Ponencia Cooperacion Ingles

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Cooperation, a disputed territory1 : Cooperation for development,looking for new definitions

Oscar Azmitia

A sociación Latinoamericana de Organizaciones de Promoción .

1. The process of change in the policies of Cooperation for Development began in thelast decade with the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), anincipient "social agenda" of globalization that made emphasis in poverty reductionand social development. Since then, we may see some processes that should beconsidered:

a. Security replaces cooperation: the attacks of September 11 and the declarationsof war against terrorism scored significantly the international agenda. Securityconcerns were repositioned at the center of cooperation, setting a trend of

"securitization"2

calendar, which means that the motivations and destinations of aid,are increasingly guided by the priority of donors in the fight against terrorism.Especially the United States, built a manichean discourse linking poverty andbackwardness to terrorism, which explains, for example, why Colombia is the Latin American country that receives more ODA since 2005, showing how these criteria,eminently political, take precedence over those stated in the MDGs.

b. The effectiveness of aid is the new paradigm: the Conference on Financing for Development in Monterrey, linked to the mobilization of resources to meet theMDGs, though not far removed from liberal principles that governed the financing of development since its inception, gave rise to the High Level Forum on Aid

Effectiveness, which gave birth to three program documents: the RomeDeclaration on Harmonization, the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness(2005) and the Accra Agenda for Action , giving rise to the so-called Paris Agenda.

The Paris Declaration is particularly significant because it establishes a new paradigm in

1 This paper is based on the document: "NGOs in Latin America and the European NGOs, the urgency of a common agenda in an

unfavorable scenario”. Eduardo Ballon, ALOP.2

On this subject see, Sanahuja, Jose Antonio: The securitization of aid after the 11-S: no security, no development,

http://www.mundubat.org/MT/Publicaciones/Prensa/Sanahuja.htm. See also Spillane, Shennia: Aid and Terrorism. What about thePoor? At: ROA-The Asia-Pacific Network (editor), Reality Check 2004, ROA, Manila, 2004.



the relationship between donors and recipients (called partner countries from the principleof responsibility), seeking to overcome the ties based on conditionalities and tackle the

problems arising from the proliferation of donors and fragmentation of aid, clarifying theprinciples of ownership, alignment, harmonization and responsibility3 in the managementof the results.

The Paris Agenda subsequent adjustment process led to a paradigm of donor assistancein the midst of high expectations and well-founded fear. The Declaration reflects thechoice of the "effectiveness" selectivity "of aid and establishes the concept of goodgovernance "as a framework for compliance, and at the heart of the responsibility to thestate and engaging donors in strengthening institutions of those countries in which are notstrong enough or do not respond to "good government."

Despite important progressive elements in its content, the Declaration expresses a limitedview of development and democracy. Its structure and conception moves us back to thedevelopmental state and is limited to relations between state actors and, more specificallybetween central government, reducing civil society to the prospective role of subcontractor,without participation in the design of policies and unable to control citizens, ignoring their importance in building democracy and development .

Mistakenly, the Declaration assumes that the lack of effective policies in the fightagainst poverty and the existence of policies that maintain and expand theexclusion in receiving countries, obviate the interests behind them and explain that

reality as a result of malfunction of state mechanisms (who could resolve withtechnical prescriptions), ignoring the tension "between the strengthening of Stateand support the demands of excluded groups, which is still part of the developmentagenda can only be resolved with an agenda in which the alignment is not limited tostate policies which are based on the interests of elites ... "4.

Although the discourse of the Declaration intends to set the shared responsibilityand mutual accountability (donors and recipient partners) actually extends thepoverty trough debt cancellation5 and forget the relationship, by definitionasymmetrical, between donors and recipients, which are consistent with both theidea of accountability itself of aid as conditional process. Perhaps more importantly,the obvious major policy statement that ODA as trade, foreign investment andaccess to technology, among others, which have a decisive influence on theeffectiveness of aid, but especially in the development agenda , which is tocontribute.

3On this instrument, see Martinez, Ignacio and José Antonio Sanahuja: The international agenda for aid effectiveness and decentralized

cooperation in Spain, Fundación Carolina-CeALCI, Madrid, 2009.

4Martínez Ignacio y José Antonio Sanahuja, Ibíd.; pp.10-11

5Tomlinson, Brian: The Paris Declaration on Aid-Effectiveness: Donor Commitments and Civil Society Critiques, en The Reality of

Aid: The Paris Declaration: Towards Enhanced Aid Effectiveness?, ROA, Quezon City, 2007.



