ISSUES FOR DISCUSSION

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT

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

“donor-models” 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”).