Workshop to target cross-boundary CSO cooperation

AMMAN — Representatives of regional civil society networks and organisations from five Arab countries — Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and Syria — are convening in Amman from March 2-4 within the framework of the Vision Med 2030 Mashrek Workshop, according to a statement from the organiser, the EU-funded Med Dialogue for Rights and Equality Programme. 

The opening session of the workshop, which is expecting the participation of 35 representatives, will take place on March 2 in Amman, the statement said. 

The main purpose of the consultation workshop is to develop the capacities of civil society actors in terms of advocacy for a future vision for the Mediterranean region as a common space and a lasting environment for cooperation, rights and equality, according to the statement. 

It aims to provide an enabling environment for civil society organisations (CSOs) to engage in an “open reflection” to achieve this vision for the region. Participants will have access to policy dialogue, strategising techniques, exchange of experience, networking and building collaborations beyond national borders around shared principles and values.

The Mashrek workshop is the second in a sequel of three regional Vision Med 2030 consultation workshops. The first was held in Tunis in July 2019 for Maghreb countries. The third will be a “south-north” consultation, gathering participants from both shores of the Mediterranean, according to the statement.

Also on the agenda is a debate with Jordanian CSOs addressing the topic: “Regional challenges and civil society’s role in advocacy”.

“Civil society organisations are development actors in their own right. Their engagement in policy dialogue and their capacity to participate, reach out and represent, places them at the heart of social innovation and political envisioning, to build stronger democratic processes and achieve better development outcomes,” stated Gianluca Solera, capacity development expert of the Med Dialogue for Rights and Equality Programme, in the statement.  

Med Dialogue for Rights and Equality is a three-year (2019–2022) EU-funded technical assistance regional programme with the overall objective to strengthen the role of CSOs active on a regional scale in building sustainable development, regional cohesion and social resilience, as well as in influencing policy-making in the Southern Neighbourhood and the Euro-Mediterranean Space, the statement said.