Category: Documents

Brief on Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development

Building a coalition around SDGs, Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development (CSCSD) (cscsdev.org) formerly known as Campaign2015+ International is a coalition of close to 2000 registered civil society and non-governmental organizations and individuals committed to citizens’ empowerment, human rights protection, development and peace in Nigeria. It is the only registered (CAC/IT/No 87678) national coalition of organizations purposely created to be working on the monitoring of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals across the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria.

Specifically, the Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development coordinated and organized deliberations across Nigeria’s six geo-political zones on the post-2015 development agenda that led to the publication titled: “A Compendium of Deliberations on Post-2015 Development Agenda”. This is an over 260-page book that encapsulates the essential deliberations across the globe on the post-2015 development agenda and the 2030 Agenda including all the 17 sustainable development goals (copies are still being freely distributed). This publication is a feat that no organization has ever done either in Nigeria or abroad on the post-2015 issue.

Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development has been part of the meetings organized both in Africa and Europe on the post-2015 development agenda bringing together development actors and partners, governments and private sectors. For example, we made a presentation on the post-2015 development agenda to a wider audience of CSOs and government representatives in Johannesburg in November 2013 while in November 2014 we were part of the meeting of CSOs in Copenhagen (Denmark) where we made contributions to the vital importance of inclusion of equality across all levels and themes of the post-2015 framework through implementation of accountability mechanisms addressing all three dimensions of sustainable development. Due to the recognition of our activities, in November 2016, two of our members had the rare opportunity of being invited by the German Council on Sustainable Development by participating in a week-long SDG programme tagged “OpenSDGsClub.Berlin” in Germany. And towards the end of March 2017, we were also invited to Bonn to participate at the International Festival of Ideas.

It is on record that we organized the southwest training seminar on CSOs’ role in monitoring SDGs implementation on August 31 2016 which took place in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria where over 100 participants were sensitized. This was a joint effort sponsored by CSCSD and NNNGO, Lagos. Individual NGOs have been empowered to be engaging their governments at the state level. Below is a summary of our activities:

  • Board of Trustees (BoT) meetings of CSCSD were organized in Abuja, Lagos, Kano, and Ijebu-Ode.
  • State-level meetings of CSCSD members in three geo-political zones – North Central, South West and South-South
  • State-level training (Oyo, Ogun, and Bayelsa) updating members’ knowledge of SDGs
  • A day’s capacity strengthening workshop on strategies for localizing the SDGs implementation in southwest states, Ibadan March 2017
  • 2-day capacity strengthening workshop on strategies for localizing the SDGs for CSOs in Ogun State (April 2017)
  • Establishment of Think Tank Group (Oyo) to be responsible for writing and issuing position papers, media briefs, press releases, communiqués etc
  • Media Capacity building on the commitment to professional reportage on SDGs in Ibadan Oyo State June 2017. This was done in collaboration with our strategic partner SDSN.
  • University of Ibadan-based Diamond FM works with our partner, Sustainable Development Solution Network (SDSN), where the opportunity is granted to speak on diverse issues of development from time to time. SDSN is based within the Centre for Sustainable Development (CESDEV) University of Ibadan.
  • “Ojumo Alayo” 18-week episode SDGs talk show on AIT  every week
  • Splash FM 105.5 Ibadan “SDG Talk” every first Tuesday of the month featured in English. The 17-week slot is given free from January and willing to extend it.
  • “Otun Ojo”/New Dawn OGTV Abeokuta. It is a live magazine programme where CSCSD Ogun State members feature every Monday from 7:45 a.m. to 8:45 a.m. to talk about SDG events and gender nexus
  • 2-quarter episodes on Sweet FM 107.1 Abeokuta, Ogun State titled “The Podium” every Thursday from 9.00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. featured in both English and Yoruba
  • Lagos SDG Conference, June 15 2017 first of its kind in Nigeria.
  • National Training of Advocacy Champions on Goal 16 so as to be meaningfully engaging the stakeholders on peace, justice, inclusive societies, transparency, and accountability.
  • Membership drive: Whatsapp complementing email list serve but still looking for committed key individuals to lead the process in the South East, North East and North West.
  • Production and free distribution of IEC materials on SDGs in leaflet, card and booklet forms including “A Compendium of Deliberations on Post-2015 Development Agenda”.
  • Collaboration with the Kano State government to showcase the state as an epitome of SDGs implementation in Nigeria fashioned after the Westphalia Region of Germany.

