This week I was in Kampala facilitating a workshop on Multi-stakeholder processes for senior advisors of SNV in Uganda.
It was the first time for me to be back in Africa since we left the continent some 4 months ago. Very nice to get my senses to experience Africa again, the smell, the colours, the typical noises. Kampala has grown a lot since I last was there in 1997, it is now very metropolitan but is still very chaotic.
It was an exciting week with lots of learning on all sides. The participants gained understanding of the concepts and models in multi-stakeholder processes and tools on how to facilitate these. They also shared cases of MSPs in Uganda. Some of them work with value-chain parters (oil-seed, pineapple) where they try to support pro-poor development through the production-processing-consumption chain in these products. Others work in education and water and sanitation where they support platforms of different stakeholders in these sectors at district levels. The week was very practical in that it helped the participants bring out the real challenges in their work and look for solutions both from the theory and practice of MSPs.
Wageningen International will support SNV Uganda to build the capacity of their advisors in MSPs over the next 9 months by three more face-to-face workshops in Uganda, coaching of the advisors and the creation of a community of practice within SNV Uganda around the work of MSPs. This week has been a great kick-off of the process and I look forward to meeting the participants again, later this year.
