COALITION OF GEORGIAN ORGANIZATIONS WORKING ON COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

2010-2012

CoDeCo

Community Development Coalition”CoDeCo”

Biological Farming Association “Elkana”

Community Development Center- CDC

Centre for Training and Consultancy

Adult Education Association of Georgia - AEAG

Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia- CSRDG

“Rhea” Union

IDP Women Association “Tankhmoba”

Caucasus Environmental NGO Network

Civil Society Institute- CSI

Presentation Issues

History of the Coalition - 2010-2012Shared Definitions - 2010Joint Publication/working process,

structure and content, main findingsCoDeCo Mission and Priorities

Prehistory

The birth of the idea

Sighnagi Meeting and its outputs

- Shared Vision- Development of Meeting Materials- Initiation of the project on joint

publication

What is “Community”

Shared DefinitionCommunity is a group of people living in a defined geographical area; sharing the same socio-economic and cultural conditions; having similar interests, problems and needs

Community Development

The basic indicators of a Developed Community:

Existence of Civic Group

Community has a vision oriented to development and innovation

Community is able to define problems and to respond to them effectively

Community realizes its own rights and needs and advocates them

Preparation of the Publication

Internal Working Meetings

Regional Conference in Batumi

Development of the Conclusion

Publication Structure

Introduction- Organizational Profile- History of community workVision, Approaches, Target GroupsExperience- Positive- NegativeConclusion

Main Obstacles of Community Work

Nihilism and Mistrust of the Population

The complexity of Group Forming/Sustaining Process

Out Flow of Human Resources

Dependency Syndrome

Basic Findings• Work with communities is a very time

consuming and intensive process• Community Education is an essential

prerequisite for Community Development• Identification and capacity building of

informal leaders is vital• The success greatly depends on adequacy of

specific methods to a specific environment, rather than selection of a certain method for community development.

• Community development projects require very intensive monitoring and careful observation

• The main principle is - work together with communities and not instead of them

• Transparency is essential accompanying element of community work

• Active use of local media ensures effective advocacy of community problems

• The main challenge of Community Development is still Sustainability of achieved results

Mission of ”CoDeCo” Coalition- Voluntary, non formal Union, with aim to

promote supportive environment for Community Initiatives and its Sustainability in Georgia

- The main purpose is to share existing competencies and experience in the field of community development in the country, to coordinate community work countrywide and to advocate/lobby issues of community development on local and International levels

Strategic Directions 1. To Advocate and Lobby Community needs and- Analytical researches- Development and provision of relevant Recommendations- Cooperation with Government- Preparation of Legislation Initiatives - Business Communication campaigns

2. To strengthen capacity of community development and coordinated work- Regular meetings- Development of mailing list of interested parties- Development of date base- Study tours- Joint Publications- Experience sharing between target groups

3. Institutional Strengthening of Coalition- Short and Long term Plans- Fundraising- Pilot Projects- Membership in International Networks- Study of International Practices/ its popularization- Organizing and attending Regional and International Events