ANNUAL REPORT 2009

This year, PCDD was proud to work in partnership with a variety of civil groups that represent the diversity of the MENA region. Our experience extended from Algeria to the Gulf, where we provided social activists and groups with the skills necessary to take action and advocate for their right to development and democracy.

A WORD FROM PCDD

OUR MISSION

PCDD is an independent Lebanese NGO that specializes in advocacy and electoral campaigns. Through its technical expertise, consulting services and capacity building programs, the Center provides assistance to marginalized groups and civil society organizations in Lebanon and the MENA region to become active proponents of change in the public sphere.

ABOUT THE 2009 ANNUAL REPORT

2009 was quite an eventful year for PCDD, especially since the projects undertaken involved all tracks of the Center’s work. Our “Youth Leaders” project focused on development, while our women’s access to information project was centered on democracy. Both pillars of our organization were therefore upheld through our work. But apart from our own projects came a vital component to PCDD’s purpose and existence, the consultancy work. Our Center spread its skills and expertise this year, with training and facilitation sessions of all lengths taking place in Beirut and other cities of the region. External project implementation is a crucial element of our role as a consulting organization. Throughout 2009, PCDD executed an advocacy campaign that broke borders between Beirut and Denmark, and between men and women. The workshops we planned and conducted are an indispensible part of our success as an institution, but PCDD was nevertheless proud to attend forums, conferences and conventions in 2009 that were planned by partner organizations. Between our endeavors and those of our supporters and participants, we were able to make 2009 one of PCDD’s most fruitful years yet.

Annual Report [2009]

PROJECTS

DEVELOPMENT

“Youth leaders”: Power, Action, Leadership

North Lebanon - mainly Akkar and Tripoli – have the highest level of underdevelopment in the country. It is noticeable in the lack of economic activity, human development, social structure and living conditions. Deprivation is severe in these regions; therefore there is a pressing need to assist them through human resources building capacities and development activities.

PCDD launched a project in North Lebanon sponsored by USAID/ OTI Lebanon aiming to engage youth to take an active role in their communities by training a core group of young

activists to become potential leaders in the near future.

The aim of the project was to:

Create a skilled pool of young activists in Tripoli and Akkar

Strengthen their ability to identify policies and issues needing change

Build networks between youth from Tripoli and Akkar

Activities implemented by the project included:

• A series of training workshops was attended by 30 youth from Akkar villages (Berkayel, Halba, Al Kawashra, Majdala, Dnabo, and Takrit) and 30 youth from different marginalized areas of Tripoli (Jabal Mohsen, Minieh, Abi Samra, Al Kobbeh). They learned how to manage community projects and

coordinate with governmental entities. Participants were trained through sessions that examined prejudgment, stereotyping, racism, and conflict resolution.

• Based on the results of a questionnaire survey prepared by participants and completed by community members, the participants suggested they urgently needed small projects to implement in the region.

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"Following these sessions, we became aware and responsive regarding what happens in our

village. These sessions motivated us to look forward and dream of many future projects

that can be implemented in our village".-Workshop participant

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A photo exhibition in Tripoli was organized, where thirty-four photos taken by the participants were exhibited. They depicted areas that they were proud of and contrasted them with photographs of areas that needed to be improved in their community. Those photos stimulated constructive discussions

among the attendees who voted in favor of the "best photo", which was awarded to Al Kowayshra Village, one of Lebanon's most marginalized areas.

• During the follow-up and field visits, several family members of the participants and

other community members gathered to greet and thank PCDD team for encouraging their youth to be more concerned and involved in community issues. The participants were happy with the process and expressed a

sense of accomplishment after participating in the workshops.

A sense of belonging to these workshops was noted and clearly evident when participants called to confirm their attendance; they identified themselves as members of PCDD, as if the center had become a working organization in the Akkar region overnight!

DEMOCRACY

"Women's Equal Right to Access to Information and Health Services", Lebanon, January - July 2009

Lebanon is a signatory to several international conventions that guarantee free access to information. There are no laws in Lebanon that restrict access to information. Yet the legislature has not promulgated any provisions nor established any of the processes necessary to implement this freedom of information laws. As a result, marginalized groups across the country- especially women-are harmed by their lack of access to information, particularly in regard to health services, treatment options and the relative merits of various medical procedures and

treatments.

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Our field coordinator heading one of our Tripoli workshops

“None of the sites we visited had medical brochures or any type of

literature that provided patients with information about their medical

conditions”

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The Center used an Opportunity Fund Grant provided by The Word Justice Forum in Vienna 2009 to examine the current state of available information on women's health rights in Lebanon and, address the challenges to access to information and best practices that may be appropriate in other country context.

