 |
Presentation at High Level Segment of
The Council At Its Substantive Session 2005.
MET was granted 'NGO in
Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council
of the United Nations' at its session in July 2003 at
New York. Ever since MET has undertaken number of activities
to promote the developmental goals, including those contained
in the Millennium Declaration. These activities are undertaken
by MET in support of the MDGs and the work of the United Nations,
with a special focus on the use of ICTs through a partnership
project on implementation of the Paperless Committee project
for the committee on NGOs now adopted as a normal mode of
operation.
Some of the highlights of the partnership are summarised
below:-
| Month / Year |
Activities |
Mar-03 |
Workshop on Building Partnerships towards Achieving
Development Goals in India |
April/ May/ June 2003 |
- 9 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
| |
1st Mission |
Dec-03 |
- 2 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for two months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
- January 2004 |
2nd Mission |
April/ May/ June |
- 2 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
2004 |
3rd Mission |
November/ December 2003/ |
- 4 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
Jan-04 |
4th Mission |
| April / May / June 2005 |
- 4 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
| |
5th Mission |
Highlights of Project-TRUTH (Total Rural Upliftment Through
Holistic Care)
a) Project Purpose – Promoting integrated rural development
programme to effectively contribute in MDGs implementation
in least developed tribal areas of India (Waliv-Maharashtra)
in partnership with
United National,
Civil Society Organisations and Donors.
b) Duration – Three years
c) Executing Agency – Mumbai Educational Trust (MET)
d) Cooperating Agency – United National Department of
Economic and Social Affairs: UNDESA
e) Brief Summary – As follow-up to the Ministerial Declaration
and recommendations of the 2003 ECOSOC High Level Segment
Session in Geneva, this project aims at promoting integrated
rural development programme to effectively contribute in the
implementation of the Millennium Development Goalds (MDGs)
in least developed rural areas of Thane District, Maharashtra
– India in partnership between the United Nations, UNDP,
Civil Society Organisations and Donors. It will strengthen
Asian/ India civil society organizations and build their capacity
to enhance their role and performance in achieving poverty
alleviation and sustainable development within a participatory
governance. Through on-th-job training workshops, exchange
of information, innovative experiences , good practices and
appropriate holistic development strategies, the project will
foster regional cooperation, development and integration for
the benefit of the people. As pilot, result-oriented, multistakeholder
and multi-sectoral partnership project between the United
National, UNDP, NGOs, Local Authorities and Donors from India,
this project could serve as example that could also be implemented
in other interested regions.
MET has been working in the areas of academic excellence
as well as seeking public participation in fulfillment of
the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) in rural areas. Besides
providing academic inputs to the students it is working with
the indigenous people in the rural areas of India. We have
been sharing our inputs with number of NGOs working in the
area so that synergy is developed through partnership and
networking.
While reviewing the participation of MET in direct interface
with the indigenous people, we have gained valuable insights
into the operational aspects of rural development programmes
especially the MDGs. Some of these insights may have not merely
regional or national connotation, but they may be viewed as
globally relevant keeping in view the global dimension of
the MDGs. We would like to share some of these with the High
Level Segment.
The first learning concerns the programme formulation, conceptualisation
and implementation. After preparing a programme outline in consultation
with experts from UN-ECOSOC NGO Interregional Adviser, when
we actually took it to the indigenous people, we found that
prima-facie there was over all acceptance of the project content.
However, as individual areas were being discussed, the beneficiaries
appeared to have developed a notion that the programme was an
extension of parallel government funded initiatives, which
involved mere dolling out of funds. There was no commitment
to the outcomes as well as corresponding benefits to the recipients.
The popular participation in the government initiatives was
insignificant which eventually affected the outcome. But we
clarified that the MDG initiatives were totally public participation
driven and would be implemented only after popular commitment
was total.
As a result of this learning, we have focused on setting
up of Self Directed Work Teams (SDWT), which consist of indigenous
people beneficiaries from each settlement who form the core
team of the programme implementers. These teams are then trained
about the relevant aspects of the MDG programme and networking.
They in turn carry the message to the rest of the indigenous
people beneficiaries to seek their total commitment and participation.
Where necessary the programme format is suitably altered and
priorities are re-worked to ensure popular participation and
total commitment.
