A momentous event is set to take place in August this year in Accra, Ghana for civil society organisations (CSOs) engaging on the issues of CSO effectiveness and aid effectiveness. Following the 2001 OECD initiative for a High Level Forum (HLF) on aid effectiveness and the 2nd HLF that paved the way for the drafting of the Paris Declaration (PD) in 2005, the Third High Level Forum (HLF3) is being convened with the objective of monitoring the implementation of the PD. And for the first time ever, a CSO Parallel Forum on Aid Effectiveness will be organized parallel to the Third High Level Forum (HLF3).

The CSO process towards Accra

The CSO parallel process hopes to influence the official process towards HLF 3 by bringing up the issues and concerns of CSOs with regard to aid effectiveness and development effectiveness.

The International CSO Steering Group (ISG) which is composed of such networks as Alliance 2015, Association of Women in Development (AWID), Canadian Council for International Cooperation (CCIC), CIVICUS, CONCORD, European Network on Debt and Development (EURODAD), IBIS, IBON, Reality of Aid Network, Social Watch and Third World Network, among others, led the process and worked to build the capacity of Southern CSOs on the aid effectiveness agenda in order for them to be able to critically and effectively articulate their concerns and engage with other stakeholders in the aid architecture.

The CSO parallel process sought to reach out to local, national and international CSOs and NGOs. Consultations were held beginning 2007 to surface the issues and concerns of CSOs not only on aid effectiveness but also on the aid regime.

In the consultations held, CSOs expounded on their position that while they generally welcome the Paris Declaration, they find this to be quite weak in realizing aid effectiveness. They said that that democratic ownership, rights-based development, national development and gender equality should be given focus and importance in order to achieve aid effectiveness. They are also unanimous in expressing that CSOs should be acknowledged as development and governance actors and as a social representation of the different sectors of society.

CSOs were also consulted on the policy paper prepared by the ISG for the HLF 3. This policy paper was drafted to provide further discussion with CSOs on aid effectiveness agenda. From the consultations, the ISG consolidated the points raised by the CSOs and released the CSO position paper “Better Aid: A Civil Society Position Paper for the 2008 Accra High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness” which may be downloaded from the Better Aid website (www.betteraid.org). To date, 380 CSOs already signed the CSO position paper and more CSOs are still expressing their interest to sign the said position paper.

The ISG and the Advisory Group on CSOs and Aid Effectiveness (AG) have been engaging with the Working Party on Aid Effectiveness which is based at the OECD DAC to discuss CSOs concerns and proposals that have been expressed during the consultations led by ISG and also during the multi-stakeholders consultations initiated by the AG. These will become significant inputs in the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA), which will be presented during the HLF 3.

CSOs on the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA)

In the draft outcomes for the Accra HLF, the Accra Agenda for Action (AAA) embodies high aspirations for substantive reforms in the aid architecture and aid effectiveness agenda. However, CSOs contend that the AAA highly lacks concrete and time-bound commitments.

In the response on the AAA, CSOs highlighted specific issues that need to be addressed in order to come up with substantive proposals and recommendations to be discussed at the ministerial level in HLF 3.

In the document entitled “Response from the CSO ISG to 2nd Draft AAA”, which may be found in the Better Aid website (www.betteraid.org), the following concerns and recommendations on the AAA were raised:

• democratic ownership;
• transparency and accountability;
• conditionality;
• technical assistance;
• increasing the value of aid – tied aid and procurement;
• predictability;
• fragile states;
• broadening the debate; and
• vision

Parallel Forum on Aid Effectiveness

The CSO Parallel Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Accra will be held on 31st August to 1st September. This event will serve as the final forum where more than 400 CSOs will congregate to discuss and finalize the CSO recommendations for the HLF 3 which will take place from 3-4 September.

The CSO Parallel Forum on Aid Effectiveness will be divided into two sessions. The first day is exclusive for CSOs only. The whole day program is for CSO Parallel Roundtable Sessions, which will include presentations of issues by CSOs and a strategy session on CSO participation at the official roundtable sessions.

As with the official roundtable sessions, the CSO Parallel Forum will also be having three sets of discussions with three roundtables per set.

A public session will take place on the second day of the CSO Parallel Forum on Aid Effectiveness, and will be participated in by CSOs, donors and government representatives. Among the highlights of the public session are the key messages that will be delivered by the ISG and representatives from CSOs, donors and governments.

The Reality of Aid Report 2008, focussing on the theme “Aid Effectiveness: Democratic ownership and Human Rights” is also set to be launched during the public session.

The public session will also include “Village Voices”, a space that is meant to create a broad range of engagement with donors and governments as CSOs create independently organized workshops and forums which highlight their issues and concerns on the aid effectiveness agenda.

CSOs in HLF 3 and beyond

Eight hundred donors and government officials will participate in the HLF 3 that will take place from September 3-4, 2008. Some eighty (80) CSOs were accredited to the official event, and will be pushing for real aid reforms that will contribute to development effectiveness: meaningful progress on human rights, poverty eradication, gender equality, labour standards and environmental sustainability (ISG). The final recommendations and critical observations on the progress of the implementation of the PD, as discussed during the CSO Parallel Forum on Aid Effectiveness will also be put forward by CSOs in the official forum.

CSOs also set their vision to go beyond HLF 3. They will be continuing their call for aid effectiveness even after HLF 4 in 2011 which will review the actual achievements of the PD. Also, as part of their aim to attain aid effectiveness, CSO will also be addressing their own capacity, readiness and effectiveness as development practitioners. CSO effectiveness will also be given attention by CSOs as part of their aid effectiveness agenda.