches are CVUC Centre and CVUC North-West.
2. to strengthen the capacity of one non-governmental organization, Association de Lutte contre les Violences Faites aux Femmes de L'extrême Nord (or ALVF-EN; the Association of Women Against Violence, Far North Region).

3. to increase public participation in community development activities and to support the strategic interests of marginalized groups such as women and youth.

The duration of this project is two-and-a-half years, starting October 2005. The implementation phase will mobilize over 45 CESO and Canada25 Volunteer Advisers to train Cameroonian counterparts in the development of good governance practices. This will be done through a series of needs assessments workshops, train-the-trainers sessions, and awareness-raising campaigns.

Partners representatives will also be invited to Canada, where they will participate in various activities, including Public Engagement events organized by both organisations, internships, and experiences sharing.

For further information, please contact:

CESO:
Apollinaire Ihaza
Program Manager for Africa
(apollinaire@saco-ceso.com)
Tel. 514-875-7226, ext. 105

Canada25:
Andrew Medd
Executive Director, Canada25
(amedd@canada25.com)
Tel. 604-675-7371, 416-230-7595 (cell)