A local level response for local human needs – Conference in Rome on UN Decentralized Cooperation

Local level cooperation is a key element in carrying out emergency operations in countries affected by natural disasters or devastated by conflicts. This message was at the heart of the conference on “United Nations and Decentralised Cooperation - Working together from emergency to reconstruction” that the International Labour Organisation (ILO), together with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), organised in Rome on the 18th April 2007 at the International Conference Hall of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Conference served as a coordinating platform for experts in decentralized cooperation. Participant reviewed experiences from all recent post-crisis situations were local communities took upon themselves the burden of restarting their own lives. Local communities, local actors need the support of the international community and donors should help the spontaneous recovery processes moving away from the traditional “aid-supply” approach.

Local governments, local administrations are uniquely placed to respond to the needs of individuals and communities. Local governments are among the main players in the conception and implementation of all recovery operations. The UN and the international community are therefore placing growing emphasis on the collaboration with local entities. This principle is also among the objectives of the UN humanitarian reform agenda whose objective is to enhance leadership, accountability and predictability of the UN humanitarian response capacity.

“Increasing efforts towards coordination and integration of operations leads to more effective results”, said the Italian Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Vittorio Craxi, in his opening speech. Craxi stressed that humanitarian global response involves a continuously increasing number of actors, hence there is a need for more efficient and organized coordination amongst donors and beneficiaries with the support of multilateral United Nations agencies.

Decentralised Cooperation has started to play an important role within this framework. Silvia Godelli, representative of the Italian Osservatorio Interregionale Cooperazione Sviluppo (OICS) explained that Decentralised Cooperation is a means to creating partnerships between local actors in the North and in the South and to strengthen both political stability and economic development.

Giuseppe Morabito, Deputy Director General of the Italian Cooperation, underlined the need to overcome the present gap and separation between emergency response and reconstruction and also focused on increasing environmental emergencies, such as the scarcity of water, desertification and biodiversity. Morabito spoke about the importance of greater coordination amongst UN Agencies and new actors, including NGOs and Decentralised Cooperation bodies emphasizing the need to promote social and democratic reconstruction alongside material recovery.

Claudio Lenoci, ILO Director for Italy and San Marino, pointed out the importance of Decentralised Cooperation bodies within the aid system, whose actions could be further enhanced by means of increased synergy amongst key actors. He also explained that the ILO, due to its tripartite nature bringing together governments, employers and workers, plays an important role in giving new impetus to social dialogue in post emergency situations.

Stefano Cacciaguerra, Head of the Decentralised Cooperation Office of the Italian Directorate General for Development Cooperation, added that “in addition to increased integration amongst local partners, there is a need for greater collaboration amongst actors operating in the same area, as currently many regions tend to work and decide independently”. “It is precisely for this reason”, said Cacciaguerra, that “Decentralised Cooperation needs to be supported and strengthened”.

Alfredo Lazarte, Head of ILO programme for crisis response (ILO/CRISIS), recalled that the ILO has a long history of local development initiatives which helped planning a better future for crisis affected populations. The first experiences in the ‘80s and early 90’s in Central America have been refined and are currently adopted in all post-crisis situations, worldwide.

The ILO, through its crisis response programme coordinates early recovery interventions in all post crisis situations (sudden-onset and post-conflict), with the contribution of multi-disciplinary teams of specialists in labour and employment issues.

Employment is a crucial nexus for peace and stability. Employment and “decent work” are essential tools to empower local populations, local governments and to manage recovery efforts.

The conference was possible thanks to the generous support of the Italian Cooperation. The Government of Italy is and has been the main supporter of ILO’s programmes for employment and livelihood generation in post –crisis situations.

Conference participants agreed to explore jointly new avenues to promote recovery at local level using employment as a milestone for sustainable post-crisis reconstruction.

Photographs from the event