The project aimed at:

Ascertaining the problem empirically and theoretically by studying the extent of the problem through legal study, case studies, survey of opinion, field survey, and testimonies

Generating public awareness

Proposing legal and administrative solutions

Our research resulted in the following:

• A report on AIDS in Lebanon that interviews a wide range of persons infected with AIDS,

religious leaders, civil society leaders and health care professionals.

It found that although access to Information about sexually transmitted diseases is legal in Lebanon, the social and cultural stigma associated with STDs makes it very difficult for those with the disease to be open about it

and seek treatment and information.

• A field study was conducted through visits to 25 private clinics and hospitals, doctor's consulting rooms and dispensaries. None of the sites had medical brochures or any other type of literature that

provided patients with information about their medical conditions, prevention options or potential treatments and their relative merits.

• Case studies of six women who were forced to deal with gender-specific medical conditions: Menopause, Breast Cancer,

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PCDD's director, Lina Alameddine, at the second World Justice Forum

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Mastectomy, Osteoporosis, OCD and a Urinary Tract Tumor. In all six cases, the physician did not explain the diagnosis to the patient, refer her to a specialized nurse or give her any literature related to her medical condition. The patients had no part in the decision-making process related to their treatment.

• A survey of opinion leaders regarding women's access to health-related information. The project analyzed the results in order to determine how to proceed with its outreach and networking activities.

• A report analyzing the reasons why women are unable to access pertinent health information and present solutions for overcoming these barriers. This report was presented in the form of a recommendation to the Lebanese Parliamentary Administration and Justice Committee.

Our Successes!

PCDD’s project was in the spotlight among 36 competitively-selected

programs on 5 continents by participants in the 2009 World Justice Forum

The project built a broad-based multidisciplinary coalition of civil society leaders in Lebanon that are now constantly committed to

improving women's access to health-related information.

The recommendations offered to the Parliament were to serve as a template for civil society leaders in other countries throughout the region who were and are trying to overcome similar problems.

CONSULTING SERVICES

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The World Justice Forum was the seat of dozens of activists looking for exposure and

support

Annual Report [2009]

TRAINING AND FACILITATION

Developing a Network Strategy- Beirut

From October 2008 to October 2009, PCDD provided technical assistance to advocacy team within the "National Network for the Right of Access to Information", as requested by the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI), in order to develop their mission, goals, strategy, activities and action plan.

In addition, PCDD, in coordination with the ABA, conducted a session for ABA small grant applicants to ensure that the activities carried out responded to their work plan and were not duplicated by other applicants. PCDD also made recommendations for the second phase of the initiative and facilitated a pre-assessment session for the advocacy members Network towards the end of the project. PCDD participated in the Network meetings as determined by the ABA.

Strategic Planning & Proposal Writing-Amman

In Jordan, January 2009 PCDD facilitated the workshops on Strategic Planning and Proposal writing for the Arab Women’s

Legal Network the “Enhancing the Capacity of Legislative Drafting” project.  The material was centered on long term planning, identifying challenges and generating workable scenarios.

Advocacy Strategic Plan- AmmanPCDD, under the program "Jordanian civil law reform" and in partnership with the coalition of Jordanian civil society organizations, was rofessional services to the Jordanian NGOs coalition. This was to take place through a two-day workshop on the 11th and 12th of April, 2009. The workshop's objectives were to structure the work of the coalition and realize an

action plan for the next steps of advocacy for the amended association law in Jordan.

Outreach Strategy- AmmanUnder the program “Ensuring Civil Society Participation in the

implementation of Jordan’s National Disability Strategy” implemented by the Academy for Educational Development (AED), PCDD provided technical assistance to the members of the

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Participants are all smiles at the AWLN workshop

Jordanian women comparing their vision to their present

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Higher Council for Affairs of Persons with Disabilities (HCAPD).

In March 2009, after a series of meetings held with members of the HCAPD, a pre-assessment report including recommendations for specific technical assistance was submitted to AED. Based on the report, a three-day strategic planning retreat (14-16 April 2009) was held in collaboration with HCAPD and led to the development of HCAPD future plans.

PCDD also supported HCAPD in finalizing its outreach program by conducting a two-day workshop action planning session for a number of civil society representatives who were in charge of monitoring the implementation of the National Disability Strategy.

As a result, the civil society representatives conducted HCAPD Town Hall meetings, in preparation of the first National Summit of the National Disability Strategy planned for November 2009.

