Local Changemakers NEWS

Last Saturday was the Relationday (networkingday) of Stichting Wilde Ganzen (Wild Geese Foundation)

I chaired the day and assisted in the roundtable discussions.

The theme of the day was Transformative Partnerships for Global Challenges. Professor Sara van Kinsbergen gave an interesting keynote on this topic.

But to briefly explain:

"Equal transformative partnerships within development cooperation are partnerships not based on dependency, but on respect and learning from each other. Local communities know best what they need; global citizens and international partners can strengthen them in this. But local communities must take the lead."

This is something I've been working on for years and am therefore very pleased that it is increasingly coming to the forefront within development co-operation. I believe involving the diaspora (migrants) is a crucial foundation for this. Many diasporas set up successful development projects and also work on equal partnerships. I work a lot with the African Diaspora, and a few of them, Julliene, Uzo and Marie, were present at the discussions we had about involving people in the Netherlands, but also in the project countries. Difficult cases emerged that some Dutch organizations struggle with, such as achieving local ownership. Jullienne and Uzo shared their perspectives on this because they understand the culture and local Knowing the customs being African Diaspora.

The Dutch organizations were very happy with this, and I felt a wonderful connection!

I'm very grateful to both Wilde Ganzen and especially to Rachida Boukriss, who started the Diaspora Masterclass for International Development with me. We're now able to guide more and more Diaspora people in professionalizing, and also connect Dutch organizations with them to learn from each other.

Next year, we'll continue, and I hope to do even more Consultancy, Training, and Coaching for Locally Led Development, where there's an equal form of Development Co-operation and we share knowledge.