We are a member organization of some international networks and organizations focusing on SDGs. We are also a member of the recently inaugurated UN-led Nigerian Civil Society Strategy Group on SDGs which members of the House Committee on SDGs were part. We are a key member organization of the following international organizations: CIVICUS World Alliance for Citizens’ Participation; Together 2030; TAP Network; Sustainable Development Solution Network; Action for Sustainable Development; Africa Working Group (AWG); and Civil Society Partnership for Development Effectiveness (CPDE).

Communique Issued at a Two-Day Training of Key Government Officials On FOI Act 2011

The Communique Issued At A Two-Day Training Of Key Government Officials On Freedom Of Information Act 2011 Organized by CAFSO-WRAG for Development And Supported by Open Society Initiative For West Africa (OSIWA) Held at Queen’s Court Hotel, Ado-Ekiti On 24th & 25th of May, 2017

Preamble

CAFSO-WRAG for Development with funding support by Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA) organised a two-day training programme on the 24th and 25th May, 2017 to equip the skills of principal officers, and Civil Society Organisations on the Freedom of Information Act, 2011.
The participants numbering about 45 were drawn from across selected government ministries, departments and agencies and civil society actors designated as FOIA Advocacy Champions in the southwest, Nigeria.

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Communique Issued at the End of the Two-Day Training-of-Trainers Workshop on Strategic Thinking and Communication

Communique Issued At The End Of The Two-Day Training-of-Trainers Workshop On Strategic Thinking And Communication Organised By The Human And Environmental Development Agenda (Heda) In Partnership With The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Under The Project On “Support To Anti-Corruption In Nigeria” Held At The Elion House Hotel, Ikoyi, Lagos State, Nigeria On 11 And 12 April, 2017

INTRODUCTION

The training brought together selected representatives of CSOs from across the country that have carved a niche in anti-corruption advocacy. This training aimed to update CSO capacity and encourage them to step down their knowledge to less experienced organisations in the field. At the training, Mr Olanrewaju Suraj and Ms Kehinde Osotimehin–Olorunleke gave the welcome addresses. Mr Femi Falana delivered the Keynote address on The Role of Civil Society in Promoting Participatory Democracy and Consolidating Transparency and Accountability in Governance highlighting the following:

  • Inherent challenges of capacity, funding and human resource as constraints to successfully drive the anticorruption war.
  • Lack of support for the anti-corruption war at the state level despite the governing party at the federal level controlling 21 states.
  • In spite of the hostile environment, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has worked against the odds to record milestones including the 200 convictions in the last year.
  • The need for civil society organisations to link up with relevant grassroots organisations to encourage the Nigerian people to take ownership of the anticorruption crusade.

The training featured other sessions on:

  • Enhancing a Culture of Parliamentary Engagement at State Level by Dr Muiz Banire
  • The Theory, Strategy and Practice of Communication in Campaigns and Advocacies; Overview of Communication Strategy in Civil Society Community: Status, Challenges and Prospects by Ms Ayo Alli-Balogun
  • NGO Leadership and Management in Nigeria by Mr Monday Osasah
  • Current Issues in NGO Lobbying and Advocacy at State Level by Dr Tola Winjobi
  • Role Play simulation on advocacy meeting of CSOs with parliamentarians on passage of Freedom of Information laws at the State Level
  • Effective Engagement and Communication Through Social Media by Minjae Kang

Other key observations and issues for CSOs noted by the speakers and participants include:

  • The expressed political will of the nation’s leadership to push for radical reforms in the fight against corruption and for the purpose of influencing policies in states are not being leveraged;
  • Horizontal and vertical accountability systems are not adequately enhanced;
  • Communications from CSOs need to be clear and understandable to all;
  • CSO networking for legislative advocacy in the states have been insufficient and less impactful;
  • An urgent need for the enhancement of capacity of CSOs in report writing, proposal writing and other forms of written communication;
  • Insufficient expertise in the art of lobbying, advocacy and strategy at the level of the states;
  • Inadequate utilization of social media potentials for strategic communication.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The following recommendations were made to the various stakeholders:

Government
  • Redesigning a more efficient strategy in prosecuting an organised anti-corruption crusade in order to prevent citizen apathy
  • Improved synergy amongst anti-corruption agencies to ensure they do not work at cross purposes
  • Ensure prosecution of indicted public officials, bring the culprit to book while whistleblowers are protected.
Civil Society
  • Should take advantage of the political will of the nation’s leadership to push for radical reforms in the fight against  corruption
  • To Execute their mandates with details for both horizontal and vertical accountability systems
  • Review communication strategy and ensure adoption of clear and understandable language
  • Forge and coordinate effective networking, coordination and partnerships with all stakeholders
  • Enhance their skills in report writing, proposal writing and other forms of written communication
  • Improve their lobbying, advocacy and engagement skills especially at the state level
  • Take full advantage of social media for strategic communication
Conclusion

The participating CSOs commit to step down their training to other CSOs on a continuous basis as well as implement ideas and next steps discussed at the training.

