All roads led to Rome on 23-25 April 2012 when partici- pants affiliated with government organizations, civil society organizations, migrants’ associations and Diaspora networks, trade unions, and the academe took part in the fourth workshop of the Transnational Synergy and Cooperation for Development (TRANSCODE) Programme. The 39 participants came from the Philip- pines, the Netherlands, Ghana and Italy and included those who had participated in previous workshops and first-timers (particularly the Italy-based participants). A joint initiative of the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC-Philippines) and Radboud University (RU- Netherlands), TRANSCODE aims to promote a transna- tional and multi-stakeholder perspective and approach to migration and development. With support from a development foundation and Cordaid, two TRANSCODE workshops were conducted in 2010 (the first was in Tagaytay, the Philippines in June, and the second was in Soesterberg, the Netherlands in October). The work- shops fulfilled the project’s goals and more: they also pointed to moving TRANSCODE to the next level, i.e., doing transnational and multi-stakeholder develop- ment projects. One of the recommendations that came out in the Soesterberg workshop was the introduction of TRANSCODE to a new pair of origin country- destination country. The Scalabrini International Mi- gration Institute (SIMI), along with SMC and RU, devel- oped the proposal and sought support for TRANSCODE II. When funding was secured, Ghana and Italy were chosen as the foci of TRANSCODE II. In January 2012, the third workshop was conducted in Elmina, Ghana, with the Center for Migration Studies of the University of Ghana as the implementing partner, supported by the Dutch Ghanaian migrant association RECOGIN. At the Elmina workshop, group activities were aimed at discussing project ideas that can be developed into projects that reflect the TRANSCODE framework. The Elmina workshop generated project ideas that were developed into concept notes, which were then pre- sented in the Rome workshop. Spearheaded by Dr. Fabio Baggio of SIMI, in collabora- tion with SMC and RU, the Rome workshop advanced the development of the concept notes towards project proposals. The members of the TRANSCODE Steering Committee - Dr. Lothar Smith of RU, Dr. Ton van Naerssen, Dr. Marla Asis of SMC – and Ms. Malu Padilla, TRANSCODE project coordinator, took turns in facili- tating the different plenary sessions. The opening ceremony in the morning of 23 April was graced by the presence of H.E. Virgilio Reyes Jr., Ambassador of the Philippines to Italy; Mr. Charles Baah, Minister of the Embassy of Ghana to Italy; Ms. Germana Viglietta of Italy’s Ministry of Works, Health and Social Policies; Mr. Leone Gianturco of the Office of the Italian Ministry of International Coopera- tion; Ms. Tetyana Kuzyk, adjunct councilor in the city council of Rome; and Dr. José Angel Oropeza of the International Organization for Migration. In their encouraging messages, they congratulated TRANSCODE for its innovative approach to migration and develop- ment and expressed interest and willingness to cooper- ate with TRANSCODE in future endeavours. To provide a context for the Rome workshop, an over- view and critique of the migration and development nexus, the history and objectives of TRANSCODE, the objectives and expected outputs of the Rome work- shop and highlights from the Elmina workshop were The TRANSCODE Workshop in Rome: Gaining Momentum Salesianum Convention Center, Rome, Italy 23-25 April 2012 Siu Lin Ho Siu Lin Ho Siu Lin Ho
Transcript
All roads led to Rome on 23-25 April 2012 when partici-pants affiliated with government organizations, civil society organizations, migrants’ associations and Diaspora networks, trade unions, and the academe took part in the fourth workshop of the Transnational Synergy and Cooperation for Development (TRANSCODE) Programme. The 39 participants came from the Philip-pines, the Netherlands, Ghana and Italy and included those who had participated in previous workshops and
first-timers (particularly the Italy-based participants).
A joint initiative of the Scalabrini Migration Center (SMC-Philippines) and Radboud University (RU-Netherlands), TRANSCODE aims to promote a transna-tional and multi-stakeholder perspective and approach to migration and development. With support from a development foundation and Cordaid, two TRANSCODE workshops were conducted in 2010 (the first was in Tagaytay, the Philippines in June, and the second was in Soesterberg, the Netherlands in October). The work-shops fulfilled the project’s goals and more: they also pointed to moving TRANSCODE to the next level, i.e., doing transnational and multi-stakeholder develop-ment projects. One of the recommendations that came out in the Soesterberg workshop was the introduction of TRANSCODE to a new pair of origin country-destination country. The Scalabrini International Mi-gration Institute (SIMI), along with SMC and RU, devel-oped the proposal and sought support for TRANSCODE II. When funding was secured, Ghana and Italy were chosen as the foci of TRANSCODE II. In January 2012, the third workshop was conducted in Elmina, Ghana, with the Center for Migration Studies of the University of Ghana as the implementing partner, supported by
the Dutch Ghanaian migrant association RECOGIN. At
the Elmina workshop, group activities were aimed at discussing project ideas that can be developed into projects that reflect the TRANSCODE framework. The Elmina workshop generated project ideas that were developed into concept notes, which were then pre-
sented in the Rome workshop.