Organizational Assessment – AmmanPCDD served as a consultant for Freedom House in Jordan, under the auspices of the Freedom House's "Capacity Building for Gender Equality in Jordan". As per Freedom House’s request, PCDD assessed three institutions from May 2009 till November 2009: the Jordanian National Forum for Women (JNFW), Women for Cultural

Development Society (Nama'), and Community Centers Associations (CCA).

Strategic Plan-Alger Under the request of the American Bar Association, Alger office, PCDD conducted training sessions on developing networks and strategic plans under the ABA program for “Advancing Women’s Rights in Algeria through Capacity Building for Young Women Lawyers”. The project’s objective was to promote the enhancement of women’s legal rights in Algeria by building a corps of well-trained young lawyers. PCDD was involved in the facilitation, networking, strategic planning, action plan structuring, and other skills for the young advocate trainees to build their individual campaigns. The program has thus supported the professional

development of female lawyers, strengthened the legal sector overall through more effective legal practice, and prepared lawyers to advocate for women through legal cases, community initiatives and policy reform.

Advocacy Focus Group- Amman

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The Higher Council for Affairs of Persons with Disabilities benefitted from PCDD’s technical expertise to properly develop their future plans

A diverse group of Algerian participants ready to learn

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Throughout May 2009, at the request of the Academy for Educational Development (AED) – Jordan Civil Society Program (CSP), PCDD designed and conducted focus group discussion sessions. The AED advocacy program aimed to strengthen the capacity of Jordanian civil society organizations in their advocacy and outreach and increase overall citizen participation in the reform process.

The sessions were tailored for freelance trainers and NGOs who provided advocacy training, as well as for CBO staff members who had received advocacy training and were implementing advocacy initiatives at the community or national level in the different fields. PCDD submitted a detailed report outlining the outreach strategy of the focus group.

Advocacy Training- BeirutIn collaboration with the Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW) at the Lebanese American University (LAU), the Partnership Center for Development and Democracy (PCDD) participated in the Young Women Leaders (YWL) Summer Program which took place at the Lebanese American University (LAU) in Beirut on August 6, 2009.

The main objective of the program was to help the women rights activists coming from the Gulf

States (Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen) acquire

knowledge and leadership skills.

PCDD's role was to conduct a training session on advocacy strategic planning that allows the participants to develop project ideas

that could be implemented in their countries, and thus leading to the empowerment of women in their own communities and the enhancement of their social, economic, and political situation

Capacity Building-BeirutPCDD secured support for a DanChurchAid (DCA) project that aimed to strengthen women’s organizations capacity in Lebanon. The project, which took place in August, meant to assess the amount of available resources within each partner organizations and adjust expectations regarding the level of effort to be put into an advocacy campaign, as well as to describe and secure general acceptance of a joint work structure between the participating organizations.

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Algerian lawyers now trained and motivated to advocate for women

Students brainstorming on local and regional women empowerments.

PCDD facilitated a workshop that sought to spread ideals of

democracy and liberalism to journalists, human rights activists and film producers among others

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Strategic Plan-BeirutPCDD facilitated a one day strategic plan workshop organized by ABA Rule of Law

(ABA/ROL) in Beirut at La Sagesse University. ABA-ROL in partnership with the Faculty of Law at La Sagesse University established a Human Rights Law Clinical Course in the academic year 2007-2008.  The Clinical Course formed part of the curriculum for all final year law students.  It included a semester of course work and a semester of clinical work.

The purpose of this fall workshop was to develop strategic recommendations built on lessons learned and on the vision carried by the University.  The recommendations tackled more specifically:

• The Establishment of a Center for Clinical Education

• The Introduction of New Methodologies and Courses into the Curriculum

• The Provision of Administrative Support for Faculty, Student and Alumni Development.

A document was drafted and submitted to the President of La Sagesse University in this regard.

Advocacy Planning Sessions-Beirut

Also in November, PCDD facilitated advocacy planning sessions for LLWR (League for Lebanese Women’s Rights) members in preparation to a series of activities related to the adoption of the draft Civil Code of Personal Status, which was implemented by the Commission on the rights of Lebanese women. PCDD organized a 3-day workshop aimed at providing the activists with advocacy training and discussing the challenges related to the implementation of the Civil Status Law

in Lebanon.

Democracy & Education-BeirutPCDD facilitated training sessions and twenty-five young journalists and human rights activists working under the Freedom Messenger Network

(FMN) project. This workshop was organized in December by the United Group in Egypt with the support of the Rady School of Management at the University of California. The workshop was also

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PCDD managed to partner with more than a dozen organizations in 2009, through its consultancy work alone!

