CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT ISSUES FOR DISCUSSION CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT Fundamental

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT ISSUES FOR DISCUSSION

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT • Fundamental challenge for trade union development cooperation • Basket – concept • • • Education and training Advocacy Organising Administration Project management

TRADE UNIONS ARE VALUE BASED (=POLITICAL) • Independent/autonomous = Not dependent from outside “powers” • Financially • Politically/ideologically/ “thinking” • Plan of action • Democratic/participative • “controlled/member driven” • Structures and democratic accountability • Representative • Affiliation and support from workers • Able to represent the voice of the members

SOLIDARITY • Solidarity and international cooperation • Role of regional and international structures and frameworks • Interaction between national, regional and international level in practice and in principles (standards – control mechanisms) • Solidarity is foundation of our strength

TU PRINCIPLES & GUIDELINES ON DEVELOPMENT EFFECTIVENESS • Ownership & autonomy • Plan of action • Need assessment • • Transparency and accountability (democratic structures) Inclusiveness and Equality (representativity) Coherence (interaction) Sustainability (dues, governance, solidarity, …)

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT BEYOND TRAINING • An integrated approach on CD • Integrated in TU “objectives” and “time = embedded in national action plans • linking all aspects of trade union organising work into a coherent approach • Cooperation programmes are only a part, a “contribution” to this embedded approach • Sustainability comes from “within”

5 DIMENSIONS OF CD • Policy development • A TU wants to influence improvement of working and living conditions, and therefore economic and political governance etc… • TU need to have their own “thinking”/political, social, economic, cultural, ecological alternatives • Advocacy • TU want their proposals to be “adopted” • Advocacy strategies are diverse and contextual

5 DIMENSIONS OF CD • Promotion and advertisement of TU views, strategies, results, … • Representation and representativeness have to be ensured beyond private and sectorial interests • Training • Is an essential part of the process but not the whole process. Training without the other strategic elements is not sustainable. • Research • TU need to prepare and support policy, training, promotional activities and advocacy

THE CHALLENGES OF CD FOR DC See also principles • Dialogue between partners on the TU-owned plans of action are essential and a prerequisite for sustainable CD • CD should be “holistic” and based on the partners’ need • Donor needs (programme administration and “justification”) should not be a burden on the implementation of national action plans

CHALLENGES OF CD FOR DC • Coherence and interactivity should allow to approach pluralism and atomisation of the trade union landscape at national/local level in, a shared and more effective/objective manner. • Donors should be aware of the implicit transfer of “donormodels” to their partners and make these also an element of dialogue • DC and CD should not serve TU (bilateral) “diplomacy” but contribute “strengthen the parts and the whole”

CHALLENGES OF CD FOR DC • Northern driven “priorities” or “thematic and geographical concentration” by back donors (or by TU themselves) are incompatible with a “national action plan driven” cooperation, leading to the atomisation of trade union actions in the south (gender, child labour, …. ) • Coherence has to give strength to the local trade union CD action and DC should enable that.

OTHER QUESTIONS: TRADE UNIONS AS SOCIAL MOVEMENT • The TU: social movement in a (local) context • Beyond the direct interests of (formal) workers • Taking up the challenge of participative democracy as a prerequisite for effective trade union work and impact on policies • Taking up the challenge of working class needs beyond the workplace (education, housing, public services, gender equality, environment, …) • Cooperatives and solidarity organizations • Political and CSO alliances

OTHER QUESTIONS: CD FOR SOCIAL DIALOGUE • CD for social dialogue • • Cooperating with employers Role of/for the ILO New challenge for DC (donor priorities) Linking CD for TU and CD for Social Dialogue

THE TUDCN AND CD IN DC Proposal for year 1 (October/November) • International Seminar of CD • Share practices of CD in DC • Discuss long term CD strategy based on • Sustainability of its impact in political terms (strong and effective unions) • Sustainability in terms of trade union organising • Taking advantage of the “new ITUC” momentum • Take the DW in DC debate to the national level and make it part of the national development agenda’s

THE TUDCN AND CD IN DC Year 2 • Regional seminars on contribution of DC for more effective and sustainable CD in the region (at national/sector level) • Create conditions for CD on CD in the regions to enable CD at national and local level as a contribution to more effective impact of TUDC

THE TUDCN AND CD IN DC The longer term • Link to be established with regional DC networks and also with DC coordination in the region (donor “harmonisation” and “alignment”).