1. Towards Effective Partnerships
for Sustainable Development of
SIDS
Presentation by Cletus I. Springer, Director, Department
of Sustainable Development, Organization of American
States to Conference on Sustaining Development in
Small States in a Turbulent Global Economy
Commonwealth Secretariat, London
July 6-7, 2009

2. Outline of Presentation
 Notions of Partnerships
 Practical Issues in Participatory Governance at
national level
 Government, private sector and civil society
 regional level
 Intergovernmental arrangements (CARICOM, PIF)
 international levels
 Inter and intra regional partnerships and their impact
 Challenges of managing development assistance
 Challenges of bridging the S&T divide
 Recommendations throughout

3. Notions of Partnership
 Global recognition that the development
challenges facing SIDS cannot be overcome
in the absence of:
 a governance architecture that facilitates:
 integrated and participatory development planning and
management of their respective economic, social,
infrastructural and environmental assets and spaces
 a culture of sustained and enlightened
cooperation, collaboration and partnership at
local, national, regional and international levels.

4. Notions of Partnerships - 2
 Partnerships are commonly defined as
voluntary and collaborative relationships
between State and non-State parties in which
all participants agree to work together to
achieve a common purpose or undertake a
specific task and to share risks,
responsibilities, resources, competencies and
benefits."

5. Notions of Partnership - 3
 Effective partnerships may enable
development actors to:
 overcome challenges that are too difficult or
complex for one country, organization or sector to
address alone;
 increase the effectiveness and impact of policy
interventions and resource inputs; and
 better achieve their own individual objectives
through leveraging, combining and capitalizing on
complementary strengths and capabilities.

6. Notions of Partnership - 4
 In core business partnerships:
 Collaboration aims to:
 create employment and foster entrepreneurship
 contribute to economic growth, generate tax revenues
 implement social, environmental or ethical standards and
 provide appropriate and affordable goods and services.
 In social investment and philanthropy partnerships the private sector:
 provides financial support
 contribute volunteers or expertise, or
 make in-kind contributions, including product donations.
 In advocacy and awareness raising partnerships, partners assume
agreed roles in championing, advocating for, and contributing to
resolving different issues. Companies can partner with governments
and regulatory bodies, and participate in legitimate dialogues and
collective action with stakeholders from diverse sectors of the economy
(UN).

7. Some Practical Issues
 Myth that smallness makes governance easy
and effective
 NOT SO!!
 governance in SIDS just as challenging as in
large states.
 difficult for effective partnerships and sound
governance to emerge in a culture of
dependency, fear, ignorance and mistrust

8. Practical Issues - 2
“ In a small island dominated by a single party, it is
very difficult to prevent political abuse. Everybody
depends on the Government for something,
however small, so most are reluctant to offend it.
The civil servants live in fear; the police avoid
unpleasantness; the trade unions are tied to the
party; the newspaper depends on Government
advertisements; and so on. This is true even if the
political leaders are absolutely honest. In cases
where there are corrupt and play with public funds
the situation becomes intolerable - Sir Arthur Lewis

9. Practical Issues - 3
Participatory governance is a complex, long-
term process, whose successful outcome is
dependent on inter alia:
 the national political culture;
 the state of mind of the citizenry, in particular its capacity
for self-actualization, self-empowerment and innovation;
 the flexibility and responsiveness of the policy and the
institutional framework to internal and external stimuli;
and
 respect for human rights and for the rule of law

10. Practical Issues 4
 resilience building and international
competitiveness require that SIDS must:
 Set up development planning and governance
structures and processes that:
 are holistic, dynamic and fully participatory; and
 integrate and coordinate economic, social, cultural,
environmental, demographic, financial and spatial
dimensions to ensure the effective use of scarce human,
financial, and environmental assets

11.  The BPOPA:
 asserts that economic imperatives must be
evaluated from the perspective of socio-
environmental considerations if the natural
resource base is to be preserved
 advocates the adoption of interdisciplinary
approaches to planning and decision-making, as
well as the sustained public participation in the
process.

