News

"Moving beyond electoral Democracies - Enhancing thecapacities of political actors before, during and after the electoral process " is the title of the panel on 16 December, 14:15 - 16:00 which is organised by ENoP.

The debate will focus on the work of political foundations from Europe which are engaged incomprehensive efforts to support democracy worldwide since decades. Although politicalactors are their core target group, they also work closely with academia, civil society and governmentalinstitutions, facilitating the necessary but often absent dialogue fordemocratic progress and development.

The panel speakers are:

• Gilbert Kiakwama, Vice-President of the CDC (Convention des Démocrates Chrétiens), Member of the Assemblee Nationale, Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Manana Kochladze, Laureate of the Goldman Environmental Prize, founder and chairwoman of Green Alternative, Georgia
• Alexei Krivolap, European Humanities University Vilnius, Lithuania
• Prof. Mohammed Ouzzine, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Morocco
• Jean-Louis Ville, Head of Unit for Governance, Democracy, Gender & Human Rights, Directorate General for Development and Cooperation, European Commission
• Malgorzata Wasilewska, Head of Unit Democracy and Election Observation, European External Action Service

 Moderation:  Jelmen Haaze, Journalist

Amanda Lövkist, representative of ENoP, was elected one of three EU co-ordinators to the Steering Committee of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum. Ms Lökvist, coming from ENoP’s Swedish Liberal member-organization (SILC), will remain member of the Committee for the term of one year.

The 2011 edition of the EaP CSO Forum was held on 28-30 November in Poznan, Poland.The newly-elected Steering Committee will strive to enhance the efforts of organizations involved in supporting democracy east of the EU.

The initiative after the final session in Budapest in May was to create an ongoing exchange possibility between the European Institutions and CSOs on EU development policy and programmes, a multi-level Space of Dialogue. Two representatives from ENoP member organisations and one representative from a partner organisation participated in the the first follow up session, a two days meeting on 9 and 10 November in Brussels. The meeting should ensure the follow up of the decisions taken at the end of the process.

On the occasion of the AfricaDay 2011 ENoP member foundation Evert Vermeer Stichting, the Netherlands, is organizing an event on October 29^th at the Hague University.

The AfricaDay 2011 will have a new character this year, and apart from the regular debates and workshops, it is envisaged to have a flexible programme with short activities like interviews, speed dates and inspirational speeches. Among the discussed topics during the workshops are the consequences of the Revolution in North Africa and its impact, elections in Africa, African cultural aspects. The different subjects will be addressed in over 40 workshops, organized by various organizations. Among the participants in the event will be Ben Knapen, Minister for European Affairs and International Cooperation, Kasha Nabagesera, LGTB activist-Uganda, other agents of change.

The second day of ENoP Orientation Seminar went under the flag of the Structured Dialogue. The seminar on October25^th was meant as a follow-up of the final conference in May 2011 and preparation for the next meeting in November in Brussels. It briefed the participating ENoP members on the tasks, results and perspectives discussed during the meetings.   

Guest speaker at the event was Virginia Manzitti from EUropeAid, DG Development Cooperation. Ms Manzitti spoke about the outcomes of the Structured dialogue meetings. She stressed the necessity to tighter the cooperation between the civil society actors, and make it more programme oriented rather than contract based. Ms Manzitti encouraged long-term and non-strategic partnerships. She also highlighted the necessity to have more local partnerships in order to enhance the understanding of the local area with regard to project effectiveness. Another viewpoint on the issue has been presented by Ms Elise Vanormelingen, representative of CONCORD. Ms Vanormelingen gave an insight on the role and achievements of the European CSOs and their role in the Structured dialogue and internal decision-making processes. Ms Julie Cantalou and Ms Alba Cako, representatives from ENoP member foundations HSS and FNF briefed the audience on ENoP involvement in the Structured Dialogue.

During the Annual Workshop on October 24^th 2011, ENoP member-foundations voted for and elected a new network coordinator for the coming two years. The new coordinator is Mr Anne de Boer from Bureau de Helling/Greens-EFA, the Netherlands.The position of Deputy Network coordinator will be held by Ms Andrea Ostheimer,KAS, Germany. Mr De Boer has declared commitment to ENoP and its members and has been handed over the position by the former coordinator Arjen Berkvens.

Pierre Vimont, Executive Secretary-General of the European External ActionService was the guest speaker at the second internal ENoP Orientation seminar in 2011, held on October 24^th. The topic was European foreign policy and the challenge to achieve policy coherence During the exchange, Mr Vimont stressed the necessity for European policy makers to provide an inclusive dialogue with as many actors as possible in order to have a better overview and swift reactions towards crisis prevention and management. In this context Mr Vimont highlighted the importance of civil society inclusion in the political dialogue.

The award of the Nobel Peace Prize given to three women from developing countries has once again stressed the important role of women in the development of prosper, equal and sustainable societies. In this context the Hanns-Seidel-Stiftung is organizing a conference on: 'Society and politics in transition: Political participation, rights and opportunities of women in India'. India's future development prospects, and the persistent disparity of opportunities between men and women are within the focus.

Among the participants in the conference are: Edit Bauer, MEP; Rensje Teerink, EEAS; Dr Sarita Singh, Commissioner, Women Empowerment and Child Development, Christian Forstner, Resident Representative of the Hanns-Seidel-Stiftung in Brussels.

The conference will take place on October 20, 2011 at the Representation of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia to the EU, Rue Montoyer 47, Brussels.

For further information, please refer to the attachment.

While in mature democracies the discussion centres around quota for women on executive level, and the need to create conducive environments concerning child-care facilities or paternal leave, addressing the issue of women’s rights in developing countries largely boils down to a fight for rights of a marginalised group which accounts for almost 50% of the world population.

On the occasion of the fourth International Day of Democracy ENoP would like to remind of the tremendous challenges for those who advocate for gender rights and equal opportunities on global level but specifically in the Arab world.

Please find enclosed ENoP communication on occasion of the 4th International Day of Democracy.