The Ethiopian Government has undergone massive change over the last few decades, transforming from a centralized Dictatorship to a decentralized “Democracy” (keep in mind, it’s a work in progress). Grassroots empowerment has become Ethiopia’s revolution and the terms “citizens voice” and “local governance” have become its slogan.
My work with the Canadian Urban Institute (CUI) has thus far taken me into the slums, low corridors and high towers of Institutional Governance in Addis Ababa. I have rummaged through hundreds of reports, City proclamations and governance manuals. I have meandered through the display cases and best practice tents of Ethiopia’s Great Cities Competition. I have even interviewed Officials and Woreda Council Managers on local urban governance. Throughout it all, one reality resonates – Woredas have increased in scale and capacity, they have more discretionary funds and interaction with the people than ever before.. yet there exists a glass ceiling of unclear vision, uncoordinated dissolution of responsibility and, most of all, a need for manpower. The Municipality is prescribing more powers to the local Woreda Authorities and they are faced with a severe shortage of capacity to exercise this power.
Good local governance is not just about creating the right legal and political frameworks, it’s also about long-term transformations and investment in people. It’s about the overarching themes (Effectiveness, Accountability, Participation and Equity) and the everyday tasks of listening to people, surveying their needs, and developing long term plans that meet the challenges of today and the values of tomorrow. If there is a shortage of skilled and knowledgeable manpower, however, the system can only fumble forward.
While the physical and infrastructural landscape here never stops changing, it is an opportune time to teach people and their systems to evolve with this change. Local leaders with the vision, foresight and guts to plan 100 years down the road and start building a culture of innovators and visionaries is what is needed. At the rate Addis is developing and re-developing, investing in human capital seems like one of the better long-term solutions with the potential to ripple down the generations.
Part of CUI’s mandate in Ethiopia is to do just that – build capacity. Typically, there are three main areas of capacity building: (1) Strengthening Governance and its ability to perform functions (i.e. provision of basic services), (2) Building Sub-sector capacity to plan and implement programming, and (3) Investing in civil society to help people identify their own needs and carry out development.
While these are general areas of development, there are real pitfalls and gaps in capacity building that need to be addressed before diving in. Some of these I have learnt here in Addis and wish to impart:
(1) Avoid Generic Training. To be effective, it must be clear in purpose, targets and development from the outset. It’s not just about imparting knowledge, but also instilling independent ways of thinking, working and problem solving.. a.k.a. the West is not always best.
(2) Start small - build small teams of experts that can mentor their greater office and have peer to peer training
(3) Organizational change takes time; therefore, capacity building must give it time and incorporate long term initiatives
(4) Make sure to avoid training that meets funders criteria and not that of the people being trained.
(5) Experts are way more beneficial if they incorporate the local context and the needs of beneficiaries
(6) Capacity building is NOT just training – it’s action planning, small discussion groups, deliverables in the work place and real life, and performance management. It’s making sure people learn by seeing, doing, hearing, discussing and creating.
(7) Think outside the box – institutional support comes in many shapes and sizes, such as through resources, centers, mentorship programs, partnerships, networking, transferring knowledge and the list goes on.
(8) Take it step by step – deal with the immediate demands of the people then build upon this foundation… For example, if people want greater access to employment opportunities, work on it..
(9) Look for opportunities to bring the local government together with community members. Bridge the gap.
I hope this information is helpful to anyone investing in capacity building. It’s opened my eyes to societal change.
Till next time…
Krystie Babalos
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