12. Practical Issues - 5
 Search for PG ongoing for past 2 decades
 Laws in place re statcorp Boards, Senate etc
 Barbados social compact
 Legitimacy/legitimacy politically determined
 Politicians reluctant to consult with non-
elected actors
 Partisanship
 Compartmentalized decision-making in public
sector

13.  The BPOPA:
 asserts that economic imperatives must be
evaluated from the perspective of socio-
environmental considerations if the natural
resource base is to be preserved
 advocates the adoption of interdisciplinary
approaches to planning and decision-making, as
well as the sustained public participation in the
process.

14. Practical Issues -6
 Civil society critical but weak
 Dependency on state affects legitimacy
 Heavily politicized
 Private sector have own governance
problems
 Not always supportive of labour and
environmental laws
 Some embrace of CSR …but long way to go

15. Recommendations – National Level
 Set up broad-based NSDC/consultative
councils to develop long-term integrated
development plans
 Set up local government structures
 Build adequate and effective decision-
support systems
 Build development planning capacity of
public sector using COMSEC TCDC and
MTSD

16. Practical Issues – Regional Level
 Partnership implied in and critical to success of
regionalism
 CSME –SPARTECA- PICTA
 OECS-CARICOM-PIF-AIMS
 Global dynamics re trade calling for larger role for
private sector
 Focus on labour and environment call for role by
trade unions …but
 civil society and opposition parties have minimal role
 Case of ACCP and Charter of Civil Society in CARICCOM

17. Practical Issues – Regional 2
 Lack of participation of PS tied to low level of
public-private partnerships and PS
investments in public sector projects
 Lack of involvement in global environment
issues – capacity, time, opportunity cost
 BOLT, BOOT schemes most prevalent – led
by banking and insurance sector
 Low uptake of financing opportunities such
as CDM, carbon trading

18. Recommendations – Regional
 Strengthening PG at national level critical to
success at regional level
 set up annual outcomes-oriented exercises
with private sector
 CPA can help in exploring PG models
 CPA can set up Study Group on subject

19. Practical Issues – Global
 Many emerging global partnerships
 Notion of “global public goods and services” – “global commons”
 Growing demands for strong global governance
 Little movement beyond conferences – still siloed
 SIDS unable to participate effectively
 Emergence of Inter-regional collaboration on climate change and
environment (AOSIS, SPREP, SOPAC, CCCCC)
 Challenges in implementing MEA/ISDAs
 Capacity building needed – UC-SIS and through EPAs
 Strengthening of AOSIS

20. Managing Development Assistance
 Many agreements but little progress in key areas of resilience
building
 Now sources of global funds but no “additional” funding – below
0.7% pledged
 Challenges for SIDS in accessing and using donor funding
 Paris and Rome Declarations on Aid Effectiveness and
Harmonization
 IEG Report finds:
 bias to single country funding – regional projects command only
3%
 WB-supported regional programmes just as effective as bilaterals
due to good understanding of political economy of participating
countries; clear roles of national and regional agencies; country
commitment but…
 Free rider problems

21. Development Partner Dialogues
 CGCED/CFD
 Dialogues on Jagdeo Initiatives, PANCAP, CREBAP, SEPA
 PIF annual dialogues with global partners
 Pacific Aid Effectiveness Principles
 Bridging the Technology Divide
 Strong progress on ICTs but slow progress on RETs,
Biotechnology
 The ECTEL Model
 Jamaica has strong S&T capacity UT- SRC-ICENS
 CPTM, OAS S&T, UC-SIS can be asked to help with design of
regional strategies
 South-south TCDC, CARILEC/Pacific Power on energy; CEHI-
SOPAC on water
 SIDS Technology Funds
 Strengthening of SIDSnet

22. Recommendations - Global
 Partnerships and PG weak at national level
and so weak at regional level
 Consultative/participatory governance should
be institutionalized and actively practised
 Civil society must be given a greater voice in
regional governance arrangement
 Sustained capacity building of social partners
critical
 Build S&T capacity

23. THE END
THANK YOU
 MERCI BEAUCOUP
 MUCHAS GRACIAS