Spearheaded by Dr. Fabio Baggio of SIMI, in collabora-tion with SMC and RU, the Rome workshop advanced the development of the concept notes towards project proposals. The members of the TRANSCODE Steering Committee - Dr. Lothar Smith of RU, Dr. Ton van Naerssen, Dr. Marla Asis of SMC – and Ms. Malu Padilla, TRANSCODE project coordinator, took turns in facili-
tating the different plenary sessions.
The opening ceremony in the morning of 23 April was graced by the presence of H.E. Virgilio Reyes Jr., Ambassador of the Philippines to Italy; Mr. Charles Baah, Minister of the Embassy of Ghana to Italy; Ms. Germana Viglietta of Italy’s Ministry of Works, Health and Social Policies; Mr. Leone Gianturco of the Office of the Italian Ministry of International Coopera-tion; Ms. Tetyana Kuzyk, adjunct councilor in the city council of Rome; and Dr. José Angel Oropeza of the International Organization for Migration. In their encouraging messages, they congratulated TRANSCODE for its innovative approach to migration and develop-ment and expressed interest and willingness to cooper-
ate with TRANSCODE in future endeavours.
To provide a context for the Rome workshop, an over-view and critique of the migration and development nexus, the history and objectives of TRANSCODE, the objectives and expected outputs of the Rome work-
shop and highlights from the Elmina workshop were
The TRANSCODE Workshop in Rome: Gaining Momentum
Salesianum Convention Center, Rome, Italy
23-25 April 2012
S
iu L
in H
o
S
iu L
in H
o
S
iu L
in H
o
presented. A session was devoted for Italy-based participants to share existing or proposed migration and development initiatives. The operative word for the three-day workshop was “work,” thus much time and space was dedicated to the review, critique and elaboration of the four con-cept notes. Participants were divided into four groups to refine the concept notes, thresh out important de-tails (partnerships, funding requirements), and identify coaching needs and potential resource persons/organizations who will provide support to develop the concept notes into project proposals to be presented to funding agencies. At the end of each group discus-sion, the results of the group work were shared in the plenary sessions, which provided opportunities to share and exchange information, to critique each other’s concept notes, and to make suggestions for improve-ment. The concept notes deliberated on were: Trans-national Partnership on Migration and Human Develop-ment; Transnational Initiatives for Sustainable Devel-opment in Ghana; Micro Credit Project or Micro Financing for Selected Projects; and Expanding and Adopting New Modalities for the Burundi Project on Women, Peace and Security. A presentation on fund-ing criteria and modalities was made by Mr. Ronald Lucardie of the Dutch Consortium of Migrant Organiza-tions (DCMO), which can be considered in dealing with funding agencies, Mr. Yalcin Yağçi of SMHO based in the Netherlands shared a project idea that his organi-zation would like to develop into a project to be implemented in Mindanao, the Philippines. The Italy-based participants who may be interested to start new projects will have a chance to develop proposals that
can be presented to funding agencies.
The sessions were whole day events, which typically ran from 9 AM to 7 PM. The “play” part of the work-shop was a night tour of Rome on 23 April. With Dr. Baggio providing the annotation, the visit to the Vatican, Piazza Venezia, the Coliseum, Piazza di Spagna and the Fontana di Trevi, was peppered with
fascinating historical – and migration – notes.
In the final plenary session in the morning of 25 April, Dr. Edmond Ageyman presented the highlights of the Rome workshop. A full workshop report will be
made available at a later time and will be posted on the
TRANSCODE website and Facebook account. In his concluding message, Dr. Baggio commented on the progress that was achieved in the Rome workshop and anticipated the timeline for the next steps: coaching for the project proposals and the search for funds. He thanked the participants for their engagement in the whole process and acknowledged the support of Ms. Sara Salvatori of SIMI, Dr. Edmond Ageyman, Mr. Gilbert Abasimi of COGNAI, and Ms. Macrina Macol of MADE for their collaboration in the preparation and implementation of the Rome workshop. He gave special thanks to the migrants who took time off from
their work to participate in the workshop.
The culminating activity was the public forum in the afternoon of 25 April which was hosted by Centro Studi Emigrazione (CSER). Following the words of welcome by Mr. René Manenti, Director of CSER, experiences and views about TRANSCODE were shared by Dr. Marla Asis of SMC, Dr. William Brown of ADRA, Ms. Vivian Tornea of the Philippines’ National Reintegration Cen-ter for OFWs (Department of Labor and Employment), Mr. Charles Vanderpuye of the Ghanaian Nationals Association in the Netherlands (RECOGIN) and Mr. Gilbert Abasimi of the Ghanaian Nationals Associations in Italy (COGNAI). Ms. Barbara Fridel of the Interna-tional Organization for Migration (IOM) shared their experience with the Migration for Development in Af-rica program, and Dr. Chiara Davoli spoke about the programs and activities of the European Network on
Migration and Development (EUNOMAD).
The reflection on the beginnings and evolution of TRANSCODE from a convener’s perspective, what it means to the different participants and their organiza-tions which had been part of the process, other migra-tion and development initiatives, and the views shared by the audience were a fitting way to conclude the Rome workshop. The forum indicated where TRANSCODE had been and its potentials to realize meaningful transnational partnerships and cooperation