Signed on behalf of other organizations present:

  1. Mr Olanrewaju Suraj, Human And Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA)
  2. Mrs. Kehinde Osotimehin-Olorunleke, UNDP
  3. Dr Tola Winjobi, CAFSO-WRAG for Development

Strategy Paper on CSCSD

INTRODUCTION

In the decades preceding the turn of the new millennium, there were hopes and expectations that year 2000 would provide a magic wand that would provide solutions to many if not all of the intractable challenges facing humanity. It was a period where commonplace were slogans such as “health for all by the year 2000”, “education for all
by the year 2000”, “food sufficiency for all by the year 2000”, “housing for all by the year 2000”, “prosperity for all by the year 2000” and several other slogans. Poverty, hunger, starvation and diseases seemed to be the major challenges facing the developing nations while the developed economies seemed to be enjoying the benefits of
development including human rights, democracy, and good governance. Continue Reading

Draft Strategy UN-SDG Campaign

  1. Situational Analysis

 Problem Analysis- Lessons learnt from MDG implementation

The evaluations of Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) progress undertaken in in 2015 indicated that performance was mixed with both success and failures recorded within countries as well as among the different Goals. Successes are largely associated with national leadership in mainstreaming MDGs into the national development planning process, adequate financial investments and broad-based stakeholder participation. Continue Reading

Inclusive Participation In The Implementation Of Sustainable Development Goals

“INCLUSIVE PARTICIPATION IN THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS: OYO STATE AS A PILOT STATE”. A Concept Paper By Civil Society Coalition On Sustainable Development

INTRODUCTION

SDGs are a veritable development tool that could transform the society by impacting positively on the generality of the people provided the operators are committed and focused. The SDGs’ focus on human development coupled with the time-bound target makes them amenable to evaluation thus easily subjecting them to SMART test within the time frame. Since both the governments of the developed and developing countries are committed to SDGs achievement by 2030, then SDGs become a tool that members of the civil society could constantly use to ask their respective governments to account to since they did not sign the 17 SDGs under duress. Continue Reading

Communiqué Issued at the end of the South-West Zone Stakeholders Expanded Meeting on Strategy of Engagement with the Public and Private Sectors on the SDGs’ Implementation Process and Progress Monitoring

Communiqué Issued at the end of the South-West Zone Stakeholders Expanded Meeting on Strategy of Engagement with the Public and Private Sectors on the SDGs’ Implementation Process and Progress Monitoring, Organized by the Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development (CSCSD) Held at Maria Ebun Foundation Building, CAFSO-WRAG for Development Secretariat, New Ife Road, Ibadan Nigeria on Friday 17th March 2017

Introduction

Civil Society Coalition on Sustainable Development (CSCSD) is a coalition of over 190 registered civil society and nongovernmental organizations committed to citizens’ empowerment, human rights protection, development and peace in Nigeria. CSCSD is founded on the three elements of development – society, economy and environment – and believes in the fulcrum of SDGs including dignity, people, planet, partnership, justice and prosperity. Continue Reading

Case Study Compilation Nigeria SDGs

The case studies gathered by Together 2030 represent only a small amount of the work being done by civil society organisations around the world to engage with follow up and review of the 2030 Agenda. They are a small, but we believe, representative sample of a civil society that has thrown its weight behind the implementation of the new vision of sustainable development, and there are a number of interesting insights we can gain by looking in depth at CSO engagement in this way. Continue Reading

Institutional Measures for CSO Strategy Group on the SDGs

The SDGs encompasses almost every aspects of development. Most importantly, they include the 3 dimensions of sustainable development – social, economic and environmental. As State parties and nonstate actors to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, it is pertinent that civil society actors apply their skills, experiences and resources into addressing and engaging the 17 goals and 169 targets in systematic and professional ways in order to achieve maximum impact. Continue Reading

CSO Strategy on the SDGs

The challenge of eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimensions, including extreme poverty and inequality; and ensuring sustainable development is arguably the greatest challenge facing humankind. Over the years, scholars, activists, politicians, development workers as well as local and international institutions have engaged with this challenge. Continue Reading

Open SDGclub: Nigeria Workplan

Annex to Short Summary of Open SDGclub.Berlin meeting 21 – 23 November 2016

Ideas for action that came up during the meeting.

Please note that we have written down these ideas mentioned either during the official meetings or in informal rounds, without any obligation imposed on anybody. The aim is to share a kind of aide-memoire where you can add, delete, comment, subscribe to ideas. Continue Reading