The Drylands Learning and Capacity Building Initiative (DLCI) for improved

policy and practice in the Horn of Africa

Pastoralism and partnershipsVanessa Tilstone

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DLCIStarted as REGLAP in 2008 by ECHO as a knowledge management and

advocacy organisation to support ECHO partners. Initially a consortium of international organisations: Oxfam, Save,

Cordaid, CARE, DCA, IUCN, IIED, ODI, RECONCILE, CEMERIDE and VSF B.

Learning and good practice documentation on dryland issues and advocacy on priority issues for resilience: donors, media, gvts, NGOs. Links to UN, research, CSOs, government, donors.

2013 strategic review and planning process: should become an independent entity with a focus on civil society and governments.

Now a Kenyan registered non profit company funded by ECHO and SDC and recently USAID in partnership with Tufts University.

Pastoralism and partnerships -structure

1. The importance of common analysis

2. Different type of organisations need to focus on their organisational strengths

3. Partnership arrangements and critical factors

4. Discussion – what concrete actions we today can commit to improve ours and other partnerships?

The need for common analysis1. The most critical barrier to partnerships on pastoralism has been the

widely diverging views on pastoralism: between and within orgs.

2. Viability of livelihood system not seen in other areas e.g. cropping as pastoralism seen as backward, unproductive, not resilient to drought. Bizarre given the ecological realities and lack of investment in these areas, compared to crop agriculture, massive investment/subsidies.

3. De-agrarianism worldwide, no different, but obsession with stamping out pastoralism concerning, espec as alternatives are so very limited. Livestock and livestock products are the largest growing agricultural sector in east africa.

4. Lack of understanding led to huge negative impacts by humanitarian agencies: food aid, water, service provision and lack of attention to appropriate service delivery livestock health, rangeland management and rehabilitation, security, roads for marketing.

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Figure 1. U-turn in the scientific understanding of extensive livestock production

Figure 2: Mobile livestock systems at the core of the dryland economy

 

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NDMA data 2006-2013

Focus on organisational strengths

1. Research for research institutions, NGOs should use proven research organisations, rather than doing pseudo-research e.g. an INGO ‘study’ : during the 2010/2011 drought that livestock mortality was 80%, later found to be between 15-20%. Humanitarian aspiration studies?

Researchers need be more applied, not just lip service, overcome competitive nature, academic arrogance and improve sharing of results.

Action research organisations: critical role in promoting evidence based good practice guidance essential for collaboration.

2. Development actors – capacity building of government and communities, promoting alternative livelihoods through addressing the underlying constraints to development and ensuring development benefits the most vulnerable e.g. education, governance, lack of infrastructure, economic empowerment etc.

Focus on organisational strengths

3. Humanitarian actors – preparedness and response but within an a development trajectory so it is promoting not undermining. There is much guidance on how to do this e.g. LEGs and water guidance but it’s often not used due to institutional memory and constant influx of decision makers who are not familiar with the context.

Also critical role: lobby for more attention to vulnerable groups and for underlying causes of vulnerability to be addressed.

4. Local NGOs and CSOs: surprising little support for local organisations who have much better understanding and linkages with communities and can work in ways that can empower them. As most are from the communities they work with, they have much more legitimacy to advocate for the communities.

Focus on organisational strengths

5. Government: Should provide the policy and institutional framework for development and resilience promotion in these areas. Where they have e.g. Kenya with ASAL policy and the EDE framework, other actors should support the implementation of these frameworks and address some of the constraints e.g. capacity and technical support rather than developing parallel processes that undermine government efforts and great co-ordination burdens. Relieve burden on government but developing a single channel to communicate with government.

6. UN: has a particular role in supporting government and other actors in co-ordination and technical capacity and should stick to that rather than trying to compete with NGOs on implementation or undermine government efforts.

Focus on organisational strengths

Donors:

Particular role in:

ensuring organisations play to their strengths, promoting co-operation and synergy, collaboration with other

donor programs, unfortunately they are just as competitive as others e.g. asal donor group, global alliance???

providing sufficient funding for collaboration and partnerships.

Partnership arrangements

‘Consortia are not just ‘projects’ by another name. They are living relational arrangements that become (in) effective depending on how they are initiated, grown and treated. Their management requires the right skills and adequate resources. How money power is applied is applied is critical, but through the consortium there needs to be specific staff competencies in understanding and supporting organisational processes.’

(Fowler and McManon, consortium working)

Partnerships – critical factors

1. Individuals and organisational cultures that:

transcend their organisational identity; focus on addressing most critical obstacles to resilience promotion

of vulnerable populations, not people who are focused on careers or organisational dominance;

constantly questioning, learning and challenging themselves and others;

focus on accountability to their constituents, not only their donors

How do we overcome the competitiveness and organisational promotion that dominates this area of work?

Questions for discussion and action

What can WE HERE TODAY commit to do to promote:

1. Better joint analysis on drylands between organisations?2. Better uptake of evidence base and good practice guidance?3. Co-ordination to encourage playing to one’s strengths and above:

joint analysis and use of evidence and good practice?4. Better collaborative arrangements and partnerships within our

organisations?5. How can we support government and local organisations better?

Groups: Research, UN, donors, NGO, CSO and Government

THANK YOU

For more information on DLCI:www.disasterriskreduction.net/east-central-africa/reglap

@DLCI_Drylands

Drylands Learning and Capacity Building Initiative

vtilstone.dlci@gmail.com, dprech.dlci@gmail.com