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in cooperation with the Center for Defending Freedom of Journalists (Jordanian partner) and the Media for Training Association (Lebanese partner). The project aimed to prepare and empower a group of young journalists, rights activists, and film producers to use their professional platforms to spread the culture of democracy, liberalism, freedom of expression, citizenship, dialogue and tolerance among their colleagues and communities.

PROJECT IMPLEMENTATIONStrengthening Advocacy for Women's rights in Lebanon, June 2008 – June 2009

PCDD was assigned by the Dan Church Aid (DCA) to implement a project entitled "Strengthening Advocacy for Women's rights in Lebanon" with the purpose to reinforce the capacity of participating women's organizations to design, develop and implement campaign strategies that benefit women and women's rights in Lebanon. This was done through the conduction of four workshops of twelve training days for twenty four women's rights activists on advocacy campaign management, building relationships with government, working with media and building and maintaining coalitions.

• The first workshop in the series, Planning Your Campaign, introduced participants to the fundamentals of advocacy planning.

Participants learned to identify the characteristics of a successful advocate,

analyzed power relations, conducted a community mapping exercise and practiced the basics of public opinion surveying.

• The second workshop, Building Relationships with Government, gave participants skills in developing effective messages, communications, and branding aimed at persuading policy makers. They also reviewed the existing government structure and legislative processes in their country and learned the basic

techniques for analyzing legislation. The workshop included the practice of lobbying techniques and development of position papers.

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"Planning your Campaign"-the first session in the DCA series of workshops

PCDD's director heading the "Building Relationships with Government" workshop

Annual Report [2009]

• In Building Relationships with Media, participants made the connection between democracy and independent media and understood how good relationships with the media can advance their advocacy cause. The workshop focused heavily on practical skills as advocates participated in press, radio, and television interviews, with feedbacks from actual journalists.

• The creation of coalitions that build political momentum for policy change is a key factor in the success of advocacy initiatives. After discussing why NGOs should form coalitions, participants in Building and Maintaining Coalitions learned how to create their own coalition plans.

After examining a range of leadership styles, participants practiced conflict management skills and group decision-making processes in order to address the most common challenges faced by coalitions due to their size and complexity. The workshop concluded with a review of indicators for evaluating coalitions.

In a step to familiarize the participants with practices of other women's organizations, a study tour to Copenhagen was arranged at the end of

the project. The participants were exposed to some Danish Women Right issues, and returned to Lebanon with new ideas and inspiration for their future work. They decided to organize a joint advocacy campaign on the identification of a national maternity structure in the service of women's rights.

EVENTSIn 2009 PCDD took part in the following

conferences and workshops:

“Civil Society Roundtable", Amman, June 23, 2009, organized by the Academy for Educational Development (AED) Jordan Civil Society Program, the Arab Democracy Foundation

(ADF), and the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies. The event was entitled "How can civil society enhance participation in local governance in the Arab world".

Regional Seminar for Women Human Rights Defenders, Jordan, August 7, 2009, organized by the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR), the International Women's Rights Action Asia Pacific (IWRAW

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Two future activists learning how to break barriers and build relationships

PCDD’s staff was among the eager audience members who arrived to learn more about religious pluralism

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Asia Pacific) as a part of the International Coalition on Women Human Rights Defenders (ICWHRDs). The seminar brought together women human rights defenders to examine the commonalities in the environments in which they work and focus on the complex effects of cultural and religious factors that impact their ability to work.

"Freedom of society, and Freedom to create NGOs", Beirut, September 28, 2009, organized by the Lebanese Foundation for Permanent Civil Peace

"The 3rd New Arab Women Forum", Beirut, October 15, 2009, organized by Al-Iktissad Wal-Amal Group and Al Hasnaa Magazine

“Religious Pluralism in Lebanon & the Arab World: History, Mutations, and Prospects”, Beirut, October 24-25, 2009, organized by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation Office in Amman (KAS) in cooperation with the Lebanese Foundation for Permanent Civil Peace (LFPCP)

“Religion & State”, Beirut, November 20-21, 2009, organized by the Forum for Development, Culture & Dialogue (FDCD) in cooperation with Dar-Annadwa Bethlehem and Olaf Palme of Sweden.

Partnership Center for Development and Democracy

Corniche Al Mazraa, Beirut, Lebanon

Tel 009611303599

www.pcdd.org

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Speakers at the New Arab Women Forum, 2009