The Role of CSOs in MDG based National Development Strategies: Training Modules

Document Summary

This training course, The Role of CSOs in MDG based National Development Strategies, provides guidance to UN Country Teams (UNCTs) and their development partners on the key areas and entry points for working with civil society to design an MDG-based national development strategy. It is a tool to help find ways to engage civil society at each stage of the policy process — from assessing the problem and planning a response to implementing a strategy and monitoring its outcomes. Each of the course’s four sections is dedicated to these phases and recognizes the critical importance of fostering civil society buy-in and ownership throughout. While the training materials follow sequencing similar to that of a policy cycle, they can be used in any order and reformulated as needed to create a customized course that meets country needs and development priorities.

The course is designed to show how to work with the dynamic range of actors that form the fabric of a country’s civil society from the beginning to the end of producing an MDG-based national development strategy. The guidance provided is based on the experiences of UNDP colleagues who have worked extensively with civil society counterparts as part of country policy processes. Each section offers an overview of the approaches, activities and steps for engaging with civil society in MDG based policy decisions. Key definitions are presented at the beginning and resource materials referenced at the end. The annexes contain helpful template documents (such as sample project proposals and terms of reference), facilitation activities and workshop ideas.