In the light of experience and criticism deployed, the Accra Agenda for Actionsought to incorporate a limited number of civil society and local actors. The parallel

forum was held, sought consensus on a position of various civil societyorganizations from dozens of countries (more than 700 people) with a view to theofficial forum, which finally recognized the importance of working with civil society,stating that donors supports initiatives to improve the skills of the different actorsinvolved in policy development, recognizing, at least rhetorically6 for civil societyorganizations and decentralized government and development actors and thesystem of international cooperation for development.

Since then the focus of concern has been to incorporate to the broadest spectrumof organizations to the financial agenda for development and ensure their full

participation in all stages of the debate.

c. The discussion on the so-called middle-income countries: The classificationproposed by the World Bank and later adopted as a selection criterion for ODAcentrally for low-income countries, meant to equate the concept of development of acountry, its GDP per capita. Based on this characterization, most Latin Americancountries (33 of 48 countries included in the category), attended a significantdecrease in cooperation resources (public and private) and the loss of centrality of the region as part of the countries "developing." In the debate on the issue, it waspossible to identify two neuralgic issues: the demand for many of our countries as

eligible for cooperation and responsibility given to them as new donors andtherefore its role in South-South cooperation and triangular cooperation7..

2 - The aid is stagnating or decreasing, but remains conditional

Simultaneously with these changes, far ODA flows to increase, as indicated by thecommitments of the MDGs, virtually stagnated since 2004 in constant dollars. Since 2007there has been a decrease in the percentage of GDP spent by donors to this end and in2007 only five OECD countries had fulfilled their commitment, while most countries thispercentage decreased instead of increasing it, being particularly significant cases in theUnited Kingdom, decreased by 29% of its resources, and U.S., which spends only 0.16%of GDP for this purpose. Since 2003, less than a third of all ODA from bilateral donors hasbeen available for priority programs which can be defined by developing countries, Afghanistan and Iraq while focusing nearly two-thirds support to countries severely

6 We say that rhetorically because they remain on the agenda and indicators of the Paris Declaration, which leaves everything left to

the will of the donors.7

On this subject see: Center for Research on International Cooperation and Development of the Universidad Nacional San Martín:

Scenarios and Challenges in South-South cooperation 30 years of the Declaration of Buenos Aires, Working Papers, No.1, CICI + DNational University of San Martín, Buenos Aires, October 2009. See also, Secretaría General Iberoamericana: II Report of the South-South Cooperation in Latin America, SEGIB, Madrid, 2008.



affected by conflict as part of the evils of "securitization."

Many of the multilateral, theoretically committed to the processes described, resist them.For example, the IMF did not significantly decrease the number of structural conditionallending into development. 25% of all its loans, some for our region, still containprivatization or liberalization reforms, which are highly sensitive, have also showninefficient for the purpose intended. As has been reiterated many times, this evidence andthe principle of harmonization increases in the current scenario, the ability of IFIs to controlthe policies of developing countries8..

As it could not be otherwise, Latin America is particularly affected by these processes. In

2007, resources devoted to it represented only 6.4% of the total for developing countriesand some countries in the region that receive even more aid obtain four times lessresources than their African peers9.

Key elements in the scenario of international ODA-security, extreme poverty reduction andglobal public goods-and its majority status of middle-income countries (Haiti being theexception) have affected the flow of cooperation, in which Latin America it is not seen as apriority in the agenda. But it has also influenced our government's inability to define apositioning and joint action in the processes described above.

Although it is obvious, we must remember that in the current context of international crisis,the panorama, far from improving, it will probably get more difficult the next few years whatwe are facing many Latin American and European NGOs, the imperative to move steadilyin one agenda, that beyond our limitations, difficulties and uncertainties 10 have notchanged substantially in recent years to achieve in the center of the debate topics relatedto democracy and development, from the viewpoint of social, economic, cultural andenvironmental, which is like starting to recognize that development itself is at the heart of human rights.

3. Basic elements for a Dialogue Agenda

Proposing elements for an agenda of dialogue between Latin American NGOs and ACIEurope, is a difficult task, even more so at this juncture, for the different dimensionsinvolved in the effort. In principle, Latin American NGOs gathered here, we have not fully

8 About this point, consult; The IMF maintains its grip on low income governments, enhttp:www.eurodad.org/uploadedFiles/Whats_New/Reports/Critical-conditions.pdf

9 More details, Fernández, Rubén: Tendencias de la cooperación internacional al desarrollo con AméricaLatina, en ALOP-The Reality of Aid: Mito y realidad de la ayuda. América Latina al 2009, ALOP,México D.F., setiembre 2009.