These SDWT members are then involved insetting up of pilot
projects, which form the core of the Self Employment Projects
proposed to be implemented for the poverty eradication under
the MDGs. This has proved to be a success as we have been
able to establish successful pilots in the programme area with
participation of indigenous people in goat/ sheep breeding,
pisciculture, diary farming, water harvesting, etc. The SDWT
members acted as a nucleus around which other indigenous people
could be brought together to ensure popular participation.
The second most important learning which we would like to
share is the lateral participation of small business enterprises
in the poverty alleviation programmes to motivate popular indigenous
people participation. While organising indigenous people to
participate in market driven handicraft production, we found
that the participation improved substantially when local traders
who buy large number of bamboo products including woven bamboo
boxes directly talked to the indigenous people for supplies.
This motivated the indigenous people to show interest in the
bamboo products training centre which is being set up with
the help of the local state agency. The local interest was
triggered only when the traders asked for the baskets since
it convinced the indigenous people that there was existing
market for their product. Thus participation of local small
business community in poverty alleviation programmes has great
impact in making the project a success.
The third most important learning of the indigenous people
participation programme is that initiatially women participants
may not be forthcoming to participate in poverty alleviation
efforts. But once the initial doubts are cleared, then it
is the women who drive these programmes to success. They totally
overtake the male participants as well as out number and out
perform them through their dedication, hard work and total
commitment. The pilot initiatives launched by SDWT initially
had larger male participation but eventually they are being
run and made a success by the female participants all the
way.
As may be seen, MET has been active in providing manpower
and intellectual support directly as well as indirectly to
further the cause of UN-ECOSOC and help in implementation
of the Millennium Development programme. In this task Met has
been seeking collaborative support, participation and partnerships
from other NGOs working in the project area as well as number
of voluntary and civic action groups in the region. This partnership
is further widened with the support of international bodies
like UN DESA which help to provide global connectivity. The
Project-TRUTH conceived and developed by MET, is now being
sharpened and actual work plan is being evolved so as to ensure
mass participation of the beneficiaries of the Waliv Tribal
area. Thus though the plan is centrally conceived, it is being
fine-tuned to meet local aspiration challenges through lateral
and multi-dimensional partnerships with the full participation
from beneficiaries.
Through the learnings we are focusing on forming up of the
SDWTs and bringing the women folk in making these a success.
Thus the ultimate goal of the project is to seek poverty alleviation
(MDG1) through promotion of gender equality and women empowerment
(MDG3). The indigenous people are responding to the programme
but obviously the pace is slow as rushing through will not
help popular participation. Hence we shall be implementing
the MDGs to seek poverty alleviation with full participation
of the weakest sections of the society and indigenous people,
involving multistakeholder partnership government, civil society,
corporation, foundation, etc and local authorities.
| Month / Year |
Activities |
Remark |
2003/ 2004/ |
Paperless Committee Project at UN-ECOSOC |
Enclosure 'I' |
2005 |
|
|
April/ May/ June |
- 9 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
- |
2003 |
1st Mission |
|
Dec-03 |
- 2 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for two months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
- |
- January 2004 |
2nd Mission |
|
April/ May/ June |
- 2 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
- |
2004 |
3rd Mission |
|
November/ December 2003/ |
- 4 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
- |
Jan-04 |
4th Mission |
|
April / May / June 2005 |
- 4 students of MET visited to UN-ECOSOC for three months
for the Paperless Committee Project - |
- |
| |
5th Mission |
|
2003/ 2004/ |
Project - TRUTH (Total Rural Upliftment
Through Holistic-Care) at UN-ECOSOC |
Enclosure 'II' |
2005 |
Mar-03 |
Workshop on Building Partnerships towards Achieving
Development Goals in India |
- |
Oct-03 |
Project-TRUTH - Prepared draft Project Report in consultation
with Najet Karaborni - Senior Interregional Adviser
in Governance, Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs |
- |
Oct-03 |
Bench mark survey for need assessment of Tribals and
finalisation of draft plan for implementation |
- |
May/ June 2004 |
Launching Pilot programme (under Project-TRUTH Planning
Matrix) Promotion of Self Employment Projects - setting
up of pilot model goat/ sheep breeding projects in Waliv
area. Setting up of pilot model Diary demonstrations production
projects. As well as Warli Tribal Art and Culture programme
at Waliv. |
- |
May/ April 2005 |
Setting up of site office and formation of Self Directed
Work Team (SDWT) for mobilising local participation and
project formulation and implementation |
- |
May/ April 2005 |
Setting up of pilot sweet water pisciculture demonstration
model in project area |
- |
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