PROJECTS & REPORTS

- Promoting Community Participation in Sustainable Settlement Development in the FCT Nigeria, in 6 communities of Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory. The project is supported by MISEREOR

- Capacity Building and Institutionalisation of Federation of Urban Poor (FEDUP), Abuja Nigeria, for members of the federation in communities round Nigeria's Federal Capital Territory. Supported by CORDAID

- Enhancing Strategies for Community Participation & Engagement in the Sustainable Management of the Environment in the FCT, in the 5 host communities of Chika, Kuje, Mpape, Karmo and Gwagwalada. Supported by GLOBAL GREENGRANTS FUND

- Promoting a Gender Equitable and Human Rights Sensitive Policy Environment in the Nigerian HIV/ AIDS Response, in Bauchi State. The project is implemented in partnership with UNIFEM and is being supported by CIDA.

- Assessment of Gender Knowledge and Awareness of Climate Change in the North East, North West and North Central states of Nigeria. This is in partnership with NEST and is being supported by CIDA

STAFF TRAINING Recognizing that capacity building for staff is a critical component in ensuring meaningful implementation of projects in the realization of sustainable development and effective transfer of same skills to the target projects communities, WEP with the support of its partner Misereor organized a 5-day Training for staff on Project Management, Resource Mobilization, Monitoring and Evaluation, Documentation and Communication skills.

The aim of the Training was to strengthen the capacity of staff and acquaint them with necessary skills for improved performance in their various project thematic areas. It was held on 6th to 10th January 2009 at DRACC Retreat and Conference Centre, Abuja. 15 staff of WEP attended the training both from the Benue, Taraba and Abuja offices.

The objectives of the training, among others, included: (a)to boosts staff morale (b) emphasize priorities (c) help staff keep pace with a changing and challenging developmental environment (d) develop teamwork for effective collaboration on programmes and projects (e) and encourages responsibility and leadership.

In a brief remarks the Executive Director, Women Environmental Programme (WEP) welcomed staff back from Christmas/New Year break looking sound and healthy. Ms. Priscilla Achakpa stated that the training will avail staff an opportunity to access their capacity, review the programmes implemented in 2008 and determine the level of impact created through those projects under review. She hoped that 2009 would experience a higher performance since the training was slated at the beginning of the year. She noted that this training would have not been possible without the support of Misereor whose financial assistance to WEP in the area of Promoting Community Participation in Sustainable Settlement Development in FCT has continued to create tremendous impact target communities. Finally she said training plays a critical role in a collaborative effort by enhancing trust and increasing the capacity of the collaborative system to develop and adopt common understanding among staff regarding goals and approach.

This report describes the structure of the Training, the benefit of the Training to WEP as an organization, project partners, the target communities and the nation at large.

Expectations

To Assess program/project performance in their thematic areas viz a viz the WEP Strategic Plan
To define, redefine and clarify roles of officers, what everybody is doing and/or should do as well as set out work objectives
Learn new ideas, tips and strategies for better performance
Evaluate WEP activities in 2008 in line with the WEP Strategic Plan
To map-up 2009
Assessing the staff capacity using the SWOT analytical tool

Structure of the Training
In order to build the staff' capacity to understand the issues, concepts and sources related to Programme Management, the Training combined a technical methodology of Power Point presentations, case studies of actual project management, real-life experiences in different organizational contexts and situations on the side of both staff and Board members, and training in Interpersonal and Accounting Skills. Central to the understanding of these were a persistent awareness of the linkages that were developed between the presentations, and small group assignments in the entire duration of the Training. Staffs were randomly assigned to small groups to review the details of the some of the presentations before reconvening in a plenary session to discuss the broad issues of programme management.

