Empowering the Cooperative Movement Through Advocacy Education

Dr. Barbara Czachorska-JonesDirector, Global Communities

U.S. Overseas Cooperative Development Council (OCDC)Cape Town, South Africa, November 3, 2013

Content

1. What is CLARITY and how can it help?

2. Current status of cooperative advocacy and what may help the community

3. What is cooperative advocacy and why do it?

4. Developing a cooperative advocacy strategy

5. Planning for success

COOPERATIVE MOVEMENT:

AN ECONOMIC GIANT BUT

A POLITICAL MOUSE?….

How can we change that?

Cooperative Law and Regulation Initiative (CLARITY)

The Challenge• How does a group of ordinary elected

national cooperative leaders – assure their organizations have an

enabling legislative and regulatory environment in which to grow and thrive?

– advocate to protect and promote their interests given limitations of:• legal/regulatory knowledge and experience• advocacy/lobbying knowledge and experience• limited time, human and financial resources• voluntary and transitory leadership?

• CLARITY is a series of activities designed to

help a national cooperative movement organize themselves to: – understand, analyze and evaluate their

cooperative law, – develop proposals and strategies for change, and– put those proposals into action through advocacy

and outreach activities

to protect their rights and interests and bring about cooperative legal reform.

Advocacy/ Outreach Campaign

EnvironmentalAssessment

Analysis/Evaluation

Proposal & StrategyDevelopment

Leadership &Governance

The CLARITY Cycle

CLARITY Tools Developed

• Analytical Rubrics to evaluate legal environments using the 9 CLARITY Core Principles.

• CLARITY Scorecard: set of rubrics which form a map showing the degree to which the law and regulation are in compliance with CLARITY Principles (conducted by lawyers)

• Profiles of various countries describing efforts in cooperative legal reform.

• www.clarity.coop

2011 Survey of national cooperativeapex organizations and their leaders

A total of 56% of respondents described their engagement in advocacy as extremely/very active

36% were moderately active

8% were slightly active

Major focus on cooperative law and regulation (71.4%), and sector-specific (65.3%)

Combined 70% respondents interested in changing current cooperative law in their country and combined 77% in changing regulation

Three main challenges include:- lack of awareness

of need- Communication- Lack of financial

resources

So What Is Cooperative Advocacy and Why Do it?

• Legislative Advocacy – involving legislation and/or legislative branch of government

• Regulatory advocacy – involving lead government official and staff of regulatory agencies regarding rules, regulations, policies affecting cooperatives

• Grassroots advocacy – involving members

• To engage cooperative movement in legal reforms

• Strengthen the movement• Deepen democracy• Improve public image and • Attract resources

DEVELOPING A COOPERATIVE ADVOCACY STRATEGY PLAN

• Define the problems and issues• Define the proposed solution• Analyze power and decision making structures• Develop Advocacy Strategy• Plan Advocacy Actions• Evaluate to verify what worked or did not, and how to

improve

DEFINING THE PROBLEMS AND ISSUES

• Study and research to understand the problems and issues

• Educate the co-op community and beyond about the context, the problems, the “facts and figures”

DEFINING THE PROPOSED SOLUTION

• Discuss, involve in dialogue and search for solutions

• Adapt to country context• Educate about the

advantages of proposed solutions

• Reach consensus

ANALYZING POWER AND DECISION-MAKING STRUCTURES

• Find and understand points where your actions will be most effective

• Educate• Target the message

STRENGTHENING YOUR POSITION

• Consider various types of coalitions

• Engage cooperative members

• Bring in international perspective (ICA Legislative Advisory Committee)

• Educate about your positions

TURNING STRATEGY INTO ACTION

• Plan and prepare• Bring in cooperative

membership and international perspective

• Educate about your positions

• Engage and educate the media

• Evaluate your actions to improve them

Practical Tools, Advice, Exercises,Case Studies

LEARN HOW OTHERS DID IT SUCCESSFULLY –MOZAMBIQUE CASE STUDY

Concluding:

• CLARITY can help develop successful advocacy actions - www.clarity.coop

• Advocacy is a means to a stronger cooperative movement and better cooperative enterprises: Too much is at stake to leave it to others!

• Turn a mouse into a Giant …

Thank you• Barbara Czachorska-Jones

Director, International OperationsGlobal Communities, www.globalcommunities.org

• 8601 Georgia Avenue, Suite 800Silver Spring, Maryland 20910United States of America

• email: bjones@globalcommunities.org• Telephone: +1 (301) 587-4700 • www.ocdc.coop