10 Sobre el particular ver Ballón, Eduardo y Mariano Valderrama, 2004, Ibíd..



resolved the challenge of the priorities in our action and reflection on the necessaryinteraction with popular social movements and with other sectors of civil society.

3.1. Topics:

Some of the central topics about aid and cooperation are :

a. The relationship between globalization, sovereignty and citizenship inthe context of the dispute that elaborates on the meaning of citizenship andthe emergence of global civil society, an issue that has become increasingly

expressive, a landmark powerhouse. This relationship, which has to be seenin the current complexity in which identities as indigenous, becoming visiblein full force and complexity in many of our societies.

b. The challenges and scope for new approaches to development wherethe proposal of the "good life" beyond its consecration in two Constitutionsand the ability mobilizers showing 11, is still far from being clearly defined, butappears as a possible response that keep links with some innovative looks atthe issue, as the theory of decreasing12 of the economist Georgescu-Rogen.

c. The economic, social, cultural and environmental as an extension of human rights.

d. Economically and socially, the definition of the role of the State as aleader in the development process and principal agent for integrationinto globalization, its necessary to overcome inequalities and changeproduction which means the effective incorporation of Latin American societyknowledge and generating decent jobs

e. The meanings and characteristics of the restructuring of society andthe nation living in the region, in all its dimensions, from local tosupranational, taking the meaning of regional integration processes that cannot be limited to the markets and businesses as a strategy for integration of

11This approach generally involves a friendly look to nature, careful resource, fraternal other human beings,

value of shared assets, critical to the extractive and production without responsibility and a communityperspective that gives meaning and limit on individual claims.

12 More information, Mosangini, Giorgio: Decreciomiento y cooperación internacional en el portal webDebates sobre el desarrollo, gestionado por el Col-lectiu d’Estudis sobre Cooperació i

Desenvolupament.



plural societies, the construction of shared identities and common horizons.

f. Need and characteristics of a new international financial architectureand world trade order.

g. Ensure participation of women's organizations in the DevelopmentAgenda: Special concern about how much marginalized or underrepresented groups exist in some societies. Taking into account the

Declaration of Paris, where gender equality is mentioned in the declarationbut not among the indicators that measure the progress (of the 12 goals thatcome with a set of numbers to achieve in 2010 refers to any situationwomen), is that women's organizations and networks have begun to developdifferent strategies to participate and influence the current debate. The rolethat these have been taken in this process is vital to view the absences of key issues in developing the agenda, and that make the developmentprocess. The participation of CSOs and women's networks has not beeneasy in this process, not being formally convened until 2007, when it wascreated the Advisory Group on Civil Society Organizations and AidEffectiveness.

"Since 2007, numerous initiatives of organizations and networks for therights of women have promoted reflection and exchange strategies and experiences on how women can play a more effective, both technically and politically in all 13 levels. "

Under the Third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Accra for Development (2008), the International Coordinating Group of the OSC, whichcoordinated the "CSO Parallel Process to the High Level Forum in Ghana" 14,prepared a draft document by a series of recommendations 15, reinforcing theimportance of some issues.

3.2 Items to the agenda:

13 Accra. Women Forum 200814

Within the networks involved in this initiative, which aims to promote awareness on the agenda of aid

effectiveness at the local, national and international level and I see the High Level Forum in Ghana as animportant opportunity to encourage discussion and debate, are the Association for Women's Rights andDevelopment (AWID) and European Network of Women in Development (WIDE).

15 See Annex 1



b. Towards a new international financial architecture: This issues are thestar point from which we should seek to advance towards a dialogue with our

European counterparts, assuming in principle that in matters of internationalaid system, the fundamental problem before the issue of resources lies ininstitutions, as has been rightly expressed by Ignacio Martínez and José Antonio Sanahuja16. Therefore, it is obviously a first field of dialogue as thetools developed to date to address the effectiveness of aid, and biases arevery clear limits.

In this perspective, we must discuss how to establish a new international financialarchitecture, "favorable to development, which fully incorporate emerging countries andincludes a comprehensive regulation and supervision of all financial markets, a deep

reform of government funding to economies countercyclical affected by negative businessand financial shocks, combating tax evasion and effective stimulus to global warming17.

It is jointly push for reform of the Bretton Woods institutions under the UNsystem, from the principle of one member, one vote, seeking to secure therecognition of asymmetries in the development process and discussingmeasures that balance , especially in trade and international financial systemas specific commitments and content on amounts of ODA, ending with "tiedaid."

