Democratic DialogueRegional Project

Elena Díez-Pinto

A tool for multi-stakeholder consensus-building in support to democratic governance

RBLAC

CONTEXT

• Global challenges of the XXI century

• Traditional approaches for facing challenges to democracy are fragmented and short-termed

• In many countries, democracy is at risk and its credibility eroded

• Novel solutions require deepening in the interactions between people

• It is fundamental to understand and influence the relationship between personal transformation and institutional change

• Comparative advantages of UNDP to support and promote dialogue

• It supports addressing of complex problems operating in

public-decision spheres

• that are not being adequately addressed by existing

institutions, complementing them

• with the participation of a microcosm of the system-

problem

• through an inclusive dialogue process that allows

building the necessary trust and

• that leads to reaching local agreements on concrete

actions

What does identify DEMOCRATIC DIALOGUE?

The Democratic Dialogue Regional Project was established in 2001 by RBLAC

It is based in Guatemala

Constitutes an active service instrument to dialogue efforts promoted by the Country Offices in Latin America and the Caribbean

Expanding to the global level

PROCESSES

• Participative

• Inclusive

• Trans-institutionalDemocratic dialogue demands PREFERING

• Multistakeholder model

• Local capacity building

• Local ownership of the processes

• Promotion of sustainable processes

• Governance strengthening

• Support to conflict prevention and management

• Putting democracy to work

COMPONENTS OF THE PROJECT

Knowledge creation

Partnerships

Technical advice

Capacity building

• Cuts across all Project’s activities

• Preparation of case studies and learning histories

about:

KNOWLEDGE CREATION

The Mont Fleur Scenarios in South Africa Visión GuatemalaVisión ParaguayCivic Dialogue, JamaicaTri-Sectoral Approach in PhilippinesDiálogo ArgentinoAgenda Nacional PerúDialogues Bambito I, II, III in PanamaDestino ColombiaMultiparty Dialogue in GuatemalaVisión Educación in Guatemala

• Codification and mapping of almost 40 short experiences on dialogue, mainly in the Latin-American region

• With inputs from the Dialogue Practitioners’ Network, a dialogue typology was prepared based on contexts and results; this typology contributed to delimit the field of study

• Preparation of methodological guidelines to recover new experiences and case studies

• 3 learning workshops that gathered almost 90 dialogue practitioners to develop concepts and practical tools for democratic dialogue (inputs for Handbook)

Guatemala: May 2002Panama: December

2002Buenos Aires: December

2003

• In 2003, the democratic dialogue network expands to include prominent organizations: the Community of Practice on Democratic Dialogue is established.

• In 2004, the website is launched as a knowledge dissemination instrument and partnership strengthening mechanism.

• In 2004, 14 work documents are published and distributed, synthesizing the products of the Project.

• In 2005, the OECD tip sheet on dialogue is prepared.

• In 2005, more than 14 case studies on dialogues around the world were added to the website.

• In 2005, preparation of a Policy Note on Democratic Dialogue to be published by the Oslo Governance Center

• Preparation of the Dialogue Handbook Steering Committee: IDEA, OAS, UNDP, CIDA

• Communications strategy into and outside the UNPD

• InfoDiálogo (e-bulletin) by email and at www.infodialogo.net

• New Brochure

• Video Library

• Redesigned website (www.democraticdialoguenetwork.org)

• Dialogue practitioners network

Formed through the democratic dialogue learning workshops carried out between May 2002 and December 2003

• The network of like-minded institutions integrates into the Community of Practice– New York 2003

– Atlanta 2003

– New York 2004

– Geneva 2005

• Handbook on Dialogue as a joint initiative of the Community of Practice lead by OAS, CIDA and UNPD

PARTNERSHIPS

• Around 90 dialogue practitioners

• Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery of the UNDP (BCPR)

• Bureau for Development Policy of the UNDP (BDP)

• Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)

• Carter Center

• Department of Political Affairs of the United Nations (DPA)

• Global Leadership Initiative (GLI)

• IDEA International

• Inter-American Foundation (IAF)

• International Institute for Sustained Dialogue (IISD)

• Mediators Foundation

• Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy (nIMD)

• Organization of American States (OAS)

• Oslo Governance Center of the UNDP

• Third Side Network

• University for Peace

• WSP International

COMMUNITY OF

PRACTICE

• Learning and experience accumulated since 1997:

Response to Country Office’s demands to support dialogue and consensus-building processes coming form governments, social organizations, institutions and other local actors

• Exploratory missions, design and facilitation of dialogue processes, training, methodology interchange, evaluation and accompanying:

– Argentina – Haiti

– Bolivia – Jamaica

– Colombia – Mexico

– Ecuador (Galapagos) – Nicaragua

– El Salvador – Paraguay

– Guatemala – Saint Kitts & Nevis/English Caribbean

– Uruguay

TECHNICAL ADVICE

– Guatemala

• Visión Guatemala

• Multiparty Dialogue: Shared National Agenda

• Youth Dialogue

• Visión Educación

• Public Dialogue for the Law on Concessions

• Shared Departmental Agendas

• Several supports and proposals in: racism and discrimination, health, food safety, renewable energy, parliaments, citizen security, public policy, regional development, strategic planning

• Strategic Outlook

• Design of the operative proposal for the Support Network, and member’s profile

• Start forming the Network

• Prioritization of countries:

– Bolivia – Haiti

– Ecuador – Nicaragua

– Guatemala – Saint Kitts & Nevis

• Consolidation of the Support Network

• Basic principle in all dialogue processes supported by the Project

• The Dialogue Handbook will serve as the basis for the democratic dialogue training component aimed at UNDP’s country teams, political and social leaders of the Region

• Capacity building program aimed at dialogue practitioners, national leaders, political parties, UNDP Country Office’s staff, institutions of the Community of Practice

CAPACITY BUILDING

– Social capacities building for dialogue and consensus building

– Facilitation tools and methods

– Design of dialogue processes

– Learning for action

– Comparative analysis of democratic dialogue experiences

– Learning Journeys

In 2006 we will. . .

Continue supporting dialogue needs in the Region

Continue strengthening the Community of Practice and the Support and Learning Networks on democratic dialogue

Continue strengthening and promoting partnerships with like-minded institutions

Continue knowledge codification and dissemination

Organize Learning Journeys to deal with new challenges to dialogue in the Region

Incorporate the Training component:

• Aimed at UNDP country offices, social and political leaders

• For raising awareness on the pertinence of dialogue as a tool for conflict & crisis prevention and management

• For deepening on the orientation and accompanying of dialogue processes

• Combining presential and virtual methods