Technical Sessions
All the presentations were made by the resource persons who are seasoned programme managers: Rev. Fr. George Ehusani and Mr. Adamu Igoche.
The first presentation focused on Result-Based Planning and Management (RBPM). The major components of the presentation included Result-Based Planning (as sum of development interventions is sufficient to achieve the expected change) and Result-Based Management (as all processes, products and services achieve or contribute to the achievement of desired change). Other components included the importance and rationale of RBPM, Results and Levels of Results (as Outputs and Outcomes), Change, Problem Tree Analysis, Results Framework and Requirements for a Good Result. A correlation was drawn between the Human Rights Based Approach & Result Based Planning & Management with the submission that development is judged on the basis of the realization of rights.

The second and third presentations were on Project Identification & Preparation and Criteria & Tools for Project Selection. It was considered as a carefully completed planned and organised effort to accomplish a specific (and usually) one-time effort. Different elements in the preparation of projects were considered. The Project Cycle, Project Costs and Core Benefits, and choosing a project and criteria for economic analysis issues formed key parts of this presentation. Emphasis was laid on the component of Monitoring and Evaluation in judging the emerging results or final results with project expectations. In monitoring, emerging results are compared with expectations for correction and adjustments. In evaluation, we compare results with expectations at end of the project for future/new projects. Staff were also taken through the practical tips for successful projects. They were urged to fully utilise the Work Breakdown Structure. The work breakdown structures represent the hierarchical view of the project, detailing out the major deliverable to be completed in a chronological and easy to view format.
Teams, Teambuilding & Teamwork was the fourth and fifth presentations. One major focus was on the effective aspect of teambuilding with some tips on teambuilding, namely building identity early in the groups’ life. However, in teamwork, participants were made to discover that effective teambuilding only does not guarantee proficient teamwork. Good communication and proper conflict management were seen as very important to a team’s success. The most appropriate conflict management style for teams is collaboration. It is the style more frequently used for conflict management in teams, because members of a team are set up to work collaboratively.

The fifth presentation dwelt on effective Interpersonal Communication Skills (IPC) and negotiation techniques. Interpersonal communication was considered as the process of interacting simultaneously, sharing meaning, feeling and ideas with another person. The modules aimed to develop both individual and organizational capacities for conceptualizing communication issues more effectively, applying appropriate approaches to resolving problems, and negotiating more successfully. The presentation was rooted in the realities confronting the staff in their daily work. Thus, the narratives used for problem solving and negotiation skills training were a composite of concerns that participants submitted at the start of the Training.

The kernel of the entire Training was in the sixth presentation, Proposal Writing. Mr. Igoche dwelt extensively on elements and components of a proposal. One underlying principle in proposals was the ability to show clearly how the advancement of stated objectives would lead to the realization of results. Emphasis was also laid on the Monitoring & Evaluation and Sustainability component of a project.

The seventh presentation duel on the Spirituality of Development and Justice Advocacy Work: it was considered that in the history of Christianity and in the social evolution of the Church, most of those whose radical commitment to integral human development, justice, peace and solidarity had yielded astonishing dividends in their life time and even in their death, were people of profound Christian faith, hope, love, and prayer life. Notable among these champions of Christian humanism are Francis of Assisi, Vincent de Paul, Peter Claver, Damian the Leper, Martin Luther King Jr., Oscar Romero, Dom Helder Camara, Mother Teresa, John Paul II, and Jean Vanier, Canadian founder of the now well-known L’Arch Communities for the Disabled in many countries. These are people whose profound and intense interior life manifested so powerfully and so fruitfully outwardly in social activism. He quoted Pope Paul VI saying that human development work is essentially God’s work and it cannot be simply reduced to a technical problem. The challenge was for Christian development practitioners to constantly work towards the harmonious integration of all development initiatives, economic, political, social, psychological, ecological, moral and spiritual.

Staff Assessment
An assessment of all the staff performance was carried out with the aid of resource persons using SWOT analytical tool. This was to identify critical areas of focus for capacity building in with key thematic areas of operation. The process led to the development of work objective and performance indicators for each staff, was intended to serve as a guide for staff evaluation at the end of the year.

Development of a Strategic Plan of Action for 2009
Staff also used the period to develop plan of action for 2009 from the strategy document. The rationale behind it was to carved out specific issues of focus that could help in determining the level of progress and compliance with Strategic Plan.