In that perspective, and in the short term, it comes to discussing the role of international financial institutions have a significant responsibility for the lackof change and fulfilling a role as "guarantors of aid", which is a source of power limits the ability of recipient countries to reject his "recipes", offsettingany tendency towards bilateral donor conditionalities to change.

c. Overcoming the technocratic dimension: second, and in view of theParis Declaration, as proposed by The Reality of Aid, it is to go beyondtechnocratic dimension, recognizing human rights and democratic ownershipin central policy development by donors and governments to promote theactive involvement of parliaments, civil society organizations, socialmovements and citizens in the definition of agendas and policies. In order toeffective accountability and transparency, it should discuss the establishmentof a multilateral body, unlike the OECD, which monitors the international aidsystem, ensuring an emphasis on human rights and sustainabledevelopment. In the same vein, donors and IFIs should be committed toeliminating all forms of political conditionalities imposed, because theynegate any possibility of democratic governance.

16Idem.

17 French-Davis, Ricardo; Ibíd..



d. Incorporate the issues of development: Third, it is incorporated into thediscussion, a number of development issues that matter to the region andthat can be worked in the specific context of the Paris Declaration:

− Trade restrictions without compensation;

− Multilateral regulation of transnational corporations;

− Asymmetry in global Trade;

− the low taxation of most of the region, as an expression

of the interests of the hegemonic sectors;

− expansion of democracy and human rights;

− Climate change

One of the recommendations made to the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA), 2008,is the necessary recognition that should be given to the role of CSOs asdevelopment actors and give the conditions that allow them to play an effective rolein these processes.

e. Incorporate gender issues: Another recommendation made by the OSC andsupported by women's networks has been to promote and require the use of stronger language by the DP that has to do with gender equity and human rights,since the agenda raised is not neutral from a gender perspective.

Moreover, the political environment in many of the contexts in which organizationsoperate for the rights of women does not only jeopardize the achievement of itsobjectives but also undermines their access to financing. Patriarchal societies,sexism and authoritarian governments are some of the most common challengesthat women's groups said they had to overcome to mobilize more resources to

support their work.

Trends among the sectors of financing will also impact the availability of theresources to work for the rights of women. Bilateral and multilateral agencies haveundergone extensive reforms agenda as a result of the effectiveness of aid, whichpromotes cooperation between governments. Many groups (including women)have been working to influence this agenda and to ensure that resources are alsoallocated directly to civil society organizations, in recognition of their crucial role asdevelopment actors.



Women's funds are important sources of support - financial and general - for organizations for the rights of women and are a champion of support to grassrootsgroups in the global South. Have been strengthened and are proactive in assumingits role as strategic resources for women's movements. They have also beenimplementing innovative strategies, both to raise more funds to support theorganizational development of their target groups.

In absolute money terms, the two main sources of revenue for the organizationsthat responded to the survey 2008 AWID were bilateral and multilateral agencies

and its own organizational resources. Private foundations represent a large portionof resources, but comprise a very small number of donations, which shows they aredelivering large amounts of money distributed in very few contributions bulky. Bycontrast, women's funds deliver a large number of donations rather small, andrepresent a smaller proportion of total resources allocated to women'sorganizations.

Most of the organizations finance their projects through foundations sponsorship,which means they often can not establish their own priorities. Based on thequestions addressed how organizations cover their overhead costs, 30% reported

receiving grants that explicitly cover those expenses (which translates intoinstitutional funding), while 49% said they needed to withdraw money from fundsproject to cover these costs, and a significant 43% reported using funds fromincome-generating activities developed and managed by the organization itself.That 30% shows that there are some improvements in the quality of support givento advocacy groups for the rights of women, probably related to several goodpractices of some progressive donors, mostly women's funds. However, there is aneed for donors develop more institutional funding practices and to improve theconditions and requirements to support women's organizations, while recognizingthe important role they play in the progress towards social justice.

The agenda should take into account the recommendations made in Annex 1. Of this document.

4-. About three issues of social ... Finally, some lines have already been raised earlier about the conditions and contents of an agenda for dialogue on social cohesion betweenEurope and Latin America18 .In relation to the conditions, in principle, is related to theEuropean reluctance to recognize the linkage between issues such as trade, finance,investment and social cohesion. Without clarity in these relationships will be impossible to

18 Ballón, Eduardo; marzo, 2008; ibid.



discuss the coherence of policies affecting directly the possibilities of development anddemocracy in Latin America.

Secondly, from Latin America, the need to recognize in practice, the importance of socialcohesion as a condition and result of their development policies and the terms of itsconstruction of citizenship.

The construction of citizenship is not only to work with disadvantaged sectors bycommunicating with them but also the opposite, namely that they establish relations withNGOs becoming agents of change from the dialogue. Helping them to discover not onlytheir rights but also obligations. In our global societies and there is no concern and

dialogue with the "other", individualism is fierce, so the sense of community are on theverge of collapse. We must revise our theories, knowledge and practices with the public.We need more dialogue with them to see their strengths and weaknesses and to launcheducational plans embedded in all projects in this line of creating citizenship as a keyelement of development.

Finally, from both parties, understand that to be such a dialogue must include civil societyand social movements in both regions, as well as recognition of their conflicting nature andso long.

Ensure basic questions:

Once settled the three conditions, the usefulness of the dialogue would be ensured if somebasic questions 19: can be achieved and resolved:

a. Push the issue on the international agenda beyond the discussion of theMillennium Development Goals, focusing on the effects of globalization in inequalityand the asymmetries between people, as well as the validity and enforceability of ESCR.

b. Incorporate the theme in the dialogue involving both parts. They must havecommitments which political and financial implications, which link with trade, financeand investment, involving the participation of organizations and social movementsand pay special attention to issues such as decent work and migration flowsbetween them;

c. Give content to social cohesion in European cooperation to encourage the



institutionalization of mechanisms for building economic and social agreements inLatin America aimed at generating social cohesion, involving the participation of civil

society and social movements;

d. Making social cohesion contemplating the above, part of the Association Agreements, especially in relation to the issues of trade, finance, investment andintellectual property.

In this context, we believe it is possible to develop an agenda for dialogue on socialcohesion, around four main areas which necessarily had broken down:

i. human development, decent work, distribution of wealth and justice, whichassumes the validity of the DESCA and must incorporate the way in whichthe region is integrated into the world, based on equity and justice 20;

ii. democratization of democracy, citizenship and participation;iii. redefining the role and responsibilities of the State, public policies and social

protection;iv. environmental sustainability and climate change.

Address this agenda of dialogue and its potential implications in terms of research, debate

and influence,. Working together to rethink and build a political alliance very accurate andextensive cooperative relationships with those who are members of the alliance. Bureauof Coordination and the European NGO Confederation for Relief and Development are keyplayers in this process. Advancing the alliance should involve defining a process, organizeand specify the partners and participants in it.

5. Facing challenges from civil society:

NGOs must move forward on the understanding that we are a significant part of civilsociety, as well as other structural actor governments (including political parties aspiring topower), entrepreneurship and citizenship. We have changed over the years the social andpolitical organization of each country and therefore the region with our presence andactivities. Human rights were acquired and are respected by the action of many NGOs tohave a president of the Latin American representative institution on the subject. Theproblem is that we can not yet articulate with other sectors already mentioned and that'swhat we need to move ahead. Equally we must move to be very present on the publicagenda locally, nationally and globally.

We need to create a civil society more comprehensive and efficient with the contribution of



NGOs. We are one of the new agents of change whose development take long toachieve.

By our own hand ...

Our networks should help shape the civil society And perhaps our most importantcontribution not only bring concrete results, but produce new routes in the long termimpact. It is not enough representation of groups, but the partnerships built to be definedin practice, from below and in political representation, to bring democracy and

development as two inseparable aspects.

Concerned that our commitment to the specific practices, we have prevented in manycases, build more knowledge and debate from what we do. We're not in the media butbriefly and at times, we need more communication with those of up and especially withthose below.

We call for policy changes and other aspects but we do not do, we need a constantlychanging and learning. It is important for NGOs to integrate themes and specialties

between each other. And keep renewing our proposals in the light of the changes good or bad to be happening in reality.

Time to change the relationship between our organizations, are "very often" little or competitive, the "project" becomes the focus of our work takes time away from us while weare confronted with each other, eager to get money to work.

Even though there are no progress on this path, which seems urgent, you can assumethat in ten years, the presence of European NGOs in Latin America, we now know, is verymarginal and purely symbolic. But it can also mean the disappearance of many other Latin American NGOs, for lack of resources and what is worse, for loss of consciousnessand lack of positioning. Opportunities still exist. Possibilities as well. Convinced of their priority, which aim is to establish a process and a narrow agenda, establishingmechanisms and flexible forms of work and exchange in various fields.

The construction of citizenship is an issue that should be explained. It is not just workingwith disadvantage people we communicate with but also people we work to establishrelationships to transform them in actors of their own change. It's all about helping them to

discover not only their rights but also obligations. In our global societies and there is no



concern and dialogue with the "other", individualism is fierce, so the sense of communityare on the verge of collapse. We must revise our theories, knowledge and practices with

the public. We need more dialogue with them to see their strengths and weaknesses andto launch educational plans embedded in all projects in this line of creating citizenship